Latest news with #Calandra
Edmonton Journal
23-07-2025
- Politics
- Edmonton Journal
Jewish group calls on Ontario government to address antisemitism in schools following federal report
Article content 'Without the proper tools or understanding, this has proven to be problematic for individual school boards to navigate,' he said. Article content The Canadian Jewish group is also asking the province to create a 'standardized hate reporting system' and to streamline the release of its Holocaust education curriculum. The latter was delayed after the Ford government appointed supervisors to oversee some of the largest school boards in the province in early July, including the Toronto District School Board (TDSB). Article content CIJA's public appeal comes just days after it sent a letter to Education Minister Paul Calandra and Minister of Citizenship and Multiculturalism Graham McGregor on July 18 advocating the need for a 'joint strategy to address antisemitism within Ontario public schools.' Article content The letter, which was also authored by Landau and publicized on Wednesday morning, refers extensively to last week's Ontario public school antisemitism report. The report found 10 per cent of Jewish students had 'directly experienced' an antisemitic incident between the October 7 Hamas attacks and January 2025 and that over 40 per cent of encounters 'involved Nazi salutes, glorification of (Adolph) Hitler, or similar expressions of hate.' Article content Following the release of a federal report confirming widespread antisemitism within Ontario's schools, we wrote to the Government of Ontario, urging them to develop and implement a strategy to stop antisemitism in our classrooms. Jewish students are being harassed, excluded, and… — CIJA (@CIJAinfo) July 23, 2025 Article content On Wednesday, Calandra told the Post in a written statement that he was 'deeply concerned, angry and frustrated with the findings of a recent report on antisemitism in Ontario schools' and he pledged to intervene if school leaders fail to uphold standards. Article content 'Schools must be a safe place for every student to learn in a respectful and supportive environment. I expect school boards across the province to focus on student achievement and creating supportive classrooms, free of discrimination in any form, absent of divisive politics that leave students feeling unsafe, parents frustrated and angry, and teachers who simply want to teach but unable to do so,' the Conservative MPP said. Article content 'If boards are unable to succeed in their main mandate ‚ student achievement — by delivering safe schools, then I will step in.' Article content The minister of citizenship and multiculturalism reiterated Calandra's statement and directed the Post to the Education Minister's statement published on X. Article content Article content Deborah Lyons, Canada's special envoy on antisemitism, told National Post in a written statement last week that the report's findings demonstrated the 'need to seriously consider antisemitism education, not just Holocaust education.' Article content 'Something has gone terribly wrong with our promises of 'Never Again' when over 40 per cent of the incidents in this study involved Nazi salutes, Holocaust denial, and overt verbal hate such as 'Hitler should have finished the job,'' said the former Canadian ambassador to Israel.
Global News
15-07-2025
- Politics
- Global News
Ontario trustee has ignored requests to repay share of $145K Italy trip, government says
The government says an Ontario school board trustee has not acknowledged requests to repay more than $11,000 in expenses from a controversial trip to Italy, despite a threat from the Minister of Education to 'fire' him if he does not settle up. Last July, Brant Haldimand Norfolk Catholic District School Board trustee Mark Watson was one of four elected education officials who went on a trip to Italy to purchase artwork. The total cost of the trip was roughly $45,000, with a further $100,000 spent on artwork. The overseas mission sparked widespread outrage and led to an apology from the board. The government ordered an official investigation into the trip. It revealed several expenses, including a visit by the four trustees to an Italian Michelin star restaurant where they ordered four courses priced at €126.00 each, along with €216 on wine. Managing the fallout of the trip cost another $63,000 in legal fees. Story continues below advertisement In December, after the public furor, the four trustees agreed to repay around $12,000 each. Each signed up for payment plans of roughly $130 to $250, stretching their final repayment deadlines to between 2026 and 2028. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy After he was appointed minister of education in March, however, Calandra said he wouldn't accept the long-term repayments. He ordered the trustees to repay the full amount by May 23, 2025. The minister's office confirmed to Global News on Monday afternoon three of the four trustees met that deadline. They said that Watson, however, has not completed his repayment or responded to any attempts from the government to contact him. Speaking at the end of June, Calandra said he had outlined a clear threat to Watson if the money was not repaid in full. 'We are still waiting on one trustee who has made the decision he is not going to be repaying the cost of his trip,' the education minister said on June 27. 'As I said last time to this trustee, you have an opportunity to pay back, but if he has not paid back, I will be bringing forward legislation, and I will vacate that seat. And I will fire that trustee. I will not allow parents and students to be shortchanged.' The ministry's report shows, as of March 6, Watson had repaid $1,216.71 of $12,370. It is not clear if he has made any payments since that date. Story continues below advertisement Watson did not respond to questions from Global News sent through his contact form on the school board's website and to his campaign email address. Calandra said he thought Watson should be removed from his post — to which he was elected in 2022. 'Teachers going to Dollarama to buy (supplies) while this guy refuses to pay back his $11,000. And a former educator at that!' Calandra said. 'I think he deserves to be fired if he doesn't do the right thing.' The Ontario legislature is not set to resume until Oct. 20, 2025, meaning Calandra will not be able to table legislation to potentially remove Watson before then.
