Events

2023 PSTA General Assembly

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Learning Together: Celebrating the Diversity of Prairie Spirit.

Agenda
8:30-9:00 (optional) coffee, tea, snacks and smudge
9:00-9:30 Welcome

  • Introductions
  • Land Acknowledgement & Blessing
  • Drumming and Round Dance

9:30-9:40 break/organization to attend sessions
9:40-10:40- Indigenous Ways of Knowing Session
10:40-10:50 Break (beverages and snacks provided)
10:50-11:00 Greetings from our partners

  • PSSD Board Vice Chair, Kate Kading
  • PSSD Director of Education, Tracey Young
  • STF President, Samantha Becotte

11:00-12:00 PSTA Business (closed session PSTA/STF members only)

12:00-12:45 Lunch 
12:45-1:45 PD Session 1
1:45-1:55 Break (water/juice and snacks provided)
1:55-2:55 PD Session 2
3:00-3:15 Individual School Staff Meeting (Reflection & SSL selection)

Documents:

2023-2024 PSTA Election Results

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The PSTA election was held last night at the final Representative Assembly for the 2022-23 year.

Some years we have trouble filling the available positions, so it was great to see members engaged and interested in working on the PSTA executive and committees and there were enough nominees to warrant an election for STF Councillors and LINC. Many executive and committee members are continuing from last year, but there are a couple new people joining or returning.

We also say farewell to a Katherine Blake (STF Councillor), Kathy Spence (STF Councillor), Lindsay Jarema (LINC) and Bruce Mellesmoen (Professional Development). Thank you for your contributions.

PSTA Vice President
Heather Wolfe was acclaimed as PSTA Vice President for 2023-2024.

Eleven PSTA members were nominated for ten available STF Councillor positions.

  1. Amanda Nelson
  2. Amy Korver
  3. Amy Orth
  4. Brett Berry
  5. Diana Jemieff
  6. Dustin Chahley (new)
  7. Jason Brose
  8. Justin Sauer
  9. Marcy Raciot
  10. Mark Perry (returning)

Eight PSTA members were nominated for six available LINC positions.

  1. Amanda Nelson
  2. Amy Orth (new)
  3. Carmen Kingsbury
  4. Carry Pepper-Martens
  5. Heather Wolfe
  6. Jason Brose

Five PSTA members were nominated for five Professional Development Committee positions.

  1. Amanda Nelson
  2. Amy Korver (new)
  3. Lisa Kuchler
  4. Melissa Murray (new)
  5. Mitch Larson

All three positions on the Communications Committee are vacant, so if you are interested in working on the Communications committee send me an email.

Provincial Collective Bargaining Information

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The STF website has a page for members to access all of the current information and engagement opportunities related to Provincial Collective Bargaining at https://www.stf.sk.ca/teaching-saskatchewan/collective-bargaining.

There are three opportunities to participate in the Virtual Town Halls:

  • November 7 at 4 p.m.
  • November 9 at 7 p.m.
  • November 15 at 8 p.m.

The STF is hosting virtual town halls on Zoom and inviting teachers to attend one of the three meetings. This is a great opportunity to engage in discussion with the provincial bargaining preparation team and help identify member priorities and needs for the upcoming round of bargaining in May 2023.

You can find more information and links to register for the Virtual Town hall meetings at https://www.stf.sk.ca/professional-resources/events-calendar/bargaining-virtual-town-hall

2021 PSTA General Assembly Call for Presenters

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On behalf of the PSTA PD Committee, I would like to extend the opportunity to all staff to put forth proposals expressing their interest to present for our membership at the 2021-2022 General Assembly.  Due to the current circumstances, it has been decided to have our general assembly online as it was earlier this year, so please keep this in mind if you are interested in presenting a breakout session. It is our plan to present using Microsoft Teams as the platform but can be flexible. 

We are looking for any and all topics! Hot topics of the past include: assessment, technology, teacher wellness, workshop model, math, writing, cultural responsiveness, trauma informed education, MPSC.  These are just a few ideas, but we are open to anything!  

Proposals to present a breakout session can be submitted through the attached form and submitted to lisa.kuchler@spiritsd.ca

Join the PSTA Teacher Wellness Team

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The PSTA Teacher Well-Being Team seeks to create an intentional practice of well-being for teachers to be used throughout the school day and build capacity in teacher leaders in the selected schools to enable them to develop, launch and maintain a teacher well-being program within your school.

