The Alberta Teachers’ Association

Highlights of the Provincial Executive Council meeting held June 13–15, 2019, at Barnett House in Edmonton

1. Authorized the president to communicate to the membership, employing school boards and the Government of Alberta, Council’s resolve to protect LGBTQ teachers to the full extent of the law on all employment matters that may result from the passage of Bill 8, the Education Amendment Act, 2019, specifically where the bill would “remove explicit protection for staff from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression.”
2. In accordance with general bylaw 70, approved that voting for the 2019 Calgary District byelection will be conducted by electronic ballot.
3. Approved that the date for announcement of voting results for the 2019 Calgary District byelection will be Oct. 25, 2019.
4. Appointed members to the Elections Rules Appeal Panel and authorized the executive secretary to appoint one member as chair. This appeal panel is established for byelection candidates to appeal if they have been found by the returning officer to have breached election rules.
5. In an effort to reduce the amount of paper produced and distributed by the Association, suspended the production and printing of the Members’ Diary effective May 2020 and initiated an exploration of ways for staff and locals to effectively access Association meeting dates and the front matter of the Members’ Diary.
6. Established a Women in Leadership Committee and approved its frame of reference.
7. Amended the Administrative Guidelines to update processes related to the Provincial Executive Council relief fund and established guidelines regarding the reimbursement of internet expenses for members of Council.
8. In accordance with section 31(2) of the Teaching Profession Act, approved an extension to the time period to commence a hearing.
9. Received the report of a hearing committee, which found a teacher guilty on three charges of unprofessional conduct. Charge one was for criticizing the professional performance of another teacher by sending a critical email to the associate superintendent of the teacher’s school division without first providing a copy of the email to the teacher. Charge two was for criticizing the professional performance of teachers by sending a critical email to the superintendent of the teacher’s school division and to other persons who were not the proper officials, therefore undermining the confidence of the public in the teaching profession. Charge three was for refusing to co-operate with the investigating officer during the investigation and with the presenting officer in preparation for the professional conduct hearing.
   The hearing committee imposed the penalties of a letter of severe reprimand and a fine of $500 for charge one and a letter of severe reprimand and a fine of $500 for charge two. For charge three it imposed suspension of membership in the Association until Aug. 31, 2020, effective immediately, a recommendation to the minister of education that the teacher’s teaching certificate be suspended until Aug. 31, 2020 and a fine of $3,000.
10. Received the report of a hearing committee that found a teacher guilty on two charges of unprofessional conduct. The committee found that the teacher, by telling inappropriate stories in class, failed to treat pupils with dignity and respect and be considerate of their circumstances and failed to act in a manner that maintains the honour and dignity of the profession.
    The teacher pled guilty to both charges by written submission. The hearing committee imposed the penalty of a single letter of severe reprimand addressing both charges and a $300 fine for each charge.
11. Approved 13 applications for Diversity, Equity and Human Rights grants, which support innovative projects that build inclusive learning communities to promote the principles of diversity, equity and human rights.
12. Approved a total of $5,000 allocated from Contingency in 2019/20 to provide for a meeting of the Committee on Understanding Aggression(s) in Alberta Schools and School Communities in the fall of 2019.
13. Approved provision of notice of motion for the September Council meeting that Provincial Executive Council form an ad hoc committee to examine the structure of the Annual Representative Assembly and make recommendations to Council by January 2020.
14. Approved the name of one teacher for nomination to Alberta Education for curriculum work as the need arises.
15. Approved amendments to the frames of reference for the Edmonton School District No. 7 Teacher Welfare Committee and the Calgary Roman Catholic Separate School District No. 1 Teacher Welfare Committee.
16. Nominated a candidate to serve as the Association’s representative to the Alberta Teachers’ Retirement Fund Board for a term to June 30, 2023.
17. Appointed Association representatives to the Distributed Education Teachers’ Conditions of Practice Committee and the Teachers with Designations: Allowances and Titles Committee.
18. Approved field member committee and representation assignments for 2019/20. ❚