Curtis Ennis named as the first Black Director in the history of the Halton District School Board

BY PAUL JUNOR

The board has been without a Director since its previous Director, Stuart Meller retired and a search process was underway in  early December, 2020. According to its website: www.hdsb.ca it provides education for approximately 64,000 students in Kindergarten to Grade 12 in Burlington, Milton and Oakville.

There have been changes at the board and it went  through a process to review its mission, vision and values starting Monday, February 8^th, 2021. The mission of the HDSB is, “Together we inspire every student to learn, grow, and succeed.”

Its vision is, “Every student will explore and enhance their potential, passions, and strengths to thrive as contributing global citizens. Every student will be intellectually engaged in their learning and socially engaged in their school.”

The appointment of Curtis Ennis will be a significant loss to the Toronto District School Board. There have been many changes in the TDSB with respect to the loss of senior leadership administrators. On November 8^th, 2018 Christopher Usia was announced as the new chief superintendent for the Calgary Board of Education and left the TDSB to take the helm effective December 17^th, 2018. The retirement of Dr. John Malloy, which was set for November 1^st,2020, resulted in the appointment of Carlene Jackson as the first Black female Interim Director on June 25^th, 2020. She took over on July 15^th, 2020 but  two weeks later on July 31^st, 2020 announced that she would be leaving. Subsequently, Colleen Russel-Rawlins , Associate Director of Equity, Early Year and School Improvement Plan left the TDSB to become permanent Interim Director of the Peel District School Board (PDSB) starting August 5^th, 2021.

Curtis Ennis has served in many leadership positions within the TDSB. He was the Associate Director of Equity, Well-Being and School Improvement prior to his appointment, which will be effective August 2^nd, 2021. TDSB’s Interim Director, Karen Falconer, released a congratulatory letter. It commends him for his twenty-five years of service to the board in several leadership capacities and the Ministry of Education. It states,

“His passionate dedication to interrupting and addressing acts of oppression, racism and hate will be deeply missed across the TDSB. Curtis Ennis has consistently inspired  others to focus on building a transformative and responsive school system while holding him and others accountable for building trust across stakeholder and community groups. He has been a respected role model and mentor to all levels of our organization, particularly to students and staff of colour who thrive for racial and social equity in our schools and communities.”

The letter by the Chair of the HDSB welcoming him as Chief Executive Officer ,Secretary of the Board and Director of Education states, “We are excited to welcome Curtis Ennis as the HDSB’s incoming Director. Curtis brings a wealth of knowledge gained through senior leadership in the Ontario education sector.”

Curtis responded, “I am truly honoured and excited to be joining the HDSB as Director of Education. I am grateful to the Trustees for their confidence and I look forward to leading and learning with the students, staff. Families and community partners of Burlington, Halton Hills, Milton and Oakville in the years ahead. Leadership for me has always been about service and I am deeply committed to working with the staff and the Board to carry out the Halton tradition of excellence in education while being actively mindful of those who have been historically underserved and have faced barriers to positive outcomes. Working collaboratively with students, staff and trustees and communities, I will be intentional and focused on ensuring the success and well-being of students of all identities in HDSB.”