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Three-member panels of the Discipline Committee conduct public hearings into cases of alleged incompetence or professional misconduct. Panels are composed of elected and appointed Council members. The certificate of a member found to be incompetent or guilty of professional misconduct may be revoked, suspended, and/or made subject to terms, conditions or limitations. In findings of professional misconduct, the committee may also reprimand, admonish or counsel the member, impose a fine, and order the member to pay costs.
Summaries of recent disciplinary cases are published on the following pages. Copies of the full decisions are available at oct.ca → Members → Complaints and Discipline → Decisions.
The College publishes professional advisories, available at oct-oeeo.ca/ advisories, which are intended to inform members’ professional judgment and practice. For more information about the Ethical Standards for the Teaching Profession, please visit oct-oeeo.ca/ethical.
Member: Anthony Mario Aquino
Registration No: 427770
Decision: Suspension, reprimand,
conditions, counselling
A Discipline Committee panel suspended the certificate of Anthony Mario Aquino, a teacher employed by the Hamilton- Wentworth Catholic District School Board, for inappropriate conduct.
This matter was heard by the panel on October 1, 2018. Aquino, who was certified to teach in June 1999, attended the hearing. He had legal representation.
Aquino entered a changing area designated for female students and stared at them while they were changing. He did so a second time hours after his department head had specifically advised him not to.
His school board subsequently transferred him to an adult and continuing education centre.
Aquino was previously found to have engaged in professional misconduct by the College in 2007 as a result of boundary violation issues. He had engaged in a personal relationship with a female student.
In this case, the Discipline Committee panel also found him guilty of professional misconduct and ordered that his teaching certificate be suspended for three months. He was directed to appear before it to receive a reprimand.
The panel also ordered him to successfully complete, at his own expense, a course on understanding and maintaining appropriate professional boundaries with students. He needs to do so prior to returning to teaching or any position for which a Certificate of Qualification and Registration is required.
The panel also ordered him to attend individualized instruction sessions with a social worker, counsellor or other specialist related to Aquino’s understanding of the importance of adhering to professional boundaries with students at all times.
In its written decision, the panel stated, “Members of the teaching profession are expected to promote and participate in the creation of safe and supportive learning communities.”
Member: Igwenagu Raphael Awachie
Registration No: 418483
Decision: Suspension, reprimand,
conditions
A Discipline Committee panel suspended the teaching certificate of Igwenagu Raphael Awachie, a teacher employed by the Toronto Catholic District School Board at the time of the allegations, for inappropriate behaviour.
Awachie, who was certified to teach in July 1998, attended the hearing on January 23, 24 and September 18, 2018. He had legal representation during the finding stage of the hearing, which Awachie and his counsel attended. Awachie represented himself during the penalty stage of the hearing.
The panel heard that Awachie dismissed students early from class, and allowed an unidentified female visitor to enter the school prior to the end of the school day, without abiding by the school’s visitor policy. He then engaged in sexual activity with her in his school office.
The Discipline Committee panel found Awachie guilty of professional misconduct and ordered that his certificate be suspended for 10 months. He was also directed to appear before the panel to receive a reprimand.
In addition, Awachie was directed to complete a course of instruction, at his own expense, regarding professional ethics. He needs to do so prior to starting a teaching position or any position for which a Certificate of Qualification and Registration is required.
In its written decision, the panel stated that “the Member’s reprehensible behaviour and his lack of professional judgment were very serious and deserved an equally serious penalty. The Member acted entirely in his self-interest and he demonstrated no regard for the safety of his school community. His conduct undermined the reputation of the teaching profession and the trust that the public places in teachers.”
The panel added that Awachie’s “actions not only demonstrated a complete lack of respect for the school environment and property, but also a blatant disregard for the well-being of students because the sexual encounter happened at school, where students could have walked in and witnessed it.”
Member: David Bielby, OCT
Registration No: 275192
Decision: Reprimand, conditions
A Discipline Committee panel reprimanded David Bielby, a teacher with the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board, for making highly inappropriate comments that were sexist and demeaning to students.
Certified to teach in November 1994, Bielby attended the hearing on June 15, 2018, and was represented by legal counsel.
Bielby repeatedly made rude and disparaging comments to students. He made sexist comments that had a negative impact on female students in his class. He used profanity and he mocked his principal in the presence of students.
