An Inside View of Chanicka's Mysterious Departure

A WRDSB teacher says transparency is needed to restore trust.

Why is the Waterloo Region District School Board (WRDSB) remaining silent about the dismissal of former Director Jeewan Chanicka (“effective immediately”), and why are many of his recent social media posts, profiles, and online lectures being deleted?

To answer that question, let us first take a look at Jeewan’s brief history and tenure at WRDSB from 2021 to 2024. It remains curious—and perhaps telling—how this board and its trustees operate. Their collective silence is unacceptable. The only official statement released by the board regarding Jeewan’s dismissal was: “It’s personal.”

A Brief History of Jeewan’s Arrival

After a standard nationwide corporate search, Jeewan Chanicka was interviewed and hired by board personnel and school trustees employed by WRDSB at the time. For reasons known only to the board, WRDSB deemed it necessary to go outside the Region of Waterloo for their new director. Given the progressive times, one can only speculate that Jeewan fit the “diverse, inclusive” profile valued by municipal school boards.

Unfairly, many local candidates from the region, with years of experience at WRDSB, were overlooked, denied, or otherwise not hired. In the ensuing years, some left the board entirely, either retiring or enthusiastically seeking work at other boards. Teachers and board staff were taken aback that trustees would hire someone not from the region, nor living in it. WRDSB trustees publicly celebrated and extolled the virtues of their new hire—words that would come back to haunt them.

In a timely coincidence, Jeewan’s interviews and hiring coincided with municipal elections, which resulted in a number of new trustees being elected—some with little or no prior experience in education. Two trustees were later appointed by their peers due to the untimely death of one trustee and the resignation of another. Trustees chose not to hold elections to fill the vacancies. For some observers, it appeared the fix was in.

This current group of trustees—often referred to as the “Elite 8”—were staunch supporters of Jeewan’s vision and consistently voted 8–3 in favor of his goal to “transform WRDSB’s delivery of education.” We will return to these trustees later.

Jeewan’s Tenure: Alienating the Public

It didn’t take long for Jeewan and his supporters to alienate the public. In addition to labeling parents who disagreed with his equity-focused initiatives as “hateful,” he also attempted to remove or downplay the fun and importance of Halloween, Christmas, Mother’s Day, and similar celebrations. His rationale was rooted in “inclusiveness.” However, no surveys or other measures were implemented to determine how offended the public truly was by these traditions.

Public pressure eventually forced the board to back down, implementing compromises or watered-down versions of these events. This incident proved to be a harbinger of how Jeewan and the Elite 8 would operate in the following years.

Prior to Jeewan’s appointment, the public was welcome to speak and delegate on issues of concern during board meetings. This is a standard practice among public school boards across Ontario and the nation. However, under Jeewan’s leadership, WRDSB began to impose increasingly restrictive measures on public delegations.

Issues that concerned parents—too numerous to list here—led to tense but civil interactions at meetings. One particularly contentious issue was the appropriateness of transgender-themed children’s books in elementary schools. This resulted in a defamation lawsuit against Trustee Scott Piatkowski, which remains unresolved and is being funded by taxpayers.

Restricting Public Engagement

As parents became more involved, Board Chair Joanne Weston introduced a series of restrictive measures to contain delegations. Security guards were hired, access to the meeting room was limited to 30 attendees (despite the room’s capacity for 300), and overflow rooms were locked. Delegates arriving after 7:15 p.m. were locked out. Most egregiously, Weston required delegates to submit—not just a summary—but a complete script of their presentation for prior approval. Delegates whose scripts were not approved were denied the right to speak.

Jeewan’s Leadership and Spending

As time went on Jeewan’s control over WRDSB grew unabated. Fellow employees were required to book appointments to meet with him, his direct email address was unavailable, and superintendents from outside WRDSB were hired. It remains unclear whether these were open competitions or approved by trustees. Nevertheless, the successful candidates aligned with WRDSB’s diversity goals. Their job descriptions and performance metrics remain unclear. And although Jeewan is no longer the Director of Education at the WRDSB, these hires remain with six-figure salaries and no clear goal on what their jobs even are, or how their performance is evaluated. Which leads us to money.

During Jeewan’s tenure, WRDSB faced deficits, declining enrolment (with many families choosing the Catholic board, homeschooling, and other options) a shortage of EAs, and infrastructure needs. Despite these challenges, Jeewan awarded himself an annual 24% ($55,787) salary increase and allocated funds for self-congratulatory videos promoting his vision to “radically change education.” Meanwhile, student test scores for reading and writing remained middling compared to provincial standards.

Did we, as taxpayers pay for these videos? Or did Jeewan pay for them with his $290,987 salary? This would be important to know, since the WRDSB has been deleting all and any videos Jeewan produced with his likeness and name. Perhaps his vision was not that visionary after all. Rumors about Jeewan’s spending are widespread; will authorities investigate?

The Departure

The unexpected midday announcement of Jeewan's departure from the WRDSB was met with widespread approval, sparking positive reactions in staff rooms and enthusiastic discussions across online platforms. The atmosphere was light and joyful.

For three years, eight of the twelve elected trustees fully supported Jeewan. Despite numerous parents and teachers bringing up their concerns and dissatisfaction, Board initiatives were rarely questioned by senior staff, with trustees engaging in self-congratulatory speeches at meetings. Thus, it came as a shock when the board announced Jeewan’s “effective immediately” dismissal via a brief email. Newly appointed Chair Maedith Radlein offered “no comment” to explain the decision.

Right to the end the Trustees circled the wagon. This is wrong! The trustees who hired and later dismissed Jeewan must be held accountable. They owe the public a full explanation, including the reasons for both his hiring and firing. They are responsible for such a failed hire and need to be held accountable for this failure either by dismissal or forthright explanation and public apology with their individual names attached. Some trustees (two of which were not even elected, but ‘selected’), while not responsible for Jeewan’s hiring, have supported his actions during his tenure and should also be held accountable. They too must be dismissed and if so inclined be candidates for the next municipal elections – if they dare run on their record.

Finally, the board must address the claim that Jeewan’s dismissal was due to “personal issues.” If a public figure responsible for the well-being of school-aged children has personal issues that impact their competence, this demands transparency. Silence only fuels speculation, which serves neither the public nor Jeewan.

It is time for Interim Director Scott Miller and the trustees to break their silence. The public is waiting.

~Teacher, Waterloo Region District School Board