It’s not a career many kids dream of — school trustee.

But in a bid to spark interest in school board elections this fall, Ontario trustees have created a video showing children sketching their dream jobs: a space shuttle pilot, a scientist who clones dinosaurs and . . . a public school trustee “because that’s how you get to change the future.”

It’s a wistful pitch for respect from the lowest rung on the electoral ladder. Trustees are the names on the ballot most often skipped over, admitted Michael Barrett, president of the Ontario Public School Boards’ Association, which helped make the video as part of an upcoming campaign to convince people that trustees deserve your vote.

“You really do change the future as a trustee, because all those careers people dream of are impacted by education and trustees are the people who affect how education looks in your community.”

At a time when Toronto’s public school trustees have drawn fire for bad behaviour, groups representing Ontario’s 700 trustees worked with the Ministry of Education to produce the video, a how-to guide to running for trustee, an upcoming bilingual website about all trustee candidates in the province and a guide to what the job is all about.

“I know Queen’s Park provides the funding and sets curriculum, but we know our community, where the pockets of poverty are and new populations coming in,” said Barrett, whose board created a support program for low-income students at 12 inner-city schools after one Oshawa child came to school with leftover pizza crusts for lunch.

“We started a program with the city and retailers and nurses to offer free health checks and knapsacks and after-school programs,” said Barrett. “That wouldn’t happen out of Queen’s Park.”

Toronto trustee Sheila Cary-Meagher was the instigator of the award-winning Model Schools for Inner Cities program nine years ago that has blossomed into 150 schools.

So many parents spoke to Toronto District School Board trustee Chris Glover about special education, he created a monthly forum for parents, students and staff four years ago that has led to wheelchair-accessible buses for field trips among other innovations.

As a TDSB trustee, Gerri Gershon pushed for an unusual high school course about genocide that is now used in several high schools and other boards. Trustee Pamela Gough recently created a transportation charter that encourages children to walk or bike to school.

Trustee Cathy Dandy’s interest in children’s mental health led her to push for more awareness campaigns and supports for children in need.

“Staff can be great,” said Dandy, “but trustees have the ability to lead an issue forward to actually change the culture.”