News

Ontario Unveils Record Education Investment

Students in Nipissing to Benefit from New Learning Recovery Plan, Mental Health Investments in 2022-23 School Year 

NIPISSING – Following two years of global learning disruption, caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Vic Fedeli, MPP for Nipissing announced that the Ontario government is providing record funding to Nipissing’s four local school boards. An investment of over $312.6 million for the 2022-23 school year, through the Grants for Students Needs (GSN) program, an increase of $11.4 million over last year. The funding will support learning recovery and fund mental health supports for students to allow a return to a more normal school year next year.

“COVID-19 has impacted every single person living in our area, including students,” said Vic Fedeli, MPP for Nipissing. “These investments will ensure students in Nipissing have access to the supports they need to recover from the pandemic disruptions so that they can reach their full potential. Recognizing the importance of mental health, our government is also providing additional resources to ensure students feel safe and supported at school.”

Local school board GSN allocations for the 2022-23 school year include the following:

• $149.7 million for the Near North District School Board including:
  • $1.8 million in learning recovery funding
  • $19.5 million in special education funding
  • $910,000 in mental health and well-being funding
  • $12.5 million in funding for transportation

• $50.3 million for the Nipissing-Parry Sound Catholic District School Board including:
  • $942,000 in learning recovery funding
  • $8.6 million in special education funding
  • $610,000 in mental health and well-being funding
  • $3.8 million in funding for transportation

• $58 million for CSD catholique Franco-Nord including:
  • $940,000 in learning recovery funding
  • $10.3 million in special education funding
  • $626,000 in mental health and well-being funding
  • $3.8 million in funding for transportation

• $54.5 million for CSD du Nord-Est de l’Ontario:
  • $887,000 in learning recovery funding
  • $8.9 million in special education funding
  • $685,000 in mental health and well-being funding
  • $2.2 million in funding for transportation

The government is also continuing to provide $1.4 billion for the repair and renewal of schools for the 2022-23 school year.

As part of the announcement, Education Minister Stephen Lecce unveiled Ontario’s Learning Recovery Action Plan – a five-point plan to strengthen learning recovery in reading and math, anchored by the largest provincial investment in tutoring supports, summer learning and mental health.

Highlights from Ontario’s record investment in public education include:

• A $683.9 million increase in Grants for Student Needs (GSN) funding, with projected total funding of $26.1 billion. This represents a 2.7 per cent increase from 2021-22
• Average per pupil GSN funding is projected to rise to $13,059, which is an increase of $339 or a 2.7 per cent increase from 2021-22
• Over $500 million in Priorities and Partnerships Funding (PPF)
• $90 million in total mental health investments, representing a 420 per cent increase in funding since 2017-18
• $15 million to deliver expanded summer learning opportunities
• $92.9 million increase in Special Education Grant funding through the GSN where it is projected to increase to over $3.25 billion, the highest amount ever provided in Special Education Grant funding
• $304 million in time-limited additional staffing supports, through the COVID-19 Learning Recovery Fund as part of the GSN.  This funding will go towards the hiring of an estimated 3,000 front line staff – including teachers, early childhood educators, educational assistants, and other education workers to address learning recovery

The Ontario Government’s $600 million Learning Recovery Action Plan will help students recover from the disruptions of the COVID-19 pandemic and will be available to students this year and into next school year. $175 million is being invested to expand access to free publicly funded tutoring in small groups after school, during school, on weekends and over the summer. This province-wide program will start in April 2022 and continue until December 31, 2022 to ensure continuity of access to tutoring to ensure students can catch-up as they start the next school year.

The plan leverages and expands proven, high-yield programs and supports, and introduces new initiatives to address critical gaps, with the following five pillars:

• Introducing comprehensive tutoring supports for students through school boards that will also include partnerships with community organizations
• Supporting student resilience and mental well being
• Strengthening numeracy and literacy skills
• Modernizing curriculum and programs to emphasize job and life skills
• Resuming EQAO assessments to measure and assess learning levels

As part of its commitment to support student mental health and well-being in 2022-23, Ontario will be investing more than $90 million including $10 million in new funding, of which $5 million is to be used for evidence based mental health programs and resources. This funding will help to retain the existing mental health workers in schools, including the 180 mental health professionals that are providing critical supports directly to students in secondary schools across the province.

In addition, the Ministry of Education, in partnership with the Ministry of Health, will engage with a wide range of stakeholders to leverage the best available evidence on emerging student mental health needs. Consultations are expected to start in summer 2022.

The mental health components of the learning recovery plan may include:

• Mandatory professional development on mental health for educator
• Working with the Ministry of Health to consult with stakeholders to leverage the best available evidence on emerging student mental health needs and the potential of a graduation requirement on resilience and mental well-being
• Continuing to support student resilience and well-being with the following goals:
  • mentally healthy classrooms and learning environments
  • effective and responsive school mental health and addictions supports
  • connections to the broader comprehensive system of mental health care.

The Ontario government also announced $26 million to renew funding for school-focused nurses in public health units, with up to 625 nurses supporting student health and well-being, along with and infection prevention and control plans and other supports to keep schools as safe as possible.

QUICK FACTS

• The Ministry of Education provides operating funding to Ontario’s 72 district school boards and 10 school authorities through the annual GSN education funding model. Funding to school boards is provided on a combination of per-student, per-school, and per-board basis.
• Since August 2020, more than $600 million has been allocated to improve ventilation and filtration in schools as part of the province’s efforts to protect against COVID-19. These investments have resulted in improvements to existing ventilation systems; deployment of over 70,000 HEPA filter units and other ventilation devices to schools, with an additional 3,000 HEPA units being provided; upgrades to school ventilation infrastructure; and increased transparency through public posting of school board standardized ventilation measure reports.
• As part of the government’s ongoing efforts to improve and modernize infrastructure, Ontario announced over $565 million in the 2021-22 school year to build 26 new schools and 20 permanent additions to existing schools, which will create new construction jobs and provide nearly 20,000 new student spaces across the province once complete.
• In recognition of increasing demands for digital learning in the classroom and increased network capacity, Ontario will be investing an additional $40 million in the 2022-23 GSN, to support the cost of associated with network connectivity, infrastructure, security and related operations in schools and school board buildings as usage increases and technology evolves.
• Under the Broadband Modernization Program, all schools across Ontario are equipped to provide adequate, reliable access to all students for online learning.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

• Ontario’s Learning Recovery Action Plan for Students Ontario’s Learning Recovery Action Plan for Students | Ontario Newsroom
• Education Funding, 2022-23