durhamregion.com | This Week | Thursday, May 19, 2022 | 10 NOMINATIONS NOW OPEN It's in your hands. The Readers' Choice Awards were created for you to tell us which local businesses and service providers are the best at what they do! Once the nominations close, the nominees will be shortlisted and you will have another chance to vote for your favourite. NOMINATE TODAY to help make your favourite local business become a Readers' Choice Nominee. durhamregion.com The following candidates in the provincial election in Whitby Riding did not respond to a profile request: Emil Labaj, Ontario Party, Stephanie LeBlanc, Green Party of Ontario, Aadil Mohammed, Ontario Liberal Party, Christopher Rinella, Independent. See the full slate of candidates at tinyurl.com/yhwzpm3p. MEET THE CANDIDATES: THE FOLLOWING WHITBY CANDIDATES DID NOT RESPOND BY PRESS TIME PROVINCIAL ELECTION The Durham Catholic District School Board is looking at offering a virtual option for board meetings by September 2022. The board switched back to in-person meetings on March 28 with no virtual alternative at this time. Trustees recently directed staff to come back with a feasibility report on the cost and logistics of a virtual option. A new report says there would be about $23,700 in one-time costs such as video cameras and graphic design work, as well as $15,000 a year to pay technicians to be onsite to run livestreaming. Trustees approved a motion to develop new policies to support livestreaming and recording board meetings -- and offer a publicly available video archive that is retained "for a specified period of time, as recommended by staff." All other school boards in Durham are going with hybrid meeting options for at least the rest of this school year. The Durham District School Board (DDSB) moved board and standing committee meetings to a hybrid format in April. Trustees have the option to attend online or in person, while public participation in meetings is virtual. Meetings are streamed via YouTube with recordings available for viewing after the fact as well. Durhamregion.com recently talked to members of the public about how virtual meetings impact their connection to local government. Many residents said a virtual option allows for more participation and engagement from the public -- people don't need to worry about child care, transportation to the meeting location or other obstacles. For example, DDSB parent Alicia McAuley Ashfield didn't attend board meetings before the COVID-19 pandemic but started watching online in summer 2020 in an effort to keep tabs on the board's plans for virtual learning. "The virtual format makes it very easy to watch and participate in meetings. I particularly appreciate that while the meetings are streamed live, the videos remain on the DDSB's YouTube page and can be viewed whenever it's most convenient, which is ideal if the meeting time conflicts with dinner or bedtimes for young kids," she says. DURHAM CATHOLIC MAY OFFER VIRTUAL MEETINGS JILLIAN FOLLERT jfoller t@durhamregion.com Durham Catholic District School Board. Metroland file photo NEWS HYBRID MEETINGS AVAILABLE AT DURHAM'S OTHER BOARDS UNTIL END OF THIS SCHOOL YEAR