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Craswell case shakes trust in schools, former P.E.I. chief justice says as his review begins
Craswell case shakes trust in schools, former P.E.I. chief justice says as his review begins

CBC

time5 days ago

  • Politics
  • CBC

Craswell case shakes trust in schools, former P.E.I. chief justice says as his review begins

Social Sharing David Jenkins says his third-party review of how Public Schools Branch practices and policies played into the Matthew Craswell case should end in recommendations on how to make Prince Edward Island schools safer for children. But so far, the former chief justice of the P.E.I. Supreme Court told a legislative committee on Thursday, he is still getting settled in after beginning the project on June 2. He has no staff yet, and is looking forward to getting a first look at documents he is requesting from the parties involved. "The school boards will be obliged to give prompt priority to this request," he said, adding that he is focusing on the educational authorities because "that's where the action has taken place," but he said his review may eventually lead him to explore the department up to the ministerial level. Education Minister Robin Croucher appointed Jenkins to head the review of the PSB and its practices back in May, shortly after Craswell, a 40-year-old former substitute teacher, pleaded guilty to one count of sexual interference in a case involving a female student at Glen Stewart Primary School in Stratford. It later emerged that Craswell had been the focus of an allegation of similar behaviour at Charlottetown's West Kent Elementary School in 2023. No school or PSB official reported either allegation to the police or Child Protection Services at the time. The system did fall down somewhere along the way, and how serious that is, how significant that was will be determined in this investigation. — Education and Early Years Minister Robin Croucher, in May PSB officials also allowed Craswell to keep teaching at the high school level after the Stratford child's parent complained. "The system did fall down somewhere along the way, and how serious that is, how significant that was will be determined in this investigation," Croucher had said as he appointed Jenkins to lead the review. On Thursday, Jenkins told MLAs that the case involves matters of "acute public interest," and he used his time before the group to cover all the topics the committee had asked him to cover. He said the series of revelations reported in the media related to the Craswell case "shakes the very foundation of trust we need to have in the education system" and he will try to approach his review with a "trauma-informed, community-focused approach." WATCH | David Jenkins speaks to P.E.I. MLAs as 3rd-party review into school safety begins: David Jenkins speaks to P.E.I. MLAs as 3rd-party review into school safety begins 28 minutes ago Duration 2:24 It's been a month since David Jenkins was appointed to head up a third-party review into the handling of sexual misconduct allegations in Island schools. His work began this week, and one of his first stops was to speak to MLAs. CBC's Nicola MacLeod was there. Yet Jenkins acknowledged that his review will involve "a delicate issue." He noted he didn't want to push it to the point that there is a chill in the system, where teachers don't want to be there and child can't get the care they need because teachers are afraid to get near them. Many questions raised Going into the review, opposition politicians have raised questions around: why the Public Schools Branch allowed Craswell to continue teaching after allegations were brought up twice; why school officials didn't initially notify police; and whether it was possible for a vulnerable sector check conducted by the RCMP to turn up a 2018 extradition order from South Korea for Craswell regarding voyeurism allegations in that country. Jenkins said he intends to put a priority on the safety of students in his eventual recommendations. He will also look at the education authorities' legal framework when it comes to responding to misconduct and compliance issues, as well as review safeguards and accountability structures and see if there are any gaps that could be filled. He told the MLAs he intends to draw upon the expertise of the province's Child and Youth Advocate, Marvin Bernstein, and Child Protection Services staff as well. The former chief justice will have the power to compel documents and witnesses, much as he would in a public inquiry. He said he cannot commit to a timeframe for his review until the exploration begins, but it would be "months not years." The inquiry is independent of the minister. I'm not going to be taking instructions from the minister. — Justice David Jenkins The province has said Jenkins's final report will be made public. On Thursday, Jenkins said his understand is that some details may have to be shielded for legal and privacy reasons. He said he was unsure which parts of the report will be withheld— if any — or if the final report will include names of individuals in the education system. Jenkins said his job is to pass his final report on to the minister, and then his work will be done. "The inquiry is independent of the minister," he told the committee. "I'm not going to be taking instructions from the minister."

