Tuesday, April 30, 2024



Minister tells Moncton school district he's repealing its gender identity policy

CBC
Fri, April 26, 2024 a

Education Minister Bill Hogan says he has repealed the gender-identity policy implemented by Anglophone East District Education Council because it goes against the policy he created. (Ed Hunter/CBC - image credit)


New Brunswick's education minister has told a Moncton-area school district that he is repealing its policy on sexual orientation and gender identity to bring the district in line with the province's approach.

Hogan had given the Anglophone East district education council until March 29 to repeal its Policy 1.7, which set out how it would implement the province's Policy 713.

The DEC didn't comply, and on April 22 Hogan wrote telling chair Harry Doyle that he was repealing the district policy and ordered Doyle to have it removed from the district website.


"You have not complied with my demand for corrective action and the time for doing so has expired," Hogan wrote in the letter to Doyle, obtained by CBC News.

"Your defiance in the face of clear direction has left me no choice" but to repeal the policies and order them taken offline, he said.

Two days after Hogan's letter, the district adopted a new policy, Policy 1.8, that replaces the Policy 1.7 that Hogan repealed, but is identical to it.

It includes the phrasing that "school personnel shall respect the direction of the student in regard to the name and pronouns they wish to be called in daily interactions."

Last year, the Higgs government changed the provincial Policy 713, on sexual orientation and gender identity in schools, to require teachers to get parental consent before using the chosen name and pronoun of a child under 16 verbally in the classroom.

Anglophone East argued it cannot implement that without risking a violation of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the Education Act and the provincial Human Rights Act.

Instead, it adopted Policy 1.7 that said staff must respect all students' chosen names and pronouns in "daily interactions."


The first page of the letter sent by Minister of Education Bill Hogan to Anglophone East District Education Council Chair Harry Doyle on April 22.

The first page of the letter sent by Minister of Education Bill Hogan to Anglophone East district education council chair Harry Doyle on April 22. (CBC)

District already filed lawsuit

The district is now before the courts seeking an injunction to block Hogan from quashing its policy and from dissolving the district council — something members say he threatened to do.

The court is set to hear arguments on that June 18-19.

Earlier this month, Hogan warned Anglophone East that it did not have the legal authority to challenge the province in court and warned he would take "further action."

His April 22 letter tells Doyle that while the district may not agree with Policy 713, "it is my office that is ultimately responsible for setting education policies in the province and it is your obligation to ensure your policies do not conflict with the direction that I have provided as minister."

After the provincial changes last year, all seven councils created their own policies, or amended an existing policy, to emphasize the Human Rights Act and support for diversity.

All but Anglophone North added operational language allowing teachers to use a child's chosen pronoun verbally in the classroom if parental involvement was in the works or not possible.

All three francophone districts meanwhile worked together to create a uniform policy.

Their policy is modelled after the one suggested by child and youth advocate Kelly Lamrock, in which teachers are to respect all students' pronouns from Grade 6 and up.

For students younger than Grade 6, the decision is made on a case-by-case basis.

Last October, Hogan told all of the councils except Anglophone North that their policies were inconsistent with the provincial policy.

Anglophone West and Anglophone South fell in line, but Anglophone East and the three francophone districts did not.

No one from the three francophone districts responded to a request from CBC News for comment on whether Hogan has tried to repeal their policy as well.

The provincial Policy 713 allows districts to adopt policies that "are consistent with, or more comprehensive than, this provincial policy."


Francophone school districts defy minister, stick with gender identity policies

CBC
Tue, April 30, 2024 

Last Monday Education Minister Bill Hogan wrote to the three districts, along with Anglophone East, pointing out they had defied a March 28 deadline he gave them to modify or repeal their policies. (Mikael Mayer/Radio-Canada - image credit)


New Brunswick's three francophone school districts have defied a letter from the province's education minister repealing their gender identity policies and ordering them removed from district websites.

The policies, adopted last September and at odds with the province's Policy 713, remain posted online on the sites for the Francophone South, Francophone Northwest and Francophone Northeast districts.

The three districts adopted identical policies last fall saying that, "regardless" of the Higgs government's changes to Policy 713, students in Grade 6 and above can choose the names and pronouns they want the school to use for official purposes.

The policies say students younger than Grade 6 may do the same, depending on their age, maturity and capacity.

Kelly Lamrock, New Brunswick’s child, youth and seniors’ advocate, wants to examine the shortage of workers, how the sector is governed, and why so many seniors are waiting in hospitals while vacancies exist.

Kelly Lamrock, New Brunswick’s child, youth and seniors' advocate, said the province's changes to Policy 713 violate the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the Human Rights Act and the Education Act. (Jacques Poitras/CBC)

Those provisions mirror recommendations made last year by child and youth advocate Kelly Lamrock, who said the province's changes to Policy 713 violate the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the Human Rights Act and the Education Act.

Those changes include requiring teachers to get parental consent before using the chosen name and pronoun of a child under 16 verbally in the classroom.

On April 22, Hogan wrote to the three districts, along with Anglophone East, pointing out they had defied a March 28 deadline he gave them to modify or repeal their policies.

He said he was repealing their policies and demanded they be taken offline.

No one from the three francophone districts agreed to an interview.

But Francophone South spokesperson Jean-Luc Thériault pointed out in an email statement that the district's policy remains on its website.

He said the DEC "chooses to interpret and apply Policy 713 in a manner consistent with existing constitutional and quasi-constitutional rights, in the best interests and well-being of all our students."

Francophone Northwest spokesperson Alain Sirois confirmed its policy remains in place but would not confirm the existence of Hogan's letter.

The district doesn't know exactly why the teachers are absent, but assumes they are sick, said spokesperson Jean-Luc Thériault, and asks any staff or students who are unwell to stay home to prevent the spread of any viruses.

Francophone South spokesperson Jean-Luc Thériault pointed out in an email statement that the district's policy remains on its website. (Francophone south school district)

No one from the Francophone Northeast district responded to a request from CBC News, but its policy also remains on its website.

Hogan's department provided copies of his letters to all four districts.

The three francophone district policies say they will interpret Policy 713 "in a way that protects the rights of students to a safe, inclusive, caring and welcoming learning environment" consistent with the Charter and provincial laws.

Another section says officials will not interpret Policy 713 in ways that violate the rights of students under Section 15 of the Charter — its equal rights provision — or discriminate against them, "notably with regard to gender identity or expression."

On April 24, Anglophone East responded to Hogan's letter by adopting a new policy identical to the one Hogan said he was repealing.

Anglophone East has argued it cannot implement the province's Policy 713 changes as drafted without risking a violation of the Charter, the Education Act and the provincial Human Rights Act.

It adopted a policy that said staff must respect all students' chosen names and pronouns in "daily interactions."

The district is now before the courts seeking an injunction to block Hogan from quashing its policy and from dissolving the district council — something members say he threatened.

The court is set to hear arguments on that June 18-19.



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