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CBC
05-06-2025
- 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."
CBC
10-05-2025
- Politics
- CBC
PCs broke 2020 promise to require P.E.I. school boards to report sexual misconduct: Greens
Social Sharing Questions were raised in the P.E.I. legislature Friday about why the government didn't follow through on a commitment it made five years ago to keep better tabs on sexual misconduct in Island schools. The Progressive Conservatives made that commitment in 2020 in light of the case of Roger Jabbour, the former band teacher at Colonel Gray High School who had been convicted in 2018 of sexually touching three female students. After the case had made its way through the court, Green MLA Karla Bernard put forward a proposed amendment to the Education Act to require school boards to report annually on the number of sexual misconduct complaints. At the province's insistence, that amendment was turned into an order to be brought forward by then-education minister Brad Trivers. That never happened, Bernard pointed out on Friday in the legislature. She said it's something that might have prevented an April 2024 case of sexual interference that took place in a Stratford elementary school. "To this day, we continue to experience the consequences of that inaction," Bernard said, in a question directed at P.E.I. Education Minister Robin Croucher, who took over the cabinet post in February. "Would you agree that Islanders' skepticism regarding this government's commitment to children's safety is well-deserved?" WATCH | Questions raised around 2020 pledge to provide transparency around misconduct complaints in schools: Questions raised around 2020 pledge to provide transparency around misconduct complaints in schools 3 hours ago Duration 2:28 Back in 2020, after a P.E.I. high school band teacher was convicted of sexually touching three female students, the PEI government said it would start requiring school boards to report annually on the number of sexual misconduct complaints. A directive requiring that was drafted but never put in place. Interim Green Leader Karla Bernard (shown) wants to know why. CBC's Kerry Campbell reports. Croucher suggested Bernard's question could be answered by the third-party review he has ordered of Public Schools Branch policies in light of the case of Matthew Alan Craswell, the former substitute teacher who pleaded guilty on April 29 to sexual interference involving an elementary student at Stratford's Glen Stewart Primary School. "I would agree that the public is looking for some answers and some leadership on this," Croucher said in the legislature. "I assure you that we have the very best person available in the province of Prince Edward Island to conduct the review into these questions." Province 'uncomfortable' with amendment In Jabbour's case, as in Craswell's, complaints were made to education authorities — who initially concluded the incidents were not sexual in nature. In 2020, Bernard and the Greens wrote up an amendment to the Education Act that would have required school boards to disclose annually how many complaints of sexual misconduct had been made, and whether they were found to be substantiated or unsubstantiated. "Government was very uncomfortable with this amendment," Bernard said after question period Friday. "They felt as though disclosing numbers would somehow identify students, and so the huge pushback was about confidentiality, which was addressed in the amendment." In the fall of 2021 — right around the time the first data about complaints was supposed to have been published — hundreds of students took to the streets to protest that their concerns about sexual harassment in schools weren't being taken seriously. This week, Bernard said publishing a number would have provided some measure of accountability — and might have flagged the first reported incident against Craswell at Charlottetown's West Kent Elementary School in 2023, the year before the Glen Stewart case. "That would have been a very small step towards ensuring that these issues aren't swept under the rug," Bernard said. "It's not the answer, that's for sure. We still need a centralized mechanism for recording these." Identifying patterns P.E.I.'s Public Schools Branch said it has adopted a centralized tracking system for staff complaints over the last school year. Some experts, however, say that reporting system could go a step further in ensuring students' safety. WATCH | Independent body needed to collect and track reports of wrongdoing, child protection advocate says: Independent body needed to collect and track reports of wrongdoing, child protection advocate says 1 day ago Duration 7:05 P.E.I.'s Public Schools Branch is under intense scrutiny over a substitute teacher who continued teaching after two separate incidents at Island schools. The PSB says it connected them only after Matthew Craswell's arrest on other charges. Craswell has now pleaded guilty to child porn and sexual touching charges. Noni Classen, the director of education and support services for the Canadian Centre for Child Protection, speaks to CBC's Louise Martin about the issues involved. Noni Classen, director of education and support services for the Canadian Centre for Child Protection, said such a system needs to be independent of both the government and the Public Schools Branch. She said that would ensure experts could identify patterns of behaviour, something that school administrators aren't trained to do. "What we need to have in place are systems that pick up these kinds of issues in case it is something nefarious at play [so] that there's a record of it and it's landing on individuals who have expertise," Classen told CBC News: Compass host Louise Martin this week. "Sometimes that can't happen at a school level because if an individual moves and goes to a different school… there isn't a capability to be able to put the reports together because it's not centralized."
