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M A R C H 2 0 1 6

V O L U M E 1 5 , I S S U E 1

J A C F A N E W S

JAC teachers, support staff and professionals

united for provincial day of strike,

December 8th, 2015, Montreal

I N T H I S I S S U E

S T R I K E V O X P O P 2

E D I T O R I A L 4

U P D A T E O N M A K E U P D A Y S 6

A D E S I G N E R S T R I K E ? 8

M O B I L I Z A T I O N T I M E L I N E 1 0

I N S I D E T H I S I S S U E :

J A C F A P L A Y S A N A C T I V E R O L E A T F N E E Q 1 2

D E M O L I T I O N O F Q U E B E C ’ S D A Y C A R E 1 3

A F E W T H I N G S I ’ V E N O T I C E D 1 5

C O L L E G E H A N D S R E S P O N S I B I L I T Y F O R R A C 1 8

E D I T O R ’ S N O T E 1 8

W H A T W A S I T L I K E F O R Y O U D U R I N G T H E S T R I K E ?

Page 2 J A C F A N E W S

Andre Leblanc, History, Economics, Political Science

Going into the strike, I felt pretty discouraged. The Couillard government seemed quite

committed to austerity for all but the rich. On the other hand, we were committed, too.

We weren’t going down without a fight. And as the strike wore on, the wind began to

turn. Trudeau was elected on an anti–austerity platform, the polls showed public dissat-

isfaction with how the government was handling the strike, and the government, in

turn, began showing signs of compromise. It became clear they were going to have to do better than

“improve” their initial offer of 0, 0, 1%, 1%, 1% over five years to 0, 1%, 1%, 1%, 0 instead. In the face of

such logic, is it any wonder the public began taking our side! The most gratifying feeling, for me, was the

sense of progress over the course of the strike. Our solidarity and mobilization made a difference. In the end,

we did not get as much as we had hoped for, but given the context, I feel we did get better than most of us

were expecting.

Catherine Humes, History, Economics, Political Science

The four strike days this past fall were the first of my teaching career. A real highlight for me on the first day

was raising banners with other teachers on the highway 40 overpass near the college. The many supportive

honks we received, along with the songs we sang together after returning to campus, left

me with a real feeling of connectedness with my fellow teachers. Marching with thou-

sands downtown on two strike days in November and December only increased that

feeling. It helped me to appreciate the scope of the labour movement, and it felt powerful

and motivating to come together with other public sector workers also struggling

through the negotiation process. Overall, the strike days left me with a strong sense of

appreciation for the many people who make my work experience at the college a posi-

tive one, and they helped to remind me, during a difficult semester, of the importance of the work that we do.

Gary R. McHugh, Prehospital Emergency Care

This was my first experience walking on a picket line. I had other opportunities in the past but did not agree

with the issues or with the choices offered. This time, the decision to actively participate was not difficult at

all because I believed one hundred percent in our cause. Although labour negotiations can be unpleasant, I

was very pleased with the information and how it was made available to JACFA members

and felt well informed. Many thanks to the JACFA executive for the work they did to

bring us to this point and managing this difficult situation with such a high degree of

professionalism. The weather was on our side for our picketing and beyond showing sol-

idarity for a just cause, I also took the opportunity to get to know more of my colleagues

during discussions about our contract negotiations and teaching experiences at John Ab-

bott.

Page 3 V O L U M E 1 5 , I S S U E 1

Josephine Millar, 9 year

I know that strikes are no good for teachers, nurses and other workers. I've been to

John Abbott for strikes before. From my experiences, I've always liked the Timbits and

the desserts they put out, but the thing I like the most are the kids' activities, a room in

the church which is around the corner from the college where kids can do crafts, run

around and have fun! The first time I went, they ordered pizza. Once we had a little

concert, somebody played the piano and the rest of us danced.

In conclusion, strikes may be fun for kids but not for those who work.

W H A T W A S I T L I K E F O R Y O U D U R I N G T H E S T R I K E ?

Page 4 V O L U M E 1 5 , I S S U E 1

E D I T O R I A L

E M P L O Y E R ’ S D E M A N D S O N T E A C H E R A U T O N O M Y M O R E T H A N A B A R G A I N I N G P L O Y :

T H E T H R E A T W A S R E A L

F or most teachers, our employer’s demands to roll

back teachers’ professional autonomy proved to

be the most contentious at the sectoral table. They

included the erosion of teachers’ powers to appoint

departmental coordinators and representatives on

program committees, the imposition of a 35–hour–

per–week, on campus availability, the removal of

teacher control on academic council, and the removal

of funding for union release from the allocation pro-

ject. These demands appeared so extreme that many

teachers I spoke with doubted whether they repre-

sented our employer’s true intentions. They reasoned

that since the rationale for such demands were not

readily apparent, and lacked any perceivable finan-

cial motivation, they were likely being used as a bar-

gaining chip to hedge against teachers’ long list of

demands. The plausibility of this notion was further

reinforced by the rapidity with which these demands

were removed from the negotiation table once teach-

ers began turning on the heat in our mobilization.

