Author: Sharon McMillan

OCSTA Responds to Autism Support Funding Enhancements March 11, 2019 "Today’s announcement by the Minister of Education represents a first step towards providing the kinds of additional resources school boards require to support students with ASD transitioning to Ontario schools on a full or part-time basis. OCSTA remains concerned about the adequacy of the funding [...]

89th OCSTA AGM and Conference - In Downtown Toronto FAITH IN ACTION April 25 - 27, 2019 Register now for OCSTA's 89th Annual General Meeting and Conference which will be held at the InterContentinental Toronto Centre Hotel (225 Front St.) Keynote Speakers: Dr. Thomas Groome, Boston College: "Faith in Action in Catholic Schools - Education From and [...]

Dr. Mark McGowan on Catholic Education in OntarioLeading author on Catholic education in Ontario and Professor and former Principal of St. Michael's College, University of Toronto - Dr. Mark McGowan - is among the highlighted speakers presenting at the 2019 OCSTA Catholic Trustees Seminar. Program details are listed below:OCSTA Catholic Trustees SeminarWhen: January 18 – 19, [...]

Christmas Message from the OCSTA PresidentTo my fellow Catholic Trustees:During this blessed Advent season, as we prepare for Christmas and reflect on the needs of the most vulnerable around us and around our world, there is a sense of deep gratitude in the Catholic school communities we serve. We are blessed to have the support [...]

Upcoming Events OCSTA Catholic Trustees SeminarWhen: January 18 - 19, 2019Location: Delta Hotels by Marriott Toronto Airport For program and registration details please click here.   FACE Lobby Day at Queen's Park The annual lobby day for Catholic education coordinated under the FACE (Friends and Advocates for Catholic Education) umbrella took place on Tuesday, November [...]

Curriculum Consultations On Friday, October 19, 2018 at 12 p.m. the first of several telephone hall meetings will be held by the Ministry of Education on the curriculum revisions for boards and stakeholders living in Northwestern Ontario. Advance registration is required and details were sent earlier in the week to boards. In addition to the [...]

Provincial Education Reform Consultation On September 28, the Ministry of Education released their Consultation: Education in Ontario. This is the first segment of this consutlation and it includes an online submission form. Information regarding a separate online survey for more feedback and telephone town halls will be announced in the coming weeks. Feedback and comments are requested [...]

OCSTA Fall Regional Meetings OCSTA's annual Fall Regional Meetings will begin on September 17. Registration information was provided to all boards several weeks ago. If you have questions related to registration, please contact Jane Ponte - jponte@ocsta.on.ca. Following are the dates, locations and the agenda for each meeting:   WEST Monday, September. 17 9:30 a.m. [...]

Post Election Review and Update By Steve Andrews, Director of Legislative and Political Affairs On June 7, 2018 Ontarians elected a majority PC government under the leadership of Doug Ford. The current seat breakdown is: 76 PC 40 NDP 7 Liberal 1 Green Party. This represents an increase of 28 seats for the PCs and [...]

2018 Provincial Election Information As Ontarians prepare for the June 7 provincial election, issues that are important to Ontario residents are being directed to candidates at debates and town halls province-wide. For your reference OCSTA's key education funding and policy priorities document has been edited to include suggested questions for provincial candidates (and post election [...]

Catholic Education Week and Youth Day May 6 - 11, 2018 Easter blessings to our Catholic school boards across the province!  Catholic Education Week is approaching and we know Catholic school communities are busy preparing for this wonderful celebration of publicly funded Catholic education in Ontario. We would like to remind everyone that the resources [...]

OCSTA 2018 AGM and Conference: OCSTA's 88th Annual General Meeting and Conference  will be hosted by the Waterloo CDSB at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Kitchener, April 26- 28, 2018. This year's conference theme is Stewards of the Promise and the program has been designed to offer trustees an opportunity to explore the unique calling [...]

PC Interim Leader Meets with OCSTA l.-r.: Stephen Andrews (OCSTA), Nick Milanetti (OCSTA), PC Interim Leader, MPP Vic Fedeli, OCSTA President, Patrick Daly, and PC Education Critic, MPP Lorne Coe. On February 6, OCSTA President, Patrick Daly, Executive Director Nick Milanetti, and Director of Legislative and Political Affairs, Stephen Andrews, met with PC Interim Leader [...]

