Latest news with #BrantHaldimandNorfolkCatholicDistrictSchoolBoard
Hamilton Spectator
3 days ago
- Politics
- Hamilton Spectator
Education minister vows to fire Brant Catholic trustee
A Brant Catholic trustee who disobeyed orders to repay Italy trip funds could lose his seat. In April, Education Minister Paul Calandra demanded four Brant Haldimand Norfolk Catholic District School Board trustees who took a now-infamous trip to Europe to buy art for schools (flying business class and eating at a Michelin star restaurant) repay the nearly $50,000 they expensed. Three trustees confirmed they repaid their shares of $12,666 ahead of the May 23 deadline. 'I, along with Rick Petrella and Dan Dignard, have repaid in full,' trustee Bill Chopp told The Spectator in an email last Thursday. On the same day, Petrella corroborated, telling The Spec 'I have, along with Dan Dignard, and Bill Chopp, fully repaid all amounts related to travel expenses to the board, in full compliance with the minister's directive.' On Thursday, Calandra told Newstalk 1010 host Deb Hutton he will 'fire' the fourth, who only paid '$2,000' of his share, CTV reported. Trustee Mark Watson owed $12,370. When asked last week, neither he nor the school board would confirm if he repaid the full amount. As it stands, Calandra can't remove a trustee — who is elected by the public — from their seat. However, he told Hutton he plans to bring forward legislation that would enable him to 'vacate that trustee's seat,' CTV reported. The Spectator was unable to reach Watson by phone on Thursday for comment. When asked, the school board said it doesn't have anything to share at this time. After news of the trip broke, Haldimand-Norfolk MPP Bobbi Ann Brady asked then-minister Jill Dunlop to call the four trustees and demand they resign. 'So, yes, I agree that this rogue trustee should be fired if he refuses to repay taxpayers the full amount of the Italian junket,' she told The Spectator Thursday. In a news conference earlier in the day, Calandra announced a Supporting Children and Students Act, which, if passed, would 'expand my authority as the minister of education for oversight and control of school board affairs,' he said. It would allow the ministry to intervene and put a school board under supervision without waiting for a recommendation from a third-party investigation, he said.
Hamilton Spectator
24-05-2025
- Business
- Hamilton Spectator
Some Brant Catholic trustees have repaid travel expenses after controversial Italy trip to buy art
Three of four Brant Catholic trustees say they have settled their share of Italy travel expenses, and the school board has cancelled part of the controversial art commission , but it may take longer to regain public trust. The Brant Haldimand Norfolk Catholic District School Board trustees flew business class, ate at a Michelin-starred restaurant and stayed in 'deluxe' and 'superior' category hotel rooms to commission art from an Italian sculptor for two new schools. In the process, they racked up more than $50,000 in travel expenses, initially on the taxpayers' dime. 'I, along with Rick Petrella and Dan Dignard, have repaid in full,' trustee Bill Chopp told The Spectator in an email Thursday. Chopp also shared a letter addressed to the board and copied to the minister of education (among others) where he said he 'voluntarily committed' to reimbursing his $12,666 share 'as a demonstration of personal responsibility and accountability.' He claimed he was 'assured' the 'pre-arranged' trip was 'budget compliant' when invited, and that the art purchases 'aligned with board goals.' Later, Chopp saw the overall cost 'exceeded what I understood to be within the trustee budget allocation,' and began a biweekly repayment schedule, he wrote. The four trustees initially agreed to a repayment plan which would have seen them all settled up by August 2028. But after a governance review, Education Minister Paul Calandra pushed the deadline to May 23. It remains to be seen whether the fourth trustee, Mark Watson, will pay the full amount by Friday. As of the April report from reviewer Aaron Shull , he had repaid $1,216 of the $12,370 he agreed to. He did not respond when The Spectator asked about the rest this week. Meanwhile, the board has negotiated the art purchase down from just over $72,000 to the already-paid deposit of $37,700, education director Michael McDonald said at a board meeting Monday. It has instructed the artist only to finish already-started pieces, and cancel any remaining ones. It could not say which of the five commissions it will end up with. The board is working to reduce the fee further, and still hopes private donors and Catholic and diocesan organizations will step in to help foot the bill, McDonald's report said. No donations have been received to date. 'Only time will tell' if the board is 'truly' moving forward in the best interest of students, according to Carlo Fortino. The acting local unit president for the Ontario English Catholic Teachers' Association previously called for the trustees' resignation over the trip. In a statement Thursday, he said the repayment alone is 'the bare minimum' and 'does not erase the damage done.' 'It does not absolve them of the decisions they made, nor does it restore the integrity of leadership that our school communities deserve,' the statement said. Fortino hopes the trustees have learned 'a critical lesson about priorities, public service, and the trust placed in them,' and vowed to 'continue to monitor' their decisions and actions closely in the months ahead. Haldimand-Norfolk MPP Bobbi Ann Brady — who pushed for the ministry to investigate the board — said she's 'keeping a close eye' on repayments. If they're not made in full, 'justice will not have been served. And I will be raising the issue in the legislature and with the minister of education,' she told The Spectator Thursday. Of the five commissioned artworks, the board will only get whichever ones the artist has already started.
