Ontario’s education minister is taking control of four school boards, including the Toronto District School Board (TDSB) and Toronto Catholic District School Board (TCDSB), to address what the ministry called ongoing cases of financial mismanagement.
Paul Calandra made the announcement on Friday and said that the boards, which also include the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board (OCDSB) and Dufferin-Peel Catholic School Board (DPCDSB), “failed” in their responsibility to parents and students by “losing sight” of their core mission: “ensuring student success.”
“We’re strengthening oversight and accountability so that parents can have the confidence that every dollar is spent responsibly to directly benefit students. I have made it clear that if a school board veers off its mandate, I will take action to restore focus, rebuild trust and put students first,” Calandra said in a news release.
He said supervisors will be assigned to each board to address the alleged misspending, growing deficits and depleting reserves.
According to the government, the TDSB has rejected 46 per cent of proposed cost-savings brought forward by management and also relies “heavily on unsustainable proceeds” from asset sales to balance its books.
Meanwhile, the TCDSB tripled its in-year deficit compared to last year and is at risk of default in “the coming years,” the ministry said. The province also said that the OCDSB has “completely depleted its reserves” and the DPCDSB is at risk of financial default by August 31, 2025.
Calandra has taken a hard line on school board spending since he took on the education portfolio in March.
A little over a month into the new role, his ministry launched investigations into spending at the school boards in Toronto and Ottawa. The financial probe at the Peel board followed in early June.
At the same time, he appointed a supervisor to the Thames Valley District School Board in London, Ont., for alleged misspending, which included a staff retreat to Toronto that cost about $40,000.
He also ordered the Brant Haldimand Norfolk Catholic District School Board to repay the cost of a trip to Italy, where four trustees spent $100,000 on art for schools.
Last month, Calandra threatened to take over the finances of the Toronto District School Board if it didn’t get its spending in order. Officials with the city’s largest school board said at the time that the province was “deflecting” its responsibility in launching the financial probe, as it said its schools were being underfunded.
TDSB trustees have since passed a budget that would eliminate its $34.4 million deficit over the next two years.
The TDSB has not yet commented on the change, but in a letter to parents and guardians, the board’s director of education, Clayton La Touche, confirmed that Rohit Gupta serves as the supervisor effective 11 a.m. Friday.
“Last month, the Minister of Education appointed PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as a financial investigator and they recently submitted their final report to the Minister of Education recommending supervision. As more information becomes available, this will be shared with you. Our focus continues to be on supporting students,” he said.
The TCDSB said it is committed to working with the ministry and the appointed supervisor, Frank Benedetto.
The board noted that the powers of trustees are vested in the supervisor except for “denominational matters.”
“As this process unfolds, our focus will remain on what matters most: supporting student success,” the TCDSB said in a statement.
“Families can be assured that the Director of Education and the senior leadership team will work closely with the Supervisor to minimize any impact on students and classroom learning.”
The province previously announced a record $30.3 billion in funding for schools next year, but teachers’ unions argued at the time that the funding doesn’t go far enough.
With files from The Canadian Press
