The Ottawa-Carleton District School Board (OCDSB) says it has a new director of education. In a news release Tuesday, the school board said supervisor Robert Plamondon appointed Stacey Kay to the board’s top position, succeeding previous director of education Pino Buffone, who assumed the role in 2023. It’s unclear if Buffone resigned or was terminated. The board only said it “extends its best wishes to Mr. Buffone for his future endeavours.” In a letter to staff obtained by CTV News Ottawa, Plamondon said Buffone was “departing his position as Director of Education effective immediately.” Kay was previously the general manager of the Ottawa Student Transportation Authority (OSTA), having been appointed to that role in late 2024. Prior to that, the OCDSB says Kay served as the General Manager of Learning Support Services at the OCDSB, overseeing special education. Kay began her career with the OCDSB in 2001 as a speech-language pathologist, the board says. “With her proven record of delivering transformational results and deep understanding of the challenges facing the District, Stacey Kay is exceptionally well positioned to lead the OCDSB to become the best school board in the province of Ontario,” said Plamondon. The OCDSB says Kay will lead a “student-first review of OCDSB operations to ensure resources support student success and well-being, while simultaneously strengthening staff engagement.” The OCDSB, Ottawa’s largest school board, was placed under provincial supervision earlier this year after the board posted four straight deficit budgets, including a projected $9.2 million deficit for the 2024-25 school year. The province appointed Plamondon as supervisor and stripped elected trustees of their roles. Kay said she is “thrilled” to return to the OCDSB. “I look forward to connecting with students, staff, and families, and to leading the District with a steadfast commitment to student success. I value the power of collaboration and welcome the opportunity to work alongside staff, parents and the community. Every student in the OCDSB deserves to be given the opportunity to thrive and fulfill their potential,” she said in a news release. Former director oversaw controversial review Buffone had overseen the OCDSB’s controversial elementary program review, which Plamondon later scrapped. The program was set to be implemented in the 2026-27 school year and would have consolidated school programing in Enhanced English and French Immersion, while eliminating Middle French Immersion and closing Alternative Schools. It would have also required approximately 1,500 more students than normal to change schools in September 2026 and would have seen changes to the grade structures at 18 schools and alterations to the boundaries at dozens of schools. The proposal faced months of protests from parents and extensive debate among trustees prior to being approved before Plamondon was appointed to supervise the school board. Buffone’s departure comes weeks after the OCDSB’s chief financial officer, Randy Gerrior, resigned for “personal reasons.” Former trustee concerned by departure Donna Blackburn, who had served as a trustee from 2010 until the province appointed a supervisor, said she is very disappointed and concerned by news that Buffone is gone. “This is a man who started his career with the OCDSB as a student, as an English language learner, and rose to become the Director of Education, including the title doctor. Very impressive man,” she said. “This is the second significant departure. We also lost Randy Gerrior, who was our chief financial officer. A brilliant, caring man who did a tremendous job. I’m quite concerned that the level of staff demoralization, that was not good to begin with, will be further eroded.” She added that time will tell how Kay performs in her new role. “I know Stacey Kay. I like Stacey Kay, so any comments I make are not personal, but she is simply not qualified to lead one of the biggest districts in the province of Ontario.” Blackburn said she would like to see Plamondon replaced. “Clearly, he doesn’t have an understanding of education, he doesn’t have an understanding of the needs of the OCDSB, he doesn’t have an understanding of how the system works, and the message he has now sent to that system,” she said. With files from CTV News Ottawa’s Shaun Vardon
