A visit earlier this yr by workers with the Lambton Kent District College Board has prompted an audit of college boards throughout Ontario.
Premier Doug Ford discovered of the January journey to Hawaii by LKDSB workers to attend an Worldwide Convention on Training in a CBC article. He mentioned the federal government is now calling for an audit of discretionary spending in any respect public and Catholic faculty boards.
Sarnia-Lambton MPP Bob Bailey mentioned the LKDSB journey was the newest in a collection of discoveries surrounding questionable spending at Ontario faculty boards, and the premier has had sufficient.
“He is requested the Minister of Training Jill Dunlop for an audit on all discretionary spending as a result of this is not the primary one,” mentioned Bailey. “We did not wish to centre out Lambton-Kent however there’s a minimum of 4 different boards throughout the province which have achieved questionable spending on these journeys. He is asking them to come back ahead, and if there’s every other questionable spending to inform him about it.”
When contacted by Sarnia Information Immediately in September about latest worldwide journeys, the board mentioned the Hawaii convention aligned with the Board Motion Plan priorities, particularly Indigenous language revitalization, and was permitted by the Indigenous Liaison Committee and met a selected goal.
The board mentioned 4 workers members attended, three unionized and the LKDSB Indigenous Lead, nonetheless particulars surrounding the price of the journey weren’t disclosed.
Bailey mentioned it is disappointing.
“The funding needs to be going to the school rooms, to the scholars and to the academics,” he mentioned. “Particularly with this journey to Hawaii. It is my understanding that the identical factor may have been achieved on-line proper right here in Ontario, in Canada, with out having to go away the nation. That is what the actual drawback is and the actual query.”
The general public faculty board additionally confirmed six unionized workers attended a convention in Las Vegas in Could of 2023.
It mentioned the convention associated to implementation of End result Primarily based Evaluation being carried out in all Grade 9 and 10 courses and met a selected want.
Bills for the journey had been lined by Secondary and Pupil Success skilled improvement budgets.
There are over 21,700 college students that attend faculties underneath the Lambton Kent District College board in Sarnia-Lambton and Chatham-Kent.
