Rusty Goertzen admitted to three acts of dishonourable and unprofessional conduct to the discipline committee of the Ontario College of Teachers (OCT) Friday.
A publication ban prohibits the media from reporting any information which may identify the lone student involved in the allegations, referred to in the hearing as Student 1.
Goertzen admitted to:
- Failing to admit that he was engaging in "personal conversations with a young student over social media"
- Failing to admit (to Children's Aid Society (CAS) and the Greater Essex County District School Board (GECDSB)) those social media conversations occurred in the summer and outside of school hours
- Failing to report a reference to an alleged rape made by Student 1 to their parents, the GECDSB and CAS, as required of teachers under the Child Youth and Family Services Act
Jordan Stone, OCT lawyer told the committee the conversations were "not sexual or suggestive in any way" but they did "blur the boundaries" of an appropriate relationship with a student.
Phillip Abbink, Goertzen's lawyer told the committee his clients "plea of no contest is not an admission" of guilt but rather an acknowledgement that he acted in an unprofessional manner.
Abbink told the committee Student 1 initiated the online conversations with Goertzen and the student was the first to raise the issue of deleting the thread.
Allegations that Goertzen "repeatedly spent time alone with female students" or that he let some students "touch his arm" were withdrawn by the OCT.
Goertzen Penalty
Goertzen was reprimanded by the committee immediately after the hearing.
His teaching certificate will be suspended for two months, and he must take a course within 90 days on professional boundaries and ethics with a focus on reporting duties.
Prior to these allegations, laid in March 2025, Goertzen does not have any previous discipline history with the OCT.
Mario Spagnolo, President of the Greater Essex Elementary Teachers Federation of Ontario said they "cannot comment on personnel matters".
A statement from the GECDSB says: "The Board cannot comment on individual personnel matters. However, we have remained committed to due process as this situation has unfolded and will continue to follow established procedures."