The Board’s role is one of insight, with an overriding objective to ensure that HTS remains as viable and successful today as it will be in the years to come. To achieve this, the Board’s responsibilities can be divided into three main areas:

• The hiring, training, support, evaluation, remuneration and, if necessary, dismissal of the Head of School
• Providing oversight and guidance to the Head to ensure that the school is following policies, compliant with relevant law and regulations (Canada Not-for-profit Corporations Act) , managing risk, adhering to budgets and managing resources appropriately
• Long term strategic planning to make sure that our school meets the needs of current students and that it evolves to meet the needs of future generations of HTS students

The Board is not involved with the day-to-day operations of the school such as bussing, curriculum, discipline, faculty, food, co-curriculars, or building maintenance. All of these areas, as well as anything else related to daily school life, are the responsibility of the Head of School.

The Board meets six times a year between September and June. Much of the work is done by Committees or Task Forces of the Board, each of which is chaired by a Governor. The Committees are comprised of Governors, staff members and non-Board members, as appropriate. The Head of School and the Board Chair are members of all the Committees and Task Forces. The Committees and Task Forces report their activity to the Board and make recommendations to the Board for approval. 

A Committee has an on-going mandate with no fixed end to its term. Currently, the HTS Board has six standing Committees:

1. Finance & Operational Risk (with Investment and Audit Sub-Committees)
2. Advancement
3. Construction & Site
4. Executive (Head’s Support Committee)
5. Governance & Nominations
6. Strategy

A Task Force has a mandate for a specific project and a projected end to its term. Recent Task Forces include the IT Task Force that prepared the way for the introduction of the Apple 1:1 program.

Each year, the Governance & Nominations Committee determines the skill sets that will be required for the Board to achieve the goals that it has set for itself in the upcoming 3-5 year period. The Committee then identifies any gaps in knowledge or experience that face the Board as it currently stands, and looks to fill them. The Governance & Nominations Committee gathers suggestions, makes deliberations and then recommends nominees to the various Committees of the Board. The Governance & Nominations Committee is also responsible for suggesting selected Committee members to be invited to the Board. The number of new Governors added each year depends on the number retiring from the Board.