If you feel you are being treated unfairly, you can file a complaint with the BC Ombudsperson. You have one year to file your complaint, but I have heard from other parents they have extended the deadline and accepted later complaints.
You absolutely have the right to know and understand why they are making decisions that impact your child.
Public education is considered a service. On the Ombudsperson BC website they describe fairness as
“Fairness in public service delivery has several key features. It includes allowing people to be heard in processes that affect them, ensuring decisions are made without bias, and following the rules that apply. It is also about making decisions that are considerate of an individual’s needs and circumstances and are based on relevant information.
Fairness is also about providing clear and meaningful reasons for decisions so the person affected can understand what process your organization followed and how it came to the decision it did. By following a fair process, members of the public can better understand the reasons for decisions being made by those in positions of authority. Fairness in public service delivery is in everyone’s best interests – ensuring your policies, procedures and practices are fair is good for your organization, your employees and the people you serve.”
If the school refuses to tell you, you can file an Ombudsperson complaint.
https://bcombudsperson.ca/fairness…/what-is-fairness
Ombudsperson is designed to be the last resort. If the school district refuses to discuss the issue with you, that meets the requirement for Ombudsperson to step in.
IF the school district is not following their own policies, you can file a complaint with Ombudsperson.
Here is their most recent Administrative Fairness Guide.
Keep all of your documentation. You will need to submit evidence. This process can take months before a resolution is reached. Feel free to contact me to ask me questions regarding any specifics in the process.
Ombudsperson only realizes there are general/systemic issues if people file complaints. Even if you don’t think you’ll get anything out of filing with Ombudsperson, they track where the complaints are coming from and what they are about. When they get enough of them it will trigger an investigation on a wider scale. They also post public statistics about how many complaints they get per school district.
Education Case Summaries
Topic: Section 177 – Appeals Process
https://bcombudsperson.ca/case_summary/schools-out
Topic: Section 11 Appeal Denials
https://bcombudsperson.ca/case_summary/oh-tell-me-why/
Topic: Medical Exclusion & Appeal Process
https://bcombudsperson.ca/case_summary/transparency-helps/
Topic: Communication during suspension & Medical Exclusion
https://bcombudsperson.ca/case_summary/not-making-the-grade/
Topic: Appeal Process and Advocates Involved
https://bcombudsperson.ca/case_summary/advocates-allowed/
Topic: International Student Fees
https://bcombudsperson.ca/case_summary/overlooking-key-information/
Topic: District Catchment Boundary Policy and Communication