Hamilton Spectator
23-05-2025
- Business
- Hamilton Spectator
New Brant Catholic high school opening delayed
It will be a couple of years before a new statue of St. Padre Pio has a home at its namesake school. The opening of the new Catholic secondary school and child-care centre in the north end of Brantford has been bumped a year, from September 2026 to the 2027-28 school year, the Brant Haldimand Norfolk Catholic District School Board announced on its website last week. The board simultaneously gave notice of three boundary reviews affecting all elementary schools in Brantford and the County of Brant, and all secondary schools across the board. The board needs to decide on feeder schools for St. Padre Pio, and two new elementary schools will be going up in Paris and West Brant, so the board decided to 'connect the processes,' spokesperson Tracey Austin told The Spectator. The province gave the green light for the new $45.7-million high school in 2022. It bumped funding up to $50.7 million in 2024. The state-of-the-art building will have 1,257 student spaces, and YMCA of Hamilton/Burlington/Brantford was selected to operate 128 child-care spots on site. But while construction equipment could previously be seen on the 17-acre site at Powerline Road, last week it sat barren. 'We knew that the 2026 opening date was ambitious and the project is simply not progressing on a schedule that will enable us to meet the timeline,' Austin said. The board wanted to give the community 'as much advance notice as possible,' she added. She confirmed the delay has no correlation to the recent ministerial governance review , prompted by four trustees travelling to Italy to purchase $72,000 of art for the new schools. The land was previously zoned for agricultural uses, and a sanitary sewer and water main infrastructure were going to be 'the greatest challenge' in the expedited timeline, according to a City of Brantford planning update from 2023. When the build has 'progressed to the point where we are able to establish a firm opening date,' the board will let staff, families and the community know, Austin said. A sanitary sewer and water main infrastructure is needed to transform the former agricultural lands into a high school. Students hadn't enrolled yet, but nearby Catholic secondary schools like Assumption College School are facing capacity issues. As of the 2023-24 school year, it had 1,829 students — almost 800 beyond the school's capacity of 1,032. And if elementary enrolment is any indication, numbers will continue to climb. The board reported a 16 per cent increase in elementary students between 2021-22 and 2023-24. It projects a further 32 per cent influx between this year and 2034-35, according to a presentation the accommodations committee saw in April. The review process will include public meetings. It's set to begin in June and could last around a year, Austin said. In the meantime, the board will 'work closely with the Ministry of Education and community partners, including child-care centres' to 'continue to provide new and innovative learning spaces that serve our growing Catholic education community,' board chair Carol Luciani said.
