KnowYourVote Toronto

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Jennifer Di Francesco

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

As a mother and longtime parent advocate, I have seen what happens when classrooms lack enough teachers, EAs and professional supports: students struggle, staff burn out and families feel unheard. As Trustee, I would challenge budgets and staffing decisions, demand transparent reporting and ensure resources reach the classrooms with the greatest needs. My priorities would be manageable class sizes and needs based staffing, especially for students requiring additional support.

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Stephanie Loor Ruiz

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

I will continue to support smaller class sizes and strong staffing so every child has the academic opportunities they deserve. As trustee, I would work closely with school communities to ensure their concerns are heard and reflected in decisions affecting students, staff, and families. Prioritizing adequate staffing and manageable class sizes is essential to helping all learners succeed.

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Paul Salvatori

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

As a School Board Trustee, but also as an educator, I take these concerns quite seriously. I believe students learn best when they regularly receive the attention they both deserve and are entitled to. That requires teachers and EAs alike not to be overburdened by having to oversee too many students. As Trustee, I would advocate for staffing levels and class sizes where students can receive one-to-one and/or small-group instruction. Staff and students alike should be able to learn and work without undue stress.

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Anton Perera

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

Discuss with trustees from other wards how they manage staffing problems and class room sizes and come to a collective plan and bring this up with the provincial education minister advocating for more funding. Look into the possibility of bringing back teachers who have retired early or semi retired to volunteer or work on a part time basis until staffing shortages are resolved with permanent qualified teachers. Evaluate the director of education from time to time to check how efficient and effective he has been in managing operations

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Markus de Domenico

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

I have spoken out publicly that the government must reduce class sizes so that students and teachers can achieve excellence in learning the curriculum. The government must acknowledge that over subscribed classrooms do not fascilitate proper learning environments. In working with our Union partners, I will advocate for smaller class sizes

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Sara Concordia

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

Teachers and EAs need the right support to meet the needs of every student. When classrooms are too large or do not have enough support, both students and staff are negatively affected. As trustee, I would listen to families and school staff, review staffing needs across Ward 2, and make sure resources are distributed fairly. A trustee cannot make these changes alone, but I would bring concerns forward, ask tough questions and hold the board accountable for putting students’ needs first.

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Susel Munoz Plasencia

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

Students cannot receive the support they deserve when classrooms and support staff are stretched beyond capacity. I would make adequate staffing, manageable class sizes, and access to educational assistants a priority, particularly for students with special education needs. Trustees have a responsibility to listen to teachers, EAs, principals, parents, and students and bring those concerns to the Board.

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Frank D'Amico

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

My role would be to make sure concerns about class sizes, teacher staffing and educational assistant support is appropriately addressed. I must emphasize that the trustees role is to listen to parents, understand needs, and advocate for appropriate resources, while understanding that trustees have no power to make individual staffing decisions.

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David Le

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

I would advocate for our children's best interests and push back against the province's policy of cutting funds to our public school system. Underfunding classrooms, staffing cuts, and ballooning class sizes all harm our children's educational performance. Teachers' hands are already full and they are expected to do more with limited funds and resources. If elected, my two main priorities are to fight for class size caps and ensure the student-to-educator ratio allows each student to be seen and heard.

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Karen Emerson

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

As a parent and advocate for education, I am extremely concerned that the Provincially-Appointed Supervisor has chosen to overturn decisions made about TDSB school class sizes set out by our democratically elected trustees in March 2025. These decisions about class sizes were evidence-informed and based on years of research and input from teachers and students. As a Trustee I will work with parents, teachers, and the community to ensure that decisions regarding students and teachers made by the Board are evidence informed.

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Md Sazibul Islam

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

As trustee, I would listen to families, educators and school staff, review local staffing data, and advocate for resources based on actual student needs. My priorities would include manageable class sizes, sufficient teachers and educational assistants, and timely support for students with special needs. I would push for transparent staffing decisions, responsible budgeting and stronger provincial funding so that every classroom has the support required for safe and effective learning.