While such demands may appear disingenuous in

isolation, when we examine them within the broader

context of recent educational politics– in particular

the privatization and commercialization of public

education– their rationale and the real threat they

posed become more readily apparent. To properly

situate the context, we need to go back 30 years or so.

35 years of selling off public services

and education

Since the 1980’s governments have enacted massive

cuts to public education, health care and social ser-

vices against the backdrop of an ideological shift to-

wards a more corporatist society, under the pretext of

“globalization,” “free trade,” “deficit reduction,” and

most recently, “austerity.” Many public educational

institutions, from primary to post–secondary, have

tried to cope with these cuts by hiking user fees/

tuition, cutting services, and privatizing and commer-

cializing their work. Universities sell off and sell out

their research to multi–national corporations; schools

at all levels seek out international students as a lucra-

tive revenue source; exclusivity contracts are sold to

multi–national food and beverage companies. On

campus advertising, secrecy, and exclusive access to

students are exchanged for a cut of the profits.

CÉGEPs jump on the bandwagon

In recent years the Quebec government has launched

a bevy of initiatives designed to further facilitate this

commercialization trend at the CÉGEP level. Quality

Assurance, currently in progress at JAC and boycotted

by teachers, is meant to put an ISO–9000 type desig-

nation on College programs so that it can “assure

quality” (like assembly line widgets) to potential in-

ternational clients. Recognition of Acquired Compe-

tencies (RAC) allow colleges to offer RAC–DEC’s that

charge students up to $1600 each, while potentially

bypassing teachers and departments altogether in the

pedagogical process. The Quebec government’s

Demers Report calls for the reinforcement of many

similar initiatives, including recommending the pro-

motion of internationalization of CÉGEPs programs by

developing a “brand image”.

Teacher autonomy: an obstacle to

commercialization

Against the backdrop of these initiatives, the motiva-

tion behind our employers’ demands to remove teach-

ers’ autonomy becomes more discernible: they were

ROY FU, President

Page 5 J A C F A N E W S

designed to remove an important obstacle to local-

college implementation. To be more precise, the au-

tonomy granted to teachers by Collective Agreement

poses a serious threat to the opposition–free imple-

mentation of the various commercialization-related

projects. This is because autonomous teachers are in a

position to question and possibly thwart them

through their participation in departmental assem-

blies, Academic Council, and union decisions. Remov-

al of such autonomy therefore became a necessary

measure to ensure resistance–free implementation. In

fact, teachers’ opposition to regimes such as Quality

Assurance and RAC did not remain in the theoretical

realm for very long. Due to their concerns about po-

tential impact on the quality of education, teachers at

many colleges, including John Abbott, have in recent

years effectively blocked, forestalled and/or put tight

controls on many such projects.

Mobilization preserves key tools in

ongoing struggle

Highlighting the real threats posed by our employers’

demands on teachers’ autonomy serves two important

purposes: First, it underscores that their timely with-

drawal at the negotiation table was not due to a lack

of initial genuine intentions on the part of our em-

ployer, but rather it was a testament to the strength of

our local mobilization. Second, it reminds us of the

underlying, ongoing struggle against the privatization

and commercialization of public college education.

Upon closer examination, the latter issue turned out

to be a major theme in our sectoral demands as well,

as we sought to gain more control over international-

ization, distance learning, and RAC. Even though we

did not succeed in securing concessions on most of

these fronts, we can take comfort in our spirited and

ultimately successful defense of our professional au-

tonomy. Our efforts to safeguard our autonomy have

enabled us to retain a critical element in our toolkit

in our ongoing struggle to defend the quality of edu-

cation against creeping commercialization.

Pictu

re

capti

Page 6 V O L U M E 1 5 , I S S U E 1

Q. Did John Abbott’s Administration ask teachers to makeup classes cancelled due to our strike with-

out extra compensation?

A. Yes, the College’s revised academic calendar imposed makeup days without any financial com-

pensation.