P.E.I. child and youth advocate questions inquiry into PSB's handling of Craswell case
P.E.I. child and youth advocate questions inquiry into PSB's handling of Craswell case

CBC

time22-05-2025

  • Politics
  • CBC

P.E.I. child and youth advocate questions inquiry into PSB's handling of Craswell case

Social Sharing Prince Edward Island's child and youth advocate is raising concerns about an upcoming review of school policies in the wake of a former substitute teacher's sex crimes case. The Progressive Conservative government ordered the third-party inquiry of Public Schools Branch policies and procedures spurred by the case of Matthew Alan Craswell. Craswell, 40, pleaded guilty last month to one count of sexual interference over the way in which he touched a young female student while teaching at Stratford's Glen Stewart Primary School during a classroom game in April 2024. Marvin Bernstein, the province's independent child and youth advocate, said it's "lamentable" that officials with the province's Education Department didn't reach out to his office directly after the case came to light. "A preferable course of action would have been early, proactive and direct communication with the Office of the Child and Youth Advocate by the Department of Education and Early Years and the Public Schools Branch, particularly with respect to the advocate's statutory role of oversight of public bodies providing reviewable services to children and youth," Bernstein wrote in a letter released to the public Friday morning. He also noted that "constructive discussions" have since taken place between his office and provincial staff. Many questions were raised during the spring sitting of the P.E.I. Legislature after CBC News reported on Craswell's guilty plea on the sexual interference charge, as well as on three unrelated child pornography charges. Some questions from the opposition parties involved the fact that education officials did not notify either police or Child Protection Services officials about the complaints that Craswell had allegedly touched children inappropriately on two reported occasions. Allegations of similar behaviour at Charlottetown's West Kent Elementary School in 2023 eventually came to light during the police investigation. PSB officials also allowed Craswell to keep teaching at the high school level following the Stratford primary school investigation. Those facts led opposition MLAs to quiz the government over school officials' duty to report, a provision of the province's Child, Youth and Family Services Act that outlines the legal obligation for anyone to report a suspected case of child abuse to authorities as soon as possible. In his letter, Bernstein wrote that he was "troubled by the pervasive lack of understanding" around the duty to report, saying the province's focus should not be on providing school staff with more training on how to investigate complaints of misconduct. Instead, he said they may need retraining on their mandatory obligation to report incidents to the proper authorities, who would then investigate. "The Office of the Child and Youth Advocate is deeply concerned with the perception that the private verification of protection concerns on the part of educators and other staff working in schools is required or precludes mandatory reporting to Child Protection Services or to the police," he wrote. Questions around review's independence The facts revealed in court as Craswell pleaded guilty led P.E.I. Premier Rob Lantz to rise in the legislature to apologize to Island parents. The province later named P.E.I.'s former chief justice, David Jenkins, to head the third-party review of the Public Schools Branch and its practices. That process is set to begin June 2. Bernstein indicated in the letter that his office may also choose to conduct its own investigation that "would be systemic in nature, reaching conceptually and temporally beyond the specific case at hand and exercising the advocate's statutory power to compel information across government departments." While saying he holds Jenkins's career and reputation "in high esteem," the child and youth advocate raised concerns about the independence of the provincial review. "It must be noted that such a review, although conducted by a third party, remains government-directed, with the Department of Education and Early Years and Public Schools Branch controlling the terms of reference, compensation to the reviewer, and ultimately, the decision as to what content is publicly released and how this is done," Bernstein wrote. "In addition, a third-party review, in and by itself, does not provide the public with any assurance that there will be a mechanism for objectively monitoring and publicly reporting on the implementation of the recommendations contained in the third-party report." Premier welcomes involvement Asked on Thursday to respond to what Bernstein's embargoed news release said, Lantz said he welcomes an additional investigation conducted by the child and youth advocate, saying the matter needs "all the eyes that we can get." Island students continue to attend school every day, with no immediate actions taken to ensure... that schools are safer places today than they were before. "[Bernstein's] office is an independent office, and we can't direct him to undertake investigations. He actually has the independent authority to undertake an investigation of any kind that he sees fit to do," the premier told CBC News: Compass host Louise Martin. "In his letter, he's outlined that he may in fact do that, and I would encourage him." Lantz added that Jenkins will have broad and independent authority to conduct his review, and has the same powers to compel witnesses and documents as the child and youth advocate would have. WATCH | What Premier Rob Lantz had to say on the latest Matthew Craswell developments: What Premier Rob Lantz had to say on the latest Matthew Craswell developments 12 hours ago Duration 0:56 P.E.I. Premier Rob Lantz says there are questions he's hoping a third-party review into the Matthew Craswell case will answer. The former substitute teacher pleaded guilty to sexual touching of a female student at Glen Stewart Primary School during a classroom game in 2024. Lantz says the Public Schools Branch will turn over timelines and documentation as part of the review process. Student rights 'cannot be placed on hold' Bernstein said he will review Jenkins's report once it's released, then will hold a public town hall meeting to get feedback on whether an independent investigation by the Office of the Child and Youth Advocate is needed. Meanwhile, Bernstein criticized the province for deferring any such public meetings to address the safety of children in Island schools until after the Jenkins review is complete. He said the rights of students "cannot be placed on hold while the third-party review is taking place out of a sense of convenience or for the avoidance of accountability... "The reality is that Island students continue to attend school every day, with no immediate actions taken to ensure ... that schools are safer places today than they were before recent information entered the public discourse," he said in the news release.