The Discipline Committee panel found Bielby guilty of professional misconduct and directed that he appear before it to receive a reprimand.
Within 90 days of the written decision, he must also successfully complete, at his own expense, a course on professional boundaries.
In its written decision, the panel stated, “Members of the profession are expected to serve as role models for students and to foster safe and supportive learning communities.”
Member: Ellen Ann Bond
Registration No: 180087
Decision: Revocation, reprimand
A Discipline Committee panel revoked the teaching certificate of Ellen Ann Bond, a former teacher with the Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board, for engaging in an inappropriate personal relationship with a female student.
Bond exchanged romantic and sexual communications with the student, which indicated grooming behaviour.
Certified to teach in June 1989, Bond did not attend the hearing on June 15 and August 24, 2018, but was represented by legal counsel.
The Discipline Committee panel found Bond guilty of professional misconduct and ordered that her Certificate of Qualification and Registration be revoked.
The panel also ordered that she receive a reprimand.
In its decision, the panel stated, “The Committee vehemently denounces the Member’s abuse of trust and authority in her role as a teacher.”
Member: Darlene Patricia Boote
Registration No: 538289
Decision: Suspension, reprimand,
conditions
A Discipline Committee panel suspended the certificate of Darlene Patricia Boote, a teacher formerly employed by the Conseil scolaire catholique Providence, for inappropriate conduct.
This matter was heard by the panel on October 2, 2018. Boote, who was certified to teach in April 2009, attended the hearing. She had legal representation.
Boote, while on a school trip with six students, failed on numerous occasions to perform her supervisory duties.
For example, she left a student alone at the hotel, allowed two students to take a taxi downtown on their own, and left the group unsupervised in order to have dinner with friends.
She also purchased alcohol for some of the students, let them drink it during their stay, and drank with them in a hotel room.
When questioned by the school principal about the alcohol, she initially lied before admitting the facts.
The Discipline Committee panel found Boote guilty of professional misconduct and ordered that her teaching certificate be suspended for two months. She was directed to appear before it to receive a reprimand.
It also ordered her to successfully complete, at her own expense, a course on the ethical standards for the teaching profession and maintaining appropriate boundaries. She needs to do so within 90 days of the order.
In its written decision, the panel stated, “Be they in the classroom or away on a school trip, members of the teaching profession must ensure students’ safety at all times.”
Member: Mark Andrew Bradley
Bowers, OCT
Registration No: 577920
Decision: Reprimand, conditions
A Discipline Committee panel reprimanded Mark Andrew Bradley Bowers, a teacher formerly employed by the Bluewater District School Board, for a pattern of inappropriate conduct.
Bowers, who was certified to teach in June 2009, attended the hearing on October 15, 2018. He was represented by legal counsel.
His inappropriate conduct includes sending private Facebook messages to a student that made her uncomfortable. He also entered into an inappropriate relationship with another student and encouraged her to deny the relationship when he became aware that the school was conducting an investigation.
The panel ordered that he appear before it following the hearing to receive a reprimand.
He was also directed to complete, at his own expense, a course regarding appropriate boundaries and boundary violation issues at least 90 days before he starts or resumes any teaching position for which a Certificate of Qualification and Registration is required.
In its written decision, the panel stated, “Members of the profession hold a unique position of trust and authority and the member abused this trusted position by becoming too close with these students outside of the educational setting.”
Member: David Chiandussi
Registration No: 471207
Decision: Revocation, reprimand
A Discipline Committee panel revoked the Certificate of Qualification and Registration of David Chiandussi for engaging in an inappropriate personal relationship with a female student, which was indicative of grooming, over a period of approximately six months. He was a former teacher with the Windsor-Essex Catholic District School Board.
Licensed to teach in June 2005, neither Chiandussi nor his legal counsel attended the hearing on October 3, 2018.
Chiandussi and a female student exchanged communications of a romantic or sexual nature. He treated the student differently in class, giving her “privileges” that other students did not have. He also made inappropriate comments to her in the presence of other students and bought her gifts.
As a result of Chiandussi’s conduct, the student described feeling confused and overwhelmed. She noted that she cried herself to sleep for about a month. She further noted that Chiandussi scared her when he drove her to a river and told her that he had feelings for her.
The Discipline Committee panel found Chiandussi guilty of professional misconduct and directed the Registrar to revoke his Certificate of Qualification and Registration. It also directed that he receive a reprimand.
