Jennifer Leclerc
Director of Education
Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board
June 4, 2020
Dear Ms. Leclerc,
I’m writing because Superintendent Peter Mangold is retiring, and you’ve hired Marilyn Gouthro at Promeus to assist with the hiring of the new superintendent.
What is the status of trustees on hiring panels for superintendents in the Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board?
I’m asking because in 2008 Trustee Gordon Gilchrist wrote a letter to a local newspaper calling on voters to tell politicians to "turn off the immigration tap before it's too late."
Trustee Gilchrist wrote that "most" immigrants don't understand Canadian values and "bring their old-country feuds and hatreds to be paraded and re-fought on Canadian soil."
Trustee Gilchrist also wrote that some of the 800,000 Muslims in Canada are Islamic extremists, Jamaicans settle scores using guns instead of the courts, Indian immigrants blow up an airplane to settle scores, and Sri Lankan Tamils use Canada as a source of funds for homeland rebellion.
The Globe and Mail wrote about the situation here.
The Board of Trustees censured Trustee Gilchrist and removed him from the Board’s Program Review Committee, but the Board of Trustees allowed Trustee Gilchrist to continue to sit on hiring panels. Trustee Gilchrist was involved in the hiring of many superintendents after that.
It didn’t even occur to the Board of Trustees or the Director of Education at the time to remove Trustee Gilchrist from hiring panels for superintendents and directors.
In 2016, Trustee Gilchrist made xenophobic comments again, this time about members of the Alderville First Nations Youth Band. The youth band was playing in the foyer at the Grand Opening of the Cobourg Collegiate Institute, Education Minister Liz Sandals was in attendance and Premier Wynne had just released the government’s Action Plan for Reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples. Premier Wynne had also just publicly apologized for the brutalities committed for generations at residential schools and the continued harm this abuse caused to indigenous cultures, communities, families and individuals.
The Toronto Star wrote about that situation here.
The Director of Education hired a third party investigator to investigate the allegations made by the students. The investigator concluded that given the balance of probability the assertions the students made about Trustee Gilchrist were substantiated.
At a Board meeting, the Board of Trustees censured Trustee Gilchrist in a unanimous and recorded vote. The Board of Trustees also voted to remove Trustee Gilchrist from the Board’s Expulsion Committee for the remainder of that committee’s term. But a motion to remove Trustee Gilchrist from the Board’s Program Review Committee was struck down in a tie vote. Therefore, Trustee Gilchrist was allowed to continue to chair the committee responsible for implementing the First Nation, Métis, and Inuit Education Policy Framework.
The Board of Trustees also allowed Trustee Gilchrist to continue to sit on hiring panels, even though they were about to hire a new superintendent to support the implementation of the First Nation, Métis, and Inuit Education Policy Framework.
The director of education did not veto or even caution the Board of Trustees’ about their decisions.
Trustee Gilchrist also sent me an email after a female Muslim student was appointed to Student Trustee saying the appointment was causing him some “grief,” and he was considering his own “course of action.” In the email, Trustee Gilchrist wrote that he had “an attitude of disdain for the Islamic cult and all it stands for.”
I forwarded the board a copy of that email on June 6, 2016.
No one responded.
However, Trustee Gilchrist did resign a few days later.
The Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board’s hiring policy continues to state that the Board is responsible for the appointment of directors and superintendents in spite of these gross violations. This means the same trustees who mismanaged the Trustee Gilchrist situation will be involved in the hiring of the new superintendent.
Bill 177 states that trustees are to be involved in the hiring panels of directors of education only.
The previous director recommended the Kawartha Pine Ridge DSB’s hiring policy be changed to better align with Bill 177.
But in a Chairpersons’ committee meeting, at which Trustee Gordon Gilchrist was present, the trustees refused to remove themselves from hiring panels for superintendents. The minutes of the Chairpersons’ meeting show the trustees “felt they should not readily give in to having their authority removed.”
Trustee Cathy Abraham chaired the meeting. She was the Committee Chairperson and Chair of the Board at the time. Ms. Abraham is now the President of the Ontario Public School Boards’ Association. Trustee Sarah Bobka, the Vice-Chair of the Board at the time, was also at the meeting. Trustee Diane Lloyd was present, as well as Trustee Jaine Klassen Jeninga and Trustee Angela Lloyd. This group comprised the Chairpersons’ Committee, and all of these trustees are still trustees in the Kawartha Pine Ridge DSB today.
In fact, Diane Lloyd, Angela Lloyd, Sarah Bobka, and Cathy Abraham continue to sit on the Chairpersons’ Committee today. As a result, they will be directly involved in the hiring of the new superintendent based on Board policy. Their current senior leadership team is entirely white and consists of six men and only three women. These are the same trustees who “felt they should not readily give in to having their authority removed,” the same trustees who allowed Trustee Gilchrist to continue to sit on hiring panels after espousing xenophobic comments twice.
