Get To Know Joan:
Joan Nellis
I’m a lifelong resident, passionate about public education and I am proud to have served 8 years as your trustee.
I bring proven leadership, a practical mindset, and a thoughtful, strategic approach to decisions. I care deeply about students, staff, and families—and I’m committed to making our schools even stronger.
Together, we can continue to build a school division that reflects our values, supports students and staff and strengthens our entire community.
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Why am I Running?
I’m running because I believe public education is one of the most powerful investments we can make in building stronger, healthier communities. A great education for all students isn’t just important—it’s essential.
I want every student who graduates from GPPSD to be well-prepared to be a great neighbour, colleague, and friend. That starts with a strong, well-supported school system, where staff feel valued and students feel seen and supported.
I’m not running to push a single issue or settle a score. I’m running because I care deeply, and I want to continue making a meaningful difference for students, families, and our community.
What am I most proud of?
Staff (94%), parent (92%) and student (84%) satisfaction in the division are at some of the highest levels we’ve seen in years. This speaks to the culture, management and governance of our division and that makes me incredibly proud.
My Values:
I value respect, ethical leadership, collaboration, hard work, and equity. Public education welcomes every student—regardless of ability, background, religion, or race—and I deeply value that diversity in our classrooms and communities.
What is the best thing I’ve done this term?
While it may not be the most exciting answer, I believe some of the most valuable work our board has accomplished this term involves building systems that promote accountability, transparency, and good governance. These foundational efforts are essential to our long-term success and represent meaningful progress. We started live streaming our meetings, created consistent communication to share with schools after each meeting, added a bigger and better student advisory committee and engaged differently with our teachers and non instructional liaison groups. We created a systemic approach to governance with better structure (new agenda, governance workplan).
My Vision
Passionate, Professional, and Prepared to Build Stronger Schools and Communities
My vision is a public education system that welcomes and supports all. A board focused on equity, respect, and strong relationships with staff and community, where we can continue building a system where every student can succeed.
Current & Previous Roles
4 years as Chair and 3 years as Vice-Chair
Division committees:
Audit committee, Advocacy & Engagement, Teacher Trustee Liaison, Non-Instructional Liaison, Negotiations, Board policy and as an active representative for many school councils.
Current Volunteer work
I am an active Rotarian and currently sit on a few committees with the club and district. I am an appointed member of the City of Grande Prairie’s Economic Advisory Committee. In the summer of 2025, I was a sports official for the Special Olympics.
Alberta School Boards Association committees:
I was elected as the Alternate Director for the North zone (4 years),
At the provincial level, I served on the Bylaw review and the Innovation and Artificial Intelligence committees. I have also served as a committee member on the audit, bylaw review and new trustee orientation committee at the zone level of the Alberta School Boards Association.
Employment experience:
I am a partner (since 2004) and Chief Financial Officer at a local equipment rental company. We have 6 locations and service the Alberta and BC Peace Country area.
Common Questions
Why should I vote if I don’t have kids in school?
The GPPSD board are responsible for a budget over $117 million, that is a big number. Caring about how it is spent is important. Beyond the money however is the fact that we are one of the biggest employers in Grande Prairie with around 1000 staff and we educate around 9000 students. Even if you don’t have kids in the school system, the governance running a publicly funded system, especially one this big, is vital to our community.
What makes you different from other candidates?
I’m not running to push a single issue—I’m running because I care deeply about public education and making a meaningful difference. I’ve worked collaboratively, advocated strategically, and championed practical solutions to the board. I also believe in building stronger communities through education, where every student feels valued and prepared for the future. I am committed to working hard and being an active, engaged Trustee.
How does your experience benefit the school board?
With 8 years of trustee experience, I bring proven leadership, a strategic mindset, and a deep understanding of governance. I’ve served on key committees like audit, bylaws, innovation and AI, and have helped shape better systems for accountability and transparency. My experience ensures decisions are thoughtful and in the best interest of students, staff, and families.
Why are you a trustee?
When I first ran in 2017, I had a personal stake in our schools—my daughter was a student in the division, and I was actively involved as chair of her school’s parent council. I wanted to better understand the decisions being made and be part of the conversations shaping our schools.
I care deeply about public education. I believe it’s one of the most valuable investments we can make in our society—dollar for dollar it delivers returns in stronger communities, better opportunities, and long-term success for all students.
My daughter recently graduated, but I continue to serve because I’ve seen what happens when boards lack focus or fail to work together. I’m proud to be part of a board that models strong governance, ethical leadership, professionalism and a clear commitment to student success and staff satisfaction —and I want to keep building on that foundation.
Do you support teachers in the current strike environment?
In Alberta, teacher compensation—including wages and other monetary matters—is negotiated provincially between the Government of Alberta and the Alberta Teachers’ Association (ATA). Currently, both parties are working toward an agreement. We all know that schools are nothing without teachers and I remain hopeful they will quickly reach a fair and respectful resolution.
Why are you running?
I am running because I am passionate about Public Education. Having a place that takes all people regardless of ability, faith and socioeconomics is essential to building our community.
During this time when the world seems divided, I believe we need to strive to make sure that our communities work with and not against each other. Where students see people who look like them and those who don’t. Where teachers learn from each other, and kids play together.
I am not running on a platform against one specific thing or for only one specific thing. I am running as a reasonable person who listens, learns and leads. I want to be one vote on a board of 7 that integrates varied viewpoints to make good decisions on behalf of kids in this community.
Election day
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Advanced voting Oct 9, 10, 11, 16, 17, 18 from 11am – 7pm