The Human Rights and Equity Advisor reports directly to the Director of Education and is a member of the Senior Team.

Human Rights and Equity Advisors Community of Practice

The Ministry of Education facilitates a community of practice with Human Rights and Equity Advisors (HREAs) and other human rights practitioners working at school boards across the province. The purpose of this community is to share resources, discuss systemic human rights issues and provide support. The HREA and/or Human Rights Investigator regularly attends these meetings.

Key Contacts Network and Support

The Human Rights Branch facilitates regular meetings with key contact persons from the Board’s Service Departments including:

  • Communications
  • Extended Day Program
  • Finance
  • Facilities
  • Information Technology Services
  • the International Program
  • Research and Organizational Transformation Department
  • Planning

The key contact meetings are organized as drop-in sessions over lunch (mostly on a monthly basis) and engage discussions on human rights and equity issues arising in the Service Departments. During the networking sessions, the HRB offers information on emerging issues and responds to requests for support such as staff training on specific human rights related topics and participation in recruitment processes. A total of five key contact meetings took place during the 2023-2024 school year.

Staff Mentorship and Support

The Ontario Human Rights Code and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms both recognize the importance of addressing historical disadvantage by protecting “special programs” to help marginalized groups. Organizations can develop special programs to help disadvantaged groups improve their situation. To respond to this and the data from our own workforce census the WRDSB has developed staff mentorship and support programs.

As outlined in the Ministry of Education Policy and Program Memorandum 165, “The promotion of human rights and equity is vital to achieving a diverse and representative teacher workforce to meet the needs of a diverse student body.” Data collected from our student census and staff census highlighted that while WRDSB students are very diverse, our school staff does not proportionately represent that diversity. Some of the efforts to address this are supported by the Human Rights Branch.

Indigenous, Black and Racialized Employee Network (IBREN)

The IBREN was created in the 2022-2023 school year. Under this umbrella, several different network groups come together a few times a year. This includes:

  • Indigenous, Black and Racialized Administrator Mentorship and Support (IBRAMS)
  • Indigenous, Black and Racialized Teachers for Leadership (IBRT)
  • Indigenous, Black, and Racialized OT support (IBROT)
  • Seven race-based Affinity Groups

Staff Affinity Groups

Staff Affinity Groups were created for people from similar backgrounds to come together and co-create a space where they feel valued, and where they can connect with a network to facilitate their thriving and flourishing in the workplace. There are currently ten Staff Affinity Groups for staff who identify as:

  • Indigenous
  • African-Carribean-Black-identifying
  • Jewish
  • Muslim
  • Asian
  • South Asian
  • Sikh
  • 2SLGBTQIA+
  • Disability, and Neuro-Diverse

Hate Based Incident Reporting

During the 2023-2024 school year, the HRB worked with the Research and Organizational Transformation Department to pilot the use of a Hate Based Incident Reporting Form for school administrators. This form was intended to capture information that was not already captured in other school-based reporting forms. It did not replace any of the Board’s existing forms. The intention of the form was to collect information that would allow insight into the allocation of resources and supports. Specifically, resources and supports that foster a human rights culture at the WRDSB through the promotion of safe and inclusive environments for:

  • Students
  • Staff
  • Families
  • Community members
  • Other stakeholders

The form defined hate-based incidents as expressions of bias, prejudice and bigotry that are motivated, or perceived to be motivated, based on stigmatized or marginalized identities. These identities are protected under the Ontario Human Rights Code and include one’s:

  • Race
  • National or ethnic origin
  • Language
  • Religion
  • Gender
  • Age
  • Mental or physical disability
  • Sexual orientation
  • Any other similar factor

Hate-based incidents in schools can include graffiti, bullying, discrimination, and/or harassment where one’s identity is a factor.

In total, 177 reports were submitted from the 2023-2024 school year. 85% of submissions noted that race/racial identity or colour was the Code-protected ground relevant to the hate-based incident. Almost half of submissions indicated that sexual orientation, gender identity and/or gender expression were relevant to the reported hate-based incident.

Ground Percentage of Reported Incidents
Race/Racial Identity 53%
Colour 32%
Ethnic Origin 20%
Sexual Orientation 19%
Gender Identity 16%
Creed 15%
Gender Expression 14%
Ancestry 7%
Place of Origin 7%
Disability 4%
Sex 1%
Family Status 1%
Citizenship 1%
Marital Status 0%
Age 0%

The majority of submissions, 63%, referenced conduct that involved verbal abuse. This includes the use of slurs, epithets and derogatory language. Intimidation was next highest at 14%, followed by 12% reporting hate-based vandalism.

The future use of the hate-based incident form will need to be determined as usage is not consistent among schools. This may be due to confusion about when to use this form versus other mandatory reporting forms.

Fair, Equitable and Inclusive Hiring

The Human Rights Branch has been collaborating with Human Resources and Equity Services to support fair, equitable and inclusive hiring practices.

Hiring Fair, Recruitment Events

Our 4th annual job recruitment event focussed on job seekers from the African, Caribbean and Black (ACB) community. This event occurred in June 2024. Over 100 people attended this event, where they received information about:

  • How to apply
  • What to include on their resumes
  • What to expect in the interviews
  • What specific jobs entail

This event was organized in partnership with Ethic Talent, a local organization supporting staffing solutions and recruitment events.

Joint Work with Human Resources and Equity Services

Regular meetings occur involving leadership from both departments. Long-term planning occurs including:

  • Major training initiatives
  • Procedural changes
  • New programs
  • Special Programs approvals
  • Accountability

This team co-facilitated a training entitled “Increasing Representation and Belonging in the Workplace” at the Ontario Public Schools Boards’ Association (OPSBA) conference in April 2024.