Boards 'between a rock and a hard place' on closures, education advocate says

School boards across the province have recommended that 121 schools close, most of them by June of 2020, affecting tens of thousands of students, according to a new report.

The report, issued Thursday by the advocacy group People for Education, says that as of April 30, trustees had already voted to close 58 of the schools. Votes on another 52 of the schools are "pending," the report says.

The proposed closures affect about 33,000 students in 34 boards, the report says. However, there are 25 new schools that are proposed at various boards across the province, most of which consolidate the student populations of two or more closing schools.

The report includes an interactive map of all the proposed closures, and shows that the "vast majority" of the recommended school closures are in rural areas, particularly in southern Ontario.

Annie Kidder, executive director of People for Education, said Friday that rural schools have been coping with declining enrolment for the last 15 years, during which time student numbers have dropped by more than 70,000.

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"So all of those things together put boards, I would say, between a rock and a hard place to make these decisions," Kidder told CBC Radio's Metro Morning on Friday. "They didn't have the funding to keep them open, but really the control over that rests with the province, but the impact happens in those small towns."

Ontario's Education Minister Mitzie Hunter said the government has increased funding to rural school boards by 50 per cent since taking office in 2003, and said that students in rural boards receive $1,200 more per pupil than their counterparts at urban schools.

Some 80 rural schools have either been built or renovated, she said in a statement provided to CBC Toronto.

"We understand the vital role that schools play in any community, particularly our rural communities," Hunter said.

"Potential school closures are among the most difficult decisions that school boards and communities have to consider."

She noted that officials are holding the first of 10 public consultations in rural communities across the province Friday in Merrickville.

Feedback from the consultations will "help us shape the future of education in rural and remote Ontario," Hunter's statement said.

Government criticized

The issue of school closures is a hot one across the province, as education advocates and parent groups have spoken out against them and PC Leader Patrick Brown has made it a pre-campaign issue.

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In March, Brown held a news conference calling for a province-wide moratorium on school closures and blaming the Liberal government for creating a problem.

"It's a system the Liberals have set up that actually rewards a school board for closing schools," he said.

"They actually tell school boards they're not going to get any new capital funding unless they close a school."

While the ministry has not put out its own definitive list of proposed school closures, a spokesperson said Friday that, based on a preliminary review, the numbers in the People for Education report appear to be consistent with the ministry's monitoring.

The issue also came up at Queen's Park Thursday after the report's release.

PC MPP Sam Oosterhoff (Niagara West-Glanbrook) asked Hunter why none of the community consultations were happening in his riding.  A number of schools between Hamilton and Niagara are identified in the report as recommended for closing.

"Minister, the constituents in my riding know you don't really care. If you did, you would come to Niagara and listen to the people who rely on those community schools," he said during daily Question Period in the Legislature.

He asked Hunter directly if she would commit to hosting a consultation in Niagara.

"I understand the very important role of schools and the importance of schools to communities, which is exactly why we are doing an engagement across this province, with our focus on rural," Hunter said before she was cut off.

She continued after order was restored: "with our focus on rural and northern remote communities. Just last week I issued an engagement paper that outlines the very importance of focusing on these areas in our province. We want to ensure that we are providing the best education possible for all students across this province, and we can only do that by listening and engaging."

'Do we want to have small towns?'

When it comes to school closures, Kidder noted that factors that dictate such decisions are typically different. In urban centres, it's about monitoring where people are living and where there are children.

In rural areas, the impact on the overall community should be considered, she said.

"Even with dollars stretched thin, sometimes we have to think about more than just the return on investment in terms of dollars. We have to think about the return on investment in terms of community health and community strength," Kidder said.

"We have to make sure that we're thinking really hard about do we want to have small towns, what's our responsibility, and absolutely, how are we going to pay for it?"