Latest news with #JoeTigani
National Post
29-05-2025
- General
- National Post
OSBCU Responds to New Education Legislation: 'Police in Schools Won't Fix an Understaffed, Underfunded System'
Article content TORONTO — Earlier today, the Ford government and Education Minister Paul Calandra introduced the Supporting Children and Students Act, 2025, which includes provisions to make it easier for the province to take control of local school boards and mandates School Resource Officers (SROs)—police—in schools. Article content Article content In response, the Ontario School Board Council of Unions (OSBCU) is sounding the alarm. 'This legislation does nothing to address the real crisis in Ontario education: chronic underfunding and critical understaffing,' said Joe Tigani, President of the OSBCU. 'Instead of investing in more frontline education workers to support students and reduce violence in schools, the government is choosing to bring police into classrooms—a failed, harmful experiment that puts Black, Indigenous, and other racialized students at greater risk.' Article content These legislative changes represent a direct attack on the democratic governance and autonomy of school boards, allowing the government to exert greater control over decisions that may seem minor—such as naming rights or ancillary fees—but which have real impacts on equity and support for students. Forcing boards to implement police presence in schools is another example of this overreach. Putting police in schools does nothing to address the root issue: the lack of supports for staff and students due to years of chronic underfunding. The funds earmarked for this ineffective and harmful initiative would be far better spent on hiring permanent, full-time education workers who are trained to support students. Article content 'Forcing the return of police into schools is a deeply regressive move that ignores the lived experiences of those most affected—particularly Black, Indigenous, and other racialized students,' said Jehan Bisnauth, Educational Assistant with the Durham District School Board and Equity Representative on the OSBCU Executive. 'The Ontario Human Rights Commission has made clear recommendations on creating safer, more inclusive schools, and this legislation disregards them entirely. Police in schools are not the answer to anything. Our students need trained, compassionate education workers—not officers—in their classrooms.' Article content Since 2018, the Ford government has shortchanged public education by over $12 billion in cumulative funding. In the current school year alone, boards are operating with a $2.3 billion shortfall due to inflation and enrollment outpacing funding. The results have been devastating: fewer supports, unmanageable workloads, and growing inequities in our schools for staff and students. Article content Today's legislation is the first introduced by Minister Calandra, and it sends a troubling message: rather than provide meaningful support, the government is choosing centralized control. When asked about governance, the Minister's response — 'everything is on the table'— reveals a willingness to further undermine public accountability of education and the role of democratically elected school board trustees. This is yet another example of the Ford government's total disregard for local democracy. Article content 'This is not about safety or respect—it's about power,' Tigani said. 'If this government was serious about tackling the real issues, it would be hiring thousands of new education workers, not giving the Minister more authoritarian powers.' Article content Article content Article content Article content Article content
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
OSBCU Responds to New Education Legislation: "Police in Schools Won't Fix an Understaffed, Underfunded System"
TORONTO, May 29, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Earlier today, the Ford government and Education Minister Paul Calandra introduced the Supporting Children and Students Act, 2025, which includes provisions to make it easier for the province to take control of local school boards and mandates School Resource Officers (SROs)—police—in schools. In response, the Ontario School Board Council of Unions (OSBCU) is sounding the alarm. "This legislation does nothing to address the real crisis in Ontario education: chronic underfunding and critical understaffing," said Joe Tigani, President of the OSBCU. "Instead of investing in more frontline education workers to support students and reduce violence in schools, the government is choosing to bring police into classrooms—a failed, harmful experiment that puts Black, Indigenous, and other racialized students at greater risk." These legislative changes represent a direct attack on the democratic governance and autonomy of school boards, allowing the government to exert greater control over decisions that may seem minor—such as naming rights or ancillary fees—but which have real impacts on equity and support for students. Forcing boards to implement police presence in schools is another example of this overreach. Putting police in schools does nothing to address the root issue: the lack of supports for staff and students due to years of chronic underfunding. The funds earmarked for this ineffective and harmful initiative would be far better spent on hiring permanent, full-time education workers who are trained to support students. "Forcing the return of police into schools is a deeply regressive move that ignores the lived experiences of those most affected—particularly Black, Indigenous, and other racialized students," said Jehan Bisnauth, Educational Assistant with the Durham District School Board and Equity Representative on the OSBCU Executive. "The Ontario Human Rights Commission has made clear recommendations on creating safer, more inclusive schools, and this legislation disregards them entirely. Police in schools are not the answer to anything. Our students need trained, compassionate education workers—not officers—in their classrooms." Since 2018, the Ford government has shortchanged public education by over $12 billion in cumulative funding. In the current school year alone, boards are operating with a $2.3 billion shortfall due to inflation and enrollment outpacing funding. The results have been devastating: fewer supports, unmanageable workloads, and growing inequities in our schools for staff and students. Today's legislation is the first introduced by Minister Calandra, and it sends a troubling message: rather than provide meaningful support, the government is choosing centralized control. When asked about governance, the Minister's response — "everything is on the table"— reveals a willingness to further undermine public accountability of education and the role of democratically elected school board trustees. This is yet another example of the Ford government's total disregard for local democracy. "This is not about safety or respect—it's about power," Tigani said. "If this government was serious about tackling the real issues, it would be hiring thousands of new education workers, not giving the Minister more authoritarian powers." View source version on Contacts For more information, contact:Shannon CarrancoCUPE Communicationsscarranco@ 514-703-8358 Sign in to access your portfolio
