Yesterday's (December 1) move by Education Minister Paul Calandra to place the Near North District School Board (NNDSB) under supervision is simply the next step in his war on local democracy in Ontario school boards.
What's at work here is a blatant power grab. Calandra's claims that board takeovers will lead to "strengthening accountability and transparency across Ontario's education system" are demonstrably false. Actions speak louder than words, and the actions of Calandra's supervisors so far have made schools less accountable and less transparent. By seizing new powers to assume control over school boards, Bill 33 sidelines elected trustees and strips families of their voices in decisions affecting their children's education.
We have already seen the impact on boards under ministry supervision where trustees have been removed. Cuts to special education programs that were rejected by trustees have been reinstated. Supervisors have gained notoriety for not responding to parent and media inquiries. The minister's directive to halt live-streaming of SEAC meetings has created barriers for families to access critical information. These difficulties are what's in store for families in the NNDSB.
For families of students with disabilities, advocating for their children is a daily reality -- fighting to ensure they receive the supports they need to learn and thrive, and for many, to even attend school at all. Trustees are a critical part of that advocacy. In our survey of the special needs community, we found that at least 28.4% of students needed advocacy from their trustee during the 2024-25 school year. Paul Calandra is ripping that assistance away from our families.
Bill 33 must be repealed. It is a direct assault on democracy in our school boards, undermining transparency, accountability, and families' ability to advocate for their children. The government must listen to families, educators, and advocacy organizations, and work collaboratively to ensure policies protect students' safety, support their learning, and uphold meaningful participation in decisions that affect their education.
This terrible piece of legislation distracts from the real crisis in education: chronic underfunding that leaves students without the support they need. Individual board staff can't raise a public alarm about this issue out of fear for their jobs. Taking away trustees removes the last democratically elected voice that will speak out against funding cuts. Rather than providing the essential funding our education system requires, it serves only to obscure the government's ongoing failure to make those investments.