Q. Is this legal?

A. No.

Commentary

According to the Arbitration Ruling by Pierre Fortin stemming from the 2005 CÉGEP teacher strike,

Ahuntsic College was required to pay salaries, benefits and vacation, with interest, for makeup days

to faculty who were teaching classes, workshops, labs or involved in stages. This legal decision was

reaffirmed by subsequent rulings of the Superior Court of Quebec, the Court of Appeal and the Su-

preme Court of Canada. The Supreme Court of Canada is the final judgment. There can be no fur-

ther appeals. This case set a significant legal precedent for our present situation.

For the second legal battle in 2012, Arbitrator Gilles Giguère stated that the Collective

Agreement does not permit Shawinigan College’s Administration to dictate the use of teacher’s

hours of availability for makeup classes. The Arbitrator defined availability as a global time teachers

have the right to use at their discretion . The Adjudicator reaffirmed Fortin’s ruling and stated that

only teachers who taught the makeup classes, workshops, labs and stages were allowed remunera-

tion. This included benefits and vacation pay with interest. Justices of the Superior Court of Quebec

and the Court of Appeal subsequently reaffirmed the Arbitrator’s decision in the Shawinigan case. It

is therefore now too late to appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada. Game over. This is a second ma-

jor legal victory providing legal precedent regarding the use of our availability and compensation for

makeup days.

What is JACFA doing about getting compensation

for makeup days from strike 2015?

We have filed our grievance and arbitration case (see next page) and gathered data from our teach-

ers as evidence for our legal battle. We are hoping FNEEQ chooses JACFA as a precedent case. Stay

tuned as FNEEQ prepares to win another major legal battle against the Federation of CÉGEPs. Get

ready for round #3.

U P D A T E O N M A K E U P D A Y S

Sharon Rozen Aspler, VP Internal/ grievance officer

Page 7 V O L U M E 1 5 , I S S U E 1

Page 8 V O L U M E 1 5 , I S S U E 1

A s I look back upon the recent negotiations and

strike process, I can’t help but revisit the com-

ments of several militant members of our General As-

sembly in their denunciation of the agreements in

principle debated and ultimately accepted in January.

In substance, their analysis was that we folded too

quickly and didn’t get the maximum gains from our

massive mobilization. Could we have fought more

and longer? Would it have resulted in more unam-

biguous and evenly distributed gains for all members

of the Common Front?

Our comrades

There remain many legitimate concerns that the new

collective agreement does not eliminate. Since the

1980s, public sector workers in Québec have lost

purchasing power and fallen into debt. Many of our

colleagues in the Common Front, including teachers

from the FAE [Fédération autonome de l’ensei-

gnement], did not receive as much as we did or are

still in negotiation.

But I think it is important to remember what

we fought against. The first government propositions

were inacceptable. If they prevailed, teachers would

be locked in the college for 35 hours a week. Man-

agement would choose department chairs and pro-

gram coordinators. Increased CIs, increased class

sizes, increased work hours were also discussed.

There was also an assault on pensions.

All of this was preceded by the validation of

“Quality Assurance” and the Demers Report. Never

had there been such an assault on our professional

autonomy or the founding spirit of the CÉGEP system.

Not only did we strike, but here, at John Ab-

bott, we boycotted Quality Assurance, the Open

House, Program Committee meetings, and other offi-

cial College activities. We reminded our administra-

tion that a good school cannot function without re-

specting its teachers. We are one of the healthiest

CÉGEPs in the réseau and we took a lead in the fight,

showing our government that we would not sit back

as it cut ferociously and endangered the quality of

education in the province.

It looks like we succeeded in pushing back the

attack for now. We can only be certain when the final

texts of our next Collective Agreements are signed.

Of course it is difficult not to suspect that the govern-

ment put all this on the table just to make us claw our

way back to the status quo. Irrespective of the gov-

ernment’s real intentions or ultimate goals, which

we’ll likely never know, our mobilization was hard

work that needed to be done before moving forward

to achieve any of our own aims. We won this round

and should be proud of what we’ve achieved.

I personally participated in more mass

demonstrations than I can remember. I went to the

parliament in Ottawa, the General Assembly in Qué-

bec. My six year old child often accompanied me.

And I don’t know how many meetings – I hate those

things – and general assemblies I participated in. This

was a lot of work, which makes it a worker’s strike.

Not a Gucci strike.

The frosty side

The actual agreements in principle gives us: a maxi-

mum CI of 85; $10 million or 125 ETCs (full–time

equivalents) per year until 2019–20 for teaching re-

sources for teachers to create conditions in which stu-

dents with disabilities will have more opportunities to

succeed; the creation of 94 “charges” (full–time posi-

tions) for Cont. Ed teachers and a local committee for

negotiating grievances will be created in each CÉGEP.

