GUELPH – The Upper Grand District School Board (UGDSB) has official records of less than 60 incidents of hate directed against 2SLGBTQIA+ students and staff from November 2022 to December 2023.
But board representatives say more incidents are occurring that are not recorded through official channels.
In 2023, there were 28 incidents of identity-based harm reported that involved sexual orientation, and 27 incidents that involved gender identity or gender expression.
This is based on data collected through the UGDSB’s Identity-Based Harm Reporting Tool that launched in October 2022.
Prior to the tool’s launch, the UGDSB did not collect any data regarding incidents of intolerance or hate against 2SLGBTQIA+ students and staff, records management officer Linda Swanson told the Advertiser.
The newspaper requested data in June 2023, after education director Peter Sovran claimed incidents of intolerance and hate were on the rise within the board.
Data from the reporting tool shows there were four incidents involving sexual orientation and five incidents involving gender identity or expression that month.
That’s up slightly from months prior, but June is not the month with the most incidents. There were more reports in October (six involving sexual orientation and seven involving gender identity or expression) but Sovran did not mention the increase at that time.
The UGDSB did not provide data regarding Sovran’s claims until after the Advertiser submitted a freedom of information request on Dec. 19, 2023.
The request included five years of data, but Swanson explained records did not exist prior to October 2022.
Since the launch of the reporting tool, most incidents are going unreported, UGDSB spokesperson Heather Loney told the Advertiser.
The board’s response to the Advertiser’s freedom of information request states: “Since the launch of the Identity-Based Harm Reporting Tool the equity and inclusion department at the UGDSB has worked diligently to increase awareness of this tool throughout the system” by issuing reminders in newsletters and creating and presenting slideshows during meetings.
Loney said Sovran’s June comments were based on an increase not reflected in reporting tool data, and instead on conversations with staff members who discussed receiving hateful emails and phone calls.
A lot of reports come to staff rather than through the official reporting tool, Loney said.
The board also received hateful calls, particularly regarding Pride flags flying at each of the UGDSB schools, she added.
Loney said Pride flags were also removed from schools overnight during June.
“We didn’t want to make a big statement” about incidents with the flags, Loney said, because “supporting 2SLGBTQIA+ students is important to us.
“We want students to feel safe and supported, not subject the students to harm,” Loney said. So staff try to quickly replace the flags without drawing attention to the incidents, she added.
