Education Ministry fires back at Thames Valley trustees in budget battle

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Ontario’s Ministry of Education disputes allegations it has underfunded the region’s largest school board by $30 million after trustees approved a controversial budget with a $7.6-million deficit.

“Our government has funded education at the highest levels in Ontario’s history,” said Isha Chaudhuri, a spokesperson for the ministry.

For the 2024-25 school year, the Thames Valley District school board will receive an additional $34.5 million in funding for a total of $1.1 billion, she said.

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“We will continue to support London students by doubling funding to build new schools, as we have delivered seven new schools and one addition in London since 2018,” she said.

But the chair of the Thames Valley District school board doesn’t see it that way.

“We know that something must change in the way school boards are funded in order to maintain the integrity of the programs and services provided,” chair Beth Mai said.

The Ontario Public School Board Association analyzed school board funding adjusted for inflation and found funding has decreased by $776 a student since 2018-19, the lowest per-pupil funding in more than 10 years, she said.

“When you consider the number of students in Thames Valley that is quite a sum,” she said.

Trustees approved a $1.2-billion budget for the 2024-25 school year with a $7.6-million deficit at a board meeting Tuesday. The board is taking several measures, including the elimination of 124 positions and slashing funding for school trips and textbooks, to reduce the deficit that at one time was projected to be $30 million.

Tensions flared as trustees lashed out at Queen’s Park, saying the province had underfunded the board by $30 million.

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“From an historical perspective, the problem doesn’t lie in this room,” London trustee Sheri Polhill said. “What I understand is that there is $30 million being owed to us by the Ministry (of Education). What I also know is that the ministry has made it mandatory for us not to use any of our reserves. We must complete this budget, be compliant without any of the money set aside.

“The problem we’re trying to solve is we have a delinquent ministry who doesn’t understand the funding needs of the board.”

The major drivers of the deficit are unfunded statutory benefits, unfunded short-term supply staff costs for absences and a lack of funding for special education costs, said Cathy Lynd, the board’s superintendent of business.

Fifty-eight elementary school and 24 high school teaching positions will be eliminated. The board also will cut 17 early childhood educator positions and four positions in speech and psychological services.

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Linda Nicholls, an associate director with the board, said no current employees will lose their jobs. Some will be redeployed to fill vacant positions and those created by attrition, she said, adding many of the positions being cut are vacant due to a lack of applicants.

The board plans to reduce its special education budget by almost $1 million by using tablets instead of laptops and cutting spending on security by $300,000. Funding for school trips will be slashed in half to $500,000.

Funding will also be reduced for school budgets, printing and photocopying, textbooks and learning materials, as well as $2 million in cuts to instructional supplies.

Earlier this month, education director Mark Fisher told trustees board officials are talking with the province about getting the green light to close schools. A provincial moratorium on closing schools has been in place in since 2018.

Unions have taken issue with the job cuts and with 17 top board officials getting double-digit income increases – from 12 to 33 per cent – in 2023 compared to the year before.

Trustees made minor changes to the proposed budget before approving it. They cut $50,000 in staff development for the board’s director and supervisory officers and $57,000 in professional development for trustees.

A proposal to eliminate food for trustee or staff meetings shorter than four hours was shelved.

Trustees also voted to keep going with the school renaming process because putting it on pause wouldn’t result in any savings.

Thames Valley is the fourth largest school board in Ontario, with more than 84,000 students and 14,000 staff­ at 159 schools.

hrivers@postmedia.com

@HeatheratLFP

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