Who we are
Occasional Teachers working at UCDSB are members of the Elementary Teachers' Federation of Ontario. ETFO represents 76,000 teachers in Ontario and is the second largest teachers union in Canada. Occasional teachers belong to a separate bargaining group from the contract teachers. Our Local is called UCOL (Upper Canada Occasionals' Local) and we have approximately 650 members who work as supply teachers. While all of our members are qualified teachers, they are a heterogenous group. Some are retired teachers, some are career Occasional Teachers and others see OT work as a way of gaining experience before obtaining a full-time teaching contract.
What we do
Under the law, our job is to negotiate a Collective Agreement with the school board and then to ensure that it is followed. We do that and much much more. Take a look at some of the benefits you receive from being a member of ETFO:
Local newsletter
Voice magazineShopETFOLending LibraryLeadership Development HandbookProfessional Development - Conferences, Courses and Workshops Awards New Teacher SupportsPolitical Action Public RelationsConfidential advice & assistance Legal AssistanceAdvocacy for Public Education
Who runs the Local
At the Local level, you elect an Executive at the Annual Meeting held in May. This year your elected representatives are: Diane Dewing, President, Sylvia vanCampen, VP ; Tara Hickman, Secretary, Judy Haddad, Treasurer; John Bouwers Political Action chair, Paula Carmichael, Professional Development Chair, Clare Nixon Status of Women Chair and Members-at-large Mike Baker and Dean McDougall. All of these people have additional responsibilities and bring a wealth of knowledge and skill to their job of representing occasional teachers. A short profile of each executive member can be found at the end of this section and the Contact page will put you in touch with them.
How do Local leaders stay current
The individual Locals meet with other Locals and affiliate unions in their areas to share information, better utilize resources and form a larger picture of local needs. Leaders of individual Locals also meet three times a year at Representative Council in Toronto to evaluate the policy and direction of ETFO and to develop actions which complement them. Leaders in the Eastern Region meet in October and March and all occasional teacher leaders meet in September and June.
How do members provide input to the province
UCOL has 2 delegates to the ETFO Annual Meeting, held in Toronto in August develop the policies of the Federation (also referred to as the Union). The Annual Meeting (AGM) also elects the president, 3 released officers and the other members of the Provincial Executive (total of 14 members). This Executive serve as the Directors of the Federation and make important decisions about the focus of this organization and the financial implications of each area of focus. Our provincial President is Sam Hammond, our First VP is Susan Swackhammer, the Vice-president is James McCormick and the VP (female) is Maureen Weinburger. Through the website (etfo.on.ca) members may also apply to serve on various provincial committees. These committees advise the executive about important issues and initiatives concerning which they have special expertise.
YOUR LOCAL TEAM
President - Diane Dewing
A veteran of 29 years of teaching, Diane has been an occasional teacher for 18 years. She has worked in the high school system in Quebec and within the elementary system in both Quebec and Ontario. Diane became a member of the UCOL's executive in the year of its inception--1998. In 2000 she became Grievance Officer and Chief Negotiator for the Local. In 2003 she assumed the position of President while maintaining the portfolios of Grievance Officer and Chief Negotiator. Diane has been a delegate of ETFO's Annual Meeting since 2000 and a member of the Representative Council during the same period. She has served on several Provincial Task Forces - -Occasional Teacher Performance Appraisal (2003 - 04), Evaluation of Building for Tomorrow ( 2004 - 05), and Regional Service Delivery Model (2005 -06), Work Outside of the Instructional Day (2007), Cyberbullying (2008) and School Board Hiring Practices (2009). She was a member of the Provincial Collective Bargaining Committee (2004 - 2007) and Budget Committee (2008-09) and is a respected contributor to POTS (the assembly of ETFO Occasional Teachers). In 2009, Diane was appointed a Governor of the Ontario Teachers' Federation. She works with the Teacher Education Liaison Committee at the University of Ottawa and is one of ETFO's three members of Upper Canada District School Board's Health and Saftety Committee. Presently Diane is serving a third 2-year term as a provincial executive member for ETFO. As a member of the provincial executive she has served on the provincial Grievance Committee, the Legal Support Committee, the Budget Committee and the Hiring Committee.. .
First Vice- President - Sylvia van Campen.
Sylvia is in her 15th year of Occasional Teaching and has been working as an OT with the UCDSB since 2000. She has served on our local executive for nine years; as a Member-at-large, Awards Chair, Communications Chair, PD Chair, Collective Bargaining Committee, Equity Chair and Occasional Teacher-Board Relations Committee member and Treasurer. Sylvia has participated in many ETFO workshops and conferences and is knowledgeable of both Local and Provincial issues. Provincially she sits on the Special Education Committee and is a trained ETFO Presenter. She was the recipient of the UCOL President's Award in 2010 for her contributions to the Local and the support of members.
Secretary - Tara Hickman
Treasurer - Judy Haddad
Judy has served on the UCOL executive since 2007. A retired teacher, Judy continues to contribute to our schools. Previously she has served ETFO as a Drake University course instructor and was Vice President of ETFO-UCL. Prior to amalgamation, Judy was the president of the Lanark FWTAO.
Political Action - John Bouwers
John feels priviledged to work for such a wonderful Local. He especially enjoys his responsibilites as Political Action Chair. In this capacity he receives information from ETFO's provincial office, and from the government, on issues that affect education generally, teachers specifically, and social justice issues that touch all our students. John works as an occasional teacher in both the high school and elementary systems. He has been an OT with Upper Canada since 1999, which was the same year he joined our Local Executive. He has sat on the Negotiations Team, the OT - Board Relations Committee, and chairs the New Members Committee for the Local. He has served as a delegate to the ETFO Annua Meeting on 4 occasions and has attended provincial OT meetings (POTS) twice. Previous to coming to Upper Canada, John worked as a teacher in British Columbia.
Professional Development Chair - Paula Carmichael
Paula has been an occasional teacher for the past 13 years. She is motivated by the challenge and diversity of being an OT and making a positive difference in the lives of children. Paula has a keen interest in agri-educaton, social justice and special education. She is a past recipient of the President's Award and has attended ETFO's Union School. Paula is dedicated to reaching out to new members and promoting professional learning opportunities. As the new PD/PL chair, she welcomes your ideas and looks forward to providing engaging and motivating learning opportunities for professional growth and development.
Status of Women Chair - Clare Nixon
After 32 years of teaching with the Osgoode Township Board, the Carleton Board of Education and then the Ottawa Carleton Board of Education, from Kindergarten to grade six, Clare retired in June 2000. One year at home was enough to make her realize that she was not ready to fully retire and had more to offer to her profession. She returned to Occasional Teaching with the Upper Canada District School Board in the fall of 2001 where she has enjoyed teaching everything from Kindergarten to Grade 8 -- with a little French thrown in since then. In 2008, with more time to give, she felt this was a good time to join UCOL and give back to teachers and the teaching profession in a new way. She feels very fortunate to be working with such a wonderful team while learning and enjoying the experience.
Member-at-Large
Mike Baker
Dean McDougall
This is Dean's seventh year as an occasional teacher. He was elected to the ETFO-UCOL executive in 2005. He ran for the Executive because he wanted to know more about ETFO and where his dues were going. He enjoys meeting new people, learning new things and helping others so serving on the Executive is ideal. Dean looks forward to members contacting him with their concerns and questions. He particularly welcomes comments from OT's who, like him, hope to move into full-time contracts.