PSB parts ways with senior employee after new information emerges in Craswell case
PSB parts ways with senior employee after new information emerges in Craswell case

CBC

time16-05-2025

  • CBC

PSB parts ways with senior employee after new information emerges in Craswell case

Social Sharing The Public Schools Branch says a senior employee is no longer with the organization, after it emerged that the person knew about a 2023 complaint involving substitute teacher Matthew Craswell while involved in the investigation of a 2024 incident at a different P.E.I. school. Craswell pleaded guilty last month to one count of sexual interference over the way in which he touched a young female student at Stratford's Glen Stewart Primary School during a classroom game in April 2024. The Public Schools Branch had previously said nobody dealing with the 2024 complaint knew there had been a similar allegation at West Kent Elementary School in Charlottetown in June 2023. If the branch had known of the earlier incident, PSB director Tracy Beaulieu has maintained, Craswell's actions would have been reported to "the appropriate authorities." Police say a West Kent parent believed a 2023 school touching incident had been reported to them. It hadn't. But on Friday, Beaulieu sent out a letter to parents with new information. "This week, new information was uncovered that a senior employee at the PSB who participated in the investigation of the April 2024 complaint was aware of the June 2023 incident," the letter said, in part. "This does not align with what had been previously shared with the PSB leadership. This omission has impacted how we have communicated about this issue over the past two weeks. "As a result of this new information, this individual is no longer employed at the PSB." The letter didn't specify whether that person had been fired or submitted a resignation. "Many of you have reached out over the past two weeks, some with questions and others offering words of support," Beaulieu's letter said. "Although this has been a difficult time for many of us, we are committed to strengthening the Public Schools Branch." CBC News reached out to the Public Schools Branch for more information about what happened. "There is little more information we can offer you beyond this message due to privacy and confidentiality constraints, and will not be taking interviews on this matter," a spokesman replied by email late Friday afternoon. WATCH | Public Schools Branch speaks after substitute teacher's sexual touching revealed: Public Schools Branch speaks after substitute teacher's sexual touching revealed 9 days ago Duration 9:47 Public Schools Branch director Tracy Beaulieu tells the CBC's Nicola MacLeod what steps were taken when Matthew Craswell's inappropriate touching of students was brought forward, and why officials did not feel the need to contact police. Many questions were raised during the just-ended spring sitting of the P.E.I. Legislative Assembly after CBC News reported on Craswell's guilty plea on the sexual interference charge, as well as on three unrelated child pornography charges. Some questions from the opposition parties involved the fact that neither police nor Child Protection Services officials were notified about the complaints that Craswell had allegedly touched children inappropriately. WATCH | P.E.I. premier apologizes after former substitute pleads guilty to sexual touching at primary school: P.E.I. premier apologizes after former substitute pleads guilty to sexual touching at primary school 16 days ago Duration 7:04 Premier Rob Lantz told the P.E.I. Legislature on Wednesday that he was 'profoundly sorry' in response to a question about Matthew Alan Craswell, who worked as a substitute teacher as recently as last year, before being arrested on charges related to child sex abuse images and an incident where he sexually touched a girl in a classroom in front of other students. Watch the legislative exchange including the apology here. Then there was the fact that he was allowed to keep teaching at the high school level following the Stratford elementary school investigation by PSB officials. The facts revealed in court as Craswell pleaded guilty led Premier Rob Lantz to rise in the legislature to apologize to Island parents. Among other things, court documents said Craswell bragged about his sexually abusive behaviour online and counselled like-minded people on how to do the same. He also wrote about sexually touching three other girls while teaching them. P.E.I.'s former chief justice, David Jenkins, has been named to head a third-party review of the Public Schools Branch and its practices in the wake of all the allegations. "We await The Honourable David H. Jenkins' review and hope it will help us all advance our efforts to ensure strong and well-resourced collective policies, processes, and structures," the PSB's spokesperson said in his Friday afternoon email.

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