School shakeups and trusty trustees

February 5, 2026 · 0 Comments

by BROCK WEIR

Suggesting that we should spare a thought for our politicians might be an increasingly unpopular opinion in this day and age, but hear me out on this one – if only for a moment.

We quite rightly laud our neighbours when they have the courage of their convictions to put themselves forward for an elected office to help foster the difference they want to see in the world, at any level of government.

Unless there is a significant shake-up in Ottawa, we’re due to next hit the polls in the municipal election of October 26. Incumbents and newbies have already begun to make their intentions known, and they deserve our respect for wanting to serve, whether it’s a desire that’s been long-burning inside them, or whether they’ve become civically engaged more recently with a Ward-specific issue that’s captured their attention.

Stepping up – particularly for the first time – is never an easy decision to make. Above and beyond whether your platform will resonate with voters, you have to consider a number of other factors.

Campaigning is not only a time-consuming activity in the most mundane of elections, the political climate in which we’re currently living is far from an attractive prospect.

If a candidate goes into a race with good intentions and a well-tuned pair of listening ears, it’s always a worthwhile exercise no matter how the polls turn out on election day.

If the numbers don’t go your way, at least you’ve learned something about the issues that are important to the community and the power one individual has to make a difference. If the tides turn in your favour, you’ve found yourself in a reasonably long-term commitment – and that is where those listening ears are particularly valuable.

When you take your seat, you already have a good foundation of what your mandate from voters is and what they expect of you.

A successful candidate is voted in to represent the voices of their constituents. This is the paramount responsibility of the office, regardless of which level of government is.

Continuous engagement is also very important, not only to keep your finger on the pulse of the community, but on a pulse that can evolve rather quickly. At the same time, a successful candidate has secured their spot because they’ve won the confidence of the electorate to make decisions on their behalf – and there comes a point where continuous consultation has to give way to making an actual decision.

Candidates who make the final municipal ballot this fall will, I’m sure, have a clear grasp of that concept, but it’s lining up to be another crap shoot when it comes to the election of our school trustees and the arguably less-than-welcoming political area parents and other stakeholders might be considering jumping into.

Last week, the Peel District School Board and the York Catholic School Board found themselves once again in the crosshairs of the Ministry of Education.

The Ministry made the decision to put the PDSB under Provincial Supervision, halting their plan to lay-off 60 classroom teachers, a move the Ministry says will “cause significant learning disruption for nearly 1,400 students” in the middle of the year.

The YCDSB, on the other hand, has been warned the Ministry will put them under Provincial Supervision as well if they don’t respond to “pressing governance and financial concerns” within 14 days of last Wednesday’s announcement.

“I’m taking immediate action to put an end to mismanagement and disruption at two school boards that are directly and negatively impacting both students and teachers,” said Education Minister Paul Calandra in a January 28 statement. “The action I am taking at the PDSB will put an immediate halt to a disruptive mid-year upheaval in staffing that would have created uncertainty for parents, students and teachers alike. I am also putting the YCDSB on notice that the infighting, disruption and serious financial concerns that have undermined student success for years need to end immediately, with every penny of public funding directed to support students in the classroom.”

The decision earned a quick and sharp rebuke from the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario, with president David Mastin stating the Ministry’s “takeover” of the Boards undermines their democratically-elected membership.

“There is growing concern that these takeovers are part of a broader plan to seize control of school board finances and real estate across the Province,” said Mastin. “This treats public education as a profit-making enterprise rather than a vital public service meant to serve every child. Parents and communities must join us and act now to prevent lasting damage to our high-quality public education system.

“Elected trustees are a critical link between communities and publicly-funded schools. They provide local accountability, represent and elevate diverse perspectives, and make decisions that reflect the needs of the students and families they serve. Replacing them with supervisors, government insiders with little to no education sector experience, strips communities of their democratic voice and hands control over to a government that has repeatedly shown disregard for public education. Government-appointed supervisors answer only to the Premier and the Education Minister, not to parents, not to students, not to communities.”

While I agree with EFTO that the above-mentioned scenario is troubling, it can’t be said there is no room for improvement when it comes to how boards like the YCDSB and PDSB operate.

In my more than 15 years covering school boards, I have to say one of the most disheartening experiences I’ve had in that context was the YCDSB’s debate over whether or not to fly the Progress Pride flag at Board facilities during Pride Month.

There were distinct splits in the discourse amongst both trustees and parents, with a far more unified voice in favour of flying the flag among the student body.

While parents and trustees argued amongst themselves, sometimes in language that would not have been accepted in the classroom, the students themselves passionately and articulately made the case, going high when an alarming number of those in the crowd opted to go low.

And this was not just delegates to the meeting; these were views expressed with equal passion and clarity by Student Trustees appointed to be, as their title suggests, the voice of students at the Board table.

Sadly, their efforts were nixed by Trustees, some of whom, by their own admission, leaned on their own personal views to justify their vote rather than on the voices of the parents and students they were elected to represent.

The Ministry of Education has mused on whether or not school boards are even necessary in today’s society. That is not a question I have – they are integral for parents and students to have a voice in their own education.

Whether or not that voice is being listened to is a question I believe should be equally integral in upcoming reviews, here in our communities or in any jurisdiction within Ontario.

You know what might not be a bad start? Giving weight – and maybe even a voting stake – to students who have been selected to be the voices of their peers.

They’re not window dressing; they’re there for a reason.