Parents and apparent special interest speakers took the side of trustees against the Minister of Education, Liz Sandals, Monday night at a marathon meeting of the Toronto and District School Board (TDSB). The smell of politics seemed heavy, especially when the new board chair Shaun Chen gave notice that he will be quitting that job to seek a Liberal nomination. Eighty people, many of them parents, were scheduled to share their fears that somehow the government was trying to emasculate democracy by ejecting trustees from the TDSB offices. Some saw it as a stealthy move by the Liberals to grab dormant school properties and sell them off. Ms. Sandals has directed the board to accept all of the recommendations contained in a table-turning report she commissioned. Last week trustees held an emergency, closed door meeting to discuss how to implement the recommendations.
