Parents and educators are organizing a provincial day of action tomorrow (Wednesday, July 29) at 12pm to call for a safe and well-funded reopening of schools in September. OCUFA will join educators, parents, and students across the province to urge the government to prioritize the safety of students and workers at all Ontario’s educational institutions. As workers, parents, and educators, […]
OCUFA is hiring its next Executive Director. The job advertisement follows. Executive Director Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations Organizational profile The Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations (OCUFA) is located in the Dish With One Spoon Territory, which exists as the result of a treaty between the Anishinaabe, Mississaugas, and Haudenosaunee that bound them […]
Congratulations to the King’s University College Faculty Association (KUCFA)! After weeks of organizing – made more challenging by the COVID-19 pandemic – the members of the KUCFA overwhelming voted to form a union, a decision that was just certified by the Ontario Labour Board. Faced with an increasingly uncooperative administration, members of the faculty association […]
The Brock University Faculty Association has negotiated a new collective agreement that secures substantial new rights for Indigenous faculty members, increases consultation with Indigenous members of the university community when making Indigenous-focused appointments, and ensures that Indigenous knowledge and experience are recognized in hiring, promotion, and tenure decisions for both faculty and academic librarians. The agreement also provides for greater scheduling flexibility, a guaranteed […]
OCUFA has joined with other members of the Ontario Universities and Colleges Coalition (OUCC) to write to Minister of Colleges and Universities Ross Romano and raise concerns about the new and invasive proctoring technologies being employed by postsecondary institutions across Ontario. The use of these technologies has substantially increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly as […]
There is more to Academic Matters than just the print issue. New articles are being added to the Academic Matters website every week. Here are some recent articles you might find interesting: The academy’s neoliberal response to COVID-19: Why faculty should be wary and how we can push back By Honor Brabazon, St. Jerome’s University in the University of Waterloo “The emergency shift to remote teaching that universities have made in response […]
In mid-May, OCUFA and financial consulting firm Eckler Ltd. organized a webinar on financial wellbeing during the COVID-19 pandemic. The seminar offered guidance, tips, and help for navigating financial challenges during the pandemic, including an overview of existing financial relief programs and other options Ontarians might consider in these uncertain times. The half-hour seminar can now be […]
This is the final notice that the nomination deadline for the OCUFA Teaching and Academic Librarianship Awards is June 26th. The annual awards recognize those individuals whose pedagogical leadership and support have made a positive and enduring difference to their students and colleagues. Anyone within the university community can nominate a faculty member or academic librarian for an award, so long […]
TORONTO – Today, Minister of Colleges and Universities Ross Romano announced a new program that provides a framework for Ontario’s postsecondary institutions to allow some students to return to campus on July 2. University faculty are committed to doing everything they can to maintain educational quality and continuity in these challenging times, but health and […]
The Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations stands in solidarity with the families, friends, communities, and activists in Canada and the United States who are demonstrating against the deaths of Regis Korchinski-Paquet, George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, Ahmaud Arbery, and all the other Black lives that have been lost because of anti-Black racism and […]
In response to the Ministry of Colleges and Universities seeking input on the impacts the COVID-19 pandemic has had on different sectors of Ontario society, OCUFA has submitted a detailed overview of the pandemic’s implications for faculty, academic librarians, and other academic professionals at the province’s universities. The policy brief is designed to provide context […]
On Friday, May 8, OCUFA held its final Board of Directors meeting of the 2019-20 academic year, and the organization’s first ever virtual Board Meeting. The meeting took place in the shadow of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has upended every aspect of academic life, including the learning and teaching process . Throughout the day, board members discussed the pandemic’s impact on […]
Today, OCUFA, along with other members of the Ontario Universities and Colleges Coalition, sent the following letter to Minister of Colleges and Universities Ross Romano and Minister of Labour, Training and Skills Development Monte McNaughton. Dear Ministers Romano and McNaughton, First and foremost, we hope that you and your families are doing well during these […]
The Laurentian University Faculty Association (LUFA) and supporters of the arts in the Greater Sudbury Area have launched a campaign to save English-Language Theatre and Motion Picture Arts at Laurentian. You can sign the letter of support here. The announced closure of the two programs will leave currently enroled students stranded, strip Northern Ontario’s vibrant arts community of an important resource, cut distinctive […]
The COVID-19 pandemic has posed significant and unprecedented challenges for faculty, academic librarians, staff, and students at Ontario’s universities. We carry on as best we can, while keenly feeling the loss of community and face-to-face interaction. This pandemic has made clear the importance of in-person learning and exposed and exacerbated many of the inequities that […]
