A controversial transgender teacher who made waves last year after being spotted instructing while wearing a giant prosthetic bust will return to the classroom this fall at a new school in Ontario.
Kayla Lemieux first made headlines in September of last year after students began to leak photos of him to social media. Pro-woman outlet Reduxx was first to identify Lemieux and reveal that he was employed as a shop teacher at Oakville Trafalgar High School in Oakville, Ontario.
But despite international backlash, Lemieux will be returning to the classroom this coming semester.
In anticipation of the pushback and media attention the school expects to receive upon the teacher’s arrival, the principal at Nora Frances Henderson Secondary School, Tom Fisher, issued a memo stressing that the school has “an obligation to uphold individual rights” and treat everyone with dignity and respect.
“Should the school be subject to any disruptions or protests; we are committed to communicating with you as openly and as frequently as possible to ensure student safety – and to share any operational plans,” he wrote.
Speaking with Toronto Sun, the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board (HWDSB) explained that it is trying to be transparent about Lemieux and his reputation by communicating to parents that “their child’s school may receive heightened public interest.”
The Board stated: In an attempt to be transparent with our community, HWDSB communicated about steps we are taking to facilitate a smooth return to school for students and the broader community. We recently communicated to some parents to inform them of the possibility their child’s school may receive heightened public interest.”
According to the Toronto Sun, because of the widespread news coverage Lemieux received last year, the school is taking extra steps to account for his employment by including entry and exit plans for students, requiring all students and visitors to use an intercom system to enter and exit the school, and asking parents to tell the school in advance if they would like to speak to an employee in-person.
Lemieux was first identified last year after images and videos of him wearing large prosthetic breasts during the course of his daily lessons at Oakville Trafalgar High School began circulating online.
In the most viral of the videos released, Lemieux, who reportedly began identifying as a woman in 2021, was seen teaching students how to use a circular saw while wearing size “ZZ” prosthetic breasts. In other photos, he was wearing a blonde wig and short-shorts, with his nipples protruding from a tight shirt.
News that Lemieux was sporting inappropriate attire in the presence of minors sparked outrage among parents which was exacerbated after Oakville Trafalgar High sent an email defending the shop teacher’s employment status.
“We are aware of discussion on social media and in the media regarding Oakville Trafalgar High School. We would like to take this opportunity to reiterate to our community that we are committed to establishing and maintaining a safe, caring, inclusive, equitable and welcoming learning and working environment for all students and staff.”
Although parents took their concerns to the Board of Trustees, demanding it implement a dress code, administrators rejected the idea during a meeting last November after deciding that implementing a dress code would “expose the Board to considerable liability.”
“It is important to recognize the impact that dress code policies can have on members of the transgender community. Most notably, it is important for employers to make allowances to ensure that these employees are able to express themselves in accordance with their lived gender,” explained Superintendent of Human Resources Sari Taha and Director of Education Curtis Ennis in an information report associated with the dress code review.
“Even if a dress code is implemented for non-discriminatory reasons, it would likely be found to be discriminatory where it adversely affects an employee or group of employees on the basis of their Code protected grounds,” continued Ennis and Taha.
Concluding the report, Ennis and Taha added: “We note that if the employer desires to foster a culture of professionalism, respect, equity and inclusion, a truly reasonable and non-discriminatory dress code or grooming standards would most likely fail to yield the intended results.”
Lemieux has reportedly not responded to questions about his transfer to another school district.
