YRDSB trustee Terrell-Tracey seeks reversal of recent punitive action

The school board has extended some punitive action on the trustee in late August

Yorkregion.com
Sept. 12, 2019
Dina Al-Shibeeb

Elizabeth Terrell-Tracey, trustee for East Gwillimbury/Whitchurch-Stouffville, is formally disputing additional punitive action by York Region District School Board.

"On Sep. 9, I submitted my request for reconsideration regarding the YRDSB Aug. 27 board meeting to dispute the decisions against me," Terrell-Tracey told YorkRegion.com via Twitter. The trustee had previously deactivated her Twitter account after some controversy in May.

In June, the board placed a slew of sanctions on Terrell-Tracey to limit her power, including barring her from private, public and advisory meetings.

However, YRDSB on Aug. 27 further tightened its grip on Terrell-Tracey, when director of education Louise Sirisko and board chair Corrie McBain imposed three additional punitive actions.

They included McBain making a "formal, public statement censuring" Terrell-Tracey for "violating" three sections of the trustee code of conduct.

The second additional punitive action extended already-imposed sanctions on the trustee for an additional 12 months, until the end of June 2021.

YRDSB also extended another sanction by not allowing Terrell-Tracey to attend any elementary or secondary school graduations in her capacity as trustee until the end of June 2021.

The additional measures were in response to a new report -- also published Aug. 27 -- from the board's integrity commissioner, Sandhya Kohli, regarding a formal complaint against the trustee.

This follows a report regarding the same trustee received at a special board meeting on June 17.

Kohli received the "third formal complaint" on Terrell-Tracey in May.

Kohli’s investigation found Terrell-Tracey’s tweet quoting the song Swing Low, Sweet Chariot was problematic.

Kohli wrote "notwithstanding varied scholarly interpretations of its meaning, the fact is that tweeting a verse from Swing Low, Sweet Chariot caused a negative reaction from the public, one of dismay and alarm, because it hearkens back to the era of slavery".

Controversy surrounding Terrell-Tracey started to brew in October when posts from her Facebook account focused on the heritage of her opponent in the trustee election, Lena Singh, who is Guyanese.

YRDSB does not have the power to suspend pay or fire any trustee, since trustees are elected. In late 2018, the school board asked the province for more power to at least suspend the pay of those found guilty of breaches of conduct.

This story will be updated once a YRDSB representative responds to questions on what the board will do next following the trustee’s request to dispute its latest decision.