Because What You Don’t Know Does Hurt Them

 Some Ontario school boards are ignoring mandated policies and using “privacy” as a shield to hide the truth. Violence is rising. Accountability is absent. This culture of secrecy is harming our children.  School boards protect the institution, not our kids.

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“In my career, I have seen administrators repeatedly play down aggression, misinform parents in order to make incidents appear less serious or as accidents. They refuse to suspend or expel, even when the school board’s code of conduct has a clear list of offenses and minimum consequences.”

Ontario Teacher  | Source: Email

Our Kids. Our Right to Know.

Demand Transparency. Demand Accountability.

Ontario’s publicly funded schools are in crisis, and families have the right to know the truth.

School boards have been allowed to operate as their own judge and jury, — conducting closed-door investigations in a system with no oversight, no balance, and no obligation to be transparent or share the truth with families directly affected by school violence or misconduct.

Parents are sounding the alarm on safety and systemic misconduct, only to be ignored. Not by accident, but by design.

We’ve heard from families and educators across Ontario: the system is out of control. Even worse, schools are using “privacy” as a shield to avoid scrutiny and block parents from accessing documentation, even when their child is harmed.

In our own personal story, the Peel District School Board, intentionally lied to us, they fabricated details, ignored mandated policies and refused to cooperate with Peel Regional Police.[Video]

This is not protection

This is not justice

This is not acceptable

This practice leaves parents and guardians vulnerable, uninformed, and unable to advocate for their child’s safety and well-being. Without consequences, nothing changes. It is time to hold schools, school boards and administrators to a higher standard of fairness, integrity, and accountability.

Parents and Guardians Have the Right To:

  • Know what happened when their child is harmed

  • Receive transparent, factual investigation reports — with only student identities redacted

  • Expect a safe, inclusive, and accountable learning environment

Take Action: Demand Transparency and Accountability in Ontario Schools

Dear Minister Calandra,

I support this petition: To amend the Education Act, Part XIII, Section 300.3 (4), requiring all publicly funded Ontario schools and boards to provide parents or guardians, upon request, with a comprehensive, anonymized investigation report for serious incidents (as defined under Sections 306 and 310, covering actions leading to suspension or expulsion). This amendment is critical to ensuring transparency, accountability, and safety in Ontario’s schools.

The petition addresses the alarming rise of violence and bullying, with data showing one in three Ontario public school staff experiencing physical force (OSSTF/FEESO) and seven in ten youth aged 12–17 facing bullying (Canadian Health Survey on Children and Youth).

Current policies lack transparency and accountability, hindering parents’ ability to advocate for their children’s safety. The petition emphasizes that:

Every student in Ontario has the right to a safe, inclusive school environment and to procedures that ensure thorough, transparent, and impartial investigations into any incidents of violence or misconduct.

Every parent and guardian has the right to full transparency and accountability when a school and or school board are investigating a violent incident involving their child, including the outcome of any disciplinary action taken, while respecting the privacy of other students.

Current school board policies permit obscured accountability, allowing critical information to be intentionally withheld from families leaving them vulnerable and unable to effectively advocate for their child’s well-being.

Violence, bullying, and misconduct in schools can cause lasting trauma not only to the student involved, but to their family and the broader community.

Detailed, transparent, and factual documentation holds school boards to a higher standard of fairness and accountability, ensuring that all mandated policies and procedures including the timely involvement of police where required—are properly followed.

The proposed amendment requires investigation reports to:

  • Be delivered within 21 calendar days of the incident.
  • Include all relevant facts and findings, with student names redacted for privacy.
  • Ensure investigations are transparent, accurate, and fair.
  • Empower parents to advocate effectively for their child’s safety and well-being.

As a concerned Ontario resident, I urge you to support this petition and implement the amendment to create safer, more accountable schools for all Ontario students.

Sincerely,

What We’re Demanding

We call on the Government of Ontario to amend the Education Act to ensure:

Full transparency

in all serious incidents (per Sections 306 &  310)

Clear, Anonymized Reports

outlining investigations and outcomes

Real Accountability

for schools and boards that violate policies

Without transparency, there is no trust

Without trust, there is no safety

And without safety, our schools are failing our kids

Who We Are

Hold Schools Accountable (HSA) is a growing network of parents and community members across Ontario who are no longer willing to stay silent. We are speaking out loudly and clearly because enough is enough.

Founded by Canadian Broadcaster Anwar Knight, the movement began after his son was violently assaulted at a Peel District School Board (PDSB) school.[Video] Instead of being accountable, school administrators lied, withheld facts and constructed a false narrative to cover up the facts of the incident. They refused to cooperate with police and ignored mandated policies – violations later confirmed through court-ordered documents. Since launching the campaign, thousands of people from across the province have signed the petition. Anwar’s story and campaign has been featured and interviewed on a variety of media outlets, including The Toronto Star, AM640, News Talk 1010 and On the Ledge -Podcast.

The HSA network has also heard from countless families and educators from across Ontario sharing their own personal stories connected to Peel (PDSB), York Catholic (YCDSB), York Region (YRDSB), Hamilton (HWDSB), Halton (HDSB), Durham (DDSB), Dufferin (DPCDSB), Toronto (TDSB), Ottawa (OCDSB), Conseil Scolaire Publique Grand Nord d’Ontario and others. The pattern is consistent and alarming: education institutions are designed to protect themselves, not the students.

