Overview

On August 29, 2025, Rachel Osborne was appointed to conduct a governance and leadership review of the Near North District School Board.

The review was announced following media reports and concerns from parents and community members about governance problems related to the opening of a new school in Parry Sound.

About the reviewer

Rachel Osborne is the Director of the Education Equity and Board Governance Branch in the Ministry of Education. She has extensive experience leading policy and program development and implementation to support accountable and responsible school board governance and leadership in Ontario’s education system.

Final report

The final report examines governance and leadership issues at the board and provides recommendations for effective, accountable and transparent governance at the NNDSB.

Executive summary

The reviewer highlights serious governance and leadership issues in the Near North District School Board:

  • an alarming deficit of leadership in the senior administration of the school board
  • a dysfunctional Board of trustees incapable or unwilling to carry out its responsibilities

The report finds that there were 3 factors at play in the delayed opening of the new JK-12 Parry Sound school that contributed to an erosion of public confidence in the school board:

  1. The Board of trustees’ inability to govern effectively and individual trustees who had acted in bad faith.
  2. The Director of Education’s peripheral leadership, lack of accountability and reluctance to provide direct and timely communication with communities.
  3. Construction delays that may have been better managed with closer oversight.

Binding directions from the Minister of Education

Based on the findings and recommendations of the final report on the governance and leadership issues at the NNDSB, the Minister of Education has issued 15 binding directions to the school board. The NNDSB is also required to submit progress reports to the Minister to demonstrate implementation of the directions.

These directions are intended to rebuild public confidence and provide the accountable, transparent and effective governance that the school board’s communities deserve.

Addressing governance dysfunction

  1. In the most expedient manner possible, the Board of Trustees shall retain the services of an external expert, subject to Ministry of Education approval, to support the Board in conducting a robust, transparent Director of Education performance appraisal for the 2025-2026 school year. The performance appraisal must:

    • be conducted in accordance with Ontario Regulation 83/24 – Director of Education Performance Appraisal
    • involve a 360-degree assessment that includes confidential feedback from senior administration, principals, teachers, students, trustees and representatives of the NNDSB community.

    Within five business days of receiving the directions, the Board shall submit the name(s) of the proposed external expert(s) for ministry approval and resubmit its 2025-2026 DPA attestation reflecting the intent to conduct a 360-degree assessment.

    Within five business days of receiving ministry approval for the external expert, NNDSB must initiate the procurement process.

  2. Within five business days of receiving the directions, the Board must submit a professional development (PD) plan, to be undertaken by all members of the board. The PD plan must include the names of external facilitator(s) or organization, dates for the completion of each priority area, and the method that will be used to evaluate trustees’ understanding of the content. These evaluations must be submitted to the ministry upon completion.

    • The PD sessions must be completed in-person by January 30, 2026, in the following priority areas:
      • Effective Financial Stewardship
      • Director of Education Performance Appraisal*
      • Conflict of Interest
      • Principles of Good Governance*
      • Duties and Authority of Boards*
      • Effective Community Engagement*
      • Conflict Resolution*
      • Code of Conduct*


    For the priority areas identified by an asterisk (*), the facilitator(s) should deliver the sessions using the relevant modules available through the Ontario Education Services Corporation (OESC).

  3. The school board must provide for immediate and ongoing support for the Board Chair to ensure meetings and Board business are conducted in accordance with principles of effective and accountable governance.
    • A plan detailing this immediate and ongoing support must be submitted within 15 business days of receiving the directions.
  4. a) Within 15 business days, the school board must ensure that all public Board meetings are recorded and posted to the NNDSB’s website within three business days following those meetings.   
    b) Effective immediately, provide for public delegations at regular Board meetings.
  5. Effective immediately, agendas for Board and Committee meetings must be posted in advance and minutes must be posted within 48 hours following those meetings. The NNDSB must also immediately ensure that all past agendas and minutes from Board and Committee meetings since November 2022 are posted on the school board’s public website.
  6. Effective immediately, the Board must schedule Committee of the Whole meetings and Board meetings on separate days to provide members with sufficient time to review reports and consider Board matters.

  7. Within five business days of receiving the directions, the Board must submit a timeline to the Ministry of Education for a review and update of its policies and procedures, including ensuring that these are distinguished from the board’s current administrative guidelines. All policies must be updated by the end of the 2025-2026 school year.

    As part of the policy review, the Board must prioritize updating their Trustee Code of Conduct and policies on electronic meetings and director performance appraisal to reflect recent legislative and regulatory changes.

  8. The Board must immediately require the Parry Sound Building Committee to hold monthly open meetings in accordance with Ontario Regulation 463/97 – Electronic Meetings and Meeting Attendance until all students have transitioned to the new JK-12 Parry Sound school. The first of these meetings must take place within 20 business days of receiving the directions.

Addressing leadership issues

  1. The Director of Education’s office must be immediately relocated to the main school board office, located at 963 Airport Road in North Bay.
  2. Within 10 business days of receiving the directions, the Director of Education must, in consultation with the Council of Ontario Directors of Education (CODE), undertake professional development focussed on school board governance in order to effectively support the Board in his capacity of Secretary of the Board.
  3. The NNDSB must procure the services of a human resources professional to establish an annual robust cyclical performance appraisal process for executive leaders, senior staff and other direct reports to the Director of Education. The procurement process to retain these services must be initiated within 10 business days of receiving the directions, and the performance appraisal process must be in place by December 31, 2025.

  4. The NNDSB must procure the services of an external party with relevant expertise to undertake a comprehensive review of its human resources practices since 2020, including but not limited to the establishment of senior and executive positions, recruitment, transparent and fair hiring practices, promotions, and performance appraisals. The review should determine whether these human resources practices:

    • adhere to school board policies and procedures, any applicable legislation and ministry requirements or guidelines;
    • are appropriately documented; and
    • have received Board approval, as appropriate.

    The procurement process to retain these services must be initiated within 10 business days. The review must be completed, and a full report submitted to the Ministry of Education by January 30, 2026.

  5. Within 15 business days of receiving the directions, the Director of Education must submit to the ministry a community engagement plan detailing measures that will be undertaken in order to restore public confidence in the Board. This plan must include in-person engagement sessions with the community, with the first session taking place within 10 business days of receiving the directions. The Director must lead these engagement sessions in-person. The community engagement session(s) with the Parry Sound community must be prioritized (i.e., be the first to occur). Minutes for each community engagement session must be posted on the NNDSB website within 48 hours of the engagement session taking place.
  6. Within 10 business days of receiving the directions, the board’s communications protocol must be revised, implemented and posted on the school board website. The revised communications protocol must reflect a more responsive and visible role for the Director of Education in directly responding to and interacting with NNDSB communities.
  7. Effective immediately, the NNDSB must ensure that regular and timely updates are made to the New JK-12 Parry Sound School webpage, including construction progress updates that clearly communicate what stages have been completed and what work remains. All relevant information must be made available through this webpage, including reports and minutes from regular Board meetings pertaining to the new school. Any missing records to-date must be added to the webpage within 15 business days.

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