College of Teachers Election

Electronic voting to elect the sixth Governing Council of the College of Teachers will be held from March 5 to April 10, 2012. The Governing Council is the main governing body of the College of Teachers.

Why Vote?
A record seventy-two candidates are vying for 23 positions on the 6th Governing Council of the Ontario College of Teachers. Unlike previous College elections, there are very few acclamations.

Successful candidates play a significant role in the teaching profession – setting the membership fee, providing advice to the government regarding the teaching profession, creating new AQ courses, developing AQ course guidelines, accrediting the Teacher Education programs, making decisions about complaints about teachers, etc. In particular, the upcoming Governing Council will need to deal with the recommendations made by Justice LeSage who is currently undertaking an external review of the College’s Discipline process and publication policies - it is critically important that strong teacher voices are around the Council table while possible changes are being adopted.

The Ontario Teachers' Federation and the affiliates have identified candidates who will be passionate advocates on behalf of the teachers of Ontario. The attached election flyer lists the endorsed candidates who OSSTF/FEESO, ETFO, AEFO, OECTA, and OTF believe will be vital voices for teachers when decisions are made that will have great impact upon members of the profession over the next three years.

The Vote
You must cast your electronic ballot through the College website http://www.oct.ca. Election ballots will be available in the Members’ Area from 9 AM on Monday, March 5 until 11:59 PM on Tuesday, April 10, 2012. You will have access to a ballot that includes all of the positions for which you are eligible to vote. You may vote for any or all of the positions on your ballot. If you decline to vote for a particular position, the ballot is registered as an unmarked ballot. It is particularly important to note that, aside from any acclamations, you may vote for ALL of the system positions, and both regional positions in the region where you live (which may be different from the region in which you work).

If you do not yet have a Members’ Area account set up, you can now do so without using your SIN number, as had been the case in the past. You can now create an account using a personal identification number (PIN) instead. To obtain your temporary PIN, you must call OCT Client Services at 416-961-8800 or toll-free in Ontario at 1-888-534-2222.

OTF and the Affiliates have carefully reviewed the credentials of the candidates. We believe that the individuals named here would serve the profession with insight and integrity.
• All teachers can vote for seven (7) System positions.
• Teachers can also vote for two (2) of the Regional positions, both from the region where the teacher resides.  District 16 members can vote for 7 positions due to 2 acclaimed candidates)

REGIONAL FULL TIME
Shanlee Linton (ETFO) – Northwest
Irene Dembek (OECTA) – Northeast
Ahmed Bouragba (ETFO) – Southeast
Allyn Janicki (OECTA) – Southcentral
Robert Ryan (OSSTF) – Southwest
Liz Papadopoulos (ETFO) – Central (there are also 2 candidates from District 16)
  Chris Williams D16 OSSTF
  Aaron Flulkner D16 OSSTF

REGIONAL FULL OR PART-TIME
Louis Sloan (OECTA) – Northwest
Sandy Bass (OSSTF) – Northeast - Acclaimed
Gale Dores (OSSTF) – Southeast
Jonathan Littman (ETFO) – Southcentral
Demetri Vacratsis (ETFO) – Southwest
Terry Price (OSSTF) – Central - Acclaimed

SYSTEM
Maria Bouwmeester (ETFO) – English Public Elementary
Clint Lovell (OSSTF) – English Public Secondary (there is also 1 candidate from District 16)
  Mirek Lalas D16 OSSTF
Mara Torcaso (OECTA) – English Catholic Elementary
Matthew Kavanagh (OECTA) – English Catholic Secondary
Myreille Loubert (AEFO) – French Catholic Elementary - Acclaimed
Marc Dubois (AEFO) - French Catholic Secondary
Monika Ferenczy (AEFO) – French Public