Trustee Carole Paikin Miller asked to resign by her colleagues on the Hamilton public school board
At an emotionally charged meeting that spanned seven hours Thursday, Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board trustees voted to recommend that one of their own - Carole Paikin Miller - resign.
It is 2021 and we will not tolerate racism or prejudice in our board," trustee Paul Tut said in one of many impassioned statements given by trustees at the end of a special board meeting, just one hour of which was public.
The call for a trustee's resignation is an unprecedented move for the board.
The meeting, which stretched past midnight, focused on the findings of an expedited internal code of conduct probe into allegations of racism and oppression. Trustees voted on whether four trustees at the centre of the probe had breached their trustee code of conduct and, for those that did violate the code, what sanctions should apply. It marked the culmination of the board's month-long scramble to respond to a third-party report that found evidence of racism among some trustees and efforts to silence the voice of former student trustee Ahona Mehdi.
In the end, the board voted to sanction just two trustees, Alex Johnstone and Paikin Miller. No code of conduct breaches were found for Kathy Archer or Becky Buck, the other two trustees The Spectator has identified in the third-party report.
Paikin Miller was the only trustee asked to resign.
She was found to have breached the code of conduct for making anti-Muslim remarks to other trustees, making comments to the effect that all lives matter, and displaying a poor attitude during human rights and equity advisory committee meetings.
The board also voted to apply the following four sanctions to Paikin Miller: issue a formal letter of censure as a reprimand; request a formal apology; require additional equity, governance and anti-racism training; and bar her from sitting on any board committees until at least the end of the calendar year.
Paikin Miller was not present at the meeting.
Johnstone was found to have violated the code of conduct when she failed to stop alleged racist comments made during a board meeting about the police liaison program in schools in June 22, 2020. As a result, the board voted to apply four sanctions: issue a formal letter of censure; request an apology; require additional training; and bar her from holding any position of chair on any committees for the remainder of the year.
Johnstone apologized at the meeting and read a statement.
I am truly sorry for how my actions contributed to the systemic barriers highlighted in the report and, specifically, I apologize to Ahona (Mehdi) for the negative experience she had as a student trustee," Johnstone said.
She went on to say she did willingly accept" the board's sanctions and was stepping down as chair of the finance and facilities committee effective immediately. She added she has been already been undertaking equity, diversity and inclusion training.
The board also found Johnstone made two technical breaches" relating to complaints against her that weren't discussed in detail. The board, however, said the breaches were inadvertent" and made in error of judgment, but in good faith." For those, she was not sanctioned.
The Spectator reached out to the four trustees, asking for comment. Johnstone said her comments at the board meeting addressed what she wanted to say. Buck said she had no comment. Archer and Paikin Miller did not respond by deadline Friday.
During the 50-minute portion of the meeting open to the public, trustees issued strongly worded statements condemning racism at the board and calling for Paikin Miller to resign.
It is clear to me that this individual (Paikin Miller) is unqualified to be trustee and their pattern of behaviour disqualifies them from holding elected office," said vice-chair Cam Galindo. The board will have difficulty moving forward if this trustee remains in office."
Trustee Maria Felix Miller said Paikin Miller has very problematic prejudices" that impede her ability to make appropriate decisions."
She spoke to her involvement in the board's human rights and equity advisory committee, which strives to protect children who see racism regularly, see bullying regularly, see their experiences denied, questioned."
What is before trustees at the moment is 100 per cent a question of dignity and safety for our students," she said.
Tut said he hoped the public school community can start healing."
Student trustee Ethan Hesler spoke to the power trustees hold and how modelling racism perpetuates racism.
These ideologies need to be cut off now before they start to impact our future," he said.
Trustee Dawn Danko, meanwhile, spoke to the harmful impact" of Paikin Miller's behaviour and comments, but she said she was not sure asking for a resignation was the right step forward. More education and support could be a better alternative, she said.
Still, the vote recommending Paikin Miller resign was unanimous.
Trustees are elected officials who serve parents, students, taxpayers and the school system. They are the link between communities and the school board, ensuring Hamilton public schools meet the diverse needs of students in their communities," the board states on its website. Trustees are paid a base honorarium of $5,900 per year, with the board chair receiving nearly double that and the vice-chair receiving almost double.
Also at the meeting, the board's director of education, Manny Figueiredo, addressed a statement he issued earlier in the week to The Spectator about the investigator's handling of the third-party investigation. The statement, in which Figueiredo claimed the third-party investigator could have suggested sanctions against trustees found to have breached the board's code of conduct, but elected not to do so," had inaccuracies," he said. The board has now retracted its initial statement.
Board spokesperson Shawn McKillop later clarified the inaccuracies, saying the investigator - Arleen Huggins, partner with the law firm Koskie Minsky LLP - had no mandate to conduct a code of conduct investigation because no code of conduct complaint was filed, which is required by the Education Act. This prevented her from recommending breaches or sanctions.
Figueiredo apologized to Huggins for the errors.
Katrina Clarke is a Hamilton-based reporter at The Spectator. Reach her via email: katrinaclarke@thespec.com