Ministry says NNDSB breached commitments regarding McDougall
Ontario's Minister of Education, Paul Calandra, has accused the Near North District School Board (NNDSB) of breaching prior commitments made to the ministry.
He detailed his message in a letter to St. Pierre, which the ministry also sent to BayToday. His concerns regarded the board's decision to keep open McDougall Public School in Parry Sound. The decision — which faced opposition from some trustees — drew criticism from the minister.
'My expectation remains unchanged,' Calandra emphasized. As outlined in a previous letter, he expects the board to reverse its decision and carry out the commitments previously made.
See:
'Unacceptable,' minister says of school board's decision to open McDougall
Calandra explained to St. Pierre that the board's decision to keep the school open 'reverses more than 10 years of work and capital planning, creates serious financial implications for the board, and fails to follow through on the board's previous commitments.'
The minister also stated that his letter aimed to correct what he described as inaccuracies in St. Pierre's earlier communications with the ministry.
See:
School board leaders push back against education minister's 'threatening' letter
He emphasized the decision to reduce the size of the new Parry Sound K-12 school – set to open this fall, and will accommodate students from Parry Sound High School, Nobel and McDougall public schools – was not made by the Ministry of Education.
'School boards are responsible for their own capital planning, and for submitting proposed projects to the ministry for consideration,' Calandra detailed.
The minister explained the new Parry Sound K-12 school was approved in 2015 through the School Consolidation Capital Program. Before submitting the project to the ministry, 'Your board would have conducted the necessary community engagement, as per your own policies and procedures.'
When the ministry approved the project, it allocated $27.6 million to support the construction of a 1,085-pupil school.
These were the projected enrolment numbers provided by the school board, the ministry noted. He emphasized, 'The ministry approved a request from your own board to reduce the number of pupil places in February 2020.'
Calandra explained the request to reduce was based on updated board enrolment projects, the available space in other area schools and the use of portables for peak enrolment period.
See:
NNDSB keeps McDougall Public School alive for another year
In December 2022, the closure of McDougall Public School was reaffirmed, Calandra said, and the ministry agreed to provide $44 million to fund the project. That number has since risen. Calandra noted that funding later increased to $58.6 million in 2023 so that NNDSB could award a contract for construction.
The minister mentioned to St. Pierre, 'You also assert that the board was unaware that McDougall Public School could be used to support French-language access in the region. However, there have been discussions with Conseil scolaire public du Nord-Est de l'Ontario regarding how this property could be used to support French-language access in this region.'
He clarified that similar conversations took place with the NNDSB as well, going back to 2021-22.
Further, the minister outlined how the Conseil scolaire public du Nord-Est de l'Ontario indicated to the ministry that board members visited McDougall to assess the location in 2023, with the NNDSB's knowledge.
The issue will return for discussion at the school board's next meeting on May 13.
David Briggs is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter who works out of BayToday, a publication of Village Media. The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada.
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