New Minister of Education's First Public Address at Catholic Trustees Seminar OCSTA's Catholic Trustees Seminar Political Panel: l.-r.: MPP Peggy Sattler, The Hon. Indira Naidoo-Harris, Minister of Education, OCSTA President, Patrick Daly, and MPP Lorne Coe. 48-hours before the 2018 OCSTA Catholic Trustees Seminar, Premier Wynn announced a cabinet shuffle that brought in a new [...]

President's Christmas Message: Dear Fellow Catholic School Trustees, In his recent book, Bishop Robert Barron writes: “Evangelization isn’t about a concept or an idea, but about a friendship with Christ that you have, and that you want someone else to have.” Each day but in a special way during the blessed season of Advent we [...]

Advent Reflection "We are not Alone...Lord strengthen the places I find community in my life, espcially my family, my parish and my friendships." Ronald Rolheiser Legislative Update Bill 148 - Fair Workplaces, Better Jobs Act, 2017:  This legislation received Royal Asent on November 27.  The Act raises the minimum wage, and expands personal emergency leave.  [...]

Together in Faith Contest Winner! Campaign artwork (and video) developed by the Hamilton-Wentworth Catholic DSB to support their efforts to win the #TogetherInFaith Sign-Up Day Contest. It worked! On November 6, student leaders at Catholic schools across Ontario participated in a contest to recruit the highest number of campaign subscribers for the #TogetherInFaith campaign celebrating [...]

OCSTA President Speaks at Provincial Student Trustee Conference l.-r.: Nicolas Botttger, OSTA-AECO Chief Executive Officer and CBC Past President, Patrick Daly, OCSTA President, His Eminence Cardinal Collins, and Ben Smith, CBC President. At the recent Fall General Meeting of the Ontario Student Trustees' Association (OSTA-AECO), OCSTA President, Patrick Daly, was invited to lead a workshop [...]

Inside this Issue [toc] Ministry of Education - Key Initiatives On September 6th, the Minister of Education and the Premier announced the government's next steps in meeting the objectives of its "Achieving Excellence" strategy for education in Ontario. Key work and funding will be focused on the Well-Being Strategy and a comprehensive review and public [...]

Inside this Issue [toc] Legislative Update Ombudsman Report re: Student Transportation On August 10, Ontario Ombudsman, Paul Dubé released his report, The Route of the Problem. The report reflects the findings and recommendations stemming from an investigation into the Toronto District and Toronto Catholic District School Board's oversight of student transportation and their response to [...]

Inside this Issue [toc] Legislative Update Bill 148, Fair Workplaces, Better Jobs Act, was introduced on June 1, 2017, by the Minister of Labour. That same day the bill was referred to the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs, which was given permission from the House to meet over the summer to study the [...]

  FACE Lobby Day at Queen's Park A delegation team of Catholic trustees representing OCSTA, Catholic teachers representing OECTA and Bishops from the Assembly of Catholic Bishops of Ontario (ACBO) representing Ontario's Catholic clergy, joined in a show of unity and strength at Queen's Park on May 29th as part of the annual Catholic Education [...]

Inside this Issue: [toc] Upcoming Event 2017 Catholic Trustees' Seminar - January 13-14 Location: Hilton Mississauga Meadowvale Hotel, 6750 Mississauga Rd., Mississauga Keynote Presenter: Professor Randy Boyagoda, NY Times Bestselling Author and Principal, University of St. Michael's College, University of Toronto Trustee Regional Meetings for West, Central, North East, North West and East Regions Ministry [...]

A Message from OCSTA President, Patrick Daly: It is with great sadness that we inform the membership of the passing of our dear friend and colleague, Bernard Murray. A true Catholic Christian gentleman in every way, Bernard contributed passionately to Catholic education both provincially and nationally during his 30 years as a Catholic School Board [...]

Inside this Issue: [toc] Upcoming Events Fall Regional Meetings CENTRAL - September 20, Dufferin-Peel CDSB, Mississauga NORTH WEST - September 24, Da Vinci Centre, Thunder Bay EAST - September 28, Peterborough VN&C CDSB, Peterborough NORTH EAST - October 1, Nipissing-Parry Sound CDSB, North Bay WEST - October 5, Windsor-Essex CDSB, Windsor President's Message Dear Catholic [...]

