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HearingsThree-member panels of the Discipline Committee conduct public hearings into cases of alleged incompetence or professional misconduct. The panels are a mix of elected and appointed Council members. If found guilty of professional misconduct or incompetence, a member's certificate may be revoked, suspended or limited. In cases of professional misconduct only, the committee may also reprimand, admonish or counsel the member, impose a fine, publish its order in Professionally Speaking, or order the member to pay costs. Panels of the Discipline Committee have ordered summaries of these recent disciplinary cases to be published in Professionally Speaking. Member: Ian Scott McCuaig A Discipline Committee panel held a public hearing on March 25, 2008 into three allegations of professional misconduct against Ian Scott McCuaig for inappropriate communication and contact with a female student. McCuaig, who was certified to teach in January 2003 and worked for an independent school in Whitby, represented himself at the hearing. The panel heard evidence that McCuaig formed a personal relationship lasting 10 months with a female student he taught in Grades 10 and 11. The girl suffered from an eating disorder, which McCuaig used to make her feel dependent on him. He met with the student after school and in public places in sight of other adults and discussed her illness. He invited the student to join him and his spouse, with full knowledge of the girl’s parents, on trips to Toronto and sightseeing. The panel also heard that McCuaig hugged the student and kissed her on the forehead as a greeting. The student provided investigators with printouts of several inappropriate electronic and telephone conversations McCuaig had had with her. Having considered the evidence, a plea of guilty, an agreed statement of facts, a joint submission on penalty and the submissions of the member and College counsel, the panel reprimanded McCuaig for professional misconduct. “Through these inappropriate contacts, the member encouraged the student to confide in and depend on him,” the panel said. “This resulted in the member attempting to counsel the student beyond the scope of his responsibilities as a teacher.” Instead of reporting the student’s condition to proper authorities, he encouraged her to deal with the illness on her own, preventing her parents from knowing about it and possibly prolonging her treatment, the panel said. In addition to the reprimand, the panel directed McCuaig to complete, within six months and at his own expense, a course pre-approved by the Registrar on professional boundaries and ethics. The decision appears on the College’s public register. Member: Not identified A Discipline Committee panel held a public hearing on April 2, 2008 into allegations of professional misconduct against a member who had been found guilty of assaulting his wife and pregnant daughter and for issuing death threats involving the use of a rifle. The now-retired elementary school teacher represented himself via teleconference and pleaded not guilty to the misconduct allegations. The panel heard evidence that the member was convicted of assault and of carrying and carelessly storing a rifle. He received a conditional discharge and 18 months probation. He was directed to attend any counselling deemed necessary by his probation officer and was also ordered to perform 200 hours of community service. The court imposed a probation order prohibiting the member from possessing any weapons, ammunition or explosives. In his defense, the member asked the panel to weigh his 30 years of exemplary behaviour as a teacher against one evening of misbehaviour. He said he had an unblemished career, having taught over 900 students successfully. Having considered the evidence, onus and standard of proof, and the submissions made by College counsel and by the member, the panel found him guilty of professional misconduct and directed the Registrar to revoke his Certificates of Registration and Qualification. The panel said that by committing assaults and making death threats, which involved the use of a firearm, the member failed to comply with the Ontario College of Teachers Act and the Education Act. “The member mixed prescription drugs with alcohol, subsequently lost his temper and committed violent acts,” the Discipline Committee panel said. “Although the acts occurred in the member’s home, they have resonance to the member’s professional judgment as someone who could be in a position of authority over students.” The panel determined that publication of the member’s name or any identifying information would have an adverse effect on one of the victims. “In this case, publication of the findings without the name of the member balances the public interest and the right of the victim,” the panel said. The panel’s decision appears on the College’s public register. Member: Andrew Charles Jackson A Discipline Committee panel held a public hearing on May 5, 2008 into seven allegations of professional misconduct against Andrew Charles Jackson for sexually abusing a female student and for inappropriate physical contact with another. Jackson, who was certified to teach in September 1998 and worked as a high school teacher for the Upper Canada DSB, did not attend the hearing but was represented by counsel. The panel heard evidence that Jackson, who served as a school basketball team coach, kissed one female student following an out-of-town tournament in 2001 and engaged in sexual activity, including intercourse, with another female student in 2005. Both incidents occurred at