Hamilton Spectator
23-05-2025
- Business
- Hamilton Spectator
Three of four Brant Catholic trustees have repayed travel expenses after controversial Italy trip
Three of four Brant Catholic trustees say they have settled their share of Italy travel expenses, and the school board has cancelled part of the controversial art commission , but it may take longer to regain public trust. The Brant Haldimand Norfolk Catholic District School Board trustees flew business class, ate at a Michelin-starred restaurant and stayed in 'deluxe' and 'superior' category hotel rooms to commission art from an Italian sculptor for two new schools. In the process, they racked up more than $50,000 in travel expenses, initially on the taxpayers' dime. 'I, along with Rick Petrella and Dan Dignard, have repaid in full,' trustee Bill Chopp told The Spectator in an email Thursday. Chopp also shared a letter addressed to the board and copied to the minister of education (among others) where he said he 'voluntarily committed' to reimbursing his $12,666 share 'as a demonstration of personal responsibility and accountability.' He claimed he was 'assured' the 'pre-arranged' trip was 'budget compliant' when invited, and that the art purchases 'aligned with board goals.' Later, Chopp saw the overall cost 'exceeded what I understood to be within the trustee budget allocation,' and began a biweekly repayment schedule, he wrote. The four trustees initially agreed to a repayment plan which would have seen them all settled up by August 2028. But after a governance review, Education Minister Paul Calandra pushed the deadline to May 23. It remains to be seen whether the fourth trustee, Mark Watson, will pay the full amount by Friday. As of the April report from reviewer Aaron Shull , he had repaid $1,216 of the $12,370 he agreed to. He did not respond when The Spectator asked about the rest this week. Meanwhile, the board has negotiated the art purchase down from just over $72,000 to the already-paid deposit of $37,700, education director Michael McDonald said at a board meeting Monday. It has instructed the artist only to finish already-started pieces, and cancel any remaining ones. It could not say which of the five commissions it will end up with. The board is working to reduce the fee further, and still hopes private donors and Catholic and diocesan organizations will step in to help foot the bill, McDonald's report said. No donations have been received to date. 'Only time will tell' if the board is 'truly' moving forward in the best interest of students, according to Carlo Fortino. The acting local unit president for the Ontario English Catholic Teachers' Association previously called for the trustees' resignation over the trip. In a statement Thursday, he said the repayment alone is 'the bare minimum' and 'does not erase the damage done.' 'It does not absolve them of the decisions they made, nor does it restore the integrity of leadership that our school communities deserve,' the statement said. Fortino hopes the trustees have learned 'a critical lesson about priorities, public service, and the trust placed in them,' and vowed to 'continue to monitor' their decisions and actions closely in the months ahead. Haldimand-Norfolk MPP Bobbi Ann Brady — who pushed for the ministry to investigate the board — said she's 'keeping a close eye' on repayments. If they're not made in full, 'justice will not have been served. And I will be raising the issue in the legislature and with the minister of education,' she told The Spectator Thursday. Of the five commissioned artworks, the board will only get whichever ones the artist has already started.
Hamilton Spectator
01-05-2025
- Politics
- Hamilton Spectator
What happened in Italy? Luxury hotels, booze and fine dining: Here's how Brant trustees spent $50,000 in eight days
Aperol spritzes weren't on the agenda when four Catholic trustees visited Italy over the summer — but they did indulge in mojitos, beer, Baileys and whisky, albeit not on the taxpayer's dime. The elected representatives of Brant Haldimand Norfolk Catholic District School Board (BHNCDSB) racked up $127,000 in travel and art costs on t he publicly funded trip — plus nearly $63,000 more in legal costs managing the aftermath — prompting a ministry review. The report released Wednesday gives insight into where things went wrong , but also how the trustees spent taxpayer dollars which they have since vowed to repay. Here's a look at what it revealed: A picture from Gardena Grödnerhof Hotel & Spa's website shows a dish from Ristorante Anna Stuben where trustees ate a four-course meal. On July 8, then-chair Rick Petrella and fellow trustees Bill Chopp, Mark Watson and Dan Dignard boarded a Lufthansa airlines flight bound for Munich, business-class tickets in hand. Their flights averaged around $3,500 per person, each way. On arrival July 9, they picked up their ride, a grey Volvo XC90, and checked into 'deluxe' and 'superior' category