Protective policies
Public Schools Branch says it takes every measure to ensure safety of staff and students
The P.E.I. Public Schools Branch says it is taking every measure to ensure the safety and well-being being of its students.
Representatives from the branch told a legislative standing committee Tuesday there have been five investigations into sexual and physical behaviour between staff and students in Island schools over the past two years.
During the presentation to the standing committee on education and economic growth, director of student services for the Public Schools Branch, Terri MacAdam, laid out the measures her department has taken to ensure that students feels heard and safe at school.
The presentation was to inform the committee on what the PSB has been doing with its new Safe and Caring Learning Environments Policy and Procedures.
“There were policies in place in the past, but these are extensive revisions that were done in 2018,” said MacAdam.
MacAdam told the committee the branch had shared and discussed the revisions with public school principals, CUPE 3260, bus drivers, janitors and with public school staff.
Principals were then tasked to discuss the new policy with staff and students. The policies do specifically outline sexual misconduct and also touch on other areas like physical harassment, bullying, discrimination, threats and abuse.
MacAdam said the policies address sexual misconduct between student to student, student to staff and staff to student. Sexual misconduct between staff would fall under human resources.
Once victims bring allegations forward, depending on each individual allegation and report, Child and Family Services or police may be involved, and allegations and reports are not limited solely to inside schools.
If police become involved, the PSB can halt their own investigation until police complete theirs.
Allegations and reports can and will result in school-based disciplinary actions including suspension. Until investigations are complete, teachers are put on administrative leave until such a time it is deemed they can come back to schools, if at all.
The health curriculum in public schools have been updated, said MacAdam, to encourage discussions about healthy relationships and how to understand consent.
The new health curriculum is currently being piloted at six intermediate schools and six elementary schools (grades 1 to 3) around issues of consent, gender norms, bystander intervention and sexual assault.
MacAdam said one such project, called The Microphone Project, is based on Island musical artist KINLEY’s song, which was written after her own sexual assault at her prom and is being used as resource for students.
MacAdam said going forward, she hopes to incorporate infographic pamphlets for young children, social media sites to link policies and a kids’ helpline for students.
“We have done a lot of training on this in recent years because policy is what’s written on a piece of paper, but training is paramount to people’s understanding, using and engaging with (the policy in) a school environment,” said MacAdam.
“Principals and all the people who are in close contact with students every day are trained. Well over 400 people.”
The Public Schools Branch has published MacAdam’s presentation online, and the Safe and Caring Learning Environments Policy and Procedures is also available at https://edu. princeedwardisland.ca.