Former NPA trustees Ken Denike and Sophia Woo split on running again

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      Sophia Woo is almost certain to seek another term as a Vancouver school trustee. The same cannot be said for Ken Denike.

      Woo and Denike sit as independents. They were expelled last month from their party, the Non-Partisan Association, after calling for more consultations on the school district’s new sexual-orientation and gender-identities policy. “It’s very important to continue to have some kind of opposition voice,” Woo told the Straight in a phone interview.

      Woo indicated that she may run either as an independent or with another party.

      Denike—who first got elected to the Vancouver school board in 1984 and served as chair three times—doesn’t sound too keen.

      “I’m looking at the options, including just saying goodbye,” Denike told the Straight by phone.

      He doesn’t regret appearing with Woo at a news conference on June 13 that led to their expulsion from the NPA on the same day. In that media event, they suggested that according to realtors, foreign families may not want to buy properties in the city and send their kids to Vancouver schools because of the district’s proposed policy on sexual orientation and gender identities. The policy was approved three days later.

      Denike said: “It was important that we represent the parents and that the parents have the opportunity to have their say.”

      Woo and Denike are expected to firm up their individual plans next month.

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