Of course the distribution of the ETC con-

cerning students with disabilities will have to be ne-

gotiated locally as is the case with the local proce-

dures relating to RACs (Recognition of Acquired Com-

petencies). [Editor’s note: see Roy Fu’s article on RACs

in this issue].

At the moment of drafting this article, the

negotiating committees are finalizing the clauses of

the collective agreement, which will contain an invi-

tation to create a general offer of services for non-

A D E S I G N E R S T R I K E ?

Jean-Marc Beausoleil, VP External

Page 9 V O L U M E 1 5 , I S S U E 1

tenured teachers. This is an annual job application

submitted to Human Resources for all relevant work-

loads that will save non–perms from having to apply

to specific postings every semester. A new clause will

also facilitate the creation of a local agreement ena-

bling the Day Division hiring committee to hire for

Cont. Ed.

The biggest achievement is that we finally

obtained Rangement 23—official recognition that

CÉGEP teachers belong in the category of higher edu-

cation. This means an increase of salary between 5

and 7 % that in 2019.

CÉGEP teachers will get a salary increase of

up to 13 % because of this new Collective Agreement.

I believe there is no way we could have rejected this

offer without losing public support and momentum in

the mobilization. I agree with the analysis that the

government played its cards well and knew how to

position the offer vis–à–vis a public that has internal-

ized the austerity rhetoric. But within this fraught and

fast-changing political context, what indication was

there that refusal of the offer would have helped our

comrades in other sectors?

The future?

Now, we look ahead. The next negotiations will be

upon us quickly. In 2020, the government will surely

say that we just got a raise – in 2019 – and that we

deserve no more. Can a strong Common Front be built

once more? Will a Common Front be the best strate-

gy to achieve the goals that eluded us in 2015? What

will be the new aberration we’ll be confronted with?

Whatever happens, we will remember that

day in December 2015 – December 8th – when 400,

000 workers went on strike to protect the quality of

education and public services. It was a beautiful day

and yes, if you want to call it a designer strike, we

sure did look good in the streets of Montreal.

And you know what? We can do it again!

Page 10 J A C F A N E W S

Nov. 29, 2014

Anti-austerity

Demo Down-

town Montreal

Feb 24, 2015

JACFA visit to local

MNA Geoff Kelly to

deliver postcards from

Abbott teachers to the

Couillard government

April 2, 2015

JACFA, FNEEQ-

CSN, public sector

workers, communi-

ty groups, striking

students… all

march against lib-

eral government

austerity

May 4, 2015

Student Union of JAC

(SUJAC) invites QC Fi-

nance Minister Carlos

Leitao to visit John Ab-

bott. JACFA invites facul-

ty to attend and ask

questions concerning

government direction on

education and public

services.

Nov. 27, 2014

Local John Abbott anti-

austerity action: “Let

them eat cake!”

April 1, 2015

Collective Agreement

Funeral March with

New Orleans jazz band

May 1, 2015

On-campus “In

Defense of Public

Education” rally,

in concert with

similar province-

wide actions.

Sept. 1, 2015

JACFA annual Corn

Roast: “ Take these

demands and shuck

‘em!”

M O B I L I Z A T I O N T I M E L I N E

Tanya Rowell-Katzemba, Director

Page 11 V O L U M E 1 5 , I S S U E 1

Sep. 21, 2015

JACFA General

Assembly : historic

turnout of 254

members and his-

toric vote of 89%

in favour of six-day

strike mandate

Oct. 5, 2015

JAC action on World

Teacher’s Day:

“Give a little love to

public education”

Nov. 16, 2015

Second strike day; GA passes motion

denouncing eventuality of a decree,

asserting the fundamental right of

workers to strike

Dec. 9, 2015

Fourth strike day, at

least 150 faculty partic-

ipate in downtown ral-

ly.

Oct. 3, 2015

Common Front Demo

downtown; tens of

thousands attend

Oct. 29, 2015

First strike day Nov. 17, 2015

Third strike day and

rally downtown

Jan. 12, 2016

JACFA General As-

sembly votes to accept

government’s offer for

a collective agree-

ment.

M O B I L I Z A T I O N T I M E L I N E

Page 12 J A C F A N E W S

J udging solely from actions taken at our General Assemblies, it might appear that our union federa-

tion (FNEEQ) recommends various mandates—strikes, agreements in principle, etc.,– –and JACFA

simply decides whether to adopt them.

