The Discipline Committee hears matters regarding allegations of professional misconduct and/or incompetence which have been referred by the Complaints Committee following investigation.
The College is mandated to publish a summary of its disciplinary decisions and reasons when the Discipline Committee makes a finding of guilt. These disciplinary decisions are then published on the College’s website, on our blog and on CanLII, the Canadian Legal Information Institute’s website.
Ariana Alissa Anger, # 71551
Facts: The Member pled guilty to professional misconduct. Following an uncontested hearing, the Discipline Committee accepted the following admissions as facts:
The Member and her colleague were supervising a group of nine preschool-aged children within the Centre’s playground. When they returned indoors from the playground, one of the children, a toddler, was left outside. The Member did not conduct a headcount, nor did she check the attendance sheet to ensure all children were present. Approximately 35 minutes later, the toddler’s father came to collect his child. Five minutes later, they found the child outdoors, crying, and with dirt on their face.
Finding: In its decision, the panel found that the evidence supported findings of professional misconduct.
The Member was found guilty of several acts of professional misconduct (Ontario Regulation 223/08), including failing to supervise adequately a person who was under her professional supervision; failing to maintain the standards of the profession; acting or failing to act in a manner that, having regard to the circumstances, would reasonably be regarded by members as disgraceful, dishonourable or unprofessional; and conducting herself in a manner that is unbecoming a member.
Penalty: The Committee directed the Registrar to suspend the Member’s certificate of registration for six months and to impose terms, conditions and limitations on the Member’s certificate of registration that included at least five mentorship sessions. The Committee also required the Member to appear before it to be reprimanded and ordered the Member to pay $1,000 to reimburse the College for a portion of the prosecution and hearing costs.
The full decision can be found here , linked under the heading “Special Notices.”
Mimruza Rahman, RECE # 32054
Facts: The Member pled guilty to professional misconduct. Following an uncontested hearing, the Discipline Committee accepted the following admissions as facts:
The Member and two child care assistants were getting infants ready to go outdoors for a walk. The Member sat a child on a counter, approximately three feet off the floor, and began changing their clothes. As the Member held the child, the child lost their balance and fell face-forward, hitting their head, which made a loud “thud” sound. The child began to cry as they were lifted up by the Member. After the Member comforted the child for a few minutes, the Member and assistants did not notice any marks or bumps, so the Member handed the child to one of the assistants, collected her belongings and left the infant room.
On the walk, one of the assistants noticed the child’s forehead was starting to swell. An icepack was placed on the child’s head for approximately five minutes. As the Member left the Centre for the day, she stopped to speak to the assistant with the child and noticed a reddish mark on the child’s forehead. The Member asked the assistant to monitor the child’s well-being and to let her know “if anything happens.”
The Member failed to report the incident to management and the child’s parents. She also failed to prepare a written report which is required by the Centre’s policies and procedures.
Finding: In its decision, the panel found that the evidence supported findings of professional misconduct.
The Member was found guilty of several acts of professional misconduct (Ontario Regulation 223/08), including failing to supervise adequately a person who was under her professional supervision; failing to maintain the standards of the profession; acting or failing to act in a manner that, having regard to the circumstances, would reasonably be regarded by members as disgraceful, dishonourable or unprofessional; failing to keep records as required by her professional duties; and conducting herself in a manner that is unbecoming a member.
The panel stated that “[this] particular case should carry a very important reminder to all RECEs that in the case of an accident, reporting and following procedures is a part of every member’s responsibility, and failure to do so can lead to many serious and unnecessary results.”
Penalty: The Committee directed the Registrar to suspend the Member’s certificate of registration for six months and to impose terms, conditions and limitations on the Member’s certificate of registration including a minimum of seven mentorship sessions. The Committee also required the Member to appear before it to be reprimanded and ordered the Member to pay $1,000 to reimburse the College for a portion of the prosecution and hearing costs.
The full decision can be found here, linked under the heading “Special Notices.”
Mvidi Helene Batulapuka, RECE # 62714
Facts: The Member pled guilty to professional misconduct. Following an uncontested hearing, the Discipline Committee accepted the following admissions as facts:
The Member was supervising a group of four toddlers on the Centre’s fenced playground. At approximately 10:45 a.m., a parent opened the fenced gate to drop off a fifth toddler at the playground. The Member did not verify the gate was closed properly after the parent left and, as a result, the children left the playground through the gate unnoticed.
