A letter from the principal of Hidden Valley Elementary School to the families of students promises to act on the concerns created by a former educational assistant’s conviction of sexual interference.
A letter from the principal of Hidden Valley Elementary School to the families of students promises to act on the concerns created by a former educational assistant’s conviction of sexual interference.
“Hello, Hidden Valley School community,” reads the letter from John Duclos, which was obtained by the Star.
“As many of you are aware, in 2019 an employee unfortunately chose to abuse their position of authority and trust with a student while in the school.
“This individual was criminally charged, convicted, and sentenced for his actions. When this matter came to my attention in 2019, we informed the RCMP, who commenced an investigation.
“In addition, we immediately ensured that the individual was no longer allowed to work with students at Hidden Valley or in any Yukon school.
“As we begin a new school year tomorrow (Aug. 23), we acknowledge how this previous incident may have negative and, in some cases, traumatizing impacts on our school community.
“Likewise, the ongoing safety and the protection of our students, your children, is of the most utmost importance.
“The school will continue to monitor all interactions between staff and students and follow up with any parent or student concerns that come forward.
“When needed, the school will contact outside supports, including counselling services, RCMP, Family and Child Services. We will also continue to support our students with a variety of services and education, including:
“Supports from various community support programs:
Child, Youth & Family Treatment Team (CYFTT)
The Community Health Nurses
Yukon First Nation Education Directorate
Student Support Services
Educational programming focused on:
Healthy Relationships
Communication skills
Self-advocacy
Safe Adults
School-wide Supports and Communication Strategies.
“When discussing safety, we will use a shared common language with students, families, caregivers, and staff,” Duclos wrote.
“A school wellness teacher and administration are available for discussing social-emotional and safety concerns with individual students and families.
“We are sending home resources for developmentally appropriate conversations with children around safety.
“Please note that due to confidentiality and the risk of traumatizing other children, we will not be directly talking to the students at the school-wide or classroom-wide level about the incident in 2019.
“However, we will assess the needs of individual students and families and provide personalized and confidential supports and programming.
“Hidden Valley School has always had a strong and supportive community. We will all need to continue to work together, support one another, and advocate for the needs of our families,” Duclos added.
The Star asked the Yukon government for a comment on the letter from Duclos. It responded with a statement it had previously provided.
Erin MacDonald, the director of communications for the Department of Education, provided this via email.
“We care deeply for our students, their families and staff and the Department of Education takes this situation extremely seriously. In our duty of care, we have a responsibility to uphold the safety of all students at our schools.
“When this matter came to our attention in 2019, we informed the RCMP,” MacDonald wrote. “As soon as we became aware of the allegation, the individual no longer worked with students or in schools.
“If parents are concerned that their child interacted with this former employee in a concerning manner, we urge them to contact the RCMP’s Specialized Response Unit at 867-667-5555 directly to share the information.
“The Department of Education is committed to ensuring that students and families have the best supports available to them,” MacDonald added.
“In situations like these, we encourage parents to contact the Government of Yukon’s victim services branch, which offers specialized support through Project Lynx.
“Project Lynx supports children and youth victims of crime and their families. It does not matter whether the crime has been reported, a charge has been laid, or if there has been a conviction,” MacDonald wrote.
“This team provides services to help navigate next steps and can make referrals to other supports such as counselling. Project Lynx can be reached at 867-667-3002 or email at victim.services@yukon.ca.
“We understand the impact this situation is having on the school community and we are committed to supporting all students and their families. The Department of Education will be providing additional supports for students at Hidden Valley Elementary School.
“The Government of Yukon Department of Education is currently a respondent in a civil legal matter related to this situation. We also understand there are open RCMP investigations about the matter.
“As a result, we are not in a position to comment further at this time,” MacDonald concluded.
See editorial in Opinion section.
Principal writes of event's 'traumatizing impacts' - Whitehorse Star
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