November 11, 2009 (Catholic education, Catholic schools)

Highway 11 runs through the Mid-Northern isthmus that is the Regional Municipality of Muskoka. In education the area is governed by the Simcoe Muskoka Catholic District School Board and the Trillium Lakelands District School Board.  As the two maps attest, Muskoka is the northern part of Simcoe Muskoka CDSB and the western portion of Trillium Lakeland DSB.

If one visualizes Hwy 11 as Bill 177 (The School Board Governance Act ) and these two boards as neighbours, they are, you might say, living on different sides of the same street.

Laura MacLean in this month’s What’s Up Magazine for Bracebridge-Gravenhurst quotes Simcoe Muskoka Catholic’s chair:

And while the McGuinty government states that the purpose of the bill is to make student achievement a number one priority in Ontario, John Grisé, chair of the Simcoe Muskoka Catholic District School Board, believes it will drastically redefine and minimize the role of trustees, who are the ones responsible for providing local input into the education system. Grisé says the proposed bill is the ministry’s attempt to micro-manage school boards.

“One of the stipulations (in the bill) is that the ministry would have the power to make regulations governing the roles and responsibilities of boards, directors of education and board chairs. If the bill is passed with that in it, at any time, the power would be there without consultation to do anything overseeing the powers and duties of the board. Who in their right mind would put themselves forward as a trustee in a situation like that? Why would any person become a trustee? If you can have no effect on education in children in your local community, why would you bother?”

In the meantime MacLean provides this from the chair of Trillium Lakeland:

But Valerie Smith, trustee chairperson for the Trillium Lakelands District School Board, says she has confidence in Bill 177. Although she does have some concerns, especially when it comes to the definition of student achievement, she is comfortable with the proposals being made.

“If the bill is passed, trustees will be held accountable for student achievement, but there are so many different variables when it comes to defining student achievement,” she says. Currently, the only way students are assessed for achievement is by taking Education Quality and Accountability Office tests in Grades 3, 6 and 9. The new bill would allow the ministry to step in and provide extra help to a particular board that isn’t meeting the provincial standards. Smith says she believes that is simply “setting conditions” to provide high quality education in school and in life.

“I’m not frightened about taking on additional duties,” notes Smith. “As for the additional duties for directors of education, some feel that’s putting them directly in a position where they’re monitoring the trustees. I don’t believe it’s meant to be taken that way. As long as the Ministry of Education continues to consult and work with the Ontario Public School Boards’ Association (OPSBA)and with the Catholic School Trustees Association,(OCSTA) I think the outcome will be positive.”

Yet both OPSBA and OCSTA oppose many provisions in this Bill, including components Smith is prepared to accept on little more than good faith.

The Bill has passed second reading. Quick and Toronto centric committee hearings have been completed. Now we wait to see if the McGuinty government is listening to the voice of trustees like Grisé or Smith.

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