Steve Cardwell is an amazing individual. He has dedicated his entire career to supporting public education. Steve is a former Superintendent/CEO for five plus years with the Vancouver School Board and before this, Superintendent for the Delta School Board. Following his time in K-12, he became Director of Transformative Educational Leadership and Professor of Teaching at UBC. He is now the Vice President, Students at Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU). He holds a doctorate in Educational Leadership from SFU and an MA and BSc from UBC.
His experience working with public school boards and other boards and councils make Steve an ideal candidate for school trustee. He knows how schools function. He knows our schools. Above all, Steve puts students first in ensuring that whatever decisions are made, that they are in the best interests of students and their parents.
Steve is serving a second term on the BC Council on Admissions and Transfer (BCCAT) and is Vice Chair for the Senior Academic Administrators’ Forum (SAAF). He recently completed two terms on the Editorial Board and Council for the pan-Canadian EdCan Network.
Steve has served as President of the BC School Superintendents' Association (BCSSA) as well as an appointment to the BC Council for International Education (BCCIE). He has served as President of the BC Science Teachers’ Association (BCScTA) and more recently as a Director on the Science World Board and a founding member of the Symbiosis Steering Committee.
Early in his career, Steve served as President and Bargaining Chair for his local teachers' union. He also served on the BCTF provincial Bargaining Committee and Women in Negotiations sub-committee. It was during these formative years that he came to appreciate and understand the collective voice of unions -- and to listen and be responsive to the needs of unionized employees.
Steve is honoured to have just completed his term as President of the Board with Learning Forward, a 15,000-member teaching and learning organization. He also served for many years on the provincial technology education careers council (TECC).
At KPU, Steve is the lead person responsible for the Indigenous Advisory Committee and works closely with the First Nations in the region. He serves as an advisory member on the Supports for Success mentoring initiative for former youth-in-care and represents KPU at the Surrey Urban Indigenous Leadership Council (SUILC) and the Surrey Poverty Reduction Coalition (SPRC).
Steve was awarded the Queen's Diamond Jubilee medal in 2013 for his outstanding service to public education. In 2015, he received the Distinguished Service Award from the BCSSA and was selected as one of UBC Faculty of Education’s top 100 Alumni.
Steve is known for his valuing of ethical leadership and responsibility, building, and fostering strong working relationships, leading with empathy, and demonstrating exemplary communication skills.