Jackson’s home and involved students who had assisted him with the team. “The member sexually abused a student,” the panel said. “He used his position of authority to take advantage of the student for his own sexual gratification. By so doing, he has betrayed the trust of the public and the student.” Having considered the evidence, an agreed statement of facts, a plea of no contest, joint submissions on penalty and the submissions of counsel, the panel found Jackson guilty of professional misconduct and directed the Registrar to revoke his Certificates of Qualification and Registration. The panel’s decision appears on the College’s public register. Member: Terrence T. Lithgow A Discipline Committee panel held a public hearing on May 21, 2008 into nine allegations of professional misconduct against Terrence T. Lithgow for grooming and sexually exploiting a female student. Lithgow, who was certified to teach in 1978 and worked as a high school teacher for the York Catholic DSB, did not attend the hearing and was not represented by counsel. The panel heard evidence that Lithgow engaged the student in inappropriate phone and computer chats, bought her gifts, and pursued a personal relationship over three years resulting in sexual activity and intercourse at school, in a park and at a motel. He pleaded guilty and was criminally convicted of sexual exploitation and Internet luring resulting in a 15-month jail sentence and a conditional sentence of 12 months followed by probation. The court also ordered Lithgow to attend assessment, counselling and treatment for sexual offending. The College’s Discipline Committee can accept as proof that a person committed an offence if he or she was convicted in a Canadian court, there is no contrary evidence and an appeal has not been granted. Having considered the evidence, onus and standard of proof and the submissions of College counsel, the panel found Lithgow guilty of professional misconduct and directed the Registrar to revoke his Certificates of Qualification and Registration. The panel decision said that Lithgow began an inappropriate relationship with the student while she was in his Grade 9 and 10 classes, chatting and e-mailing in a manner that became increasingly sexual in nature. The pattern continued the next year when he served as her tutor and led to sex on many occasions. “The member exercised emotional control over the student by telling her that he loved her, giving her gifts and alcohol, and making her promise not to tell anyone about their activities,” the panel wrote. “The fact that he used his position of trust in order to create a long-term pattern of abuse, control and sexual exploitation of his student requires that he receive the maximum penalty, revocation of his Certificates of Qualification and Registration,” the panel said. “The member, by his abuse of a student, has brought the profession into disrepute and has lost the trust of the public.” The panel’s decision appears on the College’s public register. Member: Jennifer Lynn Dorland A Discipline Committee panel held a public hearing on May 6, 2008 into allegations of professional misconduct against Jennifer Lynn Dorland for sexually assaulting a male student. Dorland, now known as Jennifer Lynn Toews, was certified to teach in June 1992 and worked as a Grades 7 and 8 teacher for the Upper Canada DSB. She did not attend the hearing and was not represented by counsel. The panel heard evidence that Dorland was criminally convicted of sexual assault, invitation to sexual touching and sexual interference involving a male student under the age of 14 in or around September 2004. The judge in the criminal case said that e-mails from Dorland to the student were compelling evidence corroborating a sexual relationship between them. “She used her position of authority to take advantage of the student for her own sexual gratification,” the panel wrote. “The evidence showed that the member behaved in a predatory manner by surreptitious grooming of the student for sexual purposes.” Having considered the evidence, an agreed statement of facts, a plea of no contest, joint submissions on penalty and the submissions of College counsel, the panel found Dorland guilty of professional misconduct and directed the Registrar to revoke her Certificates of Qualification and Registration. The panel’s decision appears on the College’s public register. Member: Not identified A Discipline Committee panel held public hearings on April 1 and May 7, 2008 into allegations of professional misconduct against a member for incompetence. The member, who was certified to teach in July 2003 and worked as a Core French teacher in Grades 5–8 for the Lakehead DSB, did not attend the hearing and was not represented by counsel. In an agreed statement of facts, the member acknowledged unprofessional and incompetent conduct. This included: failing to mark assignments, leaving students unsupervised, being unaware of student safety issues, infrequently addressing inappropriate student behaviour in a positive way, infrequently establishing an environment that maximized student learning or encouraged students to excel, and engaging in inappropriate conversations with students about the personal lives of other staff members. Having considered the evidence, a plea of no contest, an agreed statement of facts, a joint submission on penalty and the submissions of College counsel, the panel found the member guilty of professional misconduct. The member was directed to complete at her expense an Additional Basic Qualifications course in French-language instruction and a course on classroom management and effective student discipline