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The Ontario government says they’ve appointed supervisors to four of the province’s largest school boards following investigations that uncovered serious financial mismanagement and unsustainable budgeting practices.
The affected boards are the Toronto District School Board (TDSB), Toronto Catholic District School Board (TCDSB), Ottawa-Carleton District School Board (OCDSB) and the Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board (DPCDSB).
According to the Ministry of Education, independent reviews revealed growing deficits, depleted reserves, and poor decision-making across all four boards. The Toronto public board, for example, rejected nearly half of its proposed cost-saving measures and relied heavily on selling assets. The Catholic board in Toronto tripled its deficit compared to last year, while the Ottawa-Carleton board has entirely drained its reserves. Dufferin-Peel is facing a risk of financial default by the end of August.
The province says newly appointed supervisors with strong backgrounds in finance and public accountability will take charge of operations and report regularly to the ministry. Their mandate is to stabilise board finances, improve oversight and ensure that education funding is directly supporting student learning and success.
These actions follow earlier investigations announced in April and build on legislation like the Better Schools and Student Outcomes Act, 2023. A new bill currently before the legislature, Bill 33: Supporting Children and Students Act, which would further strengthen oversight powers according to the province.
Ontario says it’s projecting $30.3 billion in education funding for 2025-26, including capital improvements and new schools. While boards are responsible for their own budgets, the province says it will act when local management puts long-term student outcomes at risk.
(Written by: Joseph Goden)
