jeewan chanicka no longer Waterloo Region District School Board director

The Waterloo Region District School Board is under new leadership.

An all staff notice sent to employees reads, “Please be advised that jeewan chanicka is no longer the Director of Education of the Waterloo Region District School Board. We thank him for his leadership and contributions and wish him all the best in his future endeavours. Effective today, Scott Miller will be taking on the role of Interim Director of Education.”

CTV News reached out to the board about the announcement, but they declined to comment and did not provide a reason for the decision.

Jeff Pelich, president of Elementary Teachers Federation of Ontario (ETFO) in Waterloo Region, says he learned of chanicka’s departure only a few minutes before the announcement was sent to WRDSB staff, shortly after 11 a.m. today.

“The presidents of the different bargaining units for the WRDSB learned about five minutes before the system did that jeewan chanicka was no longer the director of education in an email from the system. And that is it. We did hear from our contacts in human resources just to let us know that it occurred, but that is all we know at this point,” Pelich told CTV News.

Pelich says there’s been no indication as to the circumstances around chanicka’s sudden departure.

“It was as much a surprise to us as it was to the community and to the rest of the school board.”

“The director role is really one that steers the entire system and ensures that consistent and strong leadership. And so when these sorts of thing happen, it can be a challenge.”

Pelich adds he is pleased to see Scott Miller named interim director, calling it a good and wise choice.

“I think that he is a calm, steady hand at the helm right now and has been in our system for quite some time, and well-respected by the system as a whole. And we look forward to working with him.”

“I wish him all the best because I think the system has been a bit in crisis over the last few years, and I think it’s time to have some solid, strong leadership in that role.”

The board appointed chanicka as the director of education in June 2021. Before that, he had held teaching and leadership positions at York Region and Toronto school boards and the Ontario Ministry of Education.

Editor's note: chanicka doesn't use capital letters in his name intentionally.