The swimming-lessons pitch is part of a plan Smitherman released Friday to transform Toronto's schools into community hubs, offering a broad range of government services including daycare, recreation facilities and libraries.

Josh Matlow, a Ward 22 candidate for city council and veteran school board trustee, expressed doubts about the plan.

"Who is going to put up their hands and say that they're going to fund it?" he questioned. "Always, it always comes down to that."

Boys from the Yonge-Eglinton neighbourhood mix it up with a little street hockey. A city committee is looking at dropping an unenforced city bylaw that prohibits playing ball games on the street.

Tuesday evening, five teens were playing on a quiet, leafy street northeast of Yonge St. and Davisville Rd.

“We play here pretty often in the summer — it’s never a problem,” said Christian Iriotakis, 13. A few cars passed, and each time the boys quickly moved the goalpost out of the way; most drivers smiled and waved. Christian and friend Owen Singer, also 13, just recently learned street hockey was illegal.

“No, I don’t think it’s going to stop us,” Owen said.

Out with them was school Trustee Josh Matlow. “We need to be reasonable about what we decide to criminalize in our society,” he said as he hit a green ball into the net. “Canada’s national sport being played out in the city is part of our fabric and culture. Why is this illegal?”

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Dr. Spence introduced the idea last fall as part of this Vision of Hope, a sort of mission statement for Canada’s largest school board. Critics raised objections to the $345,000 price tag on what amounted to an educational pep rally, and trustee Josh Matlow was censured after he characterized it as a “drunken spending binge.”

The event was scaled down from full-day to a half-day, and hardcopy commemorative booklets were re-imagined in a digital format to bring the cost to taxpayers closer to $120,000.

But some critics remain concerned.

“This is a time when the board has deferred $30-million from [building] maintenance and we’re asking parents to support school closures because we don’t have funds,” said Mr. Matlow. “To turn around the next day and ask them to spend their money on a vanity affair is a slap in the face.”

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As a stipulation of the final budget, staff has been asked to evaluate the $324-million discretionary budget and recommend areas where money could be saved in the future.

Trustees Josh Matlow (St. Paul's) and Irene Atkinson (Parkdale-High Park) saw this as a cash cow where a great deal of money is spent in ways that are far from transparent.

Matlow said it is his understanding that large discretionary budgets for things like textbooks and instructional supplies are really "code words" for money spent on other staff expenses.

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Trustee Josh Matlow said if there’s a need in public schools, other options should be explored.

“I get emails with various products people want to sell the school board,” he said. “This could be something the board would take a look at with other competitive products.”

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Josh Matlow, trustee for St. Paul’s, said to keep the paintings on school grounds or locked in a vault is wasteful.

“My view personally is that the TDSB should not be in the art gallery business. The school board is good at education but that’s typically where it stops its expertise,” he said.

“I think that we should reach out to other arts-oriented organizations, including perhaps the AGO and other galleries. I’d rather see these pieces accessible to both students and the general public.”

Dear friends and neighbours in St. Paul’s,

Thank you for the great privilege of serving you as your Toronto District School Board Trustee for the past seven years.

Together, we championed Eco-Schools, solar panels on school roof tops, financial literacy in Ontario's curriculum, programs for our youth-at-risk, cell phones in school policy, created or revitalized sports fields at our local schools...with more to come, saved our school pools, made repairs to our buildings despite the dearth of funding, met the challenge of both under and over-enrollment locally, guided the New North Toronto Collegiate Institute through to a successful fruition and held the school board to account when it did not reflect the priorities of parents, students and residents. There are many, many other important projects and initiatives we've worked on together of which I am deeply proud.

I have always tried to provide a strong and thoughtful voice on behalf of the people of St. Paul’s at the Board table. However, I believe perhaps the most important work a trustee can do is to try to help each individual parent and resident who contacts them with a concern.  My remarkable assistants, Bobbi Hunter and Ciara Behan, and I have always made great effort to do so. Thank you as well to Superintendents Rauda Dickinson and Michael Smith - both of whom I've had the pleasure to work with and learn from.

As this will be my last year as your school trustee, please allow me to express to you my sincerest appreciation for the confidence you've bestowed upon me. The well-being of your children, and that our community, has been the reason for every decision I've made on your behalf.

When I was a child, my mother taught me to always leave a place I’ve stayed a little better than I've found it. That has been my intention for our community while holding this office for you. I deeply appreciate the many friendships I’ve made along the way and know that we will continue to work together for St. Paul’s.

Most Sincerely,

Josh

Josh Matlow
Trustee for St. Paul’s
Toronto District School Board
http://www.joshmatlow.ca
http://www.facebook.com/joshmatlow
http://www.twitter.com/JoshMatlow

To: St. Paul’s Residents, School Council Chairs, Ward Representatives, Parents, Student Councils, Principals, Vice Principals, Staff

School trustee Josh Matlow (St. Paul's) said that while he fully supports the principle of full-service schools, the board should "not spend a single dime" on the projects until the province makes a commitment.

"This plan leaves it up to the board to co-ordinate and implement full-service schools. It will be the ministries that really dictate and create policies as far as how we're going to go about it," Mr. Matlow said. "I don't want us to spend a single dime on this until the cheque has been cashed by all levels of government who want to partner with us."

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by Louise Brown, The Toronto Star

“We should drop the euphemisms,” suggested Trustee Josh Matlow. “Let's stop saying school closings will get us ‘better schools and brighter futures' and every student will get a pony and schools will be made of chocolate,” said Matlow, who nevertheless supports closing underenrolled schools and recommended 10 reviews a year.

“We should actually show empathy to people who face losing their school.”

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Tre Anthony from CTV’s So You Think You Can Dance, Josh Matlow Toronto trustee, Paula Brancati from DeGrassi: The Next Generation, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, Dr. Eric Hoskins and Raymond Ablack from DeGrassi: The Next Generation at the launch of ChangeTheWorld - Ontario Youth Volunteer Challenge.

Day of Pink or Pink Shirt day started in 2007 when a student in Nova Scotia was bullied because he wore a pink shirt to school. Disgusted by this intolerance, student leaders there had a brilliant idea.  They quickly galvanized the whole student body in a Pink Day Rally of protest and solidarity. That idea has since gathered steam, resonating with students everywhere.

Together, let's stand together against bullying, discrimination & homophobia.