Sexual Misconduct | Collège Stanislas launches an independent investigation

Shaken this spring by the arrest of a teacher for sex crimes and the media coverage of another alleged case of misconduct, Collège Stanislas is launching an independent investigation to put an end to this scourge. The College’s culture is no longer “in tune” with society, even admits senior management, who are aiming for a new “zero tolerance culture.”

“Our establishment is experiencing a annus horribilis because we have now reached the heart of our values. We are faced with the brutal reality that our school culture is no longer in step with the recent evolution of society,” writes Guy Le Clair, president of the Collège Stanislas corporation, in an email recently sent to the parents of the establishment.

Cases of sexual misconduct are accumulating at the private French educational establishment in the Outremont district. After the 2019 conviction of a physical education teacher for child pornography, an economics teacher, Alexandre Gagné, was charged last March with numerous sex crimes.

Alexandre Gagné would have made six victims among the students. He is notably facing charges of sexual exploitation, sexual assault, luring and indecent acts. The legal process continues. Unsurprisingly, his publicized arrest had the effect of a bombshell at Collège Stanislas.

Then, last May, an investigation by The Press revealed that another teacher at the College was the subject of a police investigation. According to our sources, this experienced teacher is suspected of having committed acts of a sexual nature against two high school students and a co-worker in 2022 and 2023. He faces no charges. criminal.

Sources had revealed to The Press that the College administration had attempted to sweep these allegations under the rug last year. During the first complaints, in 2022, the management even trivialized certain gestures committed by the teacher, even going so far as to say that it was “cultural”.

“Horrible Year”

It is therefore in this context that the president of the establishment evokes in his message to the parents a ” annus horribilis – a “horrible year” – an expression popularized by Queen Elizabeth II in the 1990s.

In his missive, Guy Le Clair announces that he has mandated the law firm Lavery to conduct an independent investigation into the allegations of wrongdoing of a sexual nature “that recently appeared in [le] middle” of the College.

“We are determined to investigate to identify them, to analyze them to understand them and to act to modify them”, writes the president of the corporation.

Lavery’s mandate is to provide a “legal opinion on the adequacy of the means put in place by the college to prevent, detect and manage the cases of sexual misconduct identified by the investigation”. The firm will be called upon to provide, if necessary, an opinion on the possible “complementary measures” to be implemented.

“The final report will be delivered during the summer. The college corporation is committed to ensuring that the recommendations resulting from this survey are implemented”, concludes Guy Le Clair, asking for “the involvement of everyone, students, parents, teachers and staff”.

“Be more responsive”

Regarding the “change of culture” of the College mentioned by the president, the director of communications of the establishment specifies that this relates to the “mechanisms for processing reports of misconduct”.

“We are already planning to integrate into our professional culture mechanisms and training to be more responsive when we receive complaints of misconduct. The results of the survey and its conclusions will allow us to review our practices and implement the required improvements”, indicated to The Press by email Sophie Alice T. Marchand.

Cases of sexual misconduct abound in schools, to the point where the Minister of Education, Bernard Drainville, launched a “general inquiry” in the school network last March to shed light on this reality.