1.2 "Making a success of oneself has little value in an existential crisis" with Drs. Wendy Poole and Gerald Fallon

In our second episode of Public Good, Shannon and Stephen are joined by two guests, Dr. Gerald Fallon and Dr. Wendy Poole. Gerald and Wendy are co-authors of many articles about the impacts of neoliberalism on K-12 education, specifically as it relates to education funding in BC. In 2021 they released their co-authored book, Neoliberalism and Public Education Finance Policy in Canada and Its Impacts in/on Public Education. Dr. Poole and Dr. Fallon are also both professors in the Department of Educational Studies in the Faculty of Education at UBC (@edstubc). In this episode, we explore neoliberalism, and how neoliberal thinking motivated market oriented education financing in BC. Wendy and Gerald explain how an amendment to the school act in 2002 led to the creation of ‘school district business companies’. As the responsibility to fund education has landed on school district’s doors, issues of equity have emerged.