Business Wire
29-05-2025
- Politics
- Business Wire
OSBCU Responds to New Education Legislation: "Police in Schools Won't Fix an Understaffed, Underfunded System"
TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Earlier today, the Ford government and Education Minister Paul Calandra introduced the Supporting Children and Students Act, 2025, which includes provisions to make it easier for the province to take control of local school boards and mandates School Resource Officers (SROs)—police—in schools. In response, the Ontario School Board Council of Unions (OSBCU) is sounding the alarm. 'This legislation does nothing to address the real crisis in Ontario education: chronic underfunding and critical understaffing,' said Joe Tigani, President of the OSBCU. 'Instead of investing in more frontline education workers to support students and reduce violence in schools, the government is choosing to bring police into classrooms—a failed, harmful experiment that puts Black, Indigenous, and other racialized students at greater risk.' These legislative changes represent a direct attack on the democratic governance and autonomy of school boards, allowing the government to exert greater control over decisions that may seem minor—such as naming rights or ancillary fees—but which have real impacts on equity and support for students. Forcing boards to implement police presence in schools is another example of this overreach. Putting police in schools does nothing to address the root issue: the lack of supports for staff and students due to years of chronic underfunding. The funds earmarked for this ineffective and harmful initiative would be far better spent on hiring permanent, full-time education workers who are trained to support students. 'Forcing the return of police into schools is a deeply regressive move that ignores the lived experiences of those most affected—particularly Black, Indigenous, and other racialized students,' said Jehan Bisnauth, Educational Assistant with the Durham District School Board and Equity Representative on the OSBCU Executive. 'The Ontario Human Rights Commission has made clear recommendations on creating safer, more inclusive schools, and this legislation disregards them entirely. Police in schools are not the answer to anything. Our students need trained, compassionate education workers—not officers—in their classrooms.' Since 2018, the Ford government has shortchanged public education by over $12 billion in cumulative funding. In the current school year alone, boards are operating with a $2.3 billion shortfall due to inflation and enrollment outpacing funding. The results have been devastating: fewer supports, unmanageable workloads, and growing inequities in our schools for staff and students. Today's legislation is the first introduced by Minister Calandra, and it sends a troubling message: rather than provide meaningful support, the government is choosing centralized control. When asked about governance, the Minister's response — 'everything is on the table'— reveals a willingness to further undermine public accountability of education and the role of democratically elected school board trustees. This is yet another example of the Ford government's total disregard for local democracy. 'This is not about safety or respect—it's about power,' Tigani said. 'If this government was serious about tackling the real issues, it would be hiring thousands of new education workers, not giving the Minister more authoritarian powers.'
National Post
16-05-2025
- Politics
- National Post
Ontario Budget Fails Workers and Students -- OSBCU Calls for Adequate Funding for Public Education and Urgent Action
Article content TORONTO — After a disappointing budget announcement that skimmed over public education, the Ontario School Board Council of Unions (OSBCU) is calling for an immediate surge in funding to address the understaffing crisis in schools across the province. This budget does nothing to address the severe understaffing crisis plaguing Ontario schools. Article content Article content Despite a reported $2.6 billion increase to Ministry of Education funding, the actual support for school boards, students, and frontline workers remains dangerously insufficient. Funding projections include a meager increase of $100,000 (0.24 percent) in 2026-2027 and $200,000 (0.49 percent) in 2027-2028 — both far below the anticipated 2 percent inflation rate. Article content While $55.8 million has been earmarked over two years to train 2,600 new teachers, there is nothing allocated to address the severe understaffing crisis impacting education workers. The Ford government also announced $30 billion over 10 years for new schools and childcare spaces — yet provided no plan or funding for the staff needed to support students in those spaces. Article content 'There is a clear crisis in Ontario's public education system, and it's students and education workers who are paying the price,' says Joe Tigani, President of the OSBCU. 'We're seeing violent incidents disrupting classrooms, exhausted educational assistants, shuttered libraries, and custodial services stretched beyond the limit. This is the cost of chronic underfunding and systemic neglect, and it's obvious the Ford government isn't taking this seriously.' Article content The scale of defunding is staggering. According to OSBCU research, school boards were shortchanged by $2.3 billion in 2024-2025 alone due to funding that hasn't kept pace with inflation and enrolment since 2012-2013, the year that real per-pupil cuts became a recurring feature of education funding. Since the Ford government took office, public education has seen a cumulative funding shortfall of $10.66 billion — a number that grows to $14.44 billion since 2012-2013. Article content Public education in Ontario is at a breaking point. Article content 'Students deserve the supports they need, communities deserve strong, well-funded schools, and education workers deserve respect and fair working conditions — and we won't stop fighting until they get it,' says Tigani. Article content Article content Article content Article content Article content Contacts Article content Article content Article content
