Latest news with #PaulCalandra
Toronto Star
8 hours ago
- Business
- Toronto Star
‘Let them do their dirty work': School trustees react as Ford government takes over four boards, including Toronto public and Catholic, over finances
The province has seized control of four school boards, including Toronto public and Catholic, accusing them of financial mismanagement — an unprecedented crackdown that drew both criticism but also praise from trustees who've been stripped of their powers. With the Dufferin-Peel Catholic board 'at the brink of bankruptcy' and unlikely to make payroll later this summer, Education Minister Paul Calandra said he is also sending a supervisor there, as well as to Ottawa's public board.
Toronto Star
11 hours ago
- Business
- Toronto Star
‘Let them do their dirty work': School trustees react as Ford government takes over 4 boards, including Toronto public and Catholic, over finances
The province has seized control of four school boards, including Toronto public and Catholic, accusing them of financial mismanagement — an unprecedented crackdown that drew both criticism but also praise from trustees who've been stripped of their powers. With the Dufferin-Peel Catholic board 'at the brink of bankruptcy' and unlikely to make payroll later this summer, Education Minister Paul Calandra said he is also sending a supervisor there, as well as to Ottawa's public board.
National Post
15 hours ago
- Business
- National Post
Ontario government takes over TDSB, three other school boards, citing 'mismanagement'
The Ontario government announced it will be appointing supervisors to oversee four school board districts in the province after an investigation raised concerns about the financial stability of the institutions. Article content The affected boards include some of the largest in the province, including Toronto (TDSB), Toronto Catholic (TCDSB), Ottawa-Carleton (OCDSB) and Dufferin-Peel (DPCDSB). Article content 'Each of these boards has failed in its responsibilities to parents and students by losing sight of its core mission — ensuring student success,' Minister of Education said Paul Calandra said in a news release Friday. Article content Article content The ministry's press release said an investigation into the four school boards revealed 'instances of mismanagement and poor decision-making that put its long-term financial health at risk.' The government said the TDSB has rejected nearly half of the cost-saving measures management has recommended over the past two years and the board relies heavily on proceeds from asset sales to balance its books. Article content Toronto Catholic 'is at risk of default in the coming years' after tripling its deficit, compared with the prior school year, the announcement reads. Meanwhile, Ottawa-Carleton 'depleted its reserves, incurred an accumulated deficit,' the government wrote, noting that the board plans to offset the deficit 'from asset sales to balance its books.' Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board, meanwhile, is 'at the brink of bankruptcy,' Calandra said. Article content Article content The audit of OCDSB and TDSB, according to the provincial government, was overseen by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC), while Deloitte conducted the investigation of TCDSB. Article content Article content Chandra Pasma, the education critic for the Ontario New Democratic Party (NDP), condemned the move calling it 'nothing short of a power grab.' Article content Pasma blamed the Ford government which 'has chronically underfunded our education system,' that will undermine the schooling of students. Article content Calandra framed the announcement as a step toward financial propriety and a better long-term investment in local schools. Article content '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.'
Toronto Sun
15 hours ago
- Politics
- Toronto Sun
EDITORIAL: Let school dollars follow the students
Stock photograph of a young student in a classroom. Photo by Getty Images Ontario should follow the example of five other provinces on education funding and allow dollars to follow the student, a senior fellow at the Fraser Institute urges. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account In a recent commentary published on its website, Fraser's Michael Zwaagstra points to recent efforts that Ontario Education Minister Paul Calandra has made to rein in the out-of-control policies of large boards, such as Toronto District School Board, and says the province should go a step further and permit specialty or charter schools, which have proven successful in Alberta. Instead, TDSB seems more interested in social engineering than in teaching history, math and science. The province recently stepped in to stop the left-leaning board from renaming three schools — named for Sir John A. Macdonald, Henry Dundas and Egerton Ryerson. As well, a recent controversy has undermined specialty schools previously dedicated to students with demonstrated elite athletic ability or talent in the performing arts or in technology. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Previously, admittance to those programs was based on merit. In 2022, TDSB changed that to a lottery, leaving out in the cold talented students who'd worked for years to achieve the entry standards. Zwaagstra contends that if the funding followed the student, the school board would be able to open more programs for students with exceptional ability in certain areas. 'Since there's obviously a huge demand for these specialty schools, the TDSB should open more of these schools. The fact they aren't tells us everything we need to know about the TDSB's lack of commitment to school choice,' he says. A previous Fraser report referred to a 2023 report by Stanford University's Center for Research on Education Outcomes. It revealed that a typical charter school student had reading and math gains that outpaced those of their peers in traditional public schools. 'In reading, charter school students experienced average learning gains of an additional six days in math and 16 days in reading,' said the report. 'The researchers demonstrate that these learning gains were realized by tens of thousands of charter school students across the country, and progress was particularly strong among Blacks and Hispanics and those living in poverty.' Ontario's boards are mired in a mindset that rewards mediocrity. A bandage won't do. They need radical surgery. Canada Toronto Maple Leafs Music Toronto Raptors Toronto Raptors
CTV News
19 hours ago
- Business
- CTV News
Ontario taking over 4 school boards, including TDSB, following spending probes
Education Minister Paul Calandra speaks during Question Period at Queen's Park in Toronto on Tuesday, May 13, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Cole Burston 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. Investigations into spending at the school boards in Toronto and Ottawa were launched by Ontario's education ministry in April. The financial probe at the Peel board started in June. Previously, the government appointed a supervisor to the Thames Valley District School Board for alleged misspending, which included a staff retreat to Toronto that cost about $40,000. It 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. 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
