The chair of the Brant Haldimand Norfolk Catholic District School Board says donations are being collected to pay for $100,000 worth of religious art purchased by trustees on a trip to Italy in July.
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Rick Petrella said in a statement that he has been “in discussions with several Catholic donors recently who are very interested in assisting in covering these costs.”
“I am actively working with them to secure their donations and remove any financial obligations of public dollars for this expense.”
This comes as a governance review of the board, called by Ontario’s Minister of Education Jill Dunlop, is underway related to four trustees – Petrella, Dan Dignard, Bill Chopp, and Mark Watson — spending $45,000 to travel to Italy for a week to meet with artists and purchase art pieces for the chapel at St. Padre Pio Secondary School, which is under construction on Powerline Road in Brantford.
News of the trip caused a public backlash from parents, students and board staff.
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Dunlop said the board “not only failed students and parents but the community with a serious lack of fiscal responsibility and judgment.”
The art includes life-sized, hand-painted wooden statues of St. Padre Pio and the Virgin Mary, a large crucifix and sculptures depicting the 14 Stations of the Cross, which, in an earlier interview with The Expositor, Petrella said are part of the plan to make the new secondary school a “flagship” for the board. A single piece of art was also purchased for a new Catholic elementary school under construction in Caledonia.
In his statement, Petrella reiterated that trustees “deeply regret the events that have taken place” and said they won’t happen again.
“We recognize that we let you down and we take full responsibility and ownership for this and are committed to doing things right.”
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Petrella said trustees are “taking concrete actions” to address travel expenses by personally repaying the school board.
The statement said the board is also rewriting its trustee expense policy, “ensuring it is fully aligned with the Ontario Broader Public Sector Expense Directive.”
The trip to Italy came about a month before the board approved changes to its trustee expense policy. A report to the board in June prepared by director of education Mike McDonald said the changes were suggested by Petrella. Among the changes were a bump from economy/coach class to business class for air travel outside North America if the destination is more than six hours away, allowance of charges above the standard hotel room rate, elimination of maximum rates for meals, and allowance of claims for alcohol in some cases.
Petrella said the school board will fully cooperate with the Ministry of Education review. A spokesperson for the ministry said they are in the early stages of planning for the review.
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