LEARNING IN ONTARIO
Policy/Program Memorandum No. 120
Issued under the authority of the Deputy Minister of Education |
| Date of Issue: | June 1, 1994 | Effective: Until revoked or modified |
| Subject: | SCHOOL BOARD POLICIES ON VIOLENCE PREVENTION IN SCHOOLS | |
| Application: | Chairpersons of School Boards and
Minority-Language Sections
Directors of Education |
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Note: Please share the information in this memorandum with all school board personnel. IntroductionThe Ministry of Education and Training is committed to ensuring that schools are violence free so that students may have safe learning environments in which to reach their full potential. In November 1993, the Minister of Education and Training announced an action plan to address the issue of violence in schools. In this action plan, ten initiatives were identified that were to be launched immediately. Two of the initiatives referred to policy directions to school boards - one on the development of violence-prevention policies and the other on the reporting of violent incidents to the police and the ministry and on the recording of violent incidents. The Policy Document on Violence PreventionThe document Violence-Free Schools Policy is a directive intended for school boards. It outlines the process for developing a violence-prevention policy and the mandatory components of the policy. The document also outlines the required procedures to follow for the reporting of violent incidents to the police and the ministry and for the recording of such incidents in the Ontario Student Record (OSR). The ministry is aware that school boards are at different stages in developing policies on violence prevention and procedures for reporting and recording violent incidents. School boards and minority- language sections that have related policies already in place shall review and revise their policies to ensure that they are in keeping with Violence-Free Schools Policy. Community InvolvementSchool boards' violence-prevention policies shall be developed in collaboration with a wide range of community partners – for example, parents, students, educators, police, and representatives from social agencies – and shall take into account the policies on antiracism and ethnocultural equity that school boards are developing. Approval of Policies and Implementation PlansSchool boards and minority-language sections shall submit their violence-prevention policies and implementation plans to the appropriate regional office of the Ministry of Education and Training no later than June 30, 1995. The ministry will review the policies and plans to ensure that they are in keeping with Violence-Free Schools Policy. Policies must be implemented or in place no later than September 1995. Ministry AssistanceStaff members of the ministry's regional offices and the Violence Prevention Secretariat are available to assist school boards in the development and implementation of their policies. The addresses and telephone numbers are provided below: |
| Central Ontario Region
2025 Sheppard Avenue East Suite 3201 North York, Ontario M2J 1W4 Telephone: (416) 491- 0330 |
Northeastern Ontario Region
447 McKeown Avenue P.O. Box 3020 North Bay, Ontario PIB 8K7 Telephone: (705) 474- 7210 |
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| Western Ontario Region
759 Hyde Park Road London, Ontario N6H 3S6 Telephone: (519) 472- 1440 |
Eastern Ontario Region
1580 Merivale Road 4th Floor Nepean, Ontario K2G 4B5 Telephone: (613) 225- 9210 |
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| Northwestern Ontario Region
435 James Street South P.O. Box 5000 Thunder Bay, Ontario P7C 5G6 Telephone: (807) 475- 1571 |
Violence Prevention Secretariat
Ministry of Education and Training Queen's Park Mowat Block, 13th Floor Toronto, Ontario M7A IL2 Telephone: (416) 325- 2524 |
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| Midnorthem Ontario Region
199 Larch Street 7th Floor Sudbury, Ontario P3E 5P9 Telephone: (705) 675- 4401 |
