St. Michael’s College report fails to address root problems
St. Michael’s College School has had a long and storied reputation in Toronto, and until quite recently, it has been an institution revered not only for instilling fidelity and academic excellence, but also for producing some of the highest calibre athletes to have come out of our city.
As is the case with anything we hold in high regard, when it fails to live up to our expectations, our disappointment and subsequent disillusion can be swift and devastating.
Last fall, we learned about the alleged sexual assaults and hazing rituals taking place at SMCS, and we as a community witnessed, in real time, an administration poorly equipped to manage the media frenzy and parental backlash that ensued.
But for many of us, the shocking news coming out of St. Michael’s College School was in no way surprising, and to some degree, was a reckoning long overdue. It was a natural consequence of an institutional culture that tied its very lifeblood to achieving excellence in the hyper competitive arena of sports.
To expose our boys and young men to such competitive pressure comes with a high cost that, left unchecked, can lead to a culture of toxic masculinity, bullying and elitism.
As a former student and athlete who attended SMCS in the early 1980s, I witnessed both the best and worst of what the school represented. I also know from my experience and from numerous conversations I’ve had with alumni, that bullying and sexualized hazing rituals cannot be brushed aside as “isolated incidents;” and more importantly, many of the men I spoke with continue to live with the trauma they experienced while under the care and supervision of St. Michael’s College School.
It was with this in mind, that I chose to both speak to the media about the hazing I was subjected to during my time at SMCS and also why I agreed to sit down for a 90-minute interview earlier this year with the independent investigators leading the Respect and Culture Review Committee.
On Thursday, St. Michael’s College School released the Respect and Culture Review Committee’s final report, in its entirety, to the board of directors, parents and staff, alumni, and the community at large. In conjunction with this, the school’s interim president, Father Andrew Leung, released a video statement expressing his thoughts on the report.
Any expectations that I had that St. Mike’s would once an for all expunge the “dirty secret” that has lived within its hallowed walls for many years were quickly squashed. Instead of taking full ownership of this systemic problem, Father Leung chose to deflect culpability by saying that: “Bullying continues to be a societal issue, and the behaviour speaks to how we treat one another.”
He went on to point out that the incidence of bullying taking place at SMCS is in line with the numbers across other comparable institutions. Really? This is how low we set the bar for a school that has long been respected as one of our city’s finest institutions?
I believe we can, and must, do better. I also believe that the systemic culture of toxic masculinity, bullying (affecting 1-in-5 students according to the report), and sexualized hazing will continue to be the norm and not the exception unless the following issues are addressed:
Stop putting the sports teams on a pedestal and work toward creating a more inclusive and nurturing school ethos
Dismantle the “Old Boys Network” and bring greater diversity into the institution by focusing less on appointing alumni to the faculty.
Stop conflating sexualized hazing and assaults with the more euphemistic term “bullying.”
Consider lessening the Catholic Church’s influence on the board.
Hold the boys accountable for their actions by instituting an immediate expulsion policy for any incidents of assault, hazing, and bullying.
Actively seek to appoint more women to the faculty and staff.
Accept that childhood trauma has significant and potentially lifelong impacts. Jean-Paul Bédard is an author and international advocate for survivors of sexual violence.