CANADA
CBC News
Marilyn Bergstra asked fellow trustees Tuesday to support new curriculum that would educate staff and students from kindergarten to Grade 12 about ways to prevent child sexual abuse.
“If child sexual abuse were a disease, it would be one of the largest epidemics in our country,” Bergstra told fellow trustees on the Edmonton Catholic School Board. “And resources would be allocated to it.”
In her presentation to the board, Bergstra offered statistics from Edmonton’s Zebra Child Protection Centre, which works with children who have suffered abuse.
According to Zebra statistics, she said, “One in three girls in Edmonton will experience unwanted sexual acts performed on them. One in six boys in Edmonton.”
In 2010, Bergstra said, the Zebra centre supported 554 such cases. In 2013, that caseload had risen to 1,337. …
Trustee Larry Kowalczyk asked why Edmonton schools would consider adopting an American program when there are Alberta resources already in place.
“This program is not taught within the Catholic faith,” he said. “I think if we recommended this to Alberta School Boards Association, and then our bishop said, “Guess what? You can’t teach that program, because we just don’t take sex by itself.'”
Kowalczyk then quoted Cardinal Thomas Collins, former Archbishop of Edmonton and now Archbishop of Toronto.
“Catholic schools,” he said, quoting Collins, “will not implement any new teachings that aren’t consistent with the Catholic faith. Anything that undermines the catechism of the Catholic church will not be taught.”
After a lengthy debate, trustees voted down Bergstra’s motion.
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