A union says the Huron Superior Catholic District School Board is planning to lay off as many as 74 educational assistants funded through Jordan’s Principle at the end of the school year.
CUPE 4148 President Crystal Krauter said it’s unclear if all of the positions will be cut, or if the school board will attempt to restructure some of the positions for the 2025-2026 academic year.
Krauter says the loss will be devastating for the 74 students that access the program, and the dispute over who will support funding will likely mean all 74 educational assistants at the board will lose their jobs.
The board confirmed a reduction for the upcoming school year, which they have no control over, due to recent changes in funding from Indigenous Services Canada related to Jordan’s Principle.
New or renewed requests for funding after that date will fall under new criteria.
Under the new guidelines that went into effect April 1, educational assistant support, which is considered an enhancement, will no longer be eligible for funding through Jordan’s Principle.
The board also stressed that it is not reducing its own support or services for students.
Jordan’s Principle is named after Jordan River Anderson, a Manitoba boy with multiple disabilities who died in hospital waiting for the province and Ottawa to decide who should pay for health supports that would allow him to go home.
There were 614,350 funding requests through Jordan’s Principle approved in 2021-2022.
But in 2023-2024, the number of requests ballooned to almost three million — representing a 367-per-cent increase.
The changes to the funding come almost a year after the federal government argued before the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal that requests were being made for several non-urgent things including gaming consoles and bicycles.
