HALDIMAND—According to a Grand Erie District School Board (GEDSB) release, over 10 safety plans have now been put in place due to a “toxic working environment” created by long-time Trustee Carol Ann Sloat.
This follows a recent Divisional Court decision that awarded Sloat $10,000 in damages and overturned a ban that had barred her from attending meetings since May 2023. In the decision, Justice Nancy Backhouse called Sloat’s transgressions “minor” and the sanctions, based on alleged code of conduct violations, “totally unreasonable.”
A GEDSB release announcing the appeal of this decision, dated December 5, 2024, said, “The Board respectfully disagrees with the Divisional Court’s findings. Additional Codes of Conduct are also being addressed involving Trustee Sloat.”
It continued, “We have tried everything to correct the toxic, bullying, and inappropriate conduct of Trustee Sloat. These behaviours have directly resulted in staff asking for safety plans because of the unsafe and toxic working environment she has created. We have a legal and moral obligation to protect staff.”
Sloat responded to the appeal, “I wish they would just accept the Court’s decision, move on, and stop wasting taxpayer money.”
Board Chair Susan Gibson spoke with The Press, noting that details of the safety plans cannot be shared as they are a personnel matter, but said, “It is truly not ‘minor’ to personally create a working environment where more than 10 staff members at different levels and in a variety of roles feel bullied by an individual trustee. To behave in a way that makes people feel attacked. Targeted. Fearful. This is egregious and unacceptable behaviour.”
GEDSB said examples of Sloat’s behaviour that drove them to bar her from participating as a trustee included taking home confidential materials and storming out of in-camera meetings.
The release continued, “It’s not ‘minor’ to repeatedly raise your voice and talk over staff and colleagues. It’s not ‘minor’ to intimidate frontline staff by taking a photo of them and telling them she is calling her lawyer. It’s not ‘minor’ to not uphold or respect the decisions of the Board. It’s not ‘minor’ to post on social media which defames trustees and staff and impugns their integrity…. It’s not ‘minor’ to refuse to dissociate from social media chatter, which included defamatory and racist comments about school staff…. It’s not ‘minor’ to embarrass staff without cause about their reports at the board table. It is, in fact, unforgivable for a trustee to interfere in operations and grandstand.”
Sloat is confused by the new accusations, particularly the safety plans.
“I attended one Board meeting on September 23, and somehow in that time I created an unsafe work environment. All I did is ask questions in a public forum, now there are safety plans in place,” said Sloat. “This to me is incomprehensible.”
The release also alleges that Sloat has improperly branded herself as a whistleblower for her attempts to limit the use of in-camera (behind closed doors) sessions.
Gibson said, “A trustee who disagrees with the Board’s decisions cannot unilaterally overturn a Board decision to proceed in-camera, which was legally permissible, as confirmed by the Ombudsmen’s Office.”
“In-camera meetings have been happening at Grand Erie and every other school board in Ontario for decades,” she continued. “In-camera meetings are considered good governance practices for handling issues best discussed privately, such as personnel matters.”
Examples from a provincial guide on uses for in-camera sessions include disclosing intimate, personal, or financial information about individuals associated with the board, employee negotiations, litigation affecting the board, and Ontario Ombudsman ongoing investigations.
“They serve the core functions of assuring confidentiality, creating a mechanism for board independence and oversight, and enhancing relationships among board members and the director of education,” said Gibson.
Sloat continues to assert that the closed sessions are overused. She believes that “there are people who will stop at nothing to get me off this Board,” accusing them of making the unsafe workplace accusations only after being “admonished” by the Divisional Court’s decision.
“I take the allegations of bullying and harassment seriously. I have asked numerous times for an independent investigation into these claims, but they refuse and just keep saying I am guilty. What are they afraid an investigation might reveal?” asked Sloat. “I am a 68-year-old woman, a community volunteer who’s had both knees replaced. Who’s afraid of me?”
While the board launches their appeal, Sloat said she has been the recipient of an “overwhelming” outpouring of community support. She added, “All support no matter how received is greatly appreciated.”
Her son Alex has launched a GoFundMe to help raise funds for her continued legal costs. As of publication, the fund has raised $6,555 from 22 donations toward its stated $25,000 goal. The post reads, “We need your help to make sure that she can keep fighting for as long as it takes.”
Sloat added, “The school board is playing these games with house money, so they don’t care how much it costs. But I’m on a fixed income. Any little bit helps.”