One of the children crossed the street and another stopped in the middle of the road, crying. Three members of the public stopped their cars to help the children. These members of the public escorted the children back to the Centre’s playground.
While the Member did not see what happened outside the Centre playground, she did notice the children were missing for up to five minutes. Shortly after realizing they were missing, she saw them outside the Centre’s playground with a man, and went to pick them up to bring them back to the playground.
The Member did not comply with the Centre’s Outdoor Supervision Policy, nor did she report the incident to Centre management. Another staff member reported the incident.
Finding: In its decision, the panel found that the evidence supported findings of professional misconduct.
The Member was found guilty of several acts of professional misconduct (Ontario Regulation 223/08), including failing to supervise adequately a person who was under her professional supervision; failing to maintain the standards of the profession; acting or failing to act in a manner that, having regard to the circumstances, would reasonably be regarded by members as disgraceful, dishonourable or unprofessional; and conducting herself in a manner that is unbecoming a member.
Penalty: The Committee directed the Registrar to suspend the Member’s certificate of registration for nine months and to impose terms, conditions and limitations on the Member’s certificate of registration including a minimum of seven mentorship sessions. The Committee also required the Member to appear before it to be reprimanded and ordered the Member to pay $1,000 to reimburse the College for a portion of the prosecution and hearing costs.
The full decision can be found here, linked under the heading “Special Notices.”
Jessica Ann-Marie Primeau, RECE # 51357
Facts: The Member pled guilty to professional misconduct. Following an uncontested hearing, the Discipline Committee accepted the following admissions as facts:
The Member engaged in multiple instances of inappropriate physical conduct towards pre-school aged children, including lifting children forcefully by their arms, forcibly turning children to lie face-down on cots or forcing them to sit. She also yelled at children while standing in close proximity and grabbing their faces, spoke negatively about children to other staff in the children’s presence and yelled at children seeking comfort from other staff.
Finding: In its decision, the panel found that the evidence supported findings of professional misconduct.
The Member was found guilty of several acts of professional misconduct (Ontario Regulation 223/08), including verbally abusing a child who was under her professional supervision; physically abusing a child who was under her professional supervision; psychologically and/or emotionally abusing a child who was under her professional supervision; failing to maintain the standards of the profession; acting or failing to act in a manner that, having regard to the circumstances, would reasonably be regarded by members as disgraceful, dishonourable or unprofessional; and conducting herself in a manner that is unbecoming a member.
The panel stated they were “deeply concerned regarding the behaviours the Member adopted towards children with disabilities by using prohibitive measures and interventions. Her behaviour was unbecoming of the ECE profession, contrary to Ontario Regulation 223/08, subsection 2(22) and eroded public confidence in the profession.”
Penalty: The Committee directed the Registrar to suspend the Member’s certificate of registration for at least 11 months and to impose terms, conditions and limitations on the Member’s certificate of registration including mandatory coursework on anger management and behaviour intervention strategies, as well a minimum of seven mentorship sessions. The Committee also required the Member to appear before it to be reprimanded and ordered the Member to pay $1,000 to reimburse the College for a portion of the prosecution and hearing costs.
The full decision can be found here, linked under the heading “Special Notices.”
Ban Al Azawi, RECE # 61709
Facts: The Member pled guilty to professional misconduct. Following an uncontested hearing, the Discipline Committee accepted the following admissions as facts:
The Member failed to conduct a headcount on returning from the outdoor play area. This resulted in a toddler being left on the playground on a -5 degree Celsius day. The child remained outdoors, unsupervised for approximately 15 minutes. The child was found, crying and scared, by a member of the public who brought the child back into the Centre. Until then, the Member had not realized the child was missing.
Finding: In its decision, the panel found that the evidence supported findings of professional misconduct.
The Member was found guilty of several acts of professional misconduct (Ontario Regulation 223/08), including failing to supervise adequately a person who was under her professional supervision; failing to maintain the standards of the profession; acting or failing to act in a manner that, having regard to the circumstances, would reasonably be regarded by members as disgraceful, dishonourable or unprofessional; and conducting herself in a manner that is unbecoming a member.
Penalty: The Committee directed the Registrar to suspend the Member’s certificate of registration for six months and to impose terms, conditions and limitations on the Member’s certificate of registration including a minimum of five mentorship sessions. The Committee also required the Member to appear before it to be reprimanded and ordered the Member to pay $1,000 to reimburse the College for a portion of the prosecution and hearing costs.
The full decision can be found here, linked under the heading “Special Notices.”