The Alberta Teachers’ Association

On May 19, nominations closed for the office of district representative, Calgary City, and the 2016 Calgary City byelection officially kicked off. The three declared candidates have been provided space to share information about themselves and their campaign platforms. Videos of candidate speeches are available at the links provided.

Joanne Boissonneault

I am pleased to announce my candidacy for district representative(DR) for Calgary City. I have 30 years of teaching experience, including 25 in Alberta, where I have served the Alberta Teachers’ Association in various capacities and have taught K–12 in both official languages. At the present time, I am a high school teacher with both the Calgary public and the Calgary Catholic school jurisdictions. I also have administrative experience as a district consultant and a co-ordinator working in student assessment and learning needs. My BA, B.Ed. and SpecEd are from Laurentian University; my M.Ed. is from the University of Calgary.

As I have done in the past, when I was your DR, I will advocate for and advance the interests of Calgary teachers, including time constraints, classroom conditions, curriculum redesign, inclusion, professional autonomy, workload and remuneration.

As an experienced DR, I know how to build relationships and bridges with key education stakeholders — government, school boards, individual schools and members. I am sensitive to prioritizing our Association spending and to keeping future fee increases both necessary and reasonable.

I am committed to representing you with a strong voice. As your DR, I will work diligently to address your issues and concerns, within the Association and beyond. My classroom experience in public and Catholic schools, my provincial and local committee experience, and my bilingual communication skills make me the best candidate to represent you at this crucial economic and professional point in time. Thank you. Merci.

bit.ly/ByElxnJoanne

Provincial experience

• Provincial Executive Council, district representative
• WellBeing of Children and Youth, chair
• Finance
• Political Action and Engagement
• Curriculum
• Resolutions
• Special Education Council
• Le Conseil français

Local experience:

• District representative
• Diversity, Equity and Human Rights
• Political Action and Engagement
• Professional Development
• Economic Policy
• School representative

Heide Doppmeier

My name is Heide Doppmeier, and I am running for the position of Calgary City district representative. I have an extensive history of service to teachers in Calgary: I have been working on behalf of the teachers of Local 38 for the last 10 years and for the teachers of all of Calgary and all of Alberta on numerous provincial committees since 2004, doing everything in my power to improve the working conditions of our teachers. Together with various committees through the years, we have had a few significant successes, but so much more needs to be done.

As we have all experienced, educational objectives have become much more complex through the years. Public schools are expected to be agents for socialization, knowledge, production, the improvement of social conditions and workforce preparation. To these ends, teachers have become burdened with the load of trying to do it all. Classroom complexity is growing, assessment and reporting expectations are becoming increasingly complex and burdensome, and bureaucratic demands are intensifying, while funding is decreasing, resources are becoming fewer and fewer, and work–life balance seems almost impossible. More and more is placed on our plates, and very little, if anything, is ever removed.

I have been a vocal advocate of public education my entire career and can think of no better way to address and bring forward the issues facing the talented, overworked, amazing Calgary teachers than at the provincial level. As someone once said, many of the great achievements of the world were accomplished by tired and discouraged people who just kept on working. I am not discouraged, however. I am encouraged that change can happen, and I am going to continue working toward that change.

Now is the time that we need strong, experienced voices in education, and I will be that voice for Calgary teachers.

bit.ly/ByElxnHeide

Kent Kinsman

Over the last four years, the agreement legislated by the Alberta government gave Calgary teachers no significant wage increase. In addition, they were promised workload decreases following recommendations from the joint C2 committees. Ultimately, this work translated into little effective change in teachers’ workload. As we look to a new era of bargaining with a new government, the voices of Calgary teachers must continue to be heard at Provincial Executive Council. After serving Local 38 for the past several years on the Strategic Planning, Executive and Economic Policy Committees, I believe that I can be part of that team.

My passion for advocating for teachers’ needs and celebrating their successes has been the driving force in my service to Calgary teachers. I believe that the success of all students rests on significantly improving the condition of practice for teachers. Now is the time to bring a new, fresh voice to Provincial Executive Council. Now is the time to elect someone who is a strong listener, someone who will speak for the needs of all Calgary City teachers.

Now is the time for innovative thinking, collaboration, respect, and clarity of thought and message.

Currently I teach Grade 3 and am a math learning leader at Panorama Hills School. I have served on Local 38’s Strategic Planning and Executive Committees as well as serving as Economic Policy chair (interim) and currently vice-chair of the Economic Policy Committee and the Negotiating Subcommittee. I continue to work tirelessly with teachers both as individuals and in large groups. I can always be reached at kentkinsman@gmail.com with concerns or questions. My work has allowed me to keep my finger on the pulse of the needs of Calgary teachers. I look forward to the opportunity to serve as your Provincial Executive Council representative.

bit.ly/ByElxnKent ❚