District Newsletter

Volume 1, Issue 1: September, 25, 2002

With new Constitutions for the District and the Teachers’ Bargaining Unit, this newsletter is for all members and focuses on common issues. In addition, each Bargaining Unit will periodically produce newsletters for its own Unit.

District 11 Teachers, Instructors and Professional Student Services Personnel continue to deliver the highest possible quality public education in spite of the continued under-funding by the Tory Government. OSSTF members across the Province have delivered strong consistent messages to the Rozanski Task Force which is reviewing Education Funding: The formula is broken!

President Manners has made it clear to the Minister of Education and to the Premier, that immediately after the Task Force reports in November the formula must be fixed, and that if it does not provide for the respect and compensation that our members deserve, our work stops for semester two!

District 11 members should be proud of the tremendous service and support they provide for the students of the Thames Valley District School Board, but we must also be prepared to stand up for what is right and just. The very future of Public Education is at stake!

Police Checks and Offence Declaration

See the print copy distributed to Members at workplaces for this information.

PLP Advice

See the print copy distributed to Members at workplaces for this information.

Retiring this year?

If you are planning to retire this year, please call the District Office to obtain the Retirement Planning Package–information, letters.

Have You Moved? Or Changed Your Name?

If you change your name or address, PLEASE fax your new information to the District Office at 659-2421 and state which Bargaining Unit you belong to: Teachers, Occasionals, PSSP, or Continuing Education Instructors.

District Committee Members needed

If you wish to participate in the activities of any of these District committees, please contact the District Office:

Let’s Stay Safe!

Your safety, and that of everyone who uses the various board facilities, is of paramount importance to all of us at OSSTF. This goal is best obtained when interested people from throughout the TVDSB monitor their own working environments, and when others help out on one of the two safety committees.

We are very appreciative to those certified members who have agreed to be part of the board/union Joint Health & Safety Committee. For your information, this includes our co-chairs John Britton (IDCI) and Wayne Hardy (Huron Park), Bernie Conway (Parkside), Larry McClinchey (Medway), Leslie Rockwell (PSSP’s), Monica Zaccharias (Con.Ed), and Don Edgar (OSSTF District Office).

Similarly, may we express our thanks to those individuals from the various worksites who are currently in the process of submitting their names through their Branch Presidents or their Bargaining Unit Presidents for our own OSSTF Health & Safety Committee. One person from each worksite is needed on this committee. If you are interested, please let us know. Previous training, while an asset, is not necessary as various training initiatives will be made available throughout the year.

For further information, please contact the District Office by phoning 659-6588 or by e-mailing Don Edgar.

OSSTF and The United Way

Teachers and Education Workers are all too aware of the great and increasing need in our community for programs supporting youth, the disadvantaged and the poor. OSSTF, labour and the United Way share this positive vision:

"Together we can build a better community, the community in which we live, work, play and raise our children".

Again this year, OSSTF is proud to endorse and support our community United Way campaigns, which begin soon in our schools and workplaces. If your workplace does not yet have a staff United Way rep, please consider volunteering to take on that role.

Please be generous in your personal donation and in your support of the many United Way special events. If your workplace has "Casual Fridays", consider holding one of them in support of the United Way. Keep your eye out for more information and details.

"Catch a Falling Star" OSSTF Conference

Numerous workshops and practical strategies will be provided to assist educators to help students learn, including:

You will also receive information from the District 11 Educational Services Committee regarding a group application that will be made for financial assistance from the provincial office for members to attend this conference and/or the pre-conference Crisis Awareness Learning Modules (CALM) Workshop on November 7, 2002. To access this funding, you must apply for the conference through the District Educational Services Committee.

Solidarity Fiesta

The Oxford Coalition for Social Justice recently became the first Host Sponsorship Group for a family of Colombian refugees fleeing persecution because of participation in activities that labour activists here participate in on a regular basis: challenging corporations, addressing issues of injustice, denouncing the government, fighting for better rights for workers, criticizing the military.

A "Solidarity Fiesta" to raise funds to help support this family will be held on Saturday October 26, 2002. For details see the PAC page of the District Website. PAC has purchased 10 tickets; call the District Office to reserve one. First come; first served.

Upcoming Nomination Meetings

Former OSSTF Member Brian Brown is seeking nomination as the Liberal candidate for Oxford. The meeting is being held on Thursday September 26 at 7:30pm at the Quality Hotel in Woodstock. PAC has purchased 20 tickets; call Brian (539-8876) to reserve one. First come; first served.

OSSTF Member Patti Dalton is seeking nomination as the NDP candidate for London West. The meeting is being held on Saturday September 28 at 7pm at the CAW hall on First Street in London. PAC has purchased 10 tickets; call the District Office to reserve one. First come; first served.

Marion Drysdale Contest

The Marion Drysdale Contest is a writing and creative arts competition which is open to all public secondary school students in Ontario. The competition is meant to encourage the intellectual development of our students and an interest in society. The 1984 Provincial Assembly established the awards in honour of Marion Drysdale, a secretary at OSSTF Provincial Office for twenty-two years, for her dedicated work over so many years.

There are 6 writing categories (including one for Adult Learners) and 3 creative categories. Each school or workplace may submit ONE entry per category to the district office for judging at the district level.

OSSTF Charity for 2002-2003

The Kids Help Phone is the designated charity for OSSTF for 2002-2003.

As teachers and education workers, we know that kids sometimes deal with very serious personal issues and that they sometimes feel that they have no one to turn to. In these cases, the Kids Help Phone is there. If your workplace has "Casual Fridays", consider holding one of them in support of the Kids Help Phone.

Let us not take thought for our separate interests, but let us help one another.
(OSSTF Motto)

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