Heads of the unions representing staff at Conestoga College are reacting to the surprise announcement from the provincial government on Thursday that sent shockwaves through the post-secondary sector.
The Government of Ontario made a first-of-its-kind move to intervene in a hemorrhaging situation at Conestoga College after unveiling a number of significant financial issues through an audit.
“Following the discovery of evidence of serious financial and governance mismanagement at Conestoga College, the government is relieving the Board of Governors of their duties and appointing Linda Franklin as Administrator for Conestoga College, effective immediately,” reads a statement from the province on Thursday.
Linda Franklin, a 30-year veteran of governance in Ontario with a resume that includes 16 years as president and CEO of Colleges Ontario, has been appointed as an administrator to oversee operations at Conestoga College.
The audit detailed a roughly $3 million payout to former college president John Tibbits following his sudden departure in January, the exorbitant $636,000 salary he was paid in 2024, trips to Italy on the college’s dime and a $1,300 dining expense for internal staff, where 50 per cent of the pre-tax total was alcohol.
More in education
“Tibbits is not the whole story here,” said Leopold Koff, president of OPSEU Local 237 representing faculty at Conestoga College. “Tibbits is just exactly the kind of opportunist that one can see when Ford starves the college system and leaves leaders like Tibbits, who are unaccountable to the board or anybody, to work to their own devices.”
Koff claims that the union heads weren’t consulted in any capacity on the completion of the audit or the appointment of Franklin as administrator.
“I believe her appointment was pre-ordained and already pre-selected; it was just a matter of her waiting for the call. This is like living in a reality TV show,” added Koff. “Ford’s government wants to look like the hero cleaning up their own mess, but they’re the actual ones who caused the mess to begin with.”
“We also question the parameters of the audit. Who did the audit? It wasn’t the Auditor General who did it. Is it really as thorough as it could be or should be?”
Union heads at Conestoga College have routinely been in opposition to decisions made by Premier Doug Ford’s government when it comes to education, including his most recent cuts to the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP).
Vikki Poirier is president of OPSEU Local 238, representing support staff at Conestoga College. She noted that while she wasn’t overly surprised by the contents of the audit, she was angered.
“We need the removal of John Tibbits’ name on that Waterloo campus building. That needs to go,” said Poirier.
She added that the appointment of an administrator at the college is another example of government overreach.
“We’re seeing this across the province, we’re seeing this in the school boards. We have an election coming up in the fall, and we’re seeing this with the regional chair. This doesn’t look good,” said Poirier.
Both Koff and Poirier are calling for the suspension of any previously planned cuts to staff.