More anti-racism training and policing urged in Toronto schools
Last Updated: Tuesday, May 20, 2008 | 11:25 AM ET
CBC News
More training for staff members in equity and anti-racism issues, along with greater police presence in schools, are among the recommendations in a new action plan delivered Tuesday to Toronto District School Board.
The board's Leadership Action Team addressed a number of areas where action needs to be taken to produce school environments that are "safe, caring and inclusive."
The action team was formed in response to the shooting death of Jordan Manners, 15, at C. W. Jeffreys Collegiate Institute on May 23, 2007. Two 17-year-olds described as one-time friends of the Grade 9 student were charged with first-degree murder in his death.
Tuesday's report said the board should give additional training to 140 staff members to deal with racial issues. The team also said more needs to be done to improve safety, help marginalized students and combat gender-based violence.
The report said the board should create a safer environment for students, in particular girls, in all secondary and middle schools in the city.
The team calls for a greater police presence in schools and programs that foster interaction between officers and students.
Earlier, board chairman John Campbell and trustee Chris Bolton said that won't mean metal detectors, sniffer dogs or more officers patrolling the hallways.
Safety hotline remains
The action plan is a followup to a 1,000-page report issued earlier this year that made 126 recommendations on improving school safety.
One of the adopted recommendations made by the task force headed by Toronto lawyer Julian Falconer includes a new school safety hotline for students to report bullying and other malicious acts.
Almost 500 calls have been logged since the hotline was put in place at the start of the year.
About 10 per cent of the calls to the hotline have been related to harassment, including sexual harassment and sexual assaults, said Donna Quan, superintendent of Safe Schools for Toronto's public board.
About 15 per cent were reports of physical and verbal confrontations. One per cent of calls have involved complaints about weapons.
Given its heavy use, the board will operate the line again in the fall. There is also a plan to allow students to report safety concerns online.
