The NWT’s integrity commissioner has dismissed a complaint filed by the principal of Łı́ı́dlı̨ı̨ Kų́ę́ Elementary School, who accused Fort Simpson’s MLA of interfering in school operations and trying to have him fired.
According to a Legislative Assembly news release issued on Friday, Nahendeh MLA Shane Thompson was adjudged to have committed one minor contravention of the MLAs’ code of conduct – but that was termed an error of judgment made in good faith.
“The public interest would not be served” by taking further action, integrity commissioner David Phillip Jones concluded.
Thompson is also the NWT’s speaker of the House.
Education in the Dehcho has been under scrutiny for months. An investigation is ongoing into what the NWT government has called “serious concerns from parents, educators, community members and education partners” in the region.
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That investigation’s conclusions are expected to be made public in the coming days.
In Friday’s ruling, the integrity commissioner was dealing with a related but distinct issue: whether Thompson had violated the code of conduct in the way he treated Ben Adams, the principal at Fort Simpson’s elementary school.
What was the complaint?
Adams’ complaint had not been previously reported. It was not on the public record until the decision was released.
Thompson’s grandson is a student at the school, Jones stated in his report on the issue, and Thompson’s daughter was previously a teacher there.
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“There were issues between her and Mr Adams, and the superintendent of the Dehcho Divisional Education Council relocated her to the high school, which has a different principal,” Jones wrote.
Emails from April show Thompson lobbying within the village’s education community for Adams to be fired, he stated.
In June, Adams wrote to the integrity commissioner to complain about those emails and what he termed Thompson’s “continuous harassment and interference.” He said his health and safety were at risk and his reputation was being tarnished.
Thompson hired Steven Cooper – who also represented Steve Norn, another MLA charged with code of conduct violations and ultimately removed from his position – to defend him in these proceedings.
Cooper, writing to Jones, said many of Thompson’s dealings with the principal had been in a personal capacity as the family’s appointed representative for matters related to his grandson’s education. Cooper acknowledged an April 8 email sent from Thompson’s MLA email address should have come from his personal account and was, as such, “an error of judgment.”
“Shortly thereafter, Mr Thompson accepted the integrity commissioner’s advice that he remove himself from the situation and ask another MLA to deal with any school board-related issues,” Jones wrote in a summary of Cooper’s correspondence.
Cooper denied Thompson had harassed Adams. Adams maintained that Thompson’s personal actions and those he undertook as an MLA were, in this situation, “inextricably linked.”
In full: Read the integrity commissioner’s decision
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In reaching his decision, Jones said even a “prolonged and strident disagreement” between a family member and a principal does not, on its own, constitute harassment.
“People who are MLAs are entitled to have personal and private lives, and are entitled to express their opinions in their personal capacities. Being elected an MLA does not deprive one of one’s personal and private life,” Jones wrote.
Jones said two emails sent from Thompson’s MLA account were errors, and added that Thompson had “conceded as much.” (Thompson has been approached for comment. Adams could not be immediately reached.) He found no further fault under the code of conduct.
“I strongly urge all involved to focus on the needs of the grandchildren, to put them first, and to put aside their respective historical concerns and hurts,” Jones concluded.
“This requires honest, open and two-way communication and respect. Everyone owes this to the youth in this small community.”
