Black Tickle teacher no longer at school following allegations of misconduct

Students in the southern Labrador community of Black Tickle will soon have a new shot at finishing their school year, following a teacher’s departure right before disturbing allegations against her were to be made public by The Independent.

For a story that would have been published by The Independent in late November, two parents said the teacher, Nancy Bower, had locked students inside a classroom, refused to teach the appropriate curriculum, yelled at students, and refused to meet with concerned parents.

Laura Keefe, the parent of a Grade 9 student, said students at St. Peter’s School enjoy learning, but the recent experiences and a lack of accountability from NL Schools threw off the students’ school year. 

Keefe said the “verbal abuse” from Bower and the time it took for the government to rectify the situation in the remote community—home to residents who identify as Inuit and are members of the NunatuKavut Community Council—would never be permitted to happen in a non-Indigenous community.

“It feels like residential school all over again, like these kids are being so mistreated, being denied an education.”

After Bower left on Nov. 28, Keefe said she felt relieved. 

“I just feel like it took way too long for the school board to take it serious. It’s almost like they didn’t believe us,” Keefe told The Independent in a follow-up interview on Dec. 3. 

Keefe said issues started at the beginning of the year when her son was assigned Grade 2 math exercises. Keefe was hopeful he would later be given grade-appropriate exercises, but she said that in the following weeks kids played board games, took naps at school, and drew on colouring pages.

“She refuses to teach the children,” Keefe told The Independent on Nov. 22, prior to Bower’s departure. “She told parents that after the school board gives her $50,000, she’ll leave. She said she’s here for a paycheck.”

Keefe said she tried to talk to Bower but was unsuccessful. That was before Keefe says she learned around mid-October that Bower had allegedly locked the students inside a classroom before going into her office and shutting the door.

“It’s an old school from back in the 70s and 80s with a door locked; if there was ever a fire or fire drill, there’s no way to get out of that school. I mean, it just terrifies me to think of what could happen and what could go wrong.” 

Once her son began explaining what happened in the classroom, Keefe went to the school, removed her son’s belongings and took him home. She then spent the next month trying to contact NL Schools to come up with a solution. 

“My son has suffered so much. His mental health is terrible,” Keefe said, describing her son as an A-plus student. “He’s very respectable, and he respects his teachers, but him not being in school has played a terrible role in his mental health.”

‘Something is wrong with you’

Keefe is one of multiple parents and grandparents who raised concerns about their child’s education to the school, and to the province’s department of education. 

Kim Penney’s 12-year-old used to love school and enjoys learning new things, but after incidents involving Bower she didn’t want to go. Penney says her daughter, who is in Grade 7, was yelled at by Bower. 

Penney says her daughter was also locked inside a classroom by Bower, and that Bower disapproved of her daughter’s nail extensions and made her chew them off in class. 

“The teacher has been doing a lot of yelling at them,” Penney said before Bower’s departure, adding Bower “looked at her and told her, right in front of the whole school, that ‘Something is wrong with you.’”

Like Keefe, Penney told The Independent that she also tried to speak with Bowerand sent multiple emails to NL Schools, but to no avail.

“For the school board to be turning a blind eye and doing this to our community — like, we feel that in our heart, like we need someone to step in and say, ‘This is enough. We’re not going to let this happen.’ I just need someone to finally put an end to this.”

It can be difficult to recruit teachers for rural locations, but St. Peter’s School once had a great reputation, Keefe said. 

The Independent asked NL Schools for an interview with Bower, or with Lorina Spurrell, NL Schools’ director for Labrador, whom parents say they had reached out to.

The department of education refused an interview but said in an emailed response before Bower’s departure that it was “aware of some concerns from parents,” and that NL Schools is “working with all parties to address those concerns, foster the well-being of all students and staff and ensure appropriate curriculum delivery. 

Bower did not respond to multiple interview requests. 

NL Schools sent rep to Black Tickle

After being contacted by The Independent, NL Schools sent a representative to Black Tickle to hold a meeting with parents on Nov. 26, Keefe said. 

At the meeting, Keefe said NL Schools representatives weren’t apologetic but explained they were exploring options and had interviewed two replacement teachers. 

The school board told parents that due to confidentiality, they could not discuss Bower’s departure, Keefe said. She said parents were told a replacement teacher wouldn’t be able to start until January. In the interim, students are learning online until the end of January. 

The Independent asked NL Schools for an interview following Bower’s departure but was told the government has nothing else to add.

Likewise, the Newfoundland and Labrador Teachers’ Association declined comment, saying it “does not comment on individual member matters, and as such we will not be providing comment on this article.”

Keefe is hopeful that her son can return to a safe classroom in January, and that the students can catch up on their work and finish their school year on time, she said. 

The community is welcoming to teachers from away, she added, and she hopes to make them feel welcome.

“This community has always been very open-armed when it comes to outsiders,” Keefe said. “When teachers have come from outside, there’s families in the community that invite them over for Sunday dinner, sometimes for every meal of the week.” 

“I would want this teacher to know that they wouldn’t be treated any differently, and that we’re here to help, to look out for you and to make sure that you have a good experience here.”