A British Columbia teacher committed professional misconduct by repeatedly violating professional boundaries with students, including a female student he emailed often at night, met alone at school and gave gifts and personal messages, a disciplinary panel has found.
In a decision issued Jan. 30, 2026, a panel under the Teachers Act said David Joseph Lamb, a Vancouver high school music teacher, engaged in a pattern of conduct between 2016 and 2020 that amounted to a marked departure from the standards expected of teachers in the province.
Lamb, who was born in 1958, was 67 at the time discussed in the ruling and remained employed by the Vancouver school district, though he had been on medical leave since Sept. 1, 2020 and had not returned to teaching.
The panel found Lamb failed to maintain appropriate professional boundaries with students by emailing them in the evenings with instructions for the next day, sometimes requiring replies, and by giving some students information about quizzes and assessments that was not shared with others.
It also found he developed an overly personal relationship with one student, identified only as Student A, through frequent direct emails, gifts of music books and instrument accessories, handwritten cards and letters, and discussions about personal matters including religion and dating.
The panel said Lamb met with Student A alone on several occasions, asked her to come to the band room outside school hours and later invited her to keep practising and stay in touch after the school year had ended. It also found he manipulated the student’s grades in a way that was inconsistent with reasonable assessment practices, first telling her she would receive 50 per cent in two band courses, then later raising both grades to 100 per cent after what the panel described as minimal extra work.
The hearing proceeded without Lamb. The panel said he was properly served and appeared to know about the hearing date, but did not attend. The ruling says he has a history of mental health and other health issues, and cites medical information indicating diagnoses including major depression, general anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder. A psychologist’s note sent the day before the hearing said he was unable to work, instruct a lawyer or attend an interview.
Even so, the panel said there was no evidence his condition had improved or was expected to improve in a meaningful way, and found an indefinite delay would prejudice the case and could undermine confidence in the regulatory system. It also noted Lamb continued to hold a valid and unrestricted teaching certificate after paying his annual fee in 2025.
The decision says Lamb had previously been warned and disciplined by the district over boundary issues with students, including letters of expectation, a disciplinary letter and a 2014 consent resolution that required him to complete a boundaries course.
The panel concluded Lamb breached multiple professional standards, including duties to act in students’ best interests, behave ethically and honestly, understand student development, and use sound assessment and reporting practices. It ordered written submissions on penalty and said the reasons would be made public, while sealing exhibits and other hearing records to protect the privacy of students who were minors at the time.
