Province removes teachers named in abuse allegations
The Ministry of Education says any teacher named in a multi-million dollar class action lawsuit alleging incidents of physical and verbal abuse against students by staff at the Legacy Christian Academy will not be teaching this school year.
Earlier in the day, the Saskatchewan NDP called on the province to do just that, while also asking for an investigation into the allegations by the Saskatchewan’s Children and Youth Advocate.
NDP official opposition critic for human rights Meara Conway said the Ministry of Education failed in its duty to act and hold the alleged parties accountable.
“Teachers who are named in the lawsuit who are alleged to have perpetrated these abuses will be back in the classroom this fall -- and that is unacceptable,” she said.
“You are not alone. That kind of conduct is not okay. And we will keep pushing for accountability.”
At a news conference Thursday, Conway wondered if the Sask. Party government is aware of other allegations of human rights abuses it has failed to act on.
In response to the allegation, the province amended its Registered Independent Schools Regulations to allow an administrator to oversee three schools which employ individuals named in the lawsuit.
Former Legacy student Stefanie Hutchinson said more needs to be done, alleging some private schools in Saskatchewan are being run by unqualified people who aren’t registered with any regulatory body.
“It's unacceptable. Some of these individuals are currently facing numerous child abuse allegations. And they're preparing to accept new students in just a few weeks,” she said.
“It is astonishing to us as survivors that we even have to have this conference today. Why are we still needing to persist on an issue that should be non-partisan?”
In an email late Thursday afternoon, The Ministry of Education said it asked the Saskatchewan Professional Teachers Regulatory Board (SPTRB) to investigate once names were revealed in the statement of claim. The email statement said the board has acted.
"We understand the SPTRB has taken action and that these teachers will not be in the schools for the 2022-23 school year. No one named in the lawsuit will be working in schools for the 2022-23 school year," the statement said.
Hutchison, together with fellow former student Caitlin Erickson, Conway and NDP leader Carla Beck stood outside of Saskatchewan’s Children and Youth Advocate calling for the independent investigation.
“As students, we are requesting a meeting with the Minister of Education Dustin Duncan, who essentially has been non-responsive at this point,” Erickson said.
The Ministry of Education says the appointed administrators are working to establish themselves at each of the three schools employing people named in the lawsuit.
"Each administrator’s priorities will include reviewing school staff and making personnel decisions to ensure student safety. Once administrators are in place they will schedule a meeting with any students or former students who are interested in speaking with them about the allegations," the statement said.
Erickson said dozens of former students have approached her about their own abuse they faced while attending Christian Centre Academy, now known as Legacy Christian Academy, with some students attending the school as recently as 2019.
Erickson said 18 of those students are preparing statements for a Saskatoon Police Service investigation into the alleged abuses.
“Doesn't matter what side politically you are on. This is a problem for everybody,” she said.
Beck said Duncan has the ability and obligation to open an investigation immediately.
“It is beyond frustrating that we have to stand here and ask for this. This should have been done immediately when this first crossed the minister's desk,” she said.
Beck has also written the Saskatchewan Advocate for Children & Youth to examine whether there are adequate oversight processes in place to protect children in Qualified Independent Schools.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.
Trump lawyers say Stormy Daniels refused subpoena outside a Brooklyn bar, papers left 'at her feet'
Donald Trump's legal team says it tried serving Stormy Daniels a subpoena as she arrived for an event at a bar in Brooklyn last month, but the porn actor, who is expected to be a witness at the former president's criminal trial, refused to take it and walked away.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
Customers disappointed after email listing $60K Tim Hortons prize sent in error
Several Tim Horton’s customers are feeling great disappointment after being told by the company that an email stating they won a boat worth nearly $60,000 was sent in error.
Woman who pressured boyfriend to kill his ex in 2000s granted absences from prison
A woman who pressured her boyfriend into killing his teenage ex more than a decade ago will be allowed to leave prison for weeks at a time.
Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter banned from NBA
Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter has been handed a lifetime ban from The National Basketball Association (NBA) following an investigation which found he disclosed confidential information to sports bettors, the league says.
Attempt to have murder charge quashed against alleged serial killer dismissed by judge
A motion filed by the man accused of killing four Indigenous women in Winnipeg to have one of those murder charges quashed has been dismissed by the judge – weeks before the start of his trial.