Education Minister Paul Calandra wants to make sure that trustees follow a code of conduct after learning that some were planning meetings after being elected this past Monday.
The trustees intended to hold these meetings to discuss matters with families, despite lacking any governing authority. The Ford government has placed eight school boards under supervision, including the Toronto District and Toronto Catholic boards, which means the trustees can’t hold official meetings.
Initially, Calandra stated they wouldn’t be sworn in for this reason, meaning both re-elected and newly elected trustees would not officially take on their roles.
Some had previously mentioned holding community gatherings at libraries or community centers and even planned to live stream them so parents could watch. Calandra noted that if anyone chooses to proceed with such gatherings, the integrity commissioner will receive details to look into any rule-breaking by trustees.
“What they immediately decided to do was work outside the code of conduct, set aside that they are still responsible and could at one point be responsible for governing a board, and find loop holes around doing the right thing,” he said. “So we will swear them in, they will be subject to the code of conduct, the supervisors will retain their positions in these boards and will continue to manage the affairs of the boards until such a time as we return it to them.”
“We certainly can have public meetings with our constituents. We can participate in rallies, we can participate in community events. We are still elected by our communities and we’re still able to represent them through various channels,” said TDSB trustee Alexis Dawson.
Calandra mentioned that he has instructed board supervisors and CEOs to have the new trustees sworn in by Nov. 15. This may push back when the first board meetings happen, but those likely won’t occur soon.
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