TDSB warns of cuts to student programs if Ontario does not reimburse pandemic-related costs

The Toronto District School Board (TDSB) is asking the Ontario government to repay pandemic-related costs it incurred, warning that failure to do so could lead to cuts in student programs and services amid a $61 million deficit for the next school year,

On Wednesday, TDSB Chair Rachel Chernos Lin and TDSB Director Colleen Russell-Rawlins made the request in a letter to Education Minister Stephen Lecce.

“We are writing to you today to request that the Provincial Government repay the pandemic costs incurred by the TDSB so that we can continue to deliver the programs and services that students require for academic success, safety and well-being,” they wrote.

They said the board used about $70.1 million to ensure that Toronto public schools met health guidelines and provided a safe environment for staff and students during the COVID-19 pandemic.

And while the province provided additional investments to school boards during the pandemic, that amount was not covered by the ministry.

“If the pandemic costs incurred by the board were reimbursed by the ministry, the TDSB would have additional funding to support its current financial shortfall without having to reduce programs and services for students,” they wrote.

Chernos Lin and Russell-Rawlins wrote in the letter the TDSB used and depleted its reserves to implement COVID-19 safety measures by provincial and Toronto Public Health (TPH) officials. In the letter, they provided reducing class sizes as an example in which the board’s reserves were used.

“To achieve TPH’s recommendation of reducing class sizes to help stop the spread of COVID-19 and to support remote and in-person learning, the TDSB was required to use its own resources of approximately $55.1 million to cover additional staffing costs and $15.0 million for other COVID-19 related expenditures,” they wrote

Chernos Lin and Russell-Rawlins pointed out that the province has already committed to funding a third of the City of Toronto’s pandemic budget short fall in 2022.

“Once again, we are asking that the provincial government similarly recognize the impact of the pandemic on the TDSB’s financial situation and reimburse the board for pandemic costs that were required to keep students, staff and the community safe,” they wrote.

The board had previously said the forecasted deficit of $61 million is due to ministry funding gaps in a number of areas. In the letter, officials noted that the TDSB was already facing a structural deficit before the pandemic due to “misalignment between TDSB commitments and the provincial funding formula.”

It was not addressed during the pandemic as all resources were poured into making sure students and staff had a safe learning environment during the pandemic, they said.

“We are doing our very best, really. We are doing our very best and our staff go above and beyond each and every day. But the reality is we are not funded related to the cost that we incur,” Chernos Lin said in an interview with CP24 Wednesday afternoon.

Meanwhile, Lecce’s office shared a transcript of his response when asked about the funding being sought by the TDSB during Question Period on Tuesday.

“In every single budget, funding has been increased. This year alone, compared to last year, was a $683 million dollars increase,” Lecce said, who went on to note that opposition parties voted against the investment.

He added that TDSB funding is up “relative to 2017 when Liberals were in power, yet enrollment is down 16,000. Even still, funding is up.”

 

Pandemic funding must continue: TDSB

Chair Chernos Lin and Director Russell-Rawlins also expressed in the letter their concern about the province not extending pandemic funding for the next school year.

The ministry gave the school board more than $31.5 million through the COVID-19 Learning Recovery Fund in each of the previous two school years that allowed the hiring of 485 additional staff, including social workers, child and youth workers, and caretaking and vice-principals.

With the funding set to expire in August, officials urged the province to continue to program, warning that without it, there could be ramifications to student well-being.

“The impacts of the pandemic are not over and the TDSB still needs to provide additional transition supports,” they wrote

“As you can imagine, given the rise in violent incidents involving youth in Toronto, the reduction of adults in our building and correlating loss of support to our students is a major cause for concern and may compromise school safety. With the effects of the pandemic, cuts to funding seem reckless and harmful to students, now more than ever. This funding must continue.”

In a report earlier this month, TDSB staff warned that without additional funding, the board might have to eliminate those positions next year, worrying many education advocates.

Ontario Education Workers United, an advocacy group that supports increased education funding in the province, said the proposed staffing reduction comes at a time when students can’t afford to have fewer supports in school.

Meanwhile, Chernos Lin and Russell-Rawlins are also asking the province to fund employee benefits and sick leave costs for the next school year, which is projected to be underfunded by $48.6 million.

“Therefore, we request that the Ministry commit to funding the actual costs of employee benefits and sick leave for all Ontario school boards,” they wrote

School boards are required by law to pass a balanced budget before June 30, and the TDSB is hoping to further discuss its concerns with the province in the coming weeks.

“We need adequate, stable and predictable ministry funding to provide the necessary programs and services for our students’ academic success and well-being so that they may emerge from the pandemic ready for whatever comes their way,” officials wrote.

- with files from Jordan Fleguel