CLICK HERE to access resources and links from the Symposium.

Mary Cruden thanked for her effective advocacy and leadership as President of CPF Ontario.

At the President’s Banquet celebrating the 40th Anniversary of Canadian Parents for French, members and partners seized the moment to thank Mary Cruden for five years of outstanding leadership and effective advocacy work! Highlights included a heartfelt speech delivered by Mary Anne Alton, CPF Ontario Vice-President, on behalf of the board, staff and Ontario members. The evening was a culmination of five years of successes and we danced the night away!

Stephen Lee, Winner of the 2017 Mlacak Award for an Outstanding Volunteer

The 2017 Mlacak Award was presented to Stephen Lee for his outstanding contribution to Canadian Parents for French (Ontario). Stephen’s long-standing efforts to ensure access to quality FSL programs in the Halton District School Board were highlighted by his friends and fellow Halton Chapter executives as was his contribution to the CPF Ontario board of Directors. Stephen gave generously of his time and energy as well as offering up his dining room table as he hosted meeting after meeting in his various homes along the journey. His wife, Helen, was present as Stephen accepted the award and they partied the night away with their CPF family. Congratulations Stephen!

Denis Cousineau, Winner of the 2017 McGillivray Award for Outstanding Achievement in FSL Education

The 2017 McGillivray Award was presented to Denis Cousineau, FSL teacher and Curriculum Coach with the Ottawa Carleton District School Board at the CPF Symposium on FSL Education held in Mississauga on October 28, 2017.  In front of a capacity crowd of educators, administrators, representatives of the Ministry of Education, and parent leaders from across the province, Denis was recognized for his outstanding work in adopting the principles of the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) to the FSL Curriculum. His work includes developing the new Impromptu category for the CPF Concours d’art oratoire with a focus on spontaneous oral production that can be used in the classroom for all FSL students as well as the regional and provincial Festival and Concours. Denis, graciously accepted the McGillivray Award and thanked CPF, his many colleagues, the Ministry of Education, the teacher associations and especially the students that have inspired his work over the years. Felicitations Denis!

20 Years of Dedicated Service – Honouring Barbara Mison!

Barbara Mison was recognized with a round of thunderous applause at the CPF Ontario AGM by her co-workers at the Branch office, the Board of Directors and the CPF Chapter leaders. After twenty years rising to challenges and an ever-changing workplace, it was still a simple task to catch her by surprise with a fun video clip, key messages of thanks from the people she works closely with on a daily basis, and a certificate of appreciation marking 20 years of dedicated service, exemplary performance and heartfelt collaboration. You are awesome Barb!

Annual General Meeting

CPF Ontario held their Annual General Meeting on October 29, 2017 in Mississauga. We are pleased to announce our board of directors for 2017-2018 including our new president, Denise Massie, Mary Anne Alton, vice president, Denise Harding, treasurer, Pascal Arseneau, secretary and our directors Jayne Evans, Myron Karpiuk, and Wadeed Irfan.

Canadian Parents for French (Ontario) welcomes the Education Minister’s Commitment to Meet the Growing Demand for FSL Teachers

Key Actions that were shared by the Honourable Mitzie Hunter, Minister of Education, in her remarks to the delegates of the CPF Symposium on French Second Language Education held in Mississauga on October 28, 2017:

“I am pleased to share with you the immediate steps we will be taking in the coming days and months to boost recruitment of new French teachers:

  • The Ministry is developing a provincial communications strategy highlighting the job opportunities for aspiring French teachers in Ontario.
  • To support this plan we will also work with the Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration to develop information campaigns that inform internationally educated teachers about the opportunities for teaching in Ontario.
  • Our government will create bridging programs to help newcomers adjust and prepare for teaching in Ontario, and mentorship opportunities to help them excel once in our Ontario schools.
  • The Ministry will work with the Ontario College of Teachers (OCT) to streamline evaluation of credentials for internationally educated francophone teachers.
  • We are also working collaboratively with the Ministry of Advanced Education and Skills Development and the Deans of Education in our universities to expedite the development and delivery of flexible teacher education models that will increase access to the profession for mature students and students who do not live in close proximity to a Faculty of Education.
  • In addition, we will work with the Deans of the Faculties of Education on how to better align candidates with demand, so we can be more focused on priority areas such as French.
  • For our existing teachers, we will be piloting a program that will provide direct financial support if they take Advanced Qualifications and/or Advanced Basic Qualifications courses in priority areas such as French.
  • To help us keep ahead of these challenges, we will also create a new supply and demand forecasting model over the coming months, to be more responsive to emerging teacher supply issues in the future.
  • Finally, to better improve collaboration within the education system, we will be establishing a new French as a Second Language Teacher Supply Working Group. The working group is being created to foster greater collaboration within the system and to inform the next steps. I am thrilled to share with you that Canadian Parents for French will have a seat at that table.
  • To summarize, I want you know that we heard you, stress that this is a top priority for me and for Minister Matthews at Advanced Education, and assure you that we continue to work hard to reach the goals articulated in the French-as-a-Second-Language Framework.”

Recorded live with permission from the Office of the Minister of Education.