DISCIPLINE COMMITTEE

Citation: Ontario College of Teachers v Mavrothalassitis, 2002 ONOCT 19

Date: 2002-06-06

REASONS FOR DECISIONS AND ORDERS

in the matter of the ontario college of teachers act, 1996, and the Regulation (Ontario Regulation 437/97) thereunder:

and in the matter of discipline proceedings against Bob Bill Mavrothalassitis.

The Discipline Committee held a hearing on June 3, 2002,

BETWEEN:

ONTARIO COLLEGE OF TEACHERS

- and -

BOB BILL MAVROTHALASSITIS

CERTIFICATE #283917

PRESENT:

Members of the Panel

Mark Lefebvre (Chair)

Sterling Campbell

Diane Leblovic

The Honourable Robert Montgomery, retired judge, Independent Counsel to the Panel

Sally Bryant, McCarthy Tétrault LLP, Counsel for the Ontario College of Teachers, assisted by Jennifer Robinson, Law Clerk

Josh Phillips, Green & Chercover, Counsel for the member

Bob Bill Mavrothalassitis

A Notice of Hearing, dated January 2, 2002, requesting attendance before the Discipline Committee of the Ontario College of Teachers on January 21, 2002, to set a date for hearing, and specifying the charges. The hearing date was set for June 3, 2002.

It is alleged that Bob Bill Mavrothalassitis is guilty of professional misconduct in that:

a) he provided false information of documents to the College or any other person with respect to his professional qualifications, contrary to Ontario Regulation 437/97, subsection 1 (1);

b) he failed to maintain the standards of the profession, contrary to Ontario Regulation 437/97, subsection 1 (5);

c) he signed or issued, in his professional capacity, a document or documents that he knew or ought to have known contained a false, improper or misleading statement, contrary to Ontario Regulation 437/97, subsection 1 (12);

d) he failed to comply with the Act, and the Education Act, Revised Statutes of Ontario, 1990, Chapter E.2, and the Regulations made under those Acts contrary to Ontario Regulation 437/97, subsection 1 (14) and 1 (15)

e) he committed an act that, having regard to all of the circumstances, would reasonably be regarded by members as disgraceful, dishonourable or unprofessional, contrary to Ontario Regulation 437/97, subsection 1 (18); and

f) he engaged in conduct unbecoming a member, contrary to Ontario Regulation 437/97, subsection 1 (19).

The Notice of Hearing states that Bob Bill Mavrothalassitis is a member of the Ontario College of Teachers and therefore comes under the jurisdiction of the Ontario College of Teachers.

On June 3, 2002, the Discipline Committee of the Ontario College of Teachers conducted a hearing into whether Bob Bill Mavrothalassitis was guilty of professional misconduct.

EVIDENCE:

Counsel for the Ontario College of Teachers referred to the charges set out in the Notice of Hearing, alleging that Bob Bill Mavrothalassitis is guilty of professional misconduct in that his acts were contrary to the Professional Misconduct Regulation made under the Ontario College of Teachers Act and filed as Regulation 437/97 on December 4, 1997, in particular, subsections 1 (1), (5), (12), (14), (15), (18) and (19).

Counsel presented evidence that Bob Bill Mavrothalassitis is a member of the Ontario College of Teachers (Exhibit #1).

The member pleaded no contest to the allegations.

An Agreed Statement of Facts and Joint Submission on Penalty (as attached) was filed as Exhibit #11. That statement had been signed by College Counsel and the member and was dated June 3, 2002.

FINDINGS OF FACT:

Based on the Agreed Statement of Facts and Joint Submission on Penalty, the panel finds the following facts:

(1) Bob Bill Mavrothalassitis is a member of the Ontario College of Teachers.

(2) At all material times, the member, whose date of birth is November 12, 1970, was employed by the Halton District School Board, having been issued an Interim Certificate of Qualification (ICQ) by the College dated January 8, 1999. The following two conditions applied to the said ICQ and were clearly stated thereon:

“1. You must complete an Additional Basic Qualification (ABQ) for the Intermediate or Senior Division with a second teaching option from Schedule A of Regulation 184/97 before you can convert your Interim Certificate of Qualification to a permanent Certificate of Qualification.

You must complete the ABQ in the second teaching option prior to enrolling in any other Additional Qualification courses at an Ontario Faculty of Education.”

(3) In making application to the Faculty of Education at Brock University for enrolment in an Additional Qualification Course, namely Special Education - Part 1, during the 1999 summer session, the member submitted a falsified ICQ dated January 8, 1999. The ICQ submitted by the member failed to contain condition number 2 as set out above.

(4) The member gained admission to the course when he knew or ought to have known that enrolment in the course was prohibited by the condition set out at item No. 2 in the said ICQ dated January 8, 1999.

(5) The member completed the course at the Faculty of Education at Brock University when he knew or ought to have known that his enrolment in such course was prohibited by the condition set out in item No. 2 of the said ICQ dated January 8, 1999.

(6) At all material times, the member was employed on a full-time basis and did not require the course in order to obtain or maintain any employment. The member’s salary was unaffected by taking the course and he received no monetary benefit whatsoever from doing so.

(7) The Committee accepts the Agreed Statement of Fact and Joint Submission on Penalty.

(8) The member pleaded no contest to the allegations.

DECISIONS AND ORDERS:

Based on the submissions made by Counsel and the Agreed Statement of Facts and Joint Submission on Penalty, the Committee finds Bob Bill Mavrothalassitis guilty of professional misconduct under subsections 1 (1), (5), (12), (18) and (19) of the Professional Misconduct Regulation, as alleged, and directs the Registrar to suspend Bob Mavrothalassitis’s Certificates of Qualification and Registration for a period of two months, such suspension to commence on July 1, 2002, to continue to and include August 31, 2002. The Committee also directs the member to appear before the Committee to be reprimanded, and that the fact of the reprimand be recorded on the Register.

Notice

It is important to the College’s role in the governance of the profession to provide evidence to members that the College is active in self-regulation and is vigilant to breaches of its bylaws and rules of conduct. Such evidence is provided through notification of the decisions and orders of the College’s disciplinary Committees, and is, in the opinion of the panel, a practice that has significant general deterrent value.

Pursuant to section 30(5)(iii) of the Ontario College of Teachers Act, the Committee orders that the findings of this hearing, as well as the name of the member, be published in the official publication of the Ontario College of Teachers, Professionally Speaking/Pour parler profession.

DATED AT TORONTO, THIS 6th DAY OF JUNE, 2002

BY ORDER OF THE DISCIPLINE COMMITTEE

Mark Lefebvre, Chair