Hamilton Spectator
04-07-2025
- Politics
- Hamilton Spectator
Minister of education continues to keep tabs on Brant Catholic board
The minister of education has no plans to let Brant trustees off the hook for their Italy trip. Since assuming the education portfolio, Paul Calandra has clamped down on school board spending — including at the Brant Haldimand Norfolk Catholic District School Board (BHNCDSB), where four of six trustees took a trip to Italy last summer to commission art. 'I'm simply not going to sit back while students lose out and parents lose faith in the system,' Calandra told reporters at a news conference last Friday. He was there to announce a provincial takeover of four boards. While BHNCDSB wasn't one of them, it did come up. A review of the board came back in March with 18 recommendations, and Calandra gave four action items — many of which the board has already implemented, according to a June board meeting update. However, while trustees Rick Petrella, Dan Dignard and Bill Chopp repaid their $12,666 shares of the trip by Calandra's May 23 deadline, one has fallen short. Calandra said he's 'still waiting on one trustee who has made the decision that he's not going to be repaying the cost of his trip, which is ironic given the fact that this is a former educator, I'm told.' 'I think he deserves to be fired if he doesn't do the right thing, and we'll get that done,' he told reporters. The Spectator reached out to trustee Mark Watson, the BHNCDSB and Calandra's office to see if payment was made this week, but didn't immediately hear back. On Friday, Calandra said he's 'very confident' Bill 33 will pass 'before the end of the year.' The bill would give the minister more oversight of school boards — and not just when there are red flags for financial misuse. He gave the example of BHNCDSB. 'That's a board that was in a surplus position. We would never have known that that board was diverting money from the classroom so that trustees could go on vacations.' In the conference, Calandra announced the province was appointing supervisors for four school boards — the Toronto public and Catholic boards, the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board and the Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board. But all boards across the province are 'on notice,' he said. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
Hamilton Spectator
28-06-2025
- Business
- Hamilton Spectator
‘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. The four boards have either continued to run deficits or failed to balance budgets this year, instead relying on multi-year plans or wanting to use funds from the sales of properties to get out of the red, which Calandra told the Star shows just how precarious their situations are. 'It's gone on long enough,' he said in an interview. 'These boards have run multi-year deficits with no plan to come back to balanced budget, despite the fact that both Ottawa and the TDSB (Toronto District School Board) were trying to present balanced budgets at the last minute. Both of them — Toronto in particular — have balanced budgets based on the sale of surplus assets,' which are funds intended to pay for school renovations and upgrades. Boards, however, argue that even though funding from the province has increased, it has not nearly kept up with their actual costs — especially when inflation is factored in — nor covered mandatory increases such as employment insurance contributions. Supervision was unnecessary 'given the meaningful steps the board has taken over the years to address its financial challenges' and an independent report confirmed 'there was no financial impropriety on behalf of staff or the trustees,' said Toronto Catholic board chair Markus de Domenico, adding he was 'shocked' by the move. 'Structural deficits of this scale do not arise overnight,' he added. 'They are the result of chronic underfunding in key areas such as sick leave, statutory benefits and the high costs associated with operating under-enrolled schools, which boards are not permitted to close under provincial direction. These pressures are not unique to the (Toronto Catholic board) and are shared by many large urban school boards across Ontario.' The Toronto Catholic board initially reported a deficit of $65.9 million, but found savings and reduced it to $48.5 million. It had been asking for ministry approval to apply $30 million in building sales to the remaining deficit, and had a multi-year financial recovery plan. Calandra called the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board 'just a complete disaster' with an ongoing deficit, depleted reserves, 'trustees resigning and parents just in a fury over decisions that are being made.' The Dufferin-Peel Catholic board 'again, unwilling to really balance the budget, but also carrying historical bad decisions when it comes to long-term disability and managing it themselves … it only survives based on funding that the province gives it in advanced payments,' he said. Calandra said while not all boards are in such trouble, the supervision of a few puts all on notice. 'I'm just, literally, done with trustees or boards of education that go on tangents, that work outside their mandate, that refuse to live by the funding model ,' he told the Star. 