rooms in the Westin Grand Munich. That first night, they ate chicken wings and nachos, Chopp told reviewer Aaron Shull. Dinner was included in the $6,700 two-night hotel bill, so it's 'unclear' how the $219 receipt Petrella submitted for 'dinner at hotel and parking' fits, Shull said. An Oktoberfest hall was their destination for the night — they took an Uber and stayed for an hour and a half, but did not expense their 'rounds of beer,' the trustees told Shull. On July 10, the trustees toured downtown Munich and the churches and ate the dinner included with their stay. The next morning, they checked out, driving the 270 kilometres to Ortisei, a 'resort area,' where they would stay for three nights, at a cost of nearly $8,400. One bill submitted from that time included 27 alcoholic beverages, including Campari sodas, rum, scotch whisky, Baileys, mojitos, beer, wine and digestifs (like amaro or grappa). While the expense wasn't claimed, Shull noted it as 'relevant' since the trip was described as 'professional.' It was February 2024 when Petrella reached out to the Saint Pio Foundation to ask about getting a life-sized statue of St. Padre Pio for the new high school being built in Brantford. Over the following months, Petrella had an ongoing email exchange with Guido Goller, a 'master sculptor' at the Giuseppe Stuflesser workshop, according to LinkedIn. The workshop made a St. Padre Pio sculpture for the All Saints Roman Catholic Church in Etobicoke, according to its website. When the trustees visited on July 12, it's 'somewhat unclear' how long they spent at the sculptor's workshop. The accounts varied from 'approximately an hour and a half' to 'the full day, with a break for lunch,' Shull wrote. That night, the group dined at Ristorante Anna Stuben, a Michelin-starred spot at Relais & Châteaux-associated Hotel Gardena Grodnerhof. There, the trustees indulged in four-course menus with wine pairings. Petrella was reimbursed for the total cost of just over $1,600 for all four of them. Some trustees took a cable car ride in Ortisei 'to enjoy the views of the surrounding Dolomite mountains,' according to the report. The next day, they explored Ortisei 'as tourists.' Some took the cable car 'to enjoy the views of the surrounding Dolomite mountains' and 'strolled around afterward, browsing through the local shops and boutiques.' The trustees expensed four dinners at the Hotel Angelo Engel that night, to the tune of around $360. The next day, they drove back to Munich, and paid $1,182 to stay at the Hilton Airport hotel for the night. On July 15, they returned to Canada and took a $316 limo from the airport to the board office in Brantford. A portion from each trustee's biweekly honorarium payment is being deducted to repay their trip expenses, as they vowed to do after people expressed outrage over the travel. Of the $12,666 they each owe, as of March 6, the trustees have repaid $2,102 (Petrella), $1,072 (Dignard) and $2,262 (Chopp). Watson has repaid $1,216 of the $12,370 he agreed to, the report said. At this rate, it will be August 2028 before all have settled up — long after their current term ends with the next municipal election scheduled for October 2026, Shull noted. The trustees believed they could cover the nearly $70,000 spent on art through donations. However, Shull didn't find evidence to confirm any donations, raising questions about 'the feasibility' and 'whether public funds may eventually be required.' Education Minister Paul Calandra has given the board 30 days to repay the province for the trustee travel expenses, art and artifacts. 'To be clear, I expect immediate action in Brant, and if I am not satisfied I will take additional steps,' he said at a news conference Wednesday. Trustees travelled to Italy to get artwork for St. Padre Pio Catholic Secondary School. Signage shows the future site of the Brantford school in a file photo. Calandra called out other boards he has his eye on. He put Thames Valley District School Board under supervision after senior board officials took a $40,000 retreat at Toronto's SkyDome hotel amid a 'multimillion-dollar budget deficit.' The 'structural deficits over multiple years' at Thames Valley didn't show 'any clear path back to a balanced budget, differentiating its situation from Brant's,' and preventing the board from the same fate, he told reporters. However, if BHNCDSB doesn't 'fully implement' the province's recommendations 'and report back to me very quickly that they have done so,' he will take 'further actions' to ensure 'maximum accountability.' A spokesperson for the board said Wednesday it had 'just received' the report and will be 'taking time to examine' it. 'As always, the board will co-operate with the minister and the Ministry of Education. The board will review the recommendations contained within the report, and once we have thoroughly examined it, we will be able to share additional information,' the statement continued.