In its written decision, the panel stated that it “strongly denounces the Member’s abuse of his position of trust and authority. Members of the profession are expected to promote and participate in the creation of safe and supportive learning communities.”
Member: Pierre Fils-Aimé, OCT
Registration No: 480278
Decision: Reprimand, conditions
A Discipline Committee panel reprimanded Pierre Fils-Aimé, a teacher employed by the Toronto District School Board, for inappropriate conduct.
This matter was heard by the panel on October 2, 2018. Fils-Aimé, who was certified to teach in August 2004, attended the hearing. He had legal representation.
Fils-Aimé held the arm of a student when the student tried to push him and get past him in order to leave the classroom without permission. The student fell, hitting a garbage can and a recycling bin.
Criminal charges were laid and eventually withdrawn in exchange for a peace bond. Fils-Aimé also agreed to have no contact with the student for 12 months.
The Discipline Committee panel found him guilty of professional misconduct and directed him to appear before it to receive a reprimand.
The panel also ordered that he successfully complete, at his own expense, one or more courses on classroom management, and stress and anger management.
In its written decision, the panel stated, “Members of the teaching profession must foster a safe environment. They must never deliberately use physical force that causes pain or injury, or puts students at risk.”
Member: Jean-Pierre Roland Glazer
Registration No: 144901
Decision: Revocation
A Discipline Committee panel revoked the teaching certificate of Jean-Pierre Roland Glazer, a teacher employed by the Conseil des écoles catholiques du Centre-Est, for inappropriate conduct.
The hearing took place on December 13 and 14, 2017. Certified to teach in June 1972, Glazer took no part in his disciplinary hearing and did not present a defence.
During at least three school years, Glazer made numerous inappropriate and unpleasant comments to students, including some of a sexual and racist nature; was brusque and aggressive with students; and shouted at students, a colleague and the vice-principal.
Glazer received several warnings from his board and support from the administration, and several disciplinary measures were imposed, but there was no improvement in his behaviour.
The Discipline Committee panel found Glazer guilty of professional misconduct and ordered that his Certificate of Qualification and Registration be revoked.
In its written decision, the panel stated, “Based on the evidence submitted, the Committee has no confidence that the Member wishes or is able to rehabilitate himself. It therefore finds that revocation is the only appropriate penalty in order to protect the public interest and the school community.”
Member: Heather Joan Sergeant, OCT
Registration No: 478751
Decision: Reprimand, conditions
A Discipline Committee panel reprimanded Heather Joan Sergeant, a teacher employed by the Upper Grand District School Board, for inappropriate conduct.
Sergeant, who was certified to teach in February 2006, attended the hearing on August 23, 2018. She was represented by legal counsel.
Sergeant involved herself in serious personal matters regarding students at her school. For example, she expressed her interest in adopting a student’s baby and developed a personal relationship with the student and her family as part of that process.
She later informed the student that she changed her mind about adopting the baby. She did so in a public place with no consideration for the impact that this news might have on the student.
She also gave students her personal phone number, communicated with them through Facebook outside of school hours, and shared personal information with them.
The panel ordered that she appear before it following the hearing to receive a reprimand.
She was also directed to complete, at her own expense, a course on maintaining appropriate and professional boundaries. She needs to do so within 90 days of the date of the order.
In its written decision, the panel stated, “Members of the teaching profession hold a unique position of trust and authority, and they are expected to maintain appropriate professional boundaries with students at all times.”
Member: Joan M. Vanderburg, OCT
Registration No: 388058
Decision: Reprimand, conditions
A Discipline Committee panel ordered Joan M. Vanderburg, a teacher at the Waterloo Region District School Board, to be reprimanded for inappropriate conduct.
Vanderburg, who was certified to teach in June 1982, did not attend the October 15, 2018, hearing. She was represented by legal counsel.
Vanderburg made inappropriate comments to students about suicide and a recently deceased staff member.
Her comments about suicide and death were upsetting to students and made at least one student cry.
The Discipline Committee panel found Vanderburg guilty of professional misconduct and ordered that she appear before it to receive a reprimand.
It also ordered her to complete a course, at her own expense, on professional communication and boundary issues.
In its written decision, the panel stated, “The coursework will remind the Member of her obligations as a teacher and will help her to make better decisions in any future interactions with students.”
Copies of the full decisions are available at oct-oeeo.ca/decisions.