In late 2016, Marshall Jarvis, Ontario English Catholic Teachers’ Association (OECTA) General Secretary, approached CCSTA Executive Director Julian Hanlon about forming a partnership between the two organizations. OECTA is the only union in Canada that represents only Catholic teachers.

“We got together with them in Toronto for a meeting, and we talked about cooperating in areas where we could,” said Mr. Hanlon. “And OECTA has a lot of professional development resources available for teachers.”

CCSTA President Marino Gazzola said that these resources could be very valuable to Catholic educators across the country.

“A lot of our provincial associations, especially the ones that are not funded, don’t have access to those types of resources without buying them,” said Mr. Gazzola. “OECTA’s proposal was that they would share what they have free of charge.”

“We know that our partners across the country certainly appreciate having access to it,” said Mr. Hanlon. “The associations have all expressed interest in using them.”

Read more: OECTA Shares Educational Resources

This school year, the OCSTA is launching the Ontario Campaign for Toonies for Tuition, in support of the CCSTA’s yearly campaign to help ensure children and youth across Canada can access Catholic education in their hometown.

Beverley Eckensweiler, OCSTA President, said the idea to provide greater support for Toonies for Tuition came after learning that if every student in a fully funded Catholic school donated a toonie, the funds raised would exceed the amount requested every year.

“We’re so blessed here in Ontario,” said Mrs. Eckensweiler. “What a great opportunity for our students to be able to support other students who don’t have the blessings they have with Catholic education funding.”

While the OCSTA is helping promote the Toonies for Tuition campaign, they are leaving it up to individual school boards to decide on the best way to raise funds. That allows each board to organize the campaign that works best for their community. Some boards are already getting started.

Read more: The Ontario Campaign for Toonies for Tuition

The Catholic Curriculum Corporation’s annual When Faith Meets Pedagogy 2018 conference will be taking place from Thursday, October 25 to Saturday, October 27 at the Delta by Marriott by the Toronto Airport. The conference is a gathering for those involved in Catholic education at all levels.

Michael Bator, Executive Director of the Catholic Curriculum Corporation (CCC) for the past nine years, says that the event was formed in order to help develop uniquely Catholic educational resources.

“It helps ensure that teachers working in publicly-funded Catholic schools are receiving the type of professional development to support the resources that might be developed by individual boards and/or by the Catholic Curriculum Corporation itself,” he said.

Dr. Nuala Kenny will be opening this year’s conference on Thursday evening as one of the keynote speakers. She is a medical doctor, a member of the Sisters of Charity of Halifax, Emeritus Professor of Bio-ethics at Dalhousie University, and a policy advisor to the Catholic Health Alliance of Canada.

Read more: When Faith Meets Pedagogy 2018 Conference