My “Extraordinary Mentor” Warren Hoshizaki
78.1 On December 07, 2023 the DSBN announced their new Director of Education. The new Director of Education in question is an internal staff member with over thirty years of DSBN experience, who assumed the position following eleven years as a member of the Senior Leadership team. Currently serving as the Niagara Region’s superintendent of education, they have been in charge of assisting administrators in over 40 schools in carrying out their mandate to promote student achievement and enhance wellbeing.
78.2 This Caucasian female employee, along with her six other Caucasian co-workers are in charge of all matters pertaining to the DSBN Board and the enhancements of student equity, inclusion and anti-racism. The DSBN believes that she brings to the role a wealth of leadership and educational leadership and experiences to her new position
78.3 So you wonder what kind of wealth of educational leadership does she bring?
- The kind of prosperity that you would experience if you were a Caucasian Female working in the DSBN.
- The kind of wealth that comes with do nothing except watching and learning for over thirty years as a submissive and complacent observer to the racist culture that exist within the DSBN.
- The kind of wealth that would allow you to say things like “I feel so honored to have worked with Warren and to have been a part of the incredible achievements made during his tenure. He has been an extraordinary mentor, and I will continue to lead the Board with the shared goal of always putting students first.”
78.4 Just this statement alone should raise red flags to the public and the HRTO after learning what the Turner Consulting Group audit had exposed. Who publicly would want to acknowledge that someone like Warren Hoshizaki is a “extraordinary mentor” to them?
78.5 Who publicly would state that someone like Warren Hoshizaki has accomplished “incredible achievements” after he made a self-admitted statement that “racism still exists at the DSBN” during his tenure?
78.6 Who? Kelly Pisek that’s who!
78.7 Ether Kelly Pisek has been living under a rock for the past eighteen years while Warren Hoshizaki took control of the DSBN and began destroying its reputation even more. Or alternatively, she is so culturally deaf and blind to the damage that Warren Hoshizaki caused to the DSBN through “his tenure” of unethical and illegal hiring and promotion practices. That she is unable to recognize sexism, racism and discrimination when it is right in front of her.
78.8 It’s actually none of these applies; rather, it’s the fact that she blatantly idolizes Warren Hoshizaki and what she considers to be the “incredible achievements” he did in terms of hiring and elevating Caucasian females in order to preserve the Organizational Whiteness ethos that permeates the DSBN.
78.9 Is it surprising to anyone that the DSBN gave Kelly Pisek was gifted her new role as Director of Education for demonstrating her love and commitment to her “extraordinary mentor” Warren Hoshizaki for eighteen years?
78.10 Is it any surprise that the same DSBN chooses to replace the racist, sexist and misandry Warren Hoshizaki with a Caucasian female employee? You know the preferred types of people by the DSBN and Warren Hoshizaki?
78.11 Not at all! Because nothing changes at the DSBN, and one would anticipate nothing less or anything different.
78.12 The DSBN wants everyone to believe that they gifted a Caucasian Kelly Pisek the position of the Director of Education because there was not a single individual who applied from outside the DSBN that was more qualified for the position than her.
78.13 From the moment the DSBN knew Warren Hoshizaki wanted to retire. They had every intention of giving Kelly Pisek for the position. There was no chance for anyone else to get this position, especially a racialized individual.
78.14 The DSBN and Warren Hoshizaki refused to hire racialized individuals for almost twenty years for far less positions of authority and pay. So what would make any normal person believe that anyone other than a Caucasian Female was getting top spot in the DSBN?
78.15 The DSBN publicly announce on April 26, 2023 “Hoshizaki announced his retirement earlier this year” and then the DSBN oddly delayed opening applications until September 29, 2023.
78.16 That means it took the DSBN 134 days, 19 weeks, or over 4 ½ months to determine that it is time to start considering replacing their Grand Wizard. Why?
78.17 Because the DSBN already knew who the replacement would be. And they knew they didn’t need to search very far.
78.18 All they had to do at this point was act as though anyone individual could apply for the position. Similar to the way how they had deceived racialized individuals who were applying for positions within the DSBN during the course of the preceding eighteen years.
78.19 Similar to the preceding eighteen years, the application process for the vacant post was only designed to provide the impression that the hiring and application selection procedures were equitable for all applicants.
78.20 The Deadline to submit applications was from Friday September 29, 2023 to Friday November 17, 2023, a total of only 49 days
78.21 Then by December 07, 2023 a total of only 20 days later there was a new Director of Education.
78.22 It is hardly a strange coincidence that the DSBN withheld submitting applications until September 29, 2023—three weeks after schools opened and classes begin.
78.23 The DSBN wanted everyone to go back to work and wanted to eliminate a large population of individuals from applying. They were holding out that everyone would return to their jobs, which would reduce a sizable portion of the population from applying.
78.24 Particularly in these days of rising unemployment, inflation, uncertainty and living expenses. Individuals who currently have steady and secure work are less inclined to move positions. As a result people tend to remain in their comfort zones due to the unpredictability of the times.
78.25 It seems that the DSBN was aware of Warren Hoshizaki’s resignation early in the spring of 2023. And if the DSBN had offered an opportunity for other school board employees the chance to apply during their impending summer break. It seemed highly more likely that a much greater number of people would have applied and been prepared to make the switch if accepted.
78.26 Rather, the DSBN purposefully delayed the acceptance of applications by 134 days, 19 weeks, or more than 4 ½ months in order to exclude a significant section of the population and reduce competition for them wanting to reward Kelly Pisek.
78.27 Statistics Canada found that only twelve percent of Canadian workers said they were planning to leave their job at some point over the next year. The facts are that fewer Canadians are quitting their jobs, despite their being more than 818,000 job vacancies available in Canada.
78.28 Instead of pursuing a new career, people in Canada are clinging to their current professions and sticking with the devil they know. And because of this current trend, it made it easier for the DSBN to justify gifting Kelly Pisek her reward for being the “dedicated” employee who remained silent, and actively participating in the DSBN’s racist, sexist and discriminating culture for over 30 years.
78.29 In order to avoid upsetting the apple cart, the DSBN made a calculated and obvious move that allowed them to eliminate as much competition as possible for Kelly Pisek and to be able to promote internally!
78.30 So after following behind and towing-the- line for over thirty years. Kelly Pisek will now get her opportunity to “continue to lead” the line and follow proudly in her “extraordinary mentor” Warren Hoshizaki same footsteps.
78.31 As Darryl Singer has observed, this is merely another instance of Ontario a school board “changing the blinds, but they’re not changing the furniture inside.”