Toronto Catholic Trustees averaged $107,000
Posted by Sandy on 16th May 2008
Why do we have elected trustees on school boards at the municipal level? We have them to oversee the education and well being of children and youth living in a specific municipality — representing both public and separate (Catholic) rate payers. And, key in that role of overseer is making sure money is spent wisely and appropriately.
While we frequently like to say that elected officials should spend public money as if it were their own — we don’t mean that literally. Yet, when we hear the “average” amount allocated to some Toronto trustees last year was $107,218, what are we, the public, supposed to think?
Well, clearly, the school board trustees that took that amount of money out of a school board budget thought they were “entitled” to it. That board is the Toronto Catholic District School Board (TCDSB). And, as the Toronto Sun editorial says today the Education Minister will have to take over this board and appoint a provincial supervisor in order ”to restore fiscal sanity.”
What is especially unfortunate with this type of “collective failure” is that it silences the competent trustee voices in the confusion. How very frustrating it must be to be a hard working and effective trustee on that board, such as John Del Grande, who the Sun says filed 21 motions proposing various reforms.
Posted in Finance & Taxation, School Boards, Toronto School Brd | 9 Comments »