TORONTO, May 29, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Greater Toronto Area’s (GTA) deteriorating public schools have wracked up over $7 billion in disrepair, data from the Ontario Ministry of Education has revealed.
The School Facility Condition Data report, updated at the end of 2017, revealed that the disrepair in public schools across regions of the GTA includes:
| TORONTO East York Etobicoke North York Scarborough Toronto proper York | TOTAL = $4.7 billion of school disrepair $157.1 million $620 million $1.1 billion $1.1 billion $1.5 billion $238 million |
| DURHAM REGION Ajax Oshawa Pickering Uxbridge Whitby | TOTAL = $395.2 million of school disrepair $74 million $150.5 million $59.5 million $13 million $97.7 million |
| HALTON REGION Acton Burlington Georgetown Milton Oakville | TOTAL = $400.3 million of school disrepair $15.5 million $191 million $41.7 million $27.1 million $125 million |
| PEEL REGION Brampton Caledon Mississauga | TOTAL = $1.2 billion of school disrepair $448 million $35.6 million $755 million |
| YORK REGION Aurora Markham Newmarket Richmond Hill | TOTAL = $270.4 million of school disrepair $38.9 million $92.5 million $67 million $72 million |
Co-Founder of the Fix Our Schools Campaign, Krista Wylie, says the unacceptable level of disrepair that has been allowed to accumulate in Ontario’s publicly funded schools can be blamed on chronic and gross under-funding by our provincial government.
”In 2015, Ontario’s Auditor-General confirmed that provincial funding for school repairs was grossly inadequate, providing only one-tenth or less of what it ought to have been according to industry standards, for the better part of two decades,” says Wylie.
“As a parent and a voter, I am deeply disappointed that our provincial government has been so blatantly negligent in providing the funding needed to ensure that the schools where two million Ontario children spend their days can be safe, healthy,
well-maintained buildings.”
The level of disrepair in Ontario’s schools has taken a toll on students. Grade 11 student Sarah Dueck says her experiences in Ontario’s public school system over the years has left her questioning the amount of care the government has for education in Ontario - or lack thereof.
“During my twelve years as an Ontario student, I’ve experienced freezing cold classrooms, boiling hot classrooms, leaking ceilings and disgusting washrooms,” states Dueck. “It makes me wonder if the adults in charge really do value our education.”
The team behind the Fix Our Schools campaign firmly believes the upcoming provincial election in June will provide a real opportunity to bring priority and funding back to schools to stop their deterioration and restore a safe learning environment for students. Campaign for Public Education representative Stephen Seaborn agrees, adding that it’s time to enforce a province-wide standard.
“We need a province-wide Standard of Good Repair for schools and adequate provincial funding for school boards to meet those standards within a set timeline of four years,” says Seaborn. “Citizens ought to ask every local MPP candidate how they intend to fix our schools and encourage them to sign the Fix Our Schools pledge.”
For more information about the disrepair in the GTA’s public schools - including school-specific disrepair data - and what you can do to help, e-mail info@fixourschools.ca or call (416) 525-1540.
About the Fix Our Schools Campaign
The Fix Our Schools Campaign, founded in 2014, is a non-partisan, parent-led, Ontario-wide campaign focused on ensuring that every publicly funded school in the province is a safe, healthy, well-maintained building that provides an environment conducive to learning and working.
About Campaign for Public Education
Campaign for Public Education was founded in 2002 to coordinate efforts of parent, teacher, education worker and ethno-racial organizations in campaigning for needs-based funding for public education.