Education minister doesn’t rule out inquiry into schools for deaf & blind plagued by disturbing abuse allegations 

While Ontario’s education minister Jill Dunlop recently refused to acknowledge allegations of sexual and physical abuse and mismanagement within Ontario schools for the deaf and blind, she did not rule out a provincial inquiry into this troubled system.

“There have been serious allegations of abuse and discrimination at these schools, they are underfunded, they have serious teacher shortages, students are being sent to the library or going home for the day,” NDP MPP Chandra Pasma said during a meeting of the Standing Committee on Justice Policy on September 9th. “There are crumbling and unsafe buildings, I can show you pictures, so can the teachers who work in those buildings if you’re willing to meet with them…Will you do what your predecessor refused to do and call a provincial inquiry into conditions at these schools?”

Initially, Minister Dunlop responded with the same Party talking points the PCs and former education minister Stephen Lecce have been using with advocates and The Pointer for much of the last year, in response to ongoing reporting about disturbing allegations by many within the system. 

The Provincial Demonstration School Branch (PDSB) has seven schools across Ontario responsible for children who are blind, deaf, deaf/blind, or have other special needs. 

“I’m looking forward to the chance to visit some of the provincial and demonstration schools in the province and we have maintained the year over year funding allocation despite declining enrolment,” Dunlop replied, noting that per student funding currently sits at $143,000. She then attempted to deflect the questioning to her deputy minister to explain the “regulations” around these schools, but MPP Pasma stopped her. 

“It was a yes or no question for you, are you going to call a provincial inquiry into conditions in these schools?”

Dunlop replied: “We can take that back.”

Despite knowledge of the alarming allegations, and evidence that supports them, and despite numerous requests to examine the broken system, there has been no action by the ministry. Launching a probe would be an unprecedented decision for the PC government which has ignored and demeaned critics of this school system for years.

The Ministry of Education did not respond to a request for further information on a decision by Dunlop regarding an inquiry.  

NDP MPP Chandra Pasma has pressured the PC government to take action on the numerous allegations of abuse and mismanagement within the province’s schools for the deaf and blind.

(Ontario Legislative Assembly)

In February, MPP Pasma, who has repeatedly called on the PC government to act while vulnerable learners were subjected to ongoing harm, took a further step and asked Ontario’s auditor general to conduct a value-for-money audit of the board.

Two class action lawsuits against the PDSB and the Ontario government over the last decade have described disturbing levels of harm to the young students in the care of the board. A 2016 lawsuit detailed how teachers approached students with “contempt, prejudice, indifference and abuse” and alleged ongoing sexual, physical and emotional abuse of students by their peers, teachers and counsellors. 

The Government of Ontario has paid out $23 million in taxpayer funds to settle these lawsuits and avoid any admission of wrongdoing. No substantial review of the numerous allegations has been completed and no improved accountability mechanisms have been put in place by the Province following these lawsuits. 

The Pointer has learned more lawsuits are in the works.

When the issue returned to the Legislature after Pasma’s press conference, the PCs dismissed the allegations of abuse as nothing but “opposition rhetoric”. 

The statement was made by Parliamentary Assistant Patrice Barnes, MPP for Ajax. What she said infuriated parents, teachers and union members. 

Barnes dismissed evidence of the disturbing treatment inside the schools raised by Pasma—and the parents, teachers, staff and union members who have been demanding protection for more than a decade. 

Barnes also chose to ignore her own Ministry’s reports and the shocking stories of students like Jane who attended E.C. Drury School for the Deaf in Milton.  

When she was 13, according to evidence in an ongoing lawsuit, Jane was violently assaulted at her PDSB school, leaving her with a traumatic brain injury and what she described as “lightning” in her head.

In a Statement of Claim, Jane and her parents allege repeated assaults against her by fellow students, administrators allegedly hid information about these assaults from police, and refused to conduct the necessary medical assessments to provide Jane with the care she desperately needed leading to misdiagnoses and years of mental anguish culminating in her attempting suicide multiple times. It’s further alleged that administrators failed to notify Jane’s parents about semi-nude pictures of Jane that were being shared among other students. It’s a serious violation of school policy. 

The allegations are denied by the Province and senior PDSB administrators in a Statement of Defence. 

In April, the NDP introduced a motion to have the AG prioritize an investigation into the PDSB. The request was met with another unthinkable display of apathy toward the suffering of these students. 

Pasma previously told The Pointer the auditor general responded to her request stating the office is open to conducting the investigation. However, the slate of audits for 2024 is already filled and underway. The AG informed her that if the Public Accounts committee were to pass a motion requesting the audit, it would need to be prioritized and conducted immediately. 

The motion to request the much-needed audit was brought forward by MPP France Gélinas. 

“Ontario spends quite a bit of money on these special schools,” she told the committee, noting the audit would allow the government to understand if those investments are going to the areas they are most needed. The board is currently short 17 percent of its teaching workforce. This has led to students arriving at school to find notes posted on the classroom door advising them a teacher is not available and to spend the school day in the library. 

“Are the children getting the benefits of those investments and if they’re not, it would be good to know where that money is going if it's not going to teach special needs children the skills they need to succeed in life,” Gélinas said.

The motion was defeated, with only Gélinas voting in favour.

PC MPPs Will Bouma, Dave Smith, Donna Skelly, Jess Dixon and Anthony Leardi, all voted against the resolution.

None of them commented on the request, or explained their opposition. Several appeared to be using their cellphones while Gélinas and Pasma expressed the dire need for the motion.

It’s clear the Ontario government has the power to intervene with the school board. 

Following serious allegations of systemic racism at the Peel District School Board, Lecce stepped in and took over the board, launching a pair of in-depth reviews that resulted in disturbing findings, stripping trustees of their power and instituting 27 binding directives for change. 

It’s unclear why no such review has been launched for provincial demonstration schools following years of troubling allegations. 

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