CLE Online

Welcome and Land Acknowledgement (9:00 – 9:05)

Lindsie Thomson — Harris & Company LLP, Vancouver
Sari A. Wiens — Harris & Company LLP, Vancouver

First Nations and Education (9:05 – 10:05)

• jurisdiction
• teacher certification

Dave Duerksen — Executive Director, Legislation, Policy and Governance, Governance and Analytics Division, Ministry of Education, Victoria
Deborah C. Jeffrey — First Nations Education Steering Committee, West Vancouver

BREAK (10:05 – 10:15)

Minority Language Education Rights: Section 23 of the Charter and the SCC's Decision in Conseil scolaire francophone de la Colombie-Britannique (CSF) (10:15 – 11:15)

• an overview of s. 23 of the Charter and its guarantee of Minority Language Education Rights 
  • what does s. 23 guarantee?
  • who are the rightsholders?
  • the local perspective: who is the CSF in BC?
• review of the SCC's June 2020 decision in the CSF case
  • history of the litigation
  • outcome of the decision
  • the current analytical framework for s. 23
• implications for public education in BC

Karrie A. Wolfe — Legal Services Branch, Ministry of Attorney General, Victoria

BREAK (11:15 – 11:25)

The Teacher Regulation Branch (11:25 – 12:25)

• the structure of professional regulation of teachers
• certification of teachers
• standards for educators
• the duty to report misconduct
• teacher discipline

Sarvi Brent — Director of Operations, Professional Conduct Unit Governance and Legislation Branch, Ministry of Education, Vancouver

LUNCH (12:25 – 1:00)

Charter Challenge and Restoration of Collective Agreement Language (1:00 – 2:00)

• Charter challenge to Bills 27 & 28
• BCTF v. British Columbia, [2016] 2 S.C.R. 407
• restored language on class size, class composition, and staffing ratios
• where we are now

Michael Hancock — Harris & Company LLP, Vancouver
Steven Rogers — Victory Square Law Office, Vancouver

BREAK (2:00 – 2:10)

School Board Governance: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (2:10 – 3:10)

• the role of Boards of Education under the School Act
• policy and operations in the educational context
• vaccine mandate? are the Ministry and School Boards going to sing from the same song sheet?

Charles Ungerleider — Managing Partner & Director of Research, Directions Evidence and Policy Research Group, Vancouver

BREAK (3:10 – 3:20)

Safe Schools (3:20 – 4:20)

• school safety: the statutory and policy framework
• current issues affecting schools

Theresa Campbell — Chief Executive Officer, Safer Schools Together, Surrey

Concluding Remarks (4:20 – 4:30)

Lindsie Thomson — Harris & Company LLP, Vancouver
Sari A. Wiens — Harris & Company LLP, Vancouver