Ontario education minister takes aim at Toronto school board chair over $15 shake, other expenses

Ontario Minister of Education Paul Calandra visits students in the classroom at École Catholique Pape-François school in Stouffville, Ont., Friday, May 2, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette

TORONTO — The expenses of trustees at several Ontario school boards are under the education minister’s microscope, with claims for a $145 Apple watch band and a $15 milkshake providing particular fodder for a board shakeup that’s likely far from over.

The Toronto Catholic District School Board is one of five boards under government supervision due to what Education Minister Paul Calandra called “mismanagement.”

He signalled on the last day of school in June that there would be more to come, saying a broader rethink of school board governance was required, and in recent weeks he has appeared to have sharpened his focus on the role of trustees.

Calandra has said he can’t see ever handing the boards currently under supervision back to trustees and he is also looking closely at eliminating the position of trustee entirely. There is no truth to a rumour he is considering getting rid of school boards altogether, he said.

“I have been clear that the governance changes being considered are regarding the role of elected school board trustees,” he wrote Monday in a statement.

The supervisors appointed by Calandra are poring over the expenses of trustees and the minister has zeroed in on claims by Toronto Catholic District School Board Chair Markus de Domenico.

The Canadian Press has seen some of the receipts, including for the watch band and milkshake, as well as a 3 a.m. McDonald’s order, and others.

De Domenico said Calandra is zeroing in on his expenses in particular because he has been outspoken against what he calls the minister’s moves to silence trustees’ — and therefore parents’ — voices.

“I’ve been making the case from the beginning that supervision hurts kids,” de Domenico said in an interview. “It hurts students, and it’s clearly gotten under his skin.”

De Domenico said he does not have an office and will therefore expense food or drink items such as the milkshake or coffee at Tim Hortons to meet there with parents and hear their concerns.

When it comes to the milkshake – a cookie dough shake from Holy Shakes that came out to $15.81 with tax – de Domenico said that’s where a parent wanted to meet.

“I bought them a milkshake and yeah, I have no idea if it’s pricey or not, but I think it’s such a silly attempt to smear somebody,” he said.

The 3 a.m. McDonald’s receipt was from a time last year he believes he stopped for food on the way home after a late meeting, de Domenico said, though the receipt includes a delivery fee and courier tip.

The watch band is also above board, de Domenico said.

“We buy our technical devices, approved by the board, approved by the ministry, to have technical devices like laptops, Apple watches, a phone, whatever,” he said. “The band wore out. I put a new one on it, and that’s what the story is.”

Calandra said de Domenico “can cry foul all he wants,” but his board was placed under supervision due to “years of financial mismanagement by its trustees, including Mr. de Domenico, with a $75.2 million accumulated deficit.”

“Ontario families deserve better than trustees who treat the classroom like their personal expense account,” Calandra wrote in his statement.

De Domenico and other critics of Calandra’s moves say the real issue is government underfunding of education, with increases falling short of matching the pace of inflation and leaving boards further and further behind.

NDP education critic Chandra Pasma has said cutting out the role of trustees equals removing parents’ ability to have a say in their children’s education.

“Families deserve accountable, local representation who know their communities and who can stand up for students and parents,” Pasma wrote in a statement.

“This dangerous power grab by Doug Ford and Paul Calandra will mean that parents have nowhere to turn but an out-of-touch minister at Queen’s Park or inexperienced political insiders who don’t have our kids’ best interests in mind.”

The Ontario Autism Coalition said Monday that a survey of parents of 654 children in their community showed that more than 28 per cent had reached out to a trustee for help at least once during the previous school year.

“Removing trustees risks silencing children, youth and their families, worsening school exclusion rates, and leaving more students on modified schedules or out of school entirely,” the coalition wrote in a statement.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 8, 2025.

Allison Jones, The Canadian Press