B.C. teacher disciplined over 'inappropriate physical contact' with female students

An empty classroom is seen in this undated file photo.

Vancouver — A former teacher from the Vancouver area has been disciplined for using his position to "engage in inappropriate physical contact" with female high school students.

Alvin Yik-Bun Lau's misconduct took place while he was employed by the Burnaby school district between September 2017 and June 2018, according to a summary of a consent resolution agreement he signed with the B.C. Commissioner for Teacher Regulation.

The full agreement was not made public in order to protect the identities of the students involved.

The summary, which was posted online this week, does not detail the physical contact Lau had with the high schoolers, except to indicate it happened after he asked them to "volunteer for a research project about athleticism, outside of class time."

"Lau's conduct made the students feel very uncomfortable and detrimentally affected their learning environment," it reads.

Lau took a leave of absence from the district in September 2019, and resigned in January 2021. His teaching certificate lapsed in November 2021 after he failed to pay his annual fees.

The B.C. Commissioner for Teacher Regulation reviewed his misconduct and decided to ban Lau from re-applying for a certificate for a period of nine months.