CBC
09-05-2025
- CBC
2023 touching incident involving Craswell was at West Kent School, education minister says
No charges filed in connection with complaint and facts of matter not proven in court Image | Swing at West Kent on P.E.I. Caption: West Kent Elementary School, shown in a 2021 file photo, was the scene of allegations involving Matthew Craswell in June 2023, P.E.I.'s education minister told the legislature Friday. (Jane Robertson/CBC) P.E.I.'s education minister has confirmed a 2023 school touching incident involving Matthew Craswell, which was internally investigated and deemed not to be sexual, occurred at West Kent Elementary School in Charlottetown. Minister of Education and Early Years Robin Croucher revealed that detail in the legislature on Friday. CBC News had previously established that the 2023 incident happened at a Charlottetown-area school, based on information from sources. The Public Schools Branch would not confirm whether was West Kent, citing privacy concerns. On Thursday, Croucher was asked in the legislature to specify which Charlottetown school was involved in the situation. He said he would bring back an answer when he was sure he could legally do so. "The second school that Matthew Craswell taught at was West Kent Elementary," he told the house on Friday. On April 29, Craswell pleaded guilty to sexually touching a student at Glen Stewart Primary School in Stratford, just east of Charlottetown, in April 2024. He also pleaded guilty to three unrelated child pornography charges. It was during that court proceeding that a previous incident of touching involving a school, for which Craswell was never charged, was revealed publicly for the first time. Media Video | Substitute teacher's sexual touching in classroom 'should not have happened,' P.E.I. Premier says Caption: The premier of Prince Edward Island is apologizing after a former substitute teacher pleaded guilty to sexually touching a young student. Rob Lantz committed to reviewing the Public Schools Branch's reporting procedures for situations like these. CBC's Nicola MacLeod explains. Open Full Embed in New Tab Loading external pages may require significantly more data usage than loading CBC Lite story pages. "The Public Schools Branch will be as transparent as we can be to the broader public, but we are also constrained by legal and privacy obligations," the organization said in a statement to CBC News Friday afternoon. The PSB had previously said the incidents at both schools "occurred during classroom games. The students involved reported Craswell touching them on their arms and stomach." What is known about the alleged incident That 2023 situation was known to investigators who analyzed Craswell's digital records in the fall of 2024, scouring thousands of pages of Craswell's online chats. "During one conversation, [Craswell] alludes to sexually touching three other girls while teaching them," said the court documents presented at the time of his guilty pleas. "This matter was investigated and the children's parents ultimately declined to allow them to participate in police interviews," said the court document. Media Video | If your children ask about P.E.I. case involving a substitute teacher, this psychologist has advice Caption: Disturbing details have been emerging from a recent court case involving a substitute teacher who pleaded guilty this week to sexual touching at a P.E.I. primary school. To help us navigate how to handle conversations about this, especially with young children, CBC News: Compass spoke with a psychologist, Dr. Jacqueline Roche. Open Full Embed in New Tab Loading external pages may require significantly more data usage than loading CBC Lite story pages. Police investigations typically do not proceed unless the people involved are interviewed. Craswell was never charged for the West Kent incident, and it has not been tested in court. The PSB has said this situation, like the Glen Stewart incident, was investigated internally and deemed not be sexual in nature, so police and Child Protection were not called at the time. PSB Director Tracy Beaulieu told CBC News that the incident was brought to light for the organization and connected to the Glen Stewart investigation only when Craswell was charged in August of 2024 — 14 months after the incident at West Kent. The West Kent principal in June of 2023 was Tracy Ellsworth, who died in 2024. "We take all complaints very seriously," the PSB said in its statement Friday, adding that the April 29 court proceedings and the agreed statement of facts in the case "have further revealed more information regarding Craswell's motivations that were not revealed at the time of the reports to schools." It added: "We can also confirm that no new incidents have been reported to the Public Schools Branch since his arrest in August 2024 or the court proceedings on April 29th. "Our greatest priority is the well-being of our students and families. We want all Island families to know that there are