色色啦

The two large urban boards are among a handful that now find themselves in the crosshairs of the Ford government, which is sending investigators in to probe their finances, while also warning it will take them over if they don’t balance their books.聽

“We are working with the ministry聽鈥� we’ve been since August of last year and we’re co-operatively working with them to address these challenges,” said Markus de Domenico, chair of the 色色啦 Catholic District School Board.

“We’re committed to maintaining the fiscal integrity of the board and being very respectful of taxpayers dollars. We always have been,” he added. “We found $80 million in savings in the last three years, and we’ve got another $10 million that we found this year.”

At the 色色啦 District School Board, staff have been busy looking for savings. On Friday, , ahead of next week鈥檚 budget meetings, where trustees will also hear from the public. It鈥檚 up to trustees to decide, and vote, on the budget.

Originally, TDSB staff were looking at getting the projected deficit down to $11 million from $70 million, as outlined in the board’s deficit recovery plan. But this past week, the ministry rejected that plan, so staff had to look for additional ways to reach a balanced budget.

One positive impact is the聽elimination of the consumer carbon price, which will save the 色色啦 public board $12 million. That means that to reach a balanced budget, $58 million in cuts and savings must be made.

Options include eliminating the itinerant music instructors program; closing pools that aren鈥檛 leased; laying off all 86 TDSB aquatic instructors; and ensuring the nine outdoor education facilities operate on a cost-recovery basis, which could mean cutting staff or closing centres. Another option is that the one-to-one device program, in which kids receive a Chromebook for educational use, begin in Grade 7, rather than Grade 5.聽

Currently, there are 74 itinerant music instructors聽鈥斅爌rofessional musicians who enrich the music curriculum by teaching kids strings, steel pan and band. According to the report, the program isn’t funded by the province, and it’s not offered in all schools.

The board also receives no funding for its 66 pools聽鈥� 27 are leased by the聽City of 色色啦, and two by private third parties to run after-hours programs. On the table is the closure of all the pools that aren’t leased, which would be about half of them.

鈥淲e are deeply saddened to learn that 色色啦鈥檚 school pools are once again at risk,鈥� said Trustee Shelley Laskin and City Coun. Josh Matlow in a joint statement. 鈥淟earning how to swim is an essential part of a child鈥檚 education. School pools ensure that kids from all backgrounds have access to lifesaving skills they can rely on.鈥�

Across the province, 31 of 72 boards ran deficits this school year totalling $200 million, 26 reported a surplus totalling $11 million, and 15 balanced their books.

鈥淎ll boards are struggling,鈥� said Michael Bellmore, president of the Ontario Catholic School Trustees’ Association, which represents the聽province鈥檚 Catholic boards. 鈥淪ick leave costs are a real burden to boards in general.”

He said the provincial moratorium on school closures also has 鈥渁 huge impact to budgets,鈥� noting some boards would 鈥渓ike the ability to right-size the school.鈥�

Education Minister Paul Calandra, who’s also probing three other boards, said he’s putting all on notice that funding needs to be spent in classrooms, and not on administration.

The government was incensed over reports of a pricey retreat for senior leaders in the Thames Valley public board聽鈥� which Calandra has put under provincial supervision聽鈥� as well as a summer trip to Italy last year by four , especially when a number of boards were crying poor.

Even Premier Doug Ford lashed out at boards on Thursday, telling reporters that “people are frustrated” with them.

“Did you say the word school boards? They lose their minds. But they have to be held accountable. You can’t be on a trip to Italy and spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on artwork for the school ... you can’t spend $21,000, like one school board, to have a grand old time at the Blue Jays game.”

Boards, he added, can’t be “spending taxpayers money and then coming back and saying we need more money.”

But the tale of why boards like the two in 色色啦 continue to run deficits is not so clear-cut; much of the shortfall is because of sick leave costs, inflationary pressures as well as mandatory increases to benefits such as employment insurance.聽聽

For instance, at the public board, the unfunded portion of statutory benefits聽鈥� Canada Pension Plan (CPP) and Employment聽聽Insurance (EI)聽鈥� is $43.7 million. Also, the unfunded portion of its teachers’ salaries this year is projected to be $26.1 million.

Pre-COVID, the Catholic board had a surplus, and additional funds it spent during the pandemic have not been reimbursed by the province, said de Domenico.

Now, two-thirds of the 色色啦 Catholic board’s deficit, which is just under $66 million, is attributed to sick leave costs, and the $48 million it spends is not covered by the province.聽聽

“That is not because we are not managing the plan,” de Domenico said. “It’s because that is what it costs, and we are doing our best to manage it.”

The province, he added, “has not increased their contribution to EI and the pension plan that we are required to provide聽鈥� that’s $18 million, and keeping in mind that boards have no way of raising money to cover shortfalls, other than cuts.”