The PSTA Teacher Well-Being committee is planning three days of learning. While we wish we could meet as a group, due to current restrictions, each school group will meet at a shared location and join the meeting remotely via MS Teams. Remote meetings will allow us bring in guest speakers from across Canada and have tentatively booked Wade Repta, Patrice Palmer and Cara Taylor to present.

The deadline for your school team to apply is December 18th.

Application Form

PSTA Executive & Committee Elections

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Nominations for PSTA Executive and standing committees (2020-2021) are now open.

Becoming involved in the PSTA is an excellent way to support teachers, influence positive change in education, and contribute to teaching and learning in Prairie Spirit. Please consider running for one of the following positions:

Vice President

The Vice President assists the president by carrying out responsibilities designated to the office by the president and/or executive, presides over general meetings of membership, collaborates with the professional development committee to organize general assemblies, and assumes the role of president in the event that the president is unable to carry out their duties.

STF Councillors

There are ten (10) STF Councillor positions available for 2020-2021. STF Councillors sit on the PSTA Executive, support the work of PSTA committees, and represent teachers within the STF. They also attend annual meetings of Council where they learn about educational issues in Saskatchewan, elect the STF Executive, and discuss and debate resolutions to guide the Federation.

Local Implementation and Negotiation Committee

There are six (6) LINC positions available for 2020-2021. LINC members implement, monitor, and negotiate our Local Collective Bargaining Agreement. 2020 – 2021 will be a negotiation year.

Professional Development Committee

There are five (5) PD Committee positions available for 2020-2021. The PD committee consults and collaborates with PSSD to help meet the professional learning needs of PSTA members. They also plan the PSTA General Assembly, and work to ensure that all provisions related to professional development/adult learning contained within LINC are implemented.

Communications Committee

There are three (3) Communications Committee positions available for 2020-2021. The Communications Committee works to enhance communication within the PSTA, and with our education partners and communities. They also work to promote the PSTA and enhance the image of the teaching profession. The PSTA will need this committee to manage our social media accounts and website starting in August 2020.

Nominations will close from the virtual floor of the representative assembly on May 12th, 2020.

PSTA Nomination Form for 2020-2021 – all officesDownload

All executive members and standing committee chairs receive an honorarium.

PSTA Student Scholarship Application Forms now available!

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The Prairie Spirit Teachers’ Association is pleased to award four scholarships of $500.00 each to Prairie Spirit School Division students graduating in 2020 who are enrolled in a post-secondary institution. Prairie Spirit teachers value lifelong learning and the positive impact lifelong learners have on their communities.

Please encourage eligible 2020 grads to apply and support them in this endeavour!

The application deadline is April 17th. Go to Documents and Forms to download the application form or click on our logo below.

TELL THEM TUESDAY! Let Government know students and teachers matter. End the chronic underfunding now. Teachers continue to be asked to do more with less. There is no room for “more”. Chronic underfunding has created crowded classrooms where students’ diverse needs cannot be met. Saskatchewan students deserve a high-quality education through a properly funded public education system. Crowded and overly complex classrooms mean students’ needs aren’t met and learning outcomes are negatively impacted.

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https://www.tellthemtuesday.com/

Tell Them Tuesday invites teachers, students, parents and concerned citizens to contact their MLA and the Minister of Education and tell them about today’s realities of classrooms in Saskatchewan.

To help simplify the process, we are using an online platform. All you need to do is enter your name, postal code and email address to join the campaign. In follow-up emails from the campaign, you’ll be invited to take certain actions sending an email to your MLA and the Hon. Gordon Wyant, Minister of Education, or sharing on social media with just a few clicks of the mouse.

We encourage you to sign up for Tell Them Tuesday, and let your friends and family know about it so that they can share their stories as well. The more stories we tell, the louder and stronger our voice is to the provincial government.

It’s time to provide the necessary resources and supports for teachers and students in our classrooms

More Educational Assistants to help those with extra needs. More mental health supports to help our children and youth navigate their lives. English as an Additional Language training and resources for newcomers. Additional learning resources for hands on learning opportunities. 

Join Tell Them Tuesday and tell Government 
what is important to you. 

  • Tell them public education matters. 
  • Tell them students deserve better.
  • Tell them parents deserve better.
  • Tell them teachers and educational workers deserve better.
  • Tell them it’s time to end chronic underfunding.
  • Tell them it’s time to act.

https://www.tellthemtuesday.com/