In reality, however, the relationship is a lot more dynamic and less hierarchical than it ap-

pears. Local unions often play an important role in forging the direction of the federation through its

participation in FNEEQ’s assemblies (Regroupement) and through the cross–fertilization of ideas be-

tween local unions via social media. The active role JACFA played within FNEEQ in recent mobilization

and negotiations is a testament to this dynamic and collaborative relationship.

During the negotiations, most important decisions at FNEEQ were made through Re-

groupement assemblies where representatives from each of FNEEQ’s forty–six unions propose, adopt

or amend motions recommended by FNEEQ’s committees. JACFA made notable contributions on a cou-

ple of fronts: at the finalization of our sectoral demands, we proposed substantial amendments to

FNEEQ’s demands related to Recognition of Acquired Competencies (RAC).

In a different instance, we spearheaded a successful Regroupement motion that put pressure

on FNEEQ-CSN to come up with a comprehensive and concrete action plan in preparation for the pos-

sibility of a governmental back–to–work decree. We also lobbied Jean Lortie, CSN’s Secretary General,

on the matter when he visited John Abbott during the strike in November. These actions coincided

with a broader grassroots campaign at FNEEQ, including CÉGEP Sherbrooke’s declaration on the ille-

gitimacy of a possible decree, a version of which the JACFA General Assembly adopted on November

16, 2015. The eventual momentum of this declaration led the FNEEQ Regroupement to take a compa-

rable position for the entire federation.

The culmination of FNEEQ’s grassroots actions was ultimately effective in getting an initially

reluctant CSN to present an anti-decree action plan in November, 2015. The CSN’s action plan includ-

ed a public declaration that it was ready to support members should they decide to defy a decree. This

declaration lent considerable backbone to the Common Front in the face of a cavalier government act-

ing like it did not need to take unions seriously because of its power to decree.

During the mobilization, local unions also exerted their influence on their peers in the federa-

tion through less formal channels, notably through the sharing of local events on social media. Over

the course of the 18–month–long mobilization campaign, JACFA members took part in a host of origi-

nal, events that caught the attention and inspired executive colleagues at other CÉGEPs to organize

similar events. These included the “Derangement 21 Soup Rally,” the inter-union “Let them Eat Cake

Anti–Austerity Rally,” the “April 1st Funeral Procession” marking the end of the Collective Agreement,

the World teachers Day, “Give your Teacher a Little Love” apple give away.

Inasmuch as the 2014–15 mobilization events tell a story of our union movement being driven

from the grassroots, it was also a story of a local union—JACFA—stepping up and embracing our

J A C F A P L A Y S A N A C T I V E R O L E A T F N E E Q D U R I N G

R E C E N T M O B I L I Z A T I O N

Roy Fu, President

Page 13 V O L U M E 1 5 , I S S U E 1

“Un Québec fou de ses enfants”

Québec’s subsidized daycare program has long been acclaimed not only for providing affordable child-

care, and thereby improving the prospects of women and disadvantaged families,

but also for the long term collateral benefits in other sectors, including reduced

costs in health care, education, security and justice.

A program that gives back

According to the Nobel laureate economist J. J. Heckman, investing in early child-

hood education is an efficient and effective instrument for economic and workforce

development. Estimated rates of return can be as high as 10% on every dollar in-

vested, much higher than the average return from stock market investments (5.8%)3. The econometric

models also show that the earlier in a child’s developmental stages that investments are focused, the

higher rates of return are expected to be.4

“Defund what you want to privatize”

The Couillard government wants to convince the public that the subsidized daycare program costs too

much money, and that the cuts (nearing $400M since 2006) are necessary. Québec’s subsidized day-

cares will be facing another $120M in cuts for the upcoming fiscal year, endangering the quality of ser-

vices offered and perhaps even compromising the long-term sustainability of the program. The underly-

ing strategy can be summarized, in Noam Chomsky’s frequently quoted words, as “the standard tech-

nique of privatization: defund, make sure things don’t work, people get angry, you hand it over to pri-

vate capital.”5

“Sauvons les CPE”

Québec’s subsidized daycares must now struggle for their survival. This fight is very much in the same

spirit as the recent battle led by CÉGEP teachers to ensure stable funding, equal access, quality services

and job security. In early January, l'Association Québécoise des Centres de la Petite Enfance (AQCPE),

representing three quarters of the province's subsidized public daycares launched a mobilization cam-

democratic role in the larger federation. This latter phenomenon, coupled with the overall strength of our

mobilization evident from the strike vote and other local actions, has been effective in shaping an emer-

gent JACFA identity at FNEEQ: that of an active player in the federation.

