Committee Descriptions
Anti-Racism Committee
Executive Liaison: Nigel Barriffe
Email: nbarriffe@ett.on.ca
The Anti-Racism Committee will advance active anti-racism within the public education system and communities. The Committee will do this by identifying challenges and opportunities and addressing them through programming for ETT members and through engagement in school communities.
The Anti-Racism Committee will work alongside our other equity-based committees (Anti-Racism, Equity, and Social Justice; 2SLGBTQIA+; Status of Women) to strengthen and further our on-going organizational work and commitments to anti-racism, equity, and social justice.
Equity and Social Justice Committee
Executive Liaison: Maria Abbruzzese, Ricardo Rodriguez
As a local in one of the world’s most diverse cities, ETT has a responsibility to promote tolerance, acceptance, and understanding within the public education system and the community-at-large. The Equity and Social Justice Committee seeks to achieve these important goals through activities that are reflective of its diverse membership, and by studying issues relating to curriculum, hiring, and the celebration of diversity.
The Equity and Social Justice Committee meets approximately once a month in the ETT office.
Budget
Executive Liaison: Chadwick Gordon
Email: cgordon@ett.on.ca
The Budget Committee is responsible for crafting a balanced budget that addresses ETT’s needs. After reviewing last year’s expenses and requests from other Standing Committees, the budget committee creates a recommended budget for ETT for the upcoming year.
The Budget Committee begins meeting in early October, meeting once or twice a month until the budget is presented at the ETT Annual Meeting held in May.
Collective Agreement and bargaining
Executive Liaison: Emily Macklin
Email: emacklin@ett.on.ca
The Collective Agreement and Bargaining Committee assists the Negotiating Team and the Executive in preparing for negotiations, up to and including the approval of the preliminary submission by the membership. The committee may also be called upon to assist in other ways during the negotiations process, such as preparing for and implementing any sanctions approved by the membership.
The Collective Agreement and Bargaining Committee meets approximately once a month in the ETT office.
Communications/Public Relations
Executive Liaison: Elizabeth So
Email: eso@ett.on.ca
The Communications/Public Relations Committee makes recommendations to the Executive with regard to the website, ETT publications, and the general distribution of information. The committee also works to promote events, workshops, and other ETT activities.
The Communications/Public Relations Committee meets approximately once a month in the ETT office.
Governance
Executive Liaison: Helen Victoros
Email: hvictoros@ett.on.ca
The Governance Committee is responsible for establishing procedures, organizing, and conducting elections for the Executive, Regional Organizers, and delegates to the ETFO Annual Meeting. The committee also recommends revisions to the ETT Constitution and Bylaws and prepares resolutions for the ETFO Annual Meeting.
Health and safety
Executive Liaison: Brian Altay
Email: baltay@ett.on.ca
The Health and Safety Committee discusses issues of concern regarding the set up and implementation of the Toronto District School Board Joint Health and Safety Committee.
Government cutbacks across the system are leading to an increase in health and safety concerns in our classrooms and schools. The Health and Safety committee is instrumental in bringing these concerns forward and educating our members about them.
The Health and Safety Committee meets approximately once a month in the ETT office.
Labour education and leadership
Executive Liaison: Jonathan Lowe and Helen Victoros
Email: jlowe@ett.on.ca and hvictoros@ett.on.ca
The Governance Committee is responsible for establishing procedures, organizing, and conducting elections for the Executive, Regional Organizers, and delegates to the ETFO Annual Meeting. The committee also recommends revisions to the ETT Constitution and Bylaws and prepares resolutions for the ETFO Annual Meeting.
Two-Spirit, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer and/or Questioning, Intersex, Asexual
Executive Liaison: Maria Abbruzzese and Ricardo Rodriguez
Email:mabbruzzese@ett.on.ca and rrodriguez@ett.on.ca
The Two-Spirit, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer and/or Questioning, Intersex, Asexual (2SLGBTQIA+) Committee works to enhance awareness of 2SLGBTQIA+ issues in the Local, the teaching profession, and society. The goals of the committee include:
- Providing strategies to ensure that all ETT activities are inclusive, and support 2SLGBTQQIA+ members to become active in our local and at the provincial level.
- Providing education to members about the histories and experiences of 2SLGBTQIA+ people in our workplaces and society.
- Advising and making recommendations to the ETT Executive of strategies which raise awareness and sensitize ETT members about 2SLGBTQIA+ issues.
- Co-operating with other communities, unions, individuals, and community groups to advance awareness of 2SLGBTQIA+ issues in our Local.
The 2SLGBTQIA+ Committee meets approximately once a month in the ETT office.
Member Service
Executive Liaison: Jennifer Brown and Roz Geridis
Email:jbrown@ett.on.ca and rgeridis@ett.on.ca
The Member Service Committee organizes social events for members, manages ETT Awards, and recognizes significant events in the lives of members, including births, promotions, retirements, and more.
