Having knocked on more than 5,000 doors now, it’s clear to me that there is great appetite for new leadership at the TDSB. What it comes down to is that even though residents understand that our schools are underfunded, we’re sick of being fed every reason in the book for why something can’t happen (like keeping Arlington Middle School open) rather than seeing the energy of a board and bureaucracy bent on overcoming challenges.
Whether it’s keeping our schools open, saving our school pools, using new and better technology in our classrooms, opening up schools for community use or any number of other priorities, the natural response from the TDSB is, “No!” It takes a community kicking and screaming or doing the school board’s job for it to see the TDSB budge.
I’ve come to call this the “no can do” attitude. What I’m promising to bring is a “can do” attitude. Platitude? Yes. But I can back it up with real accomplishments over years of community work that give that platitude meaning.
The Winona school pool is a great example of my “can do” approach. So is overseeing the expansion of self-checkout technology at library branches so Toronto Public Library can deploy staff resources more effectively, allowing for more open hours at no additional cost. Another example is turning a $25,000 City grant for Wychwood Open Door into more than $100,000 of public and private money that will revitalize the drop-in center and bring in new literacy and health programs.
I look forward to having more conversations with residents about how to build community instead of closing schools; how to create healthier, active communities instead of needlessly ripping down school playgrounds; and how we can move from “no can do” to a new era of “can do” leadership.
