Ottawa-Carleton District School Board: Flags on Board property, curriculum materials and parental withdrawal
2 Sept 2026 · Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (Ontario)
10 Sept: the Board waived the $5 application fee; the decision on any further fee pending. The due date passed 2 Oct with no decision.
MFIPPA request with fee waiver — flags on Board property, curriculum materials and parental withdrawal
Hello,
This is a request for general records under the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, together with a request for a waiver of all fees under section 45(4).
The records requested concern Board policy on the display of flags and symbols on school property, curriculum materials on sex and gender, and the rights of parents to be informed and to withdraw a child.
DESCRIPTION OF RECORDS REQUESTED
1. The policy or procedure in force governing the display of flags, banners, decals, painted surfaces and crosswalk markings on Board property, together with every prior version since 1 January 2018 and the record of approval for each version, including Board minutes and any recorded vote of trustees.
2. Every record identifying the statutory or regulatory authority under which the Board displays on school property any flag other than the flags of Canada, Ontario and the Board.
3. Total expenditure by the Board on flags, banners, decals, painted surfaces, crosswalk markings, associated events and promotional materials for the school years 2022-2023, 2023-2024, 2024-2025 and 2025-2026, broken down by budget line and by school.
4. Every record setting out performance indicators, targets, measured outcomes or evaluation for the expenditures identified in item 3.
5. The policy or procedure in force governing the selection of curriculum and library materials addressing sex, gender identity, gender expression and family structure, together with the current list of such materials in use, by grade.
6. The policy or procedure in force governing notice to parents and guardians of instruction addressing sex, gender identity, gender expression and family structure, and governing the withdrawal of a pupil from that instruction on written request.
7. Every record setting out the Board practice where a pupil asks to be addressed by a name or pronoun differing from the record held by the Board, including any direction on whether and when the parent or guardian is informed.
8. Every complaint or written objection received by the Board from a parent or guardian concerning items 5, 6 or 7 from 1 September 2022 to the date of this request, in aggregate form with the Board response to each.
FEE WAIVER
A waiver of all fees, including the application fee, is requested under section 45(4) of the Act, which permits the waiver of all or any part of an amount required to be paid where it is fair and equitable to do so.
Financial hardship. The requester is an applicant for social assistance. The Social Benefits Tribunal issued an interim assistance order on 21 August 2026 in file 2608-06747 directing payment from 1 August 2026. The Director has not complied with that order and no payment has been made. The requester is without means to pay any fee. Documentation will be provided on request.
Public benefit. The records concern the legal authority for Board practice and the expenditure of public funds. Both are matters the public is entitled to examine, and neither is available elsewhere.
A decision on this waiver request is required in writing and separately from any decision on access. Refusal of the waiver, or the treatment of an unpaid application fee as a reason not to process this request, will be appealed to the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario.
FORMAT
Electronic copies by email are requested.
NEXT STEP ON REFUSAL OR SILENCE
Failure to respond within 30 days constitutes a deemed refusal under section 22(4) of the Act and will be appealed to the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario. The records will be placed before the trustees elected on 26 October 2026 and before the Ministry of Education.
Respectfully,
Danilo Dzyuban