OMSSA Speakers Series
Thank you to everyone who attended our Speakers Series webinars for 2024. Building on our successful webinars in 2023, OMSSA brings in guest speakers to discuss topics and issues you want to hear more about in the human services sectors. These webinars will be hosted by the Association.
OMSSA hosts webinars that cover the three sectors within human services: Children's Services, Employment and Income, and Housing and Homelessness. We look forward to hosting Speakers Series webinars in 2025. We hope you will be able to attend these webinars as we announce them.
There is no cost to attend this webinar, but registration is required. Please click on the registration link associated with each webinar to complete the process. Please note: Speakers and sessions are subject to change. Members who have questions can contact OMSSA at communications@omssa.com.
Institute on Municipal Finance & Governance Report: The Municipal Role in Child Care
POSTPONED
Thank you for your interest in our Institute on Municipal Finance & Governance Report: The Municipal Role in Child Care Speakers Series webinar on October 9, 2024.
Unfortunately, due to unforeseen circumstances, OMSSA will postpone this upcoming session until the new year. We will reach out to inform you of a new date when it is finalized.
In May 2024, the Institute on Municipal Finance & Governance at the University of Toronto released a report called "The Municipal Role in Child Care." This report is comprised of four key sections, each with separate authors outlining their vision for municipally-led child care. This session will bring together some of these authors to provide an overview of their analyses and an update on their work since the report was published. Their presentations will each focus on what they see as strengths and opportunities here in Ontario, including the unique role of municipal service system managers.
Drawing on the report, the speakers will provide analyses of international examples that Ontario can learn from, how different levels of government can better coordinate on implementing the Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care program, the advantages of municipally operated child care and its effects on staffing, and the municipal role in planning and building equitable and accessible child care. Additionally, the session will look at the future of municipally-led child care in Ontario, and will consider ways to move forward in light of the release of the province's new funding formula and the possibility of for-profit expansion in the system.
This session will be of interest to all members and partners working in municipal and not-for-profit child care, child care policy analysts, city planners, and more.
Moderator: Sonali Chakraborti, Manager of Programs and Research, Institute on Municipal Finance & Governance, University of Toronto
Dr. Gordon Cleveland
Associate Professor Emeritus, Economics Department of Management, University of Toronto Scarborough, Member, National Advisory Council on Early Learning and Child Care
Dr. Gordon Cleveland is an economist and researcher in the field of early childhood education. In 2017-18 he was the main author of Affordable for All: Making Licensed Child Care Affordable in Ontario, a comprehensive report to the Ontario Ministry of Education. Currently, he is a member of the National Advisory Council on Early Learning and Child Care, providing advice to the Minister of Families, Children and Social Development.
Sue Colley
Co-Founder and Chair, Building Blocks for Child Care
Sue Colley, VP Cleveland Consulting: Early Learning and Child Care, has been a recognized leader and innovator in the development of co-op housing for seniors, in the health sector, and in the field of early learning and child care over the last 40 years. She brings people together and leads them to find solutions. She was a founder of Action Day Care and first Executive Director of the Ontario Child Care Coalition. She has played an important role in major studies of child care policy and programs for the University of Toronto, the City of Toronto and the Province of Ontario. Sue is currently the Secretary-Treasurer of Rise Up Feminist Digital Archive (https://riseupfeministarchive.ca/), a digital archive of feminist activism in Canada from the 1970s to the 1990s. She has an M.B.A. from Edinburgh Business School.
Most recently, Sue has taken on the role as President and Chair of the Board of Building Blocks for Child Care (B2C2) www.b2c2.ca. B2C2 is a community resource that assists not-for-profit child care and community organizations in Ontario prepare to expand by providing advice and support in all phases of the project.
Carolyn Ferns
Public Policy and Government Relations Coordinator, Ontario Coalition for Better Child Care
Carolyn Ferns is Public Policy Coordinator at the Ontario Coalition for Better Child Care. Carolyn worked for over ten years at the Childcare Resource and Research Unit, where she co-authored the Early Childhood Education and Care in Canada series. Carolyn has a Bachelor's and Master's degrees in Early Childhood Studies. She is a member of the Board of Directors of both Child Care Now and the Childcare Resource and Research Unit.
Martha Friendly
Executive Director, Childcare Resource and Research Unit
Martha Friendly has been a leading member of the Canadian child care movement for 40 years, championing an equitable child care system for all. Born in New York City and raised in its suburbs, she immigrated to Canada in 1971. A social science researcher by education, she began working on early childhood education and child care research in the 1960s.
Becoming part of grassroots childcare activism in Toronto in the 1970s firmly cemented her belief that access to quality child care is central to women’s equality. In the 1980s, Martha founded the Childcare Resource and Research Unit at the University of Toronto’