Inside this Issue: [toc] Legislative Update The Legislature is now on summer recess.  MPPs will return to the Legislative Assembly on September 12. On June 13, the Premier announced the new members of the provincial cabinet, including the new Minister of Education, MPP Mitzie Hunter. Former Minister of Education, MPP Liz Sandals becomes President of [...]

Inside this Issue: [toc] Legislative Update Bill 181, the Municipal Elections Modernization Act Bill 181, the Municipal Elections Modernization Act seeks to reform Ontario's civic elections and proposes changes that would introduce ranked-ballots to the voting system and affect other changes in areas of election administration, campaign finance and enforcement, electronic voting, and the election [...]

Inside this Issue: [toc] Catholic Education Day at Queen's Park (l.-r.) Chris Crowley, OECTA; His Excellency, Bishop Gerard Bergie, Diocese of St. Catharines; OCSTA Director and Bruce-Grey CDSB Chair, Beverley Eckensweiler and MPP Bill Walker - Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound. For the first time in recent memory, MPPs in the Ontario legislature gave a standing ovation for [...]

Inside this Issue: [toc] OCSTA Recognizes Bruce-Grey Trustee Norman Bethune OCSTA is pleased to announce that the annual 2016 Trustee Award of Merit will be presented to Bruce-Grey CDSB Vice-chair, Trustee Norm Bethune, at the Association's Annual General Meeting and Conference this April. This award recognizes a trustee who has strong Catholic leadership qualities and [...]

Inside this Issue: [toc] Catholic Trustees' Seminar Highlights On January 15th, more than 200 Catholic trustees and directors of education from across the province gathered at the Hilton Meadowvale Hotel in Mississauga to discuss issues and opportunities in Catholic education and to worship together as a community of Catholic leaders. Speaking Together With One Voice [...]

Inside this Issue: [toc] Holy Jubilee Year of Mercy By Brian O'Sullivan, OCSTA Director of Catholic Education Pope Francis has declared 2016 a “Holy Jubilee Year of Mercy” as a way for the Catholic Church to “make more evident its mission to be a witness of mercy.” It will begin December 8, 2015 and last [...]

Inside this Issue: [toc] Greetings from OCSTA's New Executive Director As OCSTA's new Executive Director, it gives me great pleasure to extend warm greetings and best wishes to all of the Association's members as we begin the new school year. Having just retired from the role of Superintendent of Human Resources at the Dufferin-Peel CDSB, [...]

Inside this Issue: [toc] Community Hubs On August 10th, the Premier's Special Advisor on Community Hubs, Karen Pitre,  issued the report Community Hubs in Ontario: A Strategic Framework and Action Plan -  read the report. This document was prepared after months of consultation and discussion with stakeholders in various sectors. OCSTA's president, Kathy Burtnik met with [...]

Inside this Issue: [toc] Regional Meetings Start in September Beginning in September OCSTA will deliver the annual round of Fall Regional Meetings at five different locations across the province. The schedule and location of each meeting was included in a memo that was sent to all trustees and directors of education in June.  For your [...]

Inside this Issue: [toc] Catholic Education Week Last week Ontario's 29 Catholic District School Boards celebrated Catholic Education Week.  This year's theme, Exploring Paths of Joy, was celebrated in classrooms and school communities using resources developed by the teachers and staff on the Catholic Education Week Committee and they include: Elementary Resource Writing Team 2015 [...]

Inside this Issue: [toc] Catholic Education Week - Activities, Videos, Mass Catholic Education Week begins on May 3 and this year there are once again original and engaging activities for students and school communities.   The Annual Province-wide Mass and Ontario Catholic Student Youth Day **The following message was sent several weeks ago to all [...]

Inside this Issue: [toc] Photo courtesy of the Niagara Catholic District School Board. 2015-16 Grants for Student Needs Wally Easton, Policy Advisor - Finance On March 26, 2015 Liz Sandals, Minister of Education, announced the Grants for Student Needs (GSN) program for the coming fiscal year. While there have been several amendments to the grants for 2015-16 [...]

Inside this Issue: [toc] (l.-r.) James Ryan, Ontario English Catholic Teachers' Association President, Bishop John Boissonneau, Assembly of Catholic Bishops of Ontario, Minister of Education, Liz Sandals, and Kathy Burtnik, Ontario Catholic School Trustees' Association President.     FACE Lobby Day The joint initiative between OCSTA, OECTA and the Assembly of Catholic Bishops of Ontario [...]