Marianne Larsen TVDSB Trustee -Wards 2-6

Tomorrow (April 29th), over 255,000 Ontario teachers and education workers from AEFO, ETFO, OECTA, CUPE-OSBCU, and OSSTF/FEESO are uniting for a province-wide Day of Action.

In London, has organized two early morning protests. Join teachers, EAs and other education workers at Kensal Park P.S. at 7:40 a.m. , and/or Woodland Heights P.S. around 8:20 a.m to demand increased funding for public education, lower class sizes, and better staff safety against chronic underfunding and school violence.

And don't forget to wear Red (for Ed)!

To find out where the actions are in your own neighbourhood, contact your (ETFO) Elementary Educators local. (google ETFO to get the contact info).



Kensal Park Neighbourhood, London, ON, Canada

Got kids in an Ontario English Public School Board? This is for you.

Here is a breakdown of Bill 101 (Putting Student Achievement First Act, 2026), which was introduced yesterday.

What does Bill 101 actually do?

At its core, Bill 101 shifts power away from local school boards and puts it in the hands of the provincial government, while forcing a more standardized, one-size-fits-all education system.

Here’s what that really means:

1. Power moves to the Minister:
The Minister can now:
• Set rules for student assessment, teaching materials, testing, and board communications
• Approve (or take over) school projects and spending
• Override school boards on major decisions like budgets and operations
Local decision-making moves to provincial control

2. School boards are fundamentally changed
• Fewer trustees (max 12) compensated less for their time
• Less power and tighter spending limits
• New red tape! A corporate-style leadership at the board level (CEO + Chief Education Officer)
Boards become more like corporations, less like democratic bodies

3. Classrooms become more standardized
• Government-approved materials required
• Increased standardized testing
• Tighter control over how the curriculum is delivered
Less flexibility for teachers, more top-down control

4. Communication is controlled
• The government can set rules on what boards are allowed to say publicly
Boards may not be able to speak freely about problems

5. School climate surveys are no longer mandatory
• No more required feedback from students, parents, or staff
Less direct insight into what’s actually happening in schools, so less information for program planning

6. More centralized data tracking
• Children can be tracked earlier through Ontario Education Numbers
More data collection, less local context

7. Labour decisions are centralized
• Trustees removed from bargaining
• Negotiations handled by senior administrators
Less local voice, more centralized control over workers

What this all means:

What this all means for educators & workers:
Less professional autonomy, more top-down oversight, less influence in negotiations.

What this all means for local democracy:
Fewer elected trustees advocating for students, and the Minister can override key decisions. Overall, your local voice matters less.

And that matters because school boards are supposed to reflect community needs and realities and not impose a one-size-fits-all system from Queen’s Park.

Transparency & accountability take a hit
• No school climate surveys means less real data about how policy functions
• Controlled communications mean less transparency
• Weakened trustees mean less local oversight

The Combined effect is less visibility AND less accountability

The biggest problem:
The government says the issue is “mismanagement by boards.”
So, their 'solution' is to take control. But this legislation totally ignores the real issues:
• Chronic underfunding
• Service gaps
• Rising complexity of student needs (especially in special education)

This is a governance fix to a service delivery crisis

So overall, bill 101:
• Centralizes power
• Reduces local decision-making
• Standardizes education (not a good thing for students who learn in different ways)
• Removes key feedback systems

The biggest risks:
1. Loss of real system data that shows policy outcomes
2. Weaker support for students
3. Reduced educator autonomy
4. Erosion of democratic governance
5. Less transparency and accountability

And on removing school climate surveys:
The government’s suggestion that “student and family support offices” could somehow replace school climate surveys makes absolutely no sense. The two are not related in purpose or function. School climate surveys collect system-wide data that helps identify patterns, plan programs, and measure accountability across schools. Support offices, by contrast, are individual, case-by-case services (and most boards don’t have one…yet). One is a population-level research and planning tool; the other is a reactive support mechanism. Treating them as interchangeable shows a fundamental misunderstanding of how schools gather evidence and respond to system-level issues. Whoever suggested that has no idea what they are talking about, and they are actively writing legislation that affects our children and youth. This is a major red flag for me.

This legislation puts the minister first, not students.

Putting Student Achievement First Act, 2026 Bill 101 from Parliament 44 Session 1 of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario: Putting Student Achievement First Act, 2026.

Ontario says this is school board reform. Parents should read the fine print before Queen’s Park turns accountability into an appointment.

According to the CTV report, the province plans to nearly cut the number of TDSB trustees in half and create new non-elected executive roles as part of a broader overhaul. That’s a very polished way of saying fewer elected people, more top-down control.

Maybe the government can make a case that some boards needed intervention. Fine. Then make the case clearly. Show the numbers. Show the oversight plan. Show how any of this helps a kid in Scarborough who needs reading support, or a parent in Etobicoke trying to get answers from a school that already feels impossible to navigate.

Because this is where Queen’s Park always loses me. They pitch governance reform like the structure is the whole story. Meanwhile parents care about class size, special education supports, safe schools, and whether anyone picks up the phone.

Cutting elected voices and adding appointees might make the system quieter. It does not automatically make it better. Sometimes “streamlining” is just politics for fewer people in the room when decisions get made.

Public education works best when it’s messy in a democratic way. Parents are supposed to have a voice. Not a customer service line.

— Marcus | The Headline Lab

Had another great conversation with The Craig Needles Podcast. This time it was about Bill 101, recently introduced by the Ontario Conservative government, to sideline and minimize the work of elected school board trustees. Let me know what you think.

Ford government changes leave cloud of confusion for TVDSB Podcast Episode · The Craig Needles Podcast · April 15 · 36m

Thank you Alison Morse, chair of the Thames Valley District School Board SEAC for coming forward and explaining the harms of provincial supervision for our students and their families who rely upon and need special education supports and advocates. Trustees like myself want to get back to work to serve our students.

This👇

The Minister’s announcement today creates a new layer of bureaucracy without actually fixing the issues families struggle with every day.

Trustees — the people parents actually turn to when something isn’t working — were not consulted at any stage in creating this plan. We were elected to represent you, yet we’ve been excluded from decisions that directly affect you.

His plan duplicates existing channels, pulls resources away from classrooms, and does nothing to support front-line staff. This is centralization, not modernization. And where is the money going to come from? Who do these offices report to? Spoiler alert: not YOU.

Another demonstration that this Minister thinks he knows better than you how to solve the crisis in public education. And has no respect for local democracy.

If the goal is truly to help students and families, then start by engaging the people who work directly with them!

IF YOU LIVE IN ONTARIO, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE, SIGN THIS PETITION TO EDUCATION MINISTER CALANDRA TELLING HIM THAT LOCAL DEMOCRACY MATTERS AND THAT WE NEED TO KEEP ELECTED SCHOOL BOARD TRUSTEES. THEY ARE WHAT WE NEED TO KEEP OUR EDUCATION SYSTEM ACCOUNTABLE AND TRANSPARENT. PARENTS AND GUARDIANS NEED THEM. INDEED, OUR ENTIRE SCHOOL SYSTEM. DEPENDS ON THE BASIS OF HAVING ELECTED REPRESENTATIVES TO GOVERN THE SYSTEM, PROVIDE OVERSIGHT AND DIRECTION FOR OUR SCHOOLS. DON'T DELAY. SIGN IT NOW. PLEASE.

Keep Education Close to Home Ontario’s public school boards give families a real voice in education. Now, that voice is at risk.

Your Community, Your School, Your Voice! | Moore4Trustee Join us for an honest conversation about what the provincial government is changing, and why it matters to you. Let's talk before it's too late!