More Ontario school boards in deficit: documents [Video]

An increasing number of Ontario school boards are reporting deficits and are using or even depleting their reserves, according to internal Ministry of Education briefing documents.

The association representing school boards in the province says while the Progressive Conservative government has boosted the education budget, increases have not kept pace with inflation, forcing boards to use money they were saving for large projects on operations or make cuts.

Education Minister Jill Dunlop has said that overall, school boards are in good financial health, but her transition binder – obtained by The Canadian Press through a freedom-of-information request – provides a deeper look.

“Sector wide, school boards are maintaining a healthy reserve level; however, some school boards have depleted/are projected to deplete their reserves over the course of the next few years,” the briefing documents say.

“Recent information suggested the number of deficit boards are on the rise, meaning more boards …