Teacher at heart of dress code battle no longer on active duty

The Halton District School Board (HDSB) has confirmed that an Oakville teacher who sparked a six-month battle over a professional dress code for schools is no longer on active duty.

However, the HDSB declined to comment on whether the teacher might be assigned to another school within the board in the future. "While not currently on an active assignment, the teacher remains employed with the HDSB," Communications and Engagement Manager Heather Francey said. "We continue to support the teacher in partnership with OSSTF (Ontario Secondary School Teachers Federation)."

The teacher, who goes by the name Kayla Lemieux, returned to Oakville Trafalgar High School in September 2022 presenting as a woman, having previously presented as a man.

Videos and photos were soon leaked from the school showing Lemieux teaching a shop class sporting a blonde wig, enormous prosthetic breasts and revealing clothing, sparking an international media storm.

Months of unrest at the school triggered protests and bomb threats. Some parents became increasingly worried for their children but felt their concerns were falling on deaf ears with administrators and the HDSB.

HDSB backed the teacher, repeatedly stating that the board has a commitment to human rights and to students and staff who identify as members of underserved and underrepresented groups.

But in December, Ontario Education Minister Stephen Lecce waded in and said the board was failing students and families — and that the province expected the board, as employers, to "act in the best interests of children."

The New York Post, which followed the story for months, sent reporters to Oakville and captured photos of Lemieux walking on the street while dressed as man and not sporting the prosthetic breasts.

Lemieux denied being the person in the photos and told the newspaper that the breasts are not prosthetic but real, a consequence of a rare medical condition called gigantomastia. The Post has stood behind its reporting.

This week, local MPPs Natalie Pierre (Burlington), Stephen Crawford (Oakville) and Effie Triantafilopoulos (Oakville North-Burlington) echoed Lecce's call to action, issuing a joint statement saying the board had abdicated its responsibility to put students first.

HDSB is now working on a professionalism policy that is expected to include standards on how a teacher should dress, although no details have been released.