Ontario Takes Over Four More School Boards Over Financial Problems
Ontario’s Education Minister Paul Calandra announced Friday that the province is taking control of four more school boards because of “mismanagement.” The boards involved are the Toronto District School Board, the Toronto Catholic District School Board, the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board, and the Dufferin-Peel Catholic School Board.
This brings the total number of boards taken over by the province to five in just over three months since Calandra took over the role.
“Recent investigations show these boards are spending too much money and running large deficits, even though they get the same stable funding as other boards,” Calandra said. “They’ve had chances to fix their financial problems but haven’t. It’s my job to make sure school money is spent on students.”
Calandra also said it may be time to rethink how school boards are run. He wants boards to focus on helping students, while the Ministry of Education gives clearer rules about how money should be used.
The president of the Ontario Public School Boards’ Association, Kathleen Woodcock, said that most school boards are doing a good job and take their responsibilities seriously. She asked the new supervisors to work openly with the elected trustees who represent parents and students.
Calandra said the takeover isn’t just about boards with deficits. He pointed to the Brant Haldimand Norfolk Catholic District School Board, which was placed under supervision after four trustees spent $190,000 on a trip to Italy to buy art for new schools.
The government also gave examples of problems with the other boards:
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The Toronto public board rejected nearly half of management’s cost-saving ideas and relies on selling school property to stay balanced.
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The Toronto Catholic board’s deficit is now three times higher than last year.
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The Ottawa board has used up all its savings and plans to sell property to cover costs.
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The Dufferin-Peel Catholic board is “almost bankrupt,” Calandra said.
The boards did not respond to the news.
The opposition NDP party criticized the government, saying it has underfunded education and is just trying to shift blame.
“Since this government came to power, it has taken over $6 billion from schools,” said Chandra Pasma, the NDP’s education critic. “Kids need proper funding, not political games and appointments of people with no background in education.”
The new supervisor of the Dufferin-Peel board is Rick Byers, a former Progressive Conservative MPP with experience in finance. The supervisor of the Toronto public board once worked for the federal Conservative government and has experience in public policy and finance.
Calandra also said Friday that the government is putting some new curriculum changes on hold to give teachers more time to prepare. A new kindergarten curriculum and history updates for Grades 7, 8, and 10 were supposed to start this fall, but will now be delayed.
The Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation welcomed the pause, saying there had been little consultation and the process felt rushed.
“We want to work with the government to get this right,” said the union’s incoming president, Martha Hradowy. “Students deserve a curriculum that is well-planned and supported by the people who teach it.”
