160 JOBS CUT BY UPPER CANADA SCHOOL BOARD Continued from page 3
DIFFICULT DECISION UCDSB board chair John McAllister said the decision to make the cuts was a difficult one, but necessary to address the $11.7 million deficit the board, which governs 79 schools, is facing. He said that even with these changes, the board is still carrying a nearly $7 million deficit in the special education budget. "We have 4,200 employees, this only involves 24. Not to undervalue their work whatsoever, but student wellness is the responsibility of each and every principal, guidance counsellor, student success teacher, etc.," he said. "Kids who are in crisis, this group never dealt with them as such, that was the responsibility of a therapist and we'd work with
outside agencies such as Open Doors and CHEO to address some of these issues." There are no plans to replace the jobs, but that doesn't mean the board doesn't have a system in place, McAllister pointed out. He referred to the UCDSB's mental health plan and each school's student improvement plan for student achievement and wellness as guiding documents. "The Upper Canada District School Board has not abandoned its student wellness responsibilities and never will," he commented. "Students who were in trouble last year were treated and they're going to continue to be treated this year in the same way." To further address the special education overages, the board also approved a pilot "we hope will help us increase our revenue and decrease our costs." That program will see students in classes for part of the day, but withdrawn when they need treatment from an education assistant, teacher or social worker, then reintegrated into the classroom. "We think it's going to be a better service model for these students as well as other students in the class," McAllister stated. "It's not totally business as usual, but there's a high degree of normalcy," he continued. "We're open for business and we look forward to working with our students in the fall."
STORY BEHIND THE STORY
As it entered budget deliberations in May, the Upper Canada District School Board was facing an $11.7 million deficit, which has been followed by this newspaper. The 160 job cuts to partially address that deficit, will impact the supports students receive in the classroom.
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homelessness, family trauma, and more. He said the board should be more worried about the well-being of its students than the deficit. "As an elected trustee, your job is to make sure the education system in your community is at its peak, at its best, servicing all," he commented, urging the board to "give our schools what they need and let the province come down and make those cuts." "They're doing the dirty work for the Ford government and it's shameful," Mulville added. In May, Leeds-Grenville-Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes MPP Steve Clark announced a $927,495 increase to the UCDSB's provincial funding allocation (the largest in the board's history). They are set to receive $342 million from the province for the 2019-2020 school year, including a nearly $41 million grant for special education, "in light of their declining enrollment," Clark said in a press release at the time. "In the fall, the board came to me concerned about their financial situation following a transportation arbitration decision that left them in a deficit," he said. "I assured them that our government understands the needs of rural Ontario..." Mandy Steele, chief negotiator with OSSTFs District 26 bargaining unit, is also being laid off. She said while the UCDSB may think they're saving money, the impact will be felt elsewhere, possibly in the board's graduation rate. The UCDSB has a goal of raising its graduation rate to 90 per cent by 2020.
"We increase that (graduation rate) by having the supports to make that happen," she stressed. "If our students are struggling with mental health, struggling with addiction, struggling with anything that's preventing them from reaching that graduation, why aren't we putting those supports in to help them continue their education career?" The resources of community agencies will also be burdened, as well as social assistance, health care and the justice system, Steele expects. "It's not like a savings in education is a savings for the province," Steele said. "No, it's just transferring the need elsewhere."
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5 | Carleton Place/Almonte Canadian Gazette | Thursday, July 4, 2019
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