supports in place and, if children are upset by the stories they are hearing in the news or other media, we can help them. Please reach out." Safety is main priority, minister says "What has been done to protect the safety of children at West Kent School?" Liberal MLA Gordon McNeilly asked in the legislature moments after Croucher identified the second school Friday. Croucher repeated what he's been saying in the house for days: The PSB has a new centralized tracking system for staff incidents and the department has implemented new mandatory training for educators and those who work with children in schools. "Everyone is taking this seriously, okay? Everyone on this side of the House. Everyone in our system. Everyone is hypervigilant right now," Croucher responded. "Our main priority is the safety of the children in our system." There are resources and supports available to anyone who has experienced sexual violence:
CBC
07-05-2025
- CBC
Former P.E.I. chief justice to lead school review in wake of former substitute's sex charges
Former chief justice of P.E.I. Supreme Court named to handle review of PSB's handling of complaints 4 hours ago Duration 4:29 P.E.I.'s former chief justice David Jenkins (shown) will lead a review looking at policies and procedures in Island schools to protect students from sexual predators. This, after a former substitute teacher pleaded guilty last week to sexual interference, in a case involving an elementary school student. CBC's Kerry Campbell reports. WARNING: This story contains descriptions of child sex abuse and other content that may be disturbing to readers. The P.E.I. government has appointed a former provincial chief justice to lead a review of policies and procedures in Island schools to protect students from sexual predators. In the legislature Tuesday, Education Minister Robin Croucher said David Jenkins will head up that third-party review of the Public Schools Branch and its practices. The inquiry comes after a former substitute teacher pleaded guilty last week to sexual interference in a case involving an elementary student. "We're going to be looking at the policies and procedures and figuring out where they need to be strengthened so that we can protect our students moving forward [and] give our educators the tools and the education and the knowledge to implement the policies and procedures," Croucher said after question period. The system did fall down somewhere along the way, and how serious that is, how significant that was will be determined in this investigation. "The system did fall down somewhere along the way, and how serious that is, how significant that was will be determined in this investigation." Matthew Alan Craswell, 40, was first charged last summer with possession and distribution of child pornography after the U.S.-based National Center for Missing and Exploited Children flagged his internet activity. New information came to light during the RCMP investigation, details of which were shared in court last week as Craswell pleaded guilty to four charges related to child sex abuse images and an unrelated incident in which he sexually touched a young girl in a classroom in front of other students at a Stratford primary school. Court documents indicate school officials were made aware of the primary school incident, but it was not reported to police. Craswell continued to work in schools with older children after the Public Schools Branch was informed. He worked as a substitute teacher on P.E.I. as recently as the spring of 2024. This government has an obligation to answer questions from parents who are really scared about the safety of their children. On Tuesday, Croucher gave his Education Department credit for moving "swiftly" in ordering the third-party review. But the Opposition said it's not moving fast enough, given Craswell's activities took place over a two-year period. Hal Perry, the interim Liberal leader, said the province needs to order an investigation, not just a review of Public Schools Branch policies. "This government has an obligation to answer questions from parents who are really scared about the safety of their children in the school system and how this could possibly have happened," Perry said. "Maybe other cases have happened that [they're] not even aware of — and they want to prevent it from ever happening again." While the province is still drawing up terms of reference for the review, Croucher said Jenkins will have the power to compel documents and witnesses, much as he would in a public inquiry. There are 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's review will begin June 2, and the province said the final report will be made public. Croucher has committed to implementing any recommendations that come out of it as quickly as possible. "I do not believe there was any [malicious] intent by any member of our education system in this situation," he said. "But if there was, it will be investigated, it will be uncovered and it will be dealt with."
