The Chair of the Brant Haldimand Norfolk Catholic District School Board, Rick Petrella, has expressed regret over a recent trip to Italy taken by a group of trustees. The four-member delegation spent $45,000 on the trip and, while there, purchased $100,000 worth of religious statues for a new school.
In a statement, Petrella said that each trustee involved in the trip has agreed to repay all travel expenses to the school board. As for the cost of the statues, the board is now looking into alternative, non-board funding options to help cover the expense.
His full comments can be found below:
We take responsibility and ownership for this and are committed to addressing and remedying the situation. Each trustee, including myself, who participated in the trip has agreed to repay all the expenses incurred to the board.
Additionally, with regard to the Catholic statues we commissioned, we are exploring other non-board funding options to help offset the costs.
We have heard the concerns of our parents, students, staff, and stakeholders, and we recognize the need to further invest in our system. As a result, we have decided to allocate additional funds forthwith to support student needs.
Some examples are:
- Enhancing Health and safety de-escalation training for teaching and support staff
- Providing additional resources and staffing for our safe and healthy schools programs.
- Including improvements to our school breakfast programs in the district.
Furthermore, we will be reviewing our expense policies at the earliest opportunity to ensure they align with the Broader Public Sector Procurement Directive (BPS).
We deeply regret the events that have taken place, and I want to personally assure everyone that such incidents will not occur again. We are committed to providing the highest quality educational experience for our community and to continuing our longstanding tradition of sound fiscal management, ensuring that our board remains one of the best in the province.
Rick Petrella
Chair of the Board of Trustees