D E M O L I T I O N O F Q U É B E C ’ S S U B S I D I Z E D D A Y C A R E

P R O G R A M I S E V E R Y O N E ’ S B U S I N E S S !

Ferenc Balogh1 and Mariana Gil Rodriguez2

Page 14 J A C F A N E W S

paign without precedence in the daycare sector. Parents, educators, administrators and supporters have ex-

pressed their concerns and opposition to the government's proposed reform. Week after week human chains

were formed in front of many daycares, and tens of thousands of citizens have signed a petition asking the

government to cancel the announced austerity measures. On February 7th, close to 30,000 protestors took to

the streets across the province to denounce the cuts.

A re–shuffle in the cabinet in early February provided some hope to renew negotiations, but the an-

nouncements made by the new Family Minister, Sebastien Proulx, made it clear that the government's stand

remained firm. Although many daycares were ready to intensify their mobilization actions, possibly going as

far as shutting down operations, the unwillingness of the government to negotiate, and the fear of the serious

financial consequences of service interruptions, discouraged others from pursuing the battle. The government

signed deals with three of the four daycare associations. The AQCPE found itself cornered into accepting the

government's proposed funding deal on February 24th. The government's new offer includes $60M in transi-

tional funding to alleviate the financial shock for the upcoming fiscal year, with the full $120M cut taking

effect in 2017–2018.

While this compromise provides some relief in the short term, many still view it as a defeat because it

offers no long-term solutions to what they regard as the dismantling of the public daycare system. Daycare

staff hope that the upcoming year will afford them more time to demonstrate the negative effects of the cuts

and gain public support.

Stay tuned: the battle is far from over.

————————————————————————————————————————————

1 Ferenc Balogh is a faculty member in Mathematics

2 Mariana Gil Rodriguez is a psychotherapist, former JAC student and a parent administrator at the CPE

fleur de Macadam. Balogh and Gil Rodriguez are married.

3 J.J. Heckman, “Schools, Skills and Synapses”, Economic Inquiry, Vol. 46, No. 3, July 2008, 289-324

4 see http://heckman.uchicago.edu/page/policy-impact

5 Noam Chomsky, “ The State–Corporate Complex: A Threat to Freedom and Survival.” Text of lecture given at University of Toronto, April 7, 2011. Retrieved from www.chomsky.info. Accessed February 23, 2016.

Page 15 V O L U M E 1 5 , I S S U E 1

I recently retired from thirty–two years of teaching at John Abbott, and was asked by

Mark McGuire to share a few of the things about JAC that I have noticed over the

years. I had a wonderful career at John Abbott. Though it became more difficult for me to

reach my students over the years, I still feel that I won the imaginary “Job Lottery” and

was so very fortunate to have spent most of my adult life (so far) at the College. Over the

years, I have noticed a few tendencies and I submit them for the consideration of newer

faculty, in particular, as they may not have the historical perspective that I was lucky enough to inherit at

first–hand from the faculty members who built the College in the 1970s.

Primarily, I would like to encourage current faculty members to remember the benefits that come

from working collaboratively with faculty from different departments and developing teacher–entered activi-

ties that arise from “the trenches” in the form of grassroots initiatives. Over the decades, I have seen the Col-

lege departments develop into “silos,” each existing in non–communicative isolation from all others, largely

ignorant of what other departments do and the issues that they face. Interaction in the College seems to have

become vertical – traveling up to the administration and down to the department chair (mostly the latter) –

but seldom chair–to–chair and even less often department-to-department. Currently, if other departments are

brought into consideration, it is often as rivals for the same limited resources.

All–Chairs meetings may originally have been an attempt to mitigate the isolating effects of this

silo–structure, but they have evolved into “not meetings” – essentially they

have become briefings: Information on certain topics is fed to the chairs;

as opposed to a meeting where expertise is sought, ideas are exchanged,

and decisions are made. Further, it would seem that dissent and debate are

discouraged at this forum; certainly the agenda is determined by the deans

and if input is occasionally sought from the chairs, it may be used for ends

that are not clearly revealed to the participants.

At John Abbott, there is not currently any formal or informal

mechanism whereby visionary projects that affect the College in general,

overarching issues of broad interdisciplinary focus, and concerns that

transcend individual departments and committees can be brought to the

table for discussion and action; where College–wide activities and endeav-

ors are set in motion by teachers and departments, on their initiative and

from their perspective. One example: The recent attempt to extend mid–term evaluation to every term of a

student’s enrollment in the College ought to have been brought to faculty membership to be examined, debat-

ed, and overturned before it was mandated. Thanks to dedicated faculty, perpetual mid–term evaluation was

halted – but the responsibility for reasserting common sense from the faculty’s perspective ought not to be

thrust onto the shoulders of those few faculty members who bravely raise their heads above the tall grass.

