To: Presidents and All Members

From: Domenic Bellissimo, Interim Associate General Secretary – Professional Services

For Action

May 1 – 5, 2023 is Education Week in Ontario. This year, OSSTF/FEESO is celebrating Education Week and our theme is “Public Education Works”.

Education Week highlights how our members (as individuals or as a whole) have gone beyond the normal expectations of their work to provide a welcoming environment to students of every culture, ethnicity, gender, ability and learning style. This could be by introducing students to a new experience or place; it could be by helping a differently-abled student overcome an obstacle so they could participate in a program, or it could be by providing a safe and inclusive learning environment where all students can succeed.

Education Week was originally developed by OSSTF/FEESO in 1930 to combat the public’s apparent indifference towards public education. It is important that we continue to defend and enhance public education. We encourage Districts and Bargaining Units to take advantage of this important part of OSSTF/FEESO history as your own opportunity to promote public education and our role in it.

This year, we have created five graphics for Districts and Bargaining Units to post, each day, during Education Week. These graphics highlight the work of our members, and the many services that students receive within the public school system.

The graphics were created in both English and French and are available via Dropbox using this link: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/h6f9y6q5t4kmypmhsjgra/h?dl=0&rlkey=omyrf1vaep4ocz8fy3s10cvnw
We encourage members to post the graphics their own social media channels and share them with colleagues.
Members can also acknowledge Education Week and celebrate the work of teachers and education workers by writing a letter to the administration, to a board of governors, to trustees, or to the editor of a local media outlet.
For more information, please contact Tracey Marshall via email at (tracey.marshall@osstf.ca).