The Member Service Committee meets approximately once a month in the ETT Office.
Political Action and Public Education
Executive Liaison: Nigel Barriffe and Ricardo Rodriguez
Email: nbarriffe@ett.on.ca and rrodriguez@ett.on.ca
The Political Action and Public Education Committee works to promote the teaching profession, protect collective bargaining, and defend public education. The goal of the committee is to educate our members and the public through political activism at the Federal, Provincial, and Municipal levels.
The Political Action and Public Education Committee meets approximately once a month in the ETT Office. Individual sub-committees often meet more frequently.
Status of Women
Executive Liaison: Jennifer Brown and Terri Lynn Platt
Email:jbrown@ett.on.ca and tlplatt@ett.on.ca
The Status of Women Committee focuses on developing and implementing leadership initiatives for members and examines the issues which challenge women seeking leadership. Issues explored include gender, anti–violence, and poverty.
The ETT Status of Women Committee meets approximately once a month in the ETT Office.
STANDING COMMITTEES
THE EXECUTIVE LIAISON
- will act as a resource to guide the standing committee;
- is responsible to ensure the activities of the standing committee adhere to the strategic priorities of ETT and the ETFO Code of Conduct;
- will ensure the standing committee adheres to the ETT Constitution;
- develop a tentative schedule of meeting dates for the year during the Spring of the previous school year, ensuring that every effort has been made to ensure that there is no overlap with days of significance;
- will ensure the committee adheres to the budget plan of the standing committee;
- will support the committee in submitting a proposal to the ETT Executive to approve the over-expenditure before the expense is incurred
- is responsible for informing the committee of the over-expenditure, and the deduction from the following year’s committee budget
Standing Committee Protocols
- Standing Committee must align their work with the ETT Strategic Goals
- The committee shall follow the guidelines of the budget procedures as laid out in the ETT Handbook; this includes approval of the tentative budget at an Executive Meeting.
- Each standing committee shall have an elected or an appointed Chair, a Secretary and a Treasurer. There is a limit of one member per elected or appointed role
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Standing committees shall use the latest edition of Robert’s Rules of Order as a basis for meetings
- A training opportunity will be made available each year for Chairs on Robert’s Rules of Order, and how to effectively chair a meeting - The ETFO Human Rights Statement and FNMI Statement will be read before every meeting.
- The minutes of each committee meeting must reflect the attendance of members
- Registrations for Standing Committees must be available on the ETT website prior to October 1st of the Calendar year. After October 1st, members must directly contact the Executive Liaison assigned to the committee in order to join the committee
- Accommodation needs must be communicated in a timely manner through the appropriate processes to ensure the committee chair, and Executive Liaison are able to make every effort to meet the need(s) of the member(s).
- Each committee must produce an Annual Report which must include: - A summary of the Committee’s activities; - A finalized budget which is reflective of planned, and actual expenditure; - A list of committee members including their attendance record; - Recommendations for the upcoming year.
For the First Meeting
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Each committee will review:
- the constitutional guidelines for that committee
- the conflict of interest guidelines
- the standing committee protocols
- any other relevant procedures and protocols from the ETT Handbook
- the previous year’s Annual Report
- the Accommodations process
- the Guidelines for Member Participation (including attendance) -
Each committee shall:
- develop meeting norms and protocols
- the location and format of meetings (virtual and/or in-person options; ETT office, schools, and/or other locations)
- review the dates set by the Executive Liaison to the committee; if there are conflicts with Days of Significance to members of the committee or events of the Local, they must be raised at this meeting
- co-create an introductory conflict resolution process for minor misunderstandings elect or appoint a Chair, Vice Chair, Secretary and Treasurer; interested members must be present at the meeting
ETT members who choose to participate in a Standing and/or Ad-Hoc Committee will
- Actively participate in the work of the committee
- Work within the scope of the committee’s mandate and the strategic priorities of ETT;
- Attend meetings regularly;
- To conduct themselves in accordance with the ETFO Constitution and Human Rights Statement, and through the professional norms expected by OCTs;
- When conflict arise, members are expected to address conflicts outside of committee meetings with the support of the Executive Liaison;
- Work as part of a team toward fulfilling the committee’s goals;
- Agree to use Robert’s Rules when participating in committee meetings;
- Disclose conflicts of interest as defined and required by ETT policy
Note:
In terms of attendance, members are well-advised that regular participation is necessary to ensure productive meetings
THIS MEANS THAT
- Members are encouraged to join a committee prior to December 1st, 2023 for optimal participation;
- Members who join a committee after the first meeting are required to attend one committee meeting as an observer, prior to gaining voting privileges;
- If a member is absent for three (3) meetings without timely communication with the Executive Liaison (prior to the meeting(s) being missed), the member will be presumed to have resigned from the committee.
