Toronto philanthropist supports local trustee candidates

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This article was published 21/10/2022 (753 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A Toronto philanthropist is backing contestants running for school trustee in his hometown of Winnipeg, where he spends millions of dollars on public education projects every year in Manitoba’s most highly populated district.

In recent months, representatives for Walter Schroeder — who, along with wife Maria Schroeder, is the namesake of their charity, the Schroeder Foundation — have been meeting with trustee hopefuls in the Winnipeg School Division.

Experienced trustees and educators say this is the first time they have heard of Schroeder supporting candidates and the situation raises concerns about the lack of rules surrounding school board races.

Neither Schroeder nor his charity have openly endorsed any nominee (and doing so is not required by law), although the Free Press has confirmed several people have connected with a spokesperson for the businessman about support.

An inner-city resident who was collecting nomination signatures until he called off his campaign after becoming ill with COVID-19 is among them.

Jason Hooper, who was preparing to run in Ward 5 this summer, said he participated in a phone call he likened to “a mutual interview,” during which he and a consultant for Walter Schroeder talked about his personal interest in trusteeship and current education issues.

There was agreement surrounding many local and bigger-picture schooling items, Hooper said, noting the parties discussed concerns about what is happening in K-12 schools south of the border, including book bans and restrictions on gay-straight alliances.

“(We discussed) their desire to be giving back to the community and to see more equitable outcomes in the education system,” Hooper said, noting it was relayed income- and race-related issues were of particular interest.

The support available was not specific and trustee hopefuls were encouraged to connect with Schroeder’s team if they needed any help, he said.

At no point between the initial conversation, a followup dinner or any other correspondence did the then-trustee hopeful get the impression the philanthropist was interested in anything other than helping people who shared his family’s values.

Schroeder did not respond to a request for comment about his endorsements. The consultant who initially reached out to Hooper did not reply to a reporter’s emails either.

Schroeder made his fortune as the founder of Dominion Bond Rating Service — a credit rating company he came up with during a family road trip that happened nearly 50 years ago. Following a recent merger, DBRS, established in Toronto in 1976, is part of DBRS Morningstar, one of the largest global agencies of its kind.

After the Schroeders sold the company in 2014, they devoted themselves to philanthropy.

The Schroeder Foundation’s mandate includes “empowering youth and Indigenous communities.” Last year, the charity brought in upwards of $77.1 million in revenue, according to the Canada Revenue Agency.

For nearly a decade, the family has gifted WSD with generous donations for everything from meal programs to scholarships for inner-city learners at Sisler, Daniel McIntyre and St. John’s high schools.

The charity expanded its food bank services running out of St. John’s in early 2022 to provide free lunches to students at Dufferin School, an elementary building Walter Schroeder attended as a child.

“As teenagers growing up in working-class Winnipeg families, (Walter and Maria) themselves benefited from the generosity of others, and they have tried to extend that same generosity wherever possible, working to help students one by one,” states an excerpt on the foundation’s website.

Campaign expense rules in the City of Winnipeg cap mayoral or city councillor candidate donations and do not allow contributions from businesses, unions or individuals residing outside of Manitoba. These applicants are required to file an audited financial statement with details about all contributions at or above $250.

School trustee hopefuls do not have to abide by any similar laws. Fundraising and obtaining non-monetary support is done “at the discretion of the individual.”

Cameron Hauseman, an assistant professor of educational administration at the University of Manitoba, said Schroeder’s support for nominees is an example of why some rules must be introduced.

While noting the Schroeders have a history of doing good work, the researcher, who studies K-12 leadership, said he has a lot of questions about the support and whether it will be tied to anything down the line.

The Manitoba School Boards Association is not in favour of amending race rules, citing how accessible it is to run for trustee at present.

“Trustees are largely voluntary members of each community who are able to seek election with minimal barriers standing in the way of what remains the most grassroots form of non-partisan democracy in Canada,” president Alan Campbell said in an emailed statement.

The Winnipeg Labour Council is one of few, if not the only, organization that voluntarily makes endorsements public. The council provides interested contestants support, financial or otherwise, depending on interest.

In the absence of disclosure rules, the Free Press surveyed all 35 candidates in the WSD contest about their endorsements.

Ward 4 nominee Rebecca Chambers confirmed one of two donations of $250 or more that she has received was from Walter Schroeder.

The teacher has said publicly her former Daniel McIntyre principal called to inform her funding could be available through the philanthropist and she pursued the offer.

Chambers has taken to Twitter more than once to discuss her campaign finances; she said she is grateful for Schroeder’s dollars, but made clear she would not accept any influence, mentorship or other public relations services.

“I believe in my own connections and personal and professional history in the division as valuable and integral to my individual campaign,” the nominee wrote in a tweet.

As far as Hooper is concerned, anyone who is being cagey about an endorsement or fundraising should have to answer for that because “transparency is important to democracy.”

WSD nominees Patrick Allard, who built notoriety for opposing public health orders during the COVID-19 pandemic, and Angela Anderson Johnson declined to release details about their donations.

Omar Rahimi, Tristan Malcolm, Serena Gatti, Perla Javate, Gagandeep Chahal, Dana Brown and Jamie Bonner did not respond to a survey.

maggie.macintosh@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @macintoshmaggie