Ontario: Ontario’s largest school board has expressed concern over the new education bill, saying it would undermine the role of school trustees in many cases.
“We are very concerned that Bill 98 will hinder the crucial role of an elected boards of trustees in a number of critical areas, ” Toronto District School Board (TDSB) chair Rachel Chernos Lin said during the deputation before the Provisions’ Standing Committee on Social Policy. The TDSB said that if the Bill is passed under the Better Schools and Student Outcomes Act, the role of trustees in deciding which school board sites will be declared surplus based on the needs of the community will end.
Education Minister Stephen Lecce introduced the bill last month, stressing that his goal was to modernise the province’s education system.
Meanwhile, the TDSB said that school boards play an important role in ensuring that local priorities are given priority in public education.