6 days ago
B.C. teacher suspended 2 weeks for sending ‘inappropriate' messages to recently graduated students
A B.C. teacher had his licence suspended for two weeks as punishment for sending 'inappropriate' social media messages to recently graduated students, according to the professional regulator.
Darren Richard Brown, a high school teacher at an independent school at the time, entered a consent resolution agreement with the B.C. Commissioner for Teacher Regulation on July 24, admitting to the misconduct and accepting the suspension.
The school's principal reported Brown to the commissioner on June 30, 2022, according to the agreement. He had resigned from the school about two weeks earlier.
The commissioner says the teacher wished a recently graduated student happy birthday when they turned 18 and sent more messages over the course of a year, sometimes late at night, saying the student was his 'favourite,' a 'kind soul' and warmed his heart.
'He offered to take Student A out for coffee or an 'adult beverage.' Brown took Student A out for coffee once. Student A began to feel uncomfortable and stopped responding to Brown's messages. Brown sent several more messages to Student A after Student A stopped replying,' the agreement reads.
Brown messaged other students asking how they were, saying he missed them, and in one text complimented a student in a message that 'contained a sexual innuendo,' which he claimed was intended for another person.
'One student messaged Brown to give him some advice about the way it looked to send messages to former students late at night,' the commissioner noted.
In determining the appropriate consequences, the commissioner said it considered that 'Brown's conduct in the way that he messaged former students was a breach of his privileged position of power and trust as their teacher,' and 'his conduct demonstrated a pattern of boundary violations and showed a lack of understanding of appropriate professional boundaries.'
In addition to the two-week suspension, Brown must also complete the course Reinforcing Respectful Professional Boundaries at the Justice Institute of B.C.
