Maple Ridge teacher disciplined after allegedly swearing at student for missing volleyball throw

A Maple Ridge teacher has been disciplined by the B.C. Commissioner for Teacher Regulation after allegedly pushing a student and swearing at him.

According to a report from the commissioner, the alleged incident happened in September 2017, when Gregory Norman Brock asked a Grade 11 student in his gym class to throw him a volleyball.

The student missed the throw, and Brock thought it was a deliberate lack of co-operation, the report states.

He physically escorted the student to the door — the report says the student was stumbling along the way — and Brock then allegedly called him an “a******.”

The report said the commissioner took into consideration a number of factors before deciding a reprimand was necessary. The commissioner found the physical contact between Brock and the student was unnecessary, that Brock’s behaviour seemed confrontational and that he was familiar with the student and should have known how to respond to him more appropriately.

The report said Brock has held teaching certifications with the B.C. College of Teachers since 1993.

The school district suspended Brock for three days without pay when they learned of the incident in February 2018. Brock was also told to attend a course at the Justice Institute of B.C. on maintaining professional boundaries.

This isn’t the first time Brock has been written up by the district; he was also issued a letter in 2004 after allegations that he used profane language in class.