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Glenn Kremp

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

This is a tough issue to tackle, some schools are at 110% capacity with no extra classrooms to thin out the class size School principals do a incredible job of trying to fit all the students enrolled into the school I would advocate the province for a higher budget to get more EA's or teachers into schools that are over capacity. Especially when the school-teacher allocation is given to principals in May and does not account for new students during the summer that have enrolled in the school, or even first day students that forgot to register

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Ravicha Ravinthiran

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

When classrooms are stretched, both students and educators feel the impact. I would listen to teachers, EAs and families to understand where the biggest gaps are and advocate for resources where they are needed most, especially for students who need additional support. I also believe staffing decisions should be transparent, with families understanding how and why resources are allocated. When funding or provincial decisions limit what the TDSB can do, trustees should be clear about those challenges and advocate for what our schools need.

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Curtis Jack

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

First and foremost, I would work to protect funding for special education needs and EA's to assist with chronic daily shortages, and potentially improve retention. I would work to cap outlier class sizes to ensure that intermediate and secondary classes don't balloon past reasonable sizes to fit the board-wide average. Finally, work toward minimizing fall re-organizing, by improving spring enrolment forecasting to reduce thrashing in class rooms and teacher assignment.

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Abdul Azeem Mohammed

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

As a school-council member, I’ve listened directly to parents who worry when classrooms are stretched and students don’t receive the attention they need. One parent told me, “My child needs help, but the teacher simply doesn’t have enough time.” That stayed with me. As Trustee, I will be a strong voice for students, parents and educators & advocating for appropriate staffing, EA support, manageable class sizes and transparent decisions that put student needs first.

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Aria Garcia

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

Public School Board Trustee should play the role of Principal who determine the Teacher and Education Assistant staffing levels of JK, SK, G1 to G8 for Junior and Grade 9 to G12 for Secondary and class sizes with at least 25 for all levels. My 1st priority would be to check all Elementary schools in addressing these concerns about lack of teachers and classrooms. Then, my 2nd priority would be the Secondary schools to check if their is a need to to add more classrooms and suggest to transfer them to other schools with less students.

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Ketan Purohit

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

I recognize that class size and staffing levels can affect the classroom experience, but larger classes do not automatically mean poorer outcomes. As a Trustee, I would listen to teachers, EAs, parents and students to understand where support is most needed. With budget pressures facing school boards, I would focus on the productive use of resources, staff skills and time. I would also support effective learning methods outside the classroom that complement classroom teaching and provide additional support to students for academic success.

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Vimuththan Nantheeswarar

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

I would advocate for staffing and class-size decisions that reflect the actual needs of students, educators, and schools. I support a dynamic resource-allocation process that responds to changing student needs, school conditions, and community realities, rather than relying solely on static enrolment projections. My priority is ensuring every student has access to the support and opportunities they need to succeed. Investing proactively in adequate staffing is both an equity imperative and a fiscally responsible way to improve outcomes.

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Timothy Ellis

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

Ultimately, the province controls the purse strings & has made the decision to chronically underfund education while suspending the statutory powers of Trustees. The province may be legally allowed to take away statutory powers, but nobody can take away the power of people to organize and effect change. I've led & won campaigns that have secured new funding and policy concessions from every level of government. I'll put my experience to work organizing and empowering Etobicoke families to demand - and win - proper resourcing of our schools.

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Ivan Voitsytskyi

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

I would listen to parents and teachers about crowded classrooms and missing support staff. My priority is that students get enough help in class, especially those who need extra support. A trustee does not hire teachers, but can ask the board to be clear about staffing and class sizes in each school. I would support using money first for classrooms, not extra office work.

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Andrew Massey

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

Fund the schools! Smaller classes and more staff. This is not a "two-sides" issue! My priorities are to increase frontline positions, have dedicated admins for each school, and to oppose all cuts. The recent ~900 staffing cuts and $6.4 million in dropped funding for special needs education must be reversed. Public education isn't a company, it's a service! Funding and staffing cuts make no sense and offer zero taxpayer value. Smaller class sizes and proper staffing means better outcomes and happier kids. Anything less is unacceptable.

