A Central Okanagan high school teacher has been formally reprimanded by B.C.’s teacher regulator after admitting to professional misconduct tied to a 2021 team “pantsing” incident and a later confrontation at a community volleyball tournament.
Kelly Jean Hettinga, who has held a professional teaching certificate since July 24, 2018, entered into a consent resolution agreement with the Commissioner for Teacher Regulation under the Teachers Act. The agreement resolves three separate matters investigated by the commissioner between 2022 and 2024.
At the time of the first two incidents, Hettinga was employed by School District No. 23 (Central Okanagan) and was head coach of his school’s senior girls volleyball team during the 2021-22 school year.
The agreement outlines that on Sept. 18, 2021, while returning from an out-of-town tournament, the team stopped at a public rest area. As one student exited the washroom, other team members pulled down the student’s pants. Hettinga did not witness the incident, as he was waiting in the van.
He became aware of what occurred the following day when contacted by the student’s parent. The two discussed how to address the situation and agreed on a course of action that did not include reporting the matter to school administration. The parent expressed concern about drawing further attention to the incident.
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At a practice on Sept. 20, 2021, the affected student read a prepared statement to the team describing the emotional harm and embarrassment caused by the incident and asking that any video be deleted immediately. Hettinga told players that if a video existed, it was to be deleted and not shared.
School administration did not learn of the incident until November 2021, when the student’s parents informed them. Meetings were subsequently held with Hettinga, assistant coaches, the student and parents, and other team members identified as being involved.
At the first practice following those meetings, Hettinga made a comment to the effect that he would not change how he ran the team based on outside influences, including parents.
In May 2022, the district suspended Hettinga for three days without pay, removed him from coaching duties and barred him from applying for positions at the school until June 30, 2025. He was also required to complete a professional boundaries course, which he did in 2022.
A third matter arose from an incident at a community volleyball tournament on May 8, 2022. Hettinga was volunteering as a coach for a community team that included some of the previously identified players. During a game against a team that included the earlier student and another student, Hettinga confronted a parent volunteer serving as a linesperson, calling the parent a “prick” after disputing a call. A heated exchange followed.
After the game, Hettinga told his team he had been disciplined by the district and said that the families of certain students — whom he identified by name — were driving the discipline. He later received an eight-day suspension without pay, was directed to have no further contact with the two families involved, and was removed from coaching duties until June 30, 2028.
In the consent agreement, Hettinga admits that the conduct described in the volleyball team incident and the tournament confrontation constitutes professional misconduct and contravenes four of the Professional Standards for B.C. Educators.
The commissioner cited several factors in determining the outcome, including Hettinga’s failure to report a serious incident involving emotional harm and a breach of privacy, his inappropriate and unprofessional comments to students, and the district’s prior disciplinary actions, which totalled 11 days of suspension.
Under the agreement, Hettinga will receive a formal reprimand and must successfully complete the course “Reinforcing Respectful Professional Boundaries” through the Justice Institute of British Columbia by May 1, 2026. If he fails to do so, his teaching certificate may be suspended until the requirement is met.
The agreement will be published in full on the Ministry of Education and Child Care’s online registry in accordance with the Teachers Act.
