The Alberta Teachers’ Association

Highlight of the Provincial Executive Council emergent meeting held February 7, 2013, at Barnett House in Edmonton

1. Approved a strategic communications plan to support local collective bargaining, as determined by Table Officers Committee.

Highlights of the Provincial Executive Council regular meeting held February 25 and 26, 2013, at Barnett House in Edmonton

1. Unanimously rejected the minister of education’s February 20, 2013, proposal for a tripartite framework agreement.
2. Approved 31 local resolutions and 157 Council resolutions for presentation to the 2013 Annual Representative Assembly (ARA); assigned speakers to each resolution; and, in the case of local resolutions, approved recommendations of concurrence, amendment and concurrence, nonconcurrence, referral for study and report, or action taken. The package of resolutions will be sent to locals, which will be asked to vote on whether they agree with Council's position on each resolution.
3. Approved for submission to the 2013 ARA a resolution urging the Government of Alberta to ensure that sexual abuse programming is incorporated into appropriate school curricula.
4. Named Jeff B. Johnson, a principal in Edmonton Catholic Separate School District No. 7 and president of the Council for School Leadership, to the position of executive staff ­officer, Professional Development, effective April 1, 2013. He will succeed Dr. Mark P. Yurick, who was named to the position of coordinator, Professional Development, effective January 1, 2013.
5. Named three members of Council to a staff selection committee for the position of coordinator, Teacher Welfare. The competition, which results from the appointment of Sharon L. Vogrinetz to the position of assistant executive secretary, closes March 21, 2013.
6. Received the report of a hearing committee, which found a teacher guilty of two charges of unprofessional conduct for sending an e-mail critical of another teacher’s teaching practice to school administration without previously providing the teacher with a copy of the e-mail and for meeting with school administration outside of the teacher’s knowledge and criticizing the teacher’s teaching. The hearing committee imposed the penalty of a single letter of severe reprimand to address both charges.
7. Received the report of a hearing committee, which found a teacher guilty of five charges of unprofessional conduct for sending sexually explicit text messages to students, thus failing to treat the students with dignity and respect; for sending a sexually explicit photograph to a student, thus failing to treat the student with dignity and respect; for requesting sexually explicit photographs of students, thus failing to treat the students with dignity and respect; for inviting a student to meet the teacher outside of appropriate student/teacher professional boundaries, thus failing to maintain the honour and dignity of the profession; and for inappropriately touching a student, thus failing to treat the student with dignity and respect. To address all five charges, the hearing committee imposed the penalty of declaring the teacher ineligible for membership in the Association and directing that a recommendation be forwarded to the minister of education to cancel the teacher’s teaching certificate.
8. Consistent with section 31(2) of the Teaching Profession Act, extended to September 30, 2013, the deadline for the commencement of a hearing of the Professional Conduct Committee.
9. Authorized the attendance of members of Council at a Diversity, Equity and Human Rights Development Conference, scheduled for April 12(eve)–13, 2013, in Edmonton.
10. Authorized the attendance of one member of Council and one executive staff officer at the Canadian Foundation for Labour Rights Conference, scheduled for March 26–28, 2013, in Toronto, Ontario.
11. Authorized the attendance of two members of Council at the Alberta Rural Education Symposium, scheduled for March 3–5, 2013, in Canmore.
12. Authorized the purchase of up to eight tickets to the United Way of the Alberta Capital Region Annual Labour Appreciation Night, scheduled for April 20, 2013, in Edmonton.