Ford's Student and Family Support Plan Misses the Mark

"As Catholic teachers, we support every effort to help families be heard, but today’s announcement is yet another example of the Ford government missing that mark. 

Instead of investing in students, addressing the $6.3 billion in chronic underfunding, and ensuring the voices of parents and families are heard across the province, the government is planning to create call centres, seemingly more concerned with business metrics than actually supporting the families of the students we serve.

This ‘plan’ raises more questions than answers. Who will be operating these offices? What ability will they have to ensure that parents’ concerns are addressed? How are these offices being funded? Are the monies coming out of school board budgets that are already at the breaking point as a result of government underfunding?

There was no consultation before unveiling this plan, which is evident with how little it does to actually address parents’ concerns. If the Ford government genuinely cared about supporting families and addressing the issues in our schools, then it would have engaged in real consultation and collaboration with parents, teachers, and education workers to develop a plan with a proper rollout, not a rushed, last-minute scheme.

This is more centralization of authority in our schools, using corporate models to seemingly replace the role of locally elected trustees and community decision making with unaccountable bureaucrats and one-size-fits-all control in government backrooms. 

Catholic teachers are in the classroom every day, working closely with parents to help students learn, thrive, and grow. What our students and their families need are smaller classes, timely supports, and stable, well-funded resources, not another bureaucratic structure created without evidence, consultation, or real investment."

— René Jansen in de Wal, President of the Ontario English Catholic Teachers’ Association