Mothers are well known for fiercely fighting to protect their children, and this Bradford parent isn’t backing down.
Corinna — who asked her last name not be published to protect her children — filed a complaint with the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario on March 2, against Fieldcrest Elementary School Council and the Simcoe County District School Board (SCDSB). She claimed they engaged in governance violations and that when she brought the issue to their attention they responded to her with discrimination, suppression and retaliation.
Having previously filed two other complaints with the tribunal — neither of which have been resolved — Corinna alleges the school council, staff and board have excluded her and refused to engage with her while some members of council have misrepresented her concerns, something she said escalated once the board and council became aware of the prior complaints.
“I am being punished for exposing governance failures and advocating for transparency,” she said in her application.
To resolve the issue, Corinna is asking the tribunal to find that the school council, administration and board violated the Ontario Human Rights Code, order they reverse restrictions placed on engagement, order they provide copies of certain bylaws and order they undertake mandatory governance training.
In addition, she’s asking for a public apology as well as $100,000 in compensation, including $25,000 each for reputational harm and punitive damages, plus another $50,000 for emotional distress and loss of dignity.
“This isn’t just about one parent — it’s about a public school council operating outside the bounds of Ontario law, controlling discussions, and denying parents their right to fair participation,” she said.
Corinna’s previous complaints were both against the SCDSB — on Nov. 6, 2024 for failing to document and investigate repeated instances of bullying at another school or be forthcoming with information, as well as on Feb. 12, 2025 for failing their duty of care for a student and failing to be accountable afterwards.
None of the allegations have been tested by the tribunal, and school staff referred questions to board communications manager Sarah Kekewich, who declined to comment as the matter is still going through the judicial process.
In describing the recent retaliation, Corinna alleged the school’s vice-principal, school council co-chairs, and council fundraising coordinator worked together to block Corinna from meaningful participation, distorted her advocacy efforts, and refused direct engagement.
“If there are no consequences, it will create a dangerous precedent, discouraging parents from reporting governance failures and allowing school boards and councils to operate unaccountably,” Corinna said.
Governance issues
Those apparent governance failures relate to several issues.
Corinna explained that she asked members of school council on Feb. 26 to provide copies of the council’s bylaws, but said her request went unanswered. Only on March 17, after several weeks, did school staff provide copies instead.
Under the province’s Education Act, section 15 of Ontario Regulation 612/00 requires every school council to create bylaws for governance, participation and conflict resolution, and Ontario’s Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act guarantees a right to access those bylaws.
Representatives of SCDSB did not directly respond to BradfordToday’s request for a copy of those same bylaws, but the board’s website does host templates for school councils to use.
The Bradford parent took an interest in those documents because she felt issues of safety weren’t being handled as efficiently as they could, but upon recommending different processes was met with resistance from the council executive.
Screenshots Corinna shared with BradfordToday show that after she made a post in the council’s Facebook group with advice based on the Ministry of Education’s guide for school council members — including allotting time to discuss updates to ongoing concerns — one of the co-chairs decided to disable commenting on the post, but not before the fundraising coordinator described Corinna’s concerns as “personal grievances.”
Later, the permissions for the group were updated to require all posts go through moderation before being made available to the rest of the group, despite Corinna reaching out to the executive members in private and attempting to resolve any misunderstandings through one-on-one communication.
The minutes of a Feb. 24 meeting show council decided that safety-related concerns “fall outside the scope of parent council,” despite the fact that under the Education Act, Ontario Regulation 612/00 states that one of the two purposes of school councils is to “enhance the accountability of the education system,” and that school councils may make recommendations on “any matter.”
Similarly, the board’s own website claims one of the purposes of school councils is to discuss “student well-being,” but board representatives did not answer BradfordToday when asked how safety would fall outside those descriptions.
Safety issues
In addition to the overall process, Corinna said she was trying to address some specific concerns around safety, such as slipping/falling hazards from a sandbox, and while minutes from the council show the issue was raised in September, Corinna felt no progress was being made until she filed a complaint with the Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit on Jan. 21, which resulted in an inspection on Jan. 29.
Afterwards, Corinna said the inspector informed her that staff are required to inspect the sandbox daily and cover it while not in use, but the version of the report available on the health unit’s website makes no mention of that advice, health unit staff would not confirm if they gave that advice, and representatives of SCDSB did not answer when asked how the sandbox issue was addressed.
Another matter related to parking in Fieldcrest’s lot, which has four accessible spaces, but Corinna explained there are currently 20 parents with permits to use those spaces, causing delays and safety issues at pick-up and drop-off times.
While the minutes show the school council discussed the matter at their January meeting, Corinna said no action was taken, and that in response to her questions, the principal told her to contact the board.
Corinna shared with BradfordToday copies of correspondence in which she asked different members of the school administration and board for help in resolving the issue, with several instances of one level directing her to the other and vice versa.
At one point, Matthew Webbe, the board's superintendent of education for elementary schools in Bradford, agreed to ask board staff to review the parking concerns.
The board did not answer BradfordToday’s questions about that review.
Meanwhile, Corinna felt there needed to be an interim solution, as the issue is hindering access to the school for parents with disabilities, such as herself.
In response to advice from Dean Maltby, the board’s associate director, Corinna attempted to arrange a meeting with the vice-principal, but was denied.
Only after filing her recent complaint with the tribunal did the vice-principal agree to meet with Corinna, by which point Corinna felt it would be inappropriate given the formal proceedings.
Meanwhile, Corinna is waiting to see how the board responds to the tribunal complaint.
“This is not simply a school dispute,” Corinna said. “It’s an example of how small-scale power structures, when left unchecked, can begin to operate like closed-door institutions that suppress transparency, refuse engagement, and punish dissent.”