Trustees with the Greater Essex County District School Board will meetTuesday night to discuss a report into the conduct of one of their own.
Trustee Cathy Cooke was investigated by Rubin Thomlinson LLP for allegedly breaching the Trustees Code of Conduct a year ago during discussions about what to name the new school in Kingsville.
Trustee Julia Burgess suggested the name Erie Migration Academy, later changed to Erie Migration District School.
The name was controversial and elicited 300 complaints to the Ombudsman.
The board hired Rubin Thomlinson LLP to review Cooke's conduct during meetings last spring and subsequent media interviews.
The firm considered four complaints; Cooke made disparaging comments about her colleagues, discredited the integrity of the board, and undermined the board's resolution to name the school Erie Migration District School.
Following a lengthy investigation into Cooke's conduct, the firm concluded Cooke's conduct during the April 2, 2024, meeting did not violate the code of conduct. Nor did it find she discredited or compromised the board's integrity. It also found she did not breach decorum and respectful conduct.
However, the firm did find Cooke violated the code of conduct during media interviews following the meetings.
Describing the school's naming process, Cooke told reporters, "I am extremely disappointed. I am extremely frustrated, and I think the whole thing was a terrible mess. What they did tonight was shut everybody up. They didn't want trustees to talk. They didn't want to hear anybody in the community. All they wanted to do was shove it through, and that's what they did."
She also called the process "an absolute disgrace" and said, "I am disgusted at what happened tonight."
"Trustee Cooke's statements to the media were highly critical of the actions taken by her fellow trustees and in the process. Her statements clearly suggested that the board was acting improperly," wrote the author of the firm's report.
Trustees will discuss the report during a special meeting on Tuesday night and determine what penalty Cooke should face.