'We have schools that are unsafe, teachers who are frustrated and students and parents who don't feel that they're getting the quality of education that $30 billion' should provide. He said he's frustrated with ineffective governance, 'and I'm reviewing that as well.' Weidong Pei, a trustee with Toronto District School Board, welcomed the provincial clampdown, saying 'it really has become abundantly clear to me that the (board) is dysfunctional. It's crisis after crisis.' Decisions are driven by politics, not data, he added, citing the replacement of merit-based admissions to specialty schools with a lottery system and the desire to rename three schools with ties to historical figures. He said recent budget discussions highlight how 'wholly dysfunctional' the board is because there were cuts to programs that will affect kids, but no cuts to senior administrators. Calandra said for decades, governments have downloaded responsibility to school boards 'to avoid owning issues, and that has to stop. Whether it's curriculum, whether it's safety in schools, whether it's budgeting, it is time for us to take on that responsibility as a ministry and make sure that the system that we expect is what we deliver.' He said supervisors will look at things such as unfunded programs, reducing bureaucracy or redeploying principals who aren't working in schools, and if structural budgetary issues are found, they will also be addressed. What does placing an Ontario school board under supervision look like? Toronto school board pools are not provincially funded, an issue Calandra said he is sympathetic to because of their history in the city, 'and where there's a shortfall in our funding, if that model needs to change, then we'll be able to do that.' Both the Toronto boards and Dufferin-Peel have been placed under supervision under previous Conservative and Liberal governments, with Toronto public in 2002, Dufferin-Peel in 2007 and Toronto Catholic in 2008. In April, Calandra put the Thames Valley District School Board under supervision, saying Friday there's been 'incredible progress.' That means five boards are currently under provincial control, a number not seen before. Kathleen Woodcock, president of the Ontario Public School Boards' Association, said that 'trustees want the very best for students and view this as an opportunity to pause, reflect and rebuild together in the best interests of all learners.' Her association 'also looks forward to engaging directly with the supervisors to help surface and share strong practices from school boards across the province — practices the minister himself has acknowledged.' Michael Bellmore, president of the Ontario Catholic School Trustees' Association, noted Calandra said 'most boards across Ontario are doing the right thing' and that 'we look forward to ongoing discussions with Minister Calandra and Ministry of Education officials regarding the unique circumstances of certain school boards, as well as challenges associated with rising sick leave costs, special education and student transportation funding.' The province is spending $30.3 billion on education for the coming school year, $2 billion for school upgrades and $1.3 billion for new schools. The school boards' association has said that per-pupil funding since the Ford government took power in 2018 has dropped (when adjusted to 2018 dollars), leaving a $693-million gap for the province's 31 English public boards alone. Calandra had sent investigators into the boards to examine their finances, and said Toronto public trustees had rejected about half of all savings proposed by senior board officials, and had a projected $58 million deficit for 2025-6. Toronto Catholic board Trustee Maria Rizzo wants to see how the province balances the books without affecting students and programs, such as international language instruction. 'If they think that they can do this better, let them try. Let them do their own dirty work,' she said. 'They don't give us enough money for special education and they don't give us money for any of the Catholic programs.' Rizzo said 'I get paid a nickel an hour — it doesn't hurt me. My problem is that the constituents I represent in my community won't be able to come to me and I can't address any of the issues.' Chair de Domenico said for the province to 'appoint a high-powered, high-priced lawyer to run a board with the idea of saving money is in itself ironic. It is not democratic. This is an attempt by the minister to take over the entire system and remove the public voice.' He said the board was 'caught up in this maelstrom of frenzy here to exert control over what should be a democratic institution.' Meanwhile, Calandra is also pausing for one year curriculum updates that were to be implemented this fall, including in literacy, math and STEM in kindergarten and history in grades 7, 8 and 10 to give teachers additional time to become familiar with the material and create lessons.
Cision Canada
27-06-2025
- Politics
- Cision Canada
OCSTA Statement Regarding Provincial Supervision of School Boards
TORONTO, June 27, 2025 /CNW/ - The Ontario Catholic School Trustees' Association and the province's 29 Catholic District School Boards, share the government's commitment to good stewardship of resources, accountability and fiscal responsibility. While acknowledging the appointment of supervisors at four school boards, we were pleased to hear Minister Calandra's recognition that, "most boards across Ontario are doing the right thing." Building on recent productive conversations, we look forward to on-going discussions with Minister Calandra and Ministry of Education officials regarding the unique circumstances of certain school boards as well as, challenges associated with rising sick leave costs, special education and student transportation funding. As the locally elected representatives of the Catholic community, Catholic School Trustees remain united in their conviction to "place Christ and the teachings of the Catholic Church at the centre" of students' learning experiences.