Many other academic institutions have a “faculty council” or “syndical advisory body” that provides a place

A F E W T H I N G S I ’ V E N O T I C E D

Reflections on Thirty-two Years of Strong Opinions and Wild Ideas at John Abbott

I would like to encourage

current faculty members to

remember the benefits that

come from working

collaboratively with faculty

from different departments

and developing teacher-

centered activities that arise

from “the trenches” in the

form of grassroots initiatives

Susan Regan

Page 16 J A C F A N E W S

for administration to bring their proposals for thorough consideration before attempting to implement them.

This is not to say that our Deans are not caring individuals, thoroughly dedicated to the betterment of our

College, but it is to say that within the silos of our departments there is a lack of College–wide teacher–

centered vision and that this broader perspective is not addressed by current structures. One consequence is

that the perspective and voice of teachers can be marginalized.

To many of the founding teachers of John Abbott College, conflict was a healthy aspect of college life.

In general, faculty members will disagree only about things they deeply care about. A conflict–free college is

a college lacking in passion. Colleagues who do not care will be silent and cooperative. They will teach their

classes and go home. If they have vision or initiative, they will give up

because it is easier to do nothing or continue to do the same old things.

Stasis is the result. Creative minds do not thrive when hedged in by

overly-specific policies and rules that were designed to limit the unde-

sirable actions of a minority (generally, non–cooperative individuals will

continue on their own paths, ignoring the rules that were constructed to

discipline them). While I appreciate civility and collegiality, I and many

of my colleagues past and present also enjoy the rough–and–tumble of

academic debate – indeed, impassioned debate has clarified and deep-

ened my own opinions, and caused me to change my mind (open my

mind) about key issues. Appeals to civility can mask attempts to silence

teachers.

Those who are skeptical about my assertion that we are isolated in “silos” may respond that College

committees bring together administration, staff, and faculty from many different areas of the College. All new

teachers should participate in College committees, for they have much to offer and much to learn. However,

teacher reps on College committees are not in any practical way accountable to the teachers that they repre-

sent and, again, this can exacerbate the type of isolation I referred to above. Essential questions for all repre-

sentatives on College committees ought to be: How will this affect teachers in general? What are the hidden

assumptions? (i.e., What does it say about teachers and teaching when Gradebook is made compulsory?

When Chairs are called to meet on Spring Break?) What are the possible consequences of this for me? …for

all teachers? …for my department? Is this a slippery slope that sets a dangerous precedent? The notion that

faculty representatives on academic committees represent the knowledge and vision of all teachers can easily

be lost. It might be valuable if faculty representatives on College committees consider their constituency to be

all teachers and represent, if possible, the interests of all of their colleagues (insofar as they can be conceptu-

alized).

There is a vast repertoire of knowledge and expertise existing within John Abbott faculty members. I

hope that, in years to come, it will be easier for teachers to come together across the various departments and

committees and share ideas, whether through informal grassroots initiatives (as, for example, the Far Hills

Inn legacy of Bert Young and other illustrious faculty members long gone) or through some new structure,

such as a syndical or faculty council. Leaving the power and direction solely in the hands of the Ministry and

the vision for our College in the purview of the Administration suggests that teachers are comfortable with

being paid for their time and not their expertise.

impassioned debate has

clarified and deepened my

own opinions, and caused

me to change my mind

(open my mind) about key

issues. Appeals to civility

can mask attempts to

silence teachers.

Page 17 V O L U M E 1 5 , I S S U E 1

I read an article about WestJet recently that discussed the difficulties the company was having, as it

evolved from a small enterprise with an anti–corporate vision run to a large extent by employees maintaining

a “caring culture,” to a “full network carrier” close to losing its original vision. When I came to John Abbott

in 1983, the school still retained its early roots derived from the vision of young faculty members who were

essentially given carte blanche to design a school around their teacher–driven ideals. Whether WestJet or

John Abbott College: As the founding members of an organization age and retire, initiative and vision may be

at risk of migrating away from the minds and hands of those knowledge workers who created this College

and “the John Abbott Way.” If current teachers do not know that John Abbott was ever oriented in a different

direction, with teachers and teacher expertise at the center of the organization, they may be more content to

await the next directive from the Ministry conveyed by to us by non–teaching employees, and quietly accept

and conform.