In March 2020, Minister Lecce issued 27 Directions to the Peel DSB to address systemic discrimination and other governance issues in the board. Direction #2 was for members of the Board to immediately cease to participate on hiring, promotion and appointment panels, including temporary or acting positions, except for the position of Director of Education because governance dysfunction is perpetuating inequities of opportunity and success across that board.
As part of that directive, the Board was also to establish a policy restricting members of the Board from participating on hiring, promotion and appointment panels for positions other than the Director of Education.
The Peel Board of Trustees passed a motion on March 24, 2020 ceasing the participation of trustees in the hiring and promotion processes of all Board employees except for the Director of Education, and on March 26, the Board submitted a letter to Minister Lecce confirming the agreement.
On April 17, 2020 the Superintendent of Human Resources was assigned to develop Board Policy on restricting the Board of Trustees in the hiring and promotions process, and on May 19, 2020 the policy was presented to the Trustee Review Committee. On May 26 the policy was presented to the Board of Trustees at the Regular Meeting of the Board with a recommendation for approval, and on May 27 the Board submitted a letter to Minister Lecce confirming the policy had been approved.
A copy of the Peel DSB’s new policy can be found here.
Please confirm, within nine business days, that trustees in the Kawartha Pine Ridge DSB will NOT be participating on the hiring, promotion and appointment panel for the hiring of the next superintendent. (I chose nine business days because that’s how long Education Minister Lecce gave the Peel DSB Trustees to remove themselves from participating on hiring, promotion and appointment panels for positions other than the Director of Education.)
Please confirm, within nine business days, that trustees in the Kawartha Pine Ridge DSB will NOT be participating on the hiring, promotion and appointment panel for ANY employee on a go forward basis.
Please confirm the Board’s hiring policy has been changed restricting members of the Board from participating on hiring, promotion and appointment panels for positions other than the Director of Education by June 19. (I chose this date because the next Regular Board Meeting, where the new policy will need to be approved, is June 18.)
Please confirm receipt of this letter within 48 hours.
Also, please confirm that you’ll be supporting the Ministry of Education’s Equity Action Plan by hiring a racialized female for the next position of superintendent.
If you do not respond to my letter within 48 hours and confirm the above changes within the timelines given, I’ll be escalating the situation to the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal through a Request for an Order During Proceedings – Rule 19 Form 10 and naming the individuals responsible for the hiring of this superintendent and others in my complaint.
Yours very truly,
Debbie L. Kasman
M. Ed, Policy Studies, OISE/University of Toronto, Education Re-imagined, Analyst & Researcher, Author & Speaker
[Editor’s Note: On June 9, 2020 Jordene Lyttle, Parnter with Promeus Inc. replied, “Dear Ms. Kasman: This is to acknowledge that Marilyn Gouthro and our Partners are in receipt of copies of your communication dated June 4, 2020 and June 8, 2020. Promeus Inc. is committed to ensuring and supporting equity, diversity and inclusion in our work with clients and candidates across all sectors.” Neither the director or the chair of the board has responded.
On June 9, 2020, I wrote to Raj Dhir, Executive Director of the Ontario Human Rights Commission, asking the Commission to intervene.
On June 10, 2020, the Chair of the York Region DSB Juanita Nathan wrote, “Thank you for sharing your correspondence with the Board of Trustees in regards to hiring matters. You raise many excellent points that require consideration by the Board in its ongoing work. I appreciate your interest in public education and governance matters. Thank you.” Ms. Nathan was referring to my letter to Mr. Dhir, Executive Director of the Ontario Human Rights Commission.
On June 15, 2020, the Director of Education for the York Region DSB Louise Sirisko wrote, “Thank you for reaching out to me. You raise important points for consideration and reflection for staff.” She was also responding to my letter to Mr. Dhir, Executive Director of the Ontario Human Rights Commission.
On June 19, 2020 Director Leclerc announced her early retirement.
On September 7, 2021, the Ministry of Education announced it was seeking input from the public on how to strengthen accountability for school board trustees.
On October 31, 2021, Ontario’s Ombudsman Paul Dubé made a submission in response to the Ministry’s consultation on school board governance. Dubé made 14 recommendations to address the trustee situation including that:
School boards should be required to have a process whereby stakeholders other than trustees may make complaints under a trustee code of conduct, and should be required to publicize this process.
School boards should be prohibited from charging fees for the public to make trustee conduct complaints.
Trustee codes of conduct should specify that school board members should not engage in any reprisal or threat of reprisal against anyone for filing a complaint under the code of conduct, or co-operating with an integrity commissioner during a review or investigation. Members should also be prohibited from obstructing or attempting to obstruct investigations.
You can read the Ombudsman’s full report here.
On November 1, 2021, the Ontario Human Rights Commission (OHRC) wrote to Minister Lecce in response to the consultation on strengthening accountability for school board trustees, noting the Commission was particularly interested in measures to ensure trustees are held accountable if they fail to fulfill their legal obligations under the Ontario Human Rights Code (Code).