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Andrene Gregory

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

As a TDSB Trustee, I understand that I don't have jurisdiction over hiring and firing, so I would prioritize students' and teachers' well-being because we cannot talk about accountability without talking about care. That is the essence of my platform and what raising the standard means: educational enrichment, quality of care, accountability and opportunity for everyone to thrive. This is not simply an issue about staffing; it is also a socio-economic issue that boils down to budget and which schools, jurisdictions and programs are prioritized.

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Elina Feyginberg

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

I would ensure that classes are reasonable in size. This will allow for teachers and EAs to have the ability to spend sufficient time with each student. I would also advocate for additional resources to allow for teachers and EAs to be available for additional help for those students who may need it.

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Adam Golding

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

Class Sizes must go down -- this must be the primary metric by which new spending is evaluated: its affect on student-teacher ratio, or at least upon student-adult-ratio, in the case of hiring support staff rather than teachers. This bans at the same time hiring of new bureaucrats who do no real educational work directly with students, as they do not count towards the student-adult ratio. Reducing class sizes has been a cornerstone of my campaign platform both this time and last time. See my complete platform on Substack.

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Tasha Kheiriddin

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

Research shows that smaller classes produce better educational outcomes, particularly for younger students. I would advocate for a reinstatement of the cap on middle-school class size, as well as a smaller size for all classes. As a parent who has advocated for a child with exceptional needs, I also know the importance of EAs, and would like to see an increase in EA funding and numbers. Allocation should be based not just on class size, but classroom complexity, ie the number of students with exceptionalities or challenges in a class.

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Axel Arvizu

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

As a Trustee, I would listen to educators, EAs, students and families to understand where staffing gaps are affecting learning and safety. I would prioritize responsible budgeting that directs resources toward classrooms, supports students with additional needs, and helps maintain manageable class sizes. I would also advocate for transparent staffing data and accountability so the Board can identify shortages, respond to high-need schools and ensure students receive the support they need.

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Gladstone Cherrington

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

Teachers, education workers, administrators and support staff play a vital role in student success. I will advocate for smaller class sizes, and increased funding and access to the resources needed to support students. There are school facilities that are in need of immediate repairs …I will advocate for funds to repair or update outdated facilities. The goal here is to facilitate student achievements, and improved pathways to their success.

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Shaffni Nalir

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

Cuts should not come at the expense of the support students receive every day.I am concerned about the loss of teachers and support staff and the removal of the Grade 4–8 class-size cap. As trustee, I would Push for smaller, manageable class sizes. Prioritize teachers, EAs and special-education supports. Listen to staff and families about what is happening inside classrooms. Advocate to the Province for the funding our schools need.

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Imran Khan

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

Lets start with Class Size. I say small is what I would vie for ! Teacher are not to be put under undue pressure that they have to ensure quality eduction for huge classes ! Creativity comes from being free of pressure and stress ! Let us give everyone space ! Let me fight for proper compensation , proper number of teachers and EA's and finally care for each and every learner !

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Ibrahim Hatia

Some school communities have raised concerns about teacher and educational-assistant (EA) staffing levels and class sizes. What role would you take as a School Board Trustee in addressing these concerns, and what would your priorities be?

School space and staffing must keep pace with new housing in Don Valley East and West. Families already here and those moving into our neighbourhoods deserve a clear plan for their children's education. I will press for smaller classes, enough teachers and educational assistants, and support based on each child's needs. Growth must come with welcoming classrooms and adults with the time to give each child support. I will push TDSB and the province to plan ahead so parents can see their children grow in confidence and reach their full potential.

big issues:class sizes and staffing

Candidate answers

Jennifer Di Francesco

Stephanie Loor Ruiz

Paul Salvatori

Anton Perera

Markus de Domenico

Sara Concordia

Susel Munoz Plasencia

Frank D'Amico

David Le

Karen Emerson

Md Sazibul Islam

Glenn Kremp

Ravicha Ravinthiran

Curtis Jack

Abdul Azeem Mohammed

Aria Garcia

Ketan Purohit

Vimuththan Nantheeswarar

Timothy Ellis

Ivan Voitsytskyi

Andrew Massey

Andrene Gregory

Elina Feyginberg

Adam Golding

Tasha Kheiriddin

Axel Arvizu

Gladstone Cherrington

Shaffni Nalir

Imran Khan

Ibrahim Hatia