On a lighter note, I am glad that the labour unrest is behind you and that you can turn to other

(hopefully less contentious) issues in 2016. May you ultimately succeed in limiting government initiatives

that depress salaries and seek to reduce teachers to obedient clock–punching functionaries. Some of the most

fun I’ve had at John Abbott was walking the picket line, chatting and joking with colleagues. Strangely, my

first experience in the day division at JAC was the January 1983 strike. I had hardly begun my first real

teaching job, when I was off work and carrying a picket sign around the Oval. We warmed up in the Centen-

nial Centre with hot chocolate and watched the Picket Players demonstrate another side of faculty solidarity

(Endré Farkas, Rod Hayward, Ed Palumbo, Chris Lester, Ruth Taylor, and dozens of other legendary John Ab-

bott personalities performed their hearts out).

Other wonderful times happened at the Far Hills Inn where, as many of you know, I fell madly in love

with my husband/colleague, Dennis Anson (retired from the Math Department). I was also lucky enough to

work with a wonderful friend, Jan Richman, for close to 30 years. Together, Jan and I organized many fun

events for our students – reunions, parties, contests! In the 1980s, we even got closed down and reprimanded

by Léonce Boudreau for holding parties for our students that were TOO successful – one party of about 100

students got moved (six–foot speakers, and all) to my small townhouse where the Pointe–Claire Public Securi-

ty Officers directed traffic and shepherded some of the “wobbly” students home. Good times!

I should also thank my department members for putting up with my strong opinions and wild ideas.

We had many passionate discussions that resonate still and I thank you for encouraging me and hearing me

out.

Over the past 32 years, I saw my department change from “Secretarial Technology” (a la Mad Men)

where we taught Gregg shorthand amongst other things, to “Office Systems Management” where we intro-

duced computers (from the McGill mainframe, to word processing machines, to early PCs), to “Publication

Design & Hypermedia Technology” where we mastered the Adobe Suite and implemented a cross–platform

MAC/PC curriculum, to “Graphic and Web Design” where we finally became a dedicated Design program. I

taught some of the children of my former students! Thanks to Facebook, I can see the students I taught in past

years travel on to university, to exciting careers, to many countries of the world, to marriage, and to

parenthood. What a wonderful experience my life at John Abbott has been.

I n a recent decision at Academic Council, the College took an important step toward delegating the respon-

sibilities of the Recognition of Acquired Competencies (RAC) to daytime teachers and departments. With

significant input from the teacher representatives, Academic Council revised the College procedure for RAC

so that, amongst other things, departments will be responsible for the “development, approval and validation”

of pedagogical material related to RAC. Departments will also be responsible for appointing teachers to the

role of content specialists, whose job it would be to assess , and assign and evaluate any requisite make up

work in the RAC process.

The development of this process is significant for teachers because it will ensure that for regular day-

time disciplines, teachers and only teachers will determine whether students/candidates are eligible for Col-

lege credit. This is a principle relating to RAC that FNEEQ sought but failed to secure inclusion for in our lat-

est Collective Agreement, making the significance of its adoption locally all the more pertinent.

The work involving RAC remains unaccounted for in our new, soon–to–be–signed Collective Agree-

ment. In order for the new College procedure to take force, a second element needs to be adopted: a local

agreement between the College and JACFA that defines the parameters and remuneration for teachers and

departments working with RAC.

On the latter front, the JACFA executive has already held preliminary discussions with the College at

a Labour Relations Committee (CRT) where the College gave some initial indications on how much it is pre-

pared to pay teachers for RAC work, along with some other relevant background information. For the execu-

tive, an important area for further clarification will be the amount of work required for departments in their

“development, approval, and validation” of pedagogical material. In the coming months we will consult de-

partments, and ultimately, the General Assembly should we be close to penning a local agreement on RAC.

Stay tuned.

C O L L E G E H A N D S R E S P O N S I B I L I T I E S F O R R A C T O

T E A C H E R S A N D D E P A R T M E N T S

I M P O R T A N T W O R K R E M A I N S F O R J A C F A

Roy Fu, President

Dear Colleagues,

This will be my last issue as editor of JACFA News. After three invigorating years and the signing of a new

collective agreement, I have decided not to seek re–election. I plan to re–allocate my time and energy to fami-

ly and a new creative project. I urge those who feel called to serve JACFA to put your name forward for nomi-

nation to the executive for 2016–17. It's an exciting time of renewal and growth for the faculty.

Thank you for your confidence and support over the past few years.

Mark McGuire

E D I T O R ’ S N O T E

JACFA GENERAL ASSEMBLY

AND ELECTION

MAY 18th

Design and layout: Katayon Haghighi

Editing: Mark McGuire

Please contact us if you wish to contribute to the

next issue.