The OHRC noted it is concerned about reports of trustees engaging in discriminatory conduct including making homophobic, Islamophobic and racist comments, stating it is “particularly troubling when such behaviour is exhibited by education leaders entrusted with the responsibility to ensure school systems uphold and champion human rights.”
The new Chief Commissioner, Patricia DeGuire, wrote:
The Supreme Court of Canada has recognized that school boards must foster an atmosphere of tolerance and respect and cannot rely on the personal views of some individuals to deny equal recognition for the human rights of other members of the school community.
The minimum standards for codes of conduct should require school board trustees to respect, protect and promote human rights at the board and throughout the education system they govern. They should state that school boards and their trustees have a legal duty under the Code to maintain an inclusive environment, free from discrimination and harassment for trustees, student trustees, board staff, students, parents and guardians and members of the public. Boards and their trustees must take steps to prevent and respond appropriately to violations of the Code or they may be held “liable” and face monetary penalties or other orders from a tribunal or court.
To support these minimum standards and Code obligations, all board members should be required to successfully complete Ministry-approved education and training on human rights. Required training should include anti-racism, as well as content on Indigenous (First Nations, Métis and Inuit) cultural sensitivity and cultural safety that is developed and delivered by the Indigenous communities served by their board.
The OHRC strongly recommends that boards be required to establish a complaint process that ensures all allegations of discrimination by a trustee, including complaints made by student trustees, board staff, students, parents and guardians and other members of the public, are brought to the board’s attention. The process should make clear that, in accordance with the Code no person shall be negatively treated for raising a complaint, providing information related to a complaint or helping to resolve a complaint. Moreover, information about the availability of a complaint process should be easily accessible and widely publicized.
School boards have a duty to take complaints alleging a breach of the Code seriously and to act upon them promptly. Human rights jurisprudence has established that a duty holder’s failure to investigate and address allegations of discrimination and harassment in a timely and effective manner can cause and/or exacerbate the harm of discrimination.
School boards have a Code duty to take action when a trustee is found to have engaged in discrimination. Since the goal of human rights legislation is preventative and remedial rather than punitive, steps must be taken to both remedy the effects of the discrimination and prevent future occurrences.
The Education Act sets out potential sanctions for a trustee’s breach of the code of conduct, including censure and barring a trustee’s participation in board meetings and committees (s.218.3(3). The OHRC submits that, in certain circumstances, other measures may be necessary and appropriate to meet the remedial and preventative goals of human rights law. For example, mandating participation in additional human rights training could serve to prevent further Code breaches. Stronger sanctions, such as removal from office where the law permits, may be necessary in the case of a very serious breach. The OHRC recommends that school boards have all of the authority necessary to remedy human rights violations.
The Education Act requires school boards to vote publicly on determinations of code of conduct breaches and the imposition of sanctions. The OHRC recommends that boards be required to publicly report aggregate data on all complaints and their outcomes, on an annual basis.
The OHRC calls on the Ontario government to undertake any legislative, regulatory and/or policy changes necessary to implement these recommendations.
You can read the Commission's full letter to Minister Lecce here.
For updates, click here: https://bit.ly/DebbieLKasmanupdates.
To read my letter to the Ontario Human Rights Commission, click here.]
CC: Premier Doug Ford,
MPP Merit Styles
MPP Mitzie Hunter
MPP Kathleen Wynne
MPP Lorne Coe
MPP Michael Coteau
MPP Dave Smith
MPP Lindsey Park
MPP David Piccini
Federal MP Maryam Monsef
Patrick Case, Education Equity Secretariat
Nancy Naylor, Ministry of Education
Marilyn Gouthro, Promeus
Toronto DSB Trustees/Senior Administrators
Durham DSB Trustees/Senior Administrators
York Region DSB Trustees/Senior Administrators
Peel DSB Trustees/Senior Administrators
Kawartha Pine Ridge DSB Trustees/Senior Administrators
Thames Valley DSB Trustees/Senior Administrators
Ontario College of Teachers
Ontario Principals’ Council
Council of Ontario Directors of Education
Ontario Public Supervisory Officials’ Association
Ontario Public School Boards’ Association
Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario
Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation
Mustafa Ali, National Council of Canadian Muslims
Muhammad Akthar Skaikh, Kawartha Muslim Religious Association
Nouman Ashraf, Rotman School of Management
Chief Dave Mowat, Alderville First Nation
Deputy Grand Council Chief James R. Marsden, Anishinabek Nation
Charline Grant, parent York Region DSB
Charles Pascal, OISE/U of T
Annie Kidder, People for Education
Kristin Rushowy, Toronto Star
Shree Paradkar, Toronto Star
Travis Dhanraj, Global News
Mike Crawley, CBC
Caroline Alphonso, Globe and Mail
Jillian Follert, DurhamRegion.com
Kennedy Gordon, Peterborough Examiner
** Most of the copies will be sent under separate cover.