March 5, 2010

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80th Annual General Meeting & Conference:
"Catholic Education: Rejoicing in Hope"

Nominations are open for:

• OCSTA President

• OCSTA Vice President

• OCSTA Representative to the CCSTA Board of Directors

The deadline for nominations is March 30, 2010.

For information on the positions to be elected this year and the role of the OCSTA Board of Directors please click here.

For more information, please contact Pam DeNobrega at (416) 932-9460, ext. 234 / pdenobrega@ocsta.on.ca.

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OCSTA's Social Media Strategy

The OCSTA Board of Directors has approved a new social media strategy for the Association.  As larger percentages of our communities begin to use social media for their news, information and networking, it is becoming increasingly more important for organizations that rely on strong relationships with their audiences and constituents to be in these "social networking" forums as well.

Parents, students, reporters, politicians and many others who support or are interested in our Catholic schools in Ontario are looking to social networking forums to not only gather news but to support, assess, and advocate for the issues that are important to them, like Catholic education.  It is therefore vital for OCSTA and Catholic school boards to know about relevant conversations about their schools and communities in these networks, and to also ensure that the facts and priorities about Catholic schools in Ontario are represented and articulated to better support our mission.

The Association's social media strategy involves the cultivation of awareness about publicly funded Catholic schools in Ontario in the following social networks where we believe our audiences can be found:

1. Facebook: This is the most popular social networking platform in the world with almost 1/2 billion users.  The most current statistics indicate that there are almost 5 million Ontarians on Facebook.  Facebook offers to users who manage organizational sites on Facebook (called "fan pages") access to statistics indicating the percentage of a particular audience by gender, age and other user characteristics.
   
   OCSTA's fan page is: http://www.facebook.com/CatholicEducationInOntario. See the blue letter "f" on the right side bar and on every page of the OCSTA website to connect with OCSTA's Facebook page instantly.
   
   
2. Twitter: This "micro-blogging" platform has received extensive coverage in the mainstream media regarding it's impact on world news, issues and business.  Millions of people use twitter daily to share updates in 140 characters or less.  The strategic use of twitter to build an audience and provide service to that audience by directing them to information on a website or sharing timely and relevant information, is what makes twitter valuable.  More boards are beginning to use twitter to push out information to their audience of parents and students who need to know things like bus cancellations, special events, etc.  The Windsor-Essex CDSB (http://www.twitter.com/wecdsb) received positive mainstream newspaper coverage after they used twitter to announce a unique kindergarten registration promotion at the local mall.
   
   See the blue letter "t" on the sidebar and on every OCSTA website page to connect to our twitter account: http://www.twitter.com/catholicedu.
   
   
3. YouTube: Many organizations including the Vatican, the Archdiocese of Toronto and the Simcoe Muskoka CDSB, use YouTube to share videos that contain messaging and stories promoting a particular organization, cause or event or simply announcing some fact or opinion.  Why organizations are choosing to use YouTube is because millions of people including students and parents visit  YouTube for information and enjoyment, much like they read a magazine or view television.  Unlike television or magazine advertising, the cost of uploading a message to reach this audience is zero (not including costs associated with making the video). This makes YouTube an affordable and potentially effective marketing tool.
   
   See the "YouTube" button on every OCSTA web page to connect with OCSTA on YouTube or visit http://www.youtube.com/user/OCSTAVideo1
   
   
4. Flikr: This is one of the most popular photo sharing websites and is used much like YouTube.  See the "flikr" button on the right hand side of the page to connect with OCSTA on Flikr or visit http://www.flickr.com/photos/ocsta.
   

Although these social networking sites reach a very large audience that includes Catholic school board constituents, there is a science involved in getting a particular audience (in our case Ontarians) to read information we share about the province's Catholic schools. That technical knowledge is reflected in a marketing practice called Search Engine Optimization (SEO). OCSTA has created a strategy that incorporates SEO practices.

The success of the OCSTA social media strategy will benefit members but at the same time relies on all boards and supporters of Ontario's Catholic schools to share information about the success of our schools that is produced on school board websites and this website (see the OCSTA Good News Blog). There are tools to help you share positive news about Catholic education in Ontario online.

How you can Participate

Each OCSTA "Good News" blog post ( http://www.ocsta.on.ca/ocsta-blog.aspx) can be shared in various social networks like those listed above along with others.  After each Good News blog post there are symbols that will allow readers to share these posts on Twitter, on Facebook and in other appropriate social networking forums that they may frequent.

We encourage all readers of the OCSTA Good News blog to share these successful stories about social justice, community spirit and academic achievement in our schools throughout the social networks they visit.

Another very easy way to use social media to support our efforts to raise our profile among our supporters is to become a fan of the OCSTA fan page on Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/CatholicEducationInOntario.

For more information please contact OCSTA Co-ordinator, Communications and Media Relations, Sharon McMillan - smcmillan@ocsta.on.ca / (416) 932.9460, ext. 232.

Brother Andre Becomes a Saint October 17

On February 19th, The Vatican announced that Brother Andre will become a saint on October 17th.  This is of course significant for Catholics in Canada and is particularly special for Quebec Catholics where Brother Andre did most of his work.  For an interesting and more in depth examination of Brother Andre and this announcement please visit the Archdiocese of Toronto Blog at http://archdioceseoftoronto.blogspot.com/2010/02/spiritual-gold-for-canada-brother-andre.html

University of St. Michael's College (U of T)- Certificate Programs

The Continuing Education department of the University of Toronto's Catholic College - St. Michael's College  - offers numerous courses including those in Religion, Scripture, Spirituality and Specialized Certificate Programs.

To find out more and register online visit http://ce.stmikes.utoronto.ca.

OCSTA/OCSBOA 2010 Finance Seminar

April 29, 2010, 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at the Valhalla Inn, Thunder Bay

Trustees, Directors of Education and Catholic School Board Finance staff are encouraged to register now for the annual OCSTA/OCSBOA Finance Seminar.

Program Highlights:

• Dr. Livio Di Matteo, Chair of the Department of Economics, Lakehead University
• Karen Maxwell, Acting Assistant Deputy Minister, Elementary/Secondary Business and Finance, Ministry of Education
• Panel Discussion: Implementing the Early Learning Program - Operational Issues
  

For more information, please contact Connie Araujo-De Melo, (416) 932-9460, ext. 226 / cdemelo@ocsta.on.ca.