approved by the Registrar. She was told to provide proof of completing the courses to the Registrar within 30 days of their end, and to alert him of her return to teaching, providing the name of her employer and the nature of the work, within 10 days following her return. In addition, she was directed to provide two consecutive satisfactory teacher performance appraisals within 18 months of returning to teach. The panel’s decision appears on the College’s public register. Member: Robert Terrance Marson A Discipline Committee panel held a public hearing on June 5, 2008 into allegations of professional misconduct against Robert Terrance Marson related to a criminal conviction for the indecent assault of elementary-school-aged male students. Marson, who was certified to teach in June 1962 and taught at the elementary level for the Hastings County Board of Education, did not attend the hearing but was represented by counsel. The panel heard evidence that Marson pleaded guilty in criminal court to indecently assaulting two of his students and to the common assault of another. As well, he pleaded not guilty but was found guilty of indecent assault against two additional students. The “unacceptable and repetitive acts of assault” occurred over a decade, beginning in 1969, while he was a teacher, vice-principal and then a school volunteer after retirement. Having considered the evidence, a plea of no contest, an agreed statement of facts and the submissions of counsel, the panel found Marson guilty of professional misconduct and directed the Registrar to revoke his Certificates of Qualification and Registration. In its decision the panel wrote: “The member’s teaching practices were designed to make possible his determined and ongoing behaviours to exploit his students. He solicited the assistance of students within the school to work with him in his classroom and at recess, after school and at his home and on camping trips. He gained their trust, groomed them, attacked them and assaulted them sexually and physically.” Marson abused the power and trust vested in him as a teacher and “caused emotional and psychological trauma and sexual harm to his students for his own gratification,” the panel said. “The member displayed behaviours that are beyond any reasonable semblance of civil behaviour. In any society these types of behaviour are judged to be destructive, immoral and reprehensible,” the panel said. “The fact that he abused his position of trust in order to create a long-term pattern of abuse, control and exploitation of his students for his own sexual gratification requires that he receive the maximum penalty, revocation of his Certificates of Qualification and Registration.” The panel’s decision appears on the College’s public register. Member: Cory Oliver Valentini A Discipline Committee panel held public hearings on May 1 and June 4, 2008 into allegations of professional misconduct against Cory Oliver Valentini for consorting with known criminal members of the Highway 66 gang. Valentini, who was certified to teach in June 2003 and worked for the Northeastern Catholic DSB, attended the second day of hearings and was represented by counsel. The panel heard evidence that Valentini associated with members of the Highway 66 gang and failed to sever his connection “after he knew or ought to have known that those persons were actively engaged in criminal activities.” Having considered the evidence, an agreed statement of facts, a guilty plea, a joint submission on penalty and the submissions of counsel, the panel reprimanded Valentini for professional misconduct. Further, the panel directed the Registrar to suspend Valentini’s Certificates of Qualification and Registration for one year. “The one-year suspension of the member’s Certificates of Qualification and Registration and reprimand are reasonable,” the panel wrote. “While the member associated with known criminals, he did not actively engage in criminality.” The panel took into account that Valentini had been suspended without pay since 2005 by his board. Suspending his licence to teach until June 2009 gives Valentini “ample opportunity to reflect on his behaviour and experience some rehabilitation,” the panel said. “This is in the best interests of the public.” The panel’s decision appears on the College’s public register. Member: George Albert Cameron A Discipline Committee panel held a public hearing on May 7, 2008 into allegations of professional misconduct against George Albert Cameron related to a criminal conviction for sex with minors. Cameron, who was certified to teach in December 1991 and worked for the York Catholic DSB, attended the hearing and was represented by counsel. The panel heard evidence that Cameron was convicted in New Brunswick for acts of gross indecency, indecent assault, sexual assault on three females in his care, and attempting to have sexual intercourse with two of them. Consequently, he was sentenced to jail for a total of 28 months. Having considered the evidence, onus and standard of proof, and the submissions of counsel, the panel found Cameron guilty of professional misconduct and directed the Registrar to revoke his Certificates of Qualification and Registration. “Sexual assault of a child is among the most reprehensible and egregious acts that any member of society can commit,” the panel wrote. “When a sexual assault involves minors and the person committing the assault is a member of the teaching profession, a profession that is entrusted with the care and protection of children, revocation is the only appropriate penalty.” The panel’s decision appears on the College’s public register. |
