Teachers in Simcoe trained to keep gender & sexuality clubs secret from parents

Simcoe County elementary school teachers are being trained to keep parents in the dark about students’ participation in Gender and Sexuality Alliance clubs.

Simcoe County elementary school teachers are being trained to keep parents in the dark about students’ participation in Gender and Sexuality Alliance clubs. Training materials instruct staff that “parents are never told who is attending, even if they ask to know.”

The board’s 2024/2025 professional development training tells teachers to establish confidentiality norms in elementary GSAs, including the rule that “what is said in the meeting stays in the meeting.” The documents describe these practices as safeguards and part of creating “safe spaces with a trusted staff advisor.”

The training guides teachers on how to start a GSA and set norms that limit parental visibility. Teachers are instructed to hold a first meeting to establish rules, including confidentiality and secrecy.

Parents may be told a GSA exists, usually through a newsletter, but the club itself must remain confidential. Teachers are instructed to introduce the GSA in class and remind students that “parents are never told who is attending, even if they ask.”

Students may choose an alternative name instead of “GSA.” Teachers are told to pick discreet meeting spaces, warning that “a central location such as a library with windows is NOT a good idea.” They are also instructed that they are “NOT asking permission” to start a GSA; notifying administrators is presented as a formality rather than a decision point.

The materials justify these rules by emphasizing safety. GSAs are described as “safe spaces with a trusted staff advisor” and may be among the “few or only safe spaces” where some students can “truly be themselves.” The documents imply that safety can only be guaranteed in school spaces, but not at home.

The training is part of broader diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, including “anti-oppressive” and “antiracist” policies intended to “amplify diverse student, parent/caregiver and community perspectives by decentering whiteness.” In practice, however, the guidance casts parents as potentially hostile while fostering a culture of secrecy.

A second session, “A 2SLGBTQIA+ Inclusive Classroom,” covers pronouns, including neopronouns, and notes that pronouns “continue to evolve.” Staff are told to avoid asking students for “preferred pronouns,” arguing that the phrase implies pronoun use is optional.

The training emphasizes activism through “allyship,” defining an ally as someone who “supports, stands up for, and advocates for” a group they do not belong to, particularly on issues of injustice. Participants are told that allies can progress to “accomplice” and “co-conspirator,” with co-conspirators actively working to “dismantle systems of oppression.”

The materials carry an unusual disclaimer: the content is “proprietary and confidential,” circulation outside the board is “not permitted,” and sharing may result in legal action. Readers must “obtain permission from the creator” to use the materials elsewhere.

True North has obtained similar professional development training from school boards across Ontario, but none with similar warnings. This posture is difficult to reconcile with the subject matter, which governs how teachers should relate to children, how GSAs should operate, and when parents should be informed or excluded.

The relationship between the board and the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU) is unclear. The training is labelled “OPSEU PD,” but the listed facilitators are board employees using board email addresses. The materials are embedded in the board’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion leadership structure. Unions do not set curriculum, safeguarding rules, or parent-communication policies; school boards do.

Not all LGBTQ people agree with this narrow interpretation of LGBTQ politics and advocacy. In September, a coalition of lesbian, gay, and bisexual organizations from several countries launched LGB International, presenting itself as an alternative to prevailing gender identity activism within major LGBTQ institutions.

The school board has not responded to requests for comment.