

Sandie Benitah, CP24.com





Toronto’s troubled school board is now being scrutinized by a seven-member panel that is expected to report back to the province this fall with a list of recommendations of how to clean up the governance issues and inefficiencies that have been plaguing the organization.

This is the second provincial review of the Toronto District School Board, which is the largest board in Ontario.

Education Minister Liz Sandals told reporters Monday afternoon the panel supports one of the recommendations made in the first review.

That review, released in January by veteran educator Margaret Wilson, recommended that there be further analysis of the structure of the TDSB.

Sandals said the panel will be tasked with asking questions about the size of the board and will look into the feasibility of splitting the board into several councils.

The panel will also interview people about a well-documented “culture of fear” among board members. Wilson’s report noted how trustees have interfered with hiring decisions and acquisitions.

The panel, which will be led by Ontario Human Rights Commissioner Barbara Hall, is expected to report back to the education ministry by this summer with recommendations garnered from a series of consultations over the next two months. The panel will seek out feedback from parents, trustees, senior staff and union representatives from across the TDSB in both public and online forums.

“It will include a range of perspectives that will ensure meaningful dialogue with the TDSB on important issues,” Sandals said.