Boards withhold facts to avoid being held accountable. This must stop. HSA exists for every student and all families dismissed, ignored, or stonewalled while advocating for their child. We will not tolerate cover-ups, policy violations or institutional gaslighting.

Our kids. Our right to know.

Join us. Share your story. (HSA will protect your identity)

Take action. Sign the petition.

Anwar Knight

Founder

The Hold Schools Accountable Parent Network

Anwar Knight is a veteran Canadian broadcaster and producer. With decades of experience in some of the biggest newsrooms in the country, he has become one of Canada’s most trusted media personalities.

As the founder of the Hold Schools Accountable Parent Network, Anwar has become the voice for parents across the province, demanding accountability, transparency, and the safety of all students in publicly funded schools.

Through dedicated investigations, he has helped expose the shocking truth of what is happening in our classrooms. A committed community advocate, Anwar also supports Eden Food for Change and Peel Crime Stoppers.

Elizabeth Lance

HSA Parent Network Contributor

Elizabeth Lance is a doctoral candidate in Education whose research examines how Ontario school safety policies are implemented in practice — and how artificial intelligence can be used to detect systemic patterns of non-compliance.

She is the creator of SchoolBoardResearch.ca, a public database tracking Ontario school boards’ adherence to provincial Policy/Program Memoranda related to student safety and conduct.

Minaz Jivraj

HSA Parent Network Contributor

Minaz Jivraj, is a two-time recipient of the prestigious “President’s Award” from the National Association of School Safety and Law Enforcement Officials (NASSLEO) and was the 2024 Canadian Security Magazine “Lifetime Achievement Award” recipient.

He recently retired as Chief Security Officer for one of Ontario’s largest School boards, overseeing 151 schools for nearly three decades.

“Every aspect of our school is damaged by the inaction of our administration. Everything. You can’t even teach. We’re all traumatized. It’s scary.”

Peel District School Board Teacher | Source: National Post

How We Got Here

The “Trio of Trouble” Has Undermined School Safety for Years:

Progressive Discipline Is Failing

Introduced in 2008 to promote inclusive learning environments, the policy is now being misused — enabling serious incidents like physical aggression, threats, and repeated bullying to be minimized or with little to no consequences. Victims are forgotten.Students feel unsafe. Teachers are left unsupported, silenced, and burned out.

Educators are facing a growing wave of violence and intimidation. According to OSSTF, 1 in 3 teachers has experienced violence in the classroom — yet support is lacking, and accountability is no where to be found. The policy is outdated and dangerously out of touch with today’s school realities.

Since 2008, the classroom landscape has changed dramatically. Social media, violence, cyber bullying, and classroom complexity were not what they are today. It’s clear that some students need professional intervention — something Progressive Discipline does not provide.

It’s time to acknowledge what’s no longer working — and take action to ensure safe, supportive learning for all.

We need a modern policy that:

Protects victims
Supports teachers
Gives parents access to facts
Holds offenders – and school boards – accountable

“People think it’s still zero tolerance to bullying. It isn’t anymore. It’s all about mitigating circumstances.”

Retired Administrator | Source: Email

The Toronto District School Board’s most recent annual report shows a dramatic increase in violent incidents committed by students. (Source: Toronto District School Board: Safety, Financial Management and Capital – Annual Report 2024)

Removal Of School Resource Officers: Why Was It All or Nothing?

School Resource Officers (SROs) were removed due to concerns about over policing. These concerns are valid, but was full elimination the only solution?

SROs once played a role in de-escalation, violence prevention, and building trust. If we value safety and accountability, all stakeholders — community members, students, educators, parents, and police — must work together.  Hold Schools Accountable (HSA) supports the Ontario government’s recently announced plan to reintroduce School Resource Officer (SRO) programs in public schools where offered by local police services, starting in the 2025–26 school year. Let’s collaborate, not eliminate.

The Accountability Gap

No Oversight. No Balance. No Consequences.

School boards investigate themselves — behind closed doors, with no obligation to report findings or face consequences. When policies are breached, families are often left in the dark. The lack of transparency has long lasting impacts for the entire school community.

This must change

The Provincial Government Must Act:

  • Monitor school board compliance on safety, reporting, and accountability.

  • Enforce real consequences when obligations are ignored or violated.

School boards must not – and cannot be allowed to police themselves. Parents must have confidence that the rules in place are not optional—they are enforceable.

Just So We’re Clear

We recognize that there are many exceptional teachers in our publicly funded schools—dedicated, compassionate, and committed to their students’ success and well-being. They show up every day, often going above and beyond, and they deserve our thanks—and our support.

HSA is fighting for safe, supportive schools—for students, for families, and also for teachers.

“Today was the first time in my career of close to 30 years that we had to shut down 4 washrooms. Vandalism has included toilets/urinals clogged with toilet paper, paper towel rolls, pylons, food and clothing as well as wet toilet paper, urine and feces of the floors, walls and sinks.”

PDSB Principal | Email memo to parents