The Alberta Teachers’ Association

Highlights of the Provincial Executive Council emergent meeting held August 13, 2012, in Banff

1. Consistent with general bylaw 69, approved an administrative guideline for conducting the October 26, 2012, Calgary City district by-election by electronic means.
2. Consistent with section 31(2) of the Teaching Profession Act, extended to January 31, 2013, the deadline for the commencement of a hearing of the Professional Conduct Committee.

Highlights of the Provincial Executive Council meeting held September 20–21, 2012

1. Approved one electoral ballot and its accompanying explanatory note for distribution to the membership.
2. Approved, in some cases with amendments, recommendations on 89 expiring current directives for submission to the 2013 Annual Representative Assembly (ARA).
3. Approved three executive resolutions for submission to the 2013 ARA.
4. Approved a statement of ­Association program emphases for 2012/13.
5. Received the report of a hearing committee, which found a teacher guilty of five charges of unprofessional conduct for yelling at and using inappropriate language with one or more students, thus failing to treat them with dignity and respect and in consideration of their circumstances; for kicking furniture such as to cause injury to one or more students, thus failing to treat them with dignity and respect and in consideration of their circumstances; for throwing or batting objects in the direction of one or more students, thus failing to treat them with dignity and respect and in consideration of their circumstances; for yelling at students, kicking furniture and throwing objects such as to cause injury to students, thus failing to maintain the honour and dignity of the profession; and for being convicted of criminal offences in that the teacher committed an assault, contrary to Section 266 of the Criminal Code, thus acting in a manner that harms or tends to harm the standing of teachers generally. To address all five charges, the hearing committee imposed the penalty of declaring the teacher ineligible for membership in the Association for a period of two years, directing that a recommendation be made to the minister of education to suspend the teacher’s teaching certificate for a period of two years and ordering the teacher to pay a fine of $4,000. Failure to pay the fine within 90 days of receipt of the report will result in a declaration that the teacher is ineligible for membership in the Association.
6. Received the report of a ­hearing committee, which found a teacher guilty of two charges of unprofessional conduct for showing a video to a Grade 7 language arts class that ­contained inappropriate language and images, thus failing to treat students with dignity and respect and in consideration of their circumstances, and for showing a video to a Grade 7 language arts class that the teacher had failed to thoroughly preview and that contained inappropriate language and images, thus failing to act in a manner that maintains the honour and dignity of the profession. The hearing committee imposed the penalty of a letter of severe reprimand to address both charges.
7. Directed the executive secretary to convene an emergent meeting of key local officials on September 29, 2012, in Edmonton, with costs allocated from the Special Emergency Fund.
8. Approved disbursement of the 2012/13 budget for international assistance to 12 international projects, including Project Overseas.
9. Directed that the 2012/13 budget for periodic international assistance be held in trust.
10. Approved the Association’s 2012/13 capital budget.
11. Authorized an overexpenditure to provide for the attendance of Council members at the Beginning Teachers’ Conference, scheduled for September 27–29, 2012, in Edmonton.
12. Authorized an overexpenditure to provide for the attendance of two Finance staff at the Canadian Teachers’ Federation’s National Staff Meeting, scheduled for November 14–16, 2012, in Ottawa, Ontario.
13. Authorized the purchase of a table package for Public Interest ­Alberta’s Fun(d) Night, scheduled for October 10, 2012, in ­Edmonton.
14. Authorized the purchase of a table package for the Society for Safe and Caring Schools and Communities’ Creating Safe Spaces Waffle Breakfast, scheduled for November 14, 2012, in Edmonton.
15. Notwithstanding administrative guidelines, deferred to September 2013 the preparation and presentation of general collective bargaining objectives for the ensuing year.
16. Approved in principle, with amendments, a costed blueprint for an action plan proposed by the Committee on First Nations, Métis and Inuit Education Policy and Action Plan and disbanded the committee with thanks.
17. Approved as standard practice the processes of the Association’s three-year pilot project for teachers in distance learning, distributed, virtual and online schools who live outside the geographic boundary of their designated teachers’ convention to self-identify to attend a ­different convention.
18. Approved the name of one teacher for addition to the Curriculum name bank, which is used as a source of appointments to Alberta Education program, curriculum and student evaluation committees as the need arises.
19. Amended the frame of ­reference of the Curriculum Committee.
20. Amended an administrative guideline regarding the Educational Research Award.
21. Named field members to fill vacancies on the Curriculum Committee, the Teacher ­Education and Certification Committee, and the Southern ­Alberta Professional Development Consortium.