Principals are not to blame for disrepair in schools

March 1, 2019

As of Fall 2017, the last time the Ministry of Education publicly updated its disrepair data, there was $15.9-billion of disrepair in Ontario’s publicly funded schools. This sad fact means that Principals and Vice Principals spend time and energy on repair issues that ought to be spent leading their schools. Principals and Vice Principals end up spending many hours each week managing repairs at their schools and fielding complaints from parents about the disrepair or construction projects underway. These are hours that could be much better spent. Principals ought to be curriculum leaders – not boiler specialists!

man in dress shirt fixng taps

Unfortunately, many parents blame Principals and Trustees for disrepair in their child’s school. However, the Province is responsible for providing funding for school repairs and maintenance and, for almost twenty years, the funding provided by the Province was grossly inadequate.

Industry standards suggest that $1.4-billion/year is the absolute minimum amount required by Ontario’s school boards to have been able to conduct the necessary routine repairs and maintenance in their schools. When the Fix Our Schools campaign began in 2014, provincial funding for school repairs was ONE-TENTH this amount. Our work has helped increase provincial funding for school repairs to $1.4-billion/year today – the amount it always ought to have been. However, this $1.4-billion/year in provincial funding for school repairs is insufficient to address the $15.9-billion of disrepair that accumulated over the 20 years when provincial funding was grossly inadequate.

So, by all means, let your Principal and Trustee know about disrepair in your child’s school. However, please also contact your local MPP, Premier Ford, and Education Minister Thompson. Let them know that:

  1. You know the Province is responsible for providing all education funding, including funding to maintain and repair schools.
  2. You expect all publicly funded schools in Ontario to be safe, healthy, well-maintained buildings that provide environments conducive to learning.
  3. You expect the Province to develop funding solutions that will eliminate the $15.9-billion of disrepair in the coming 5-7 years.
  4. You expect the Province to develop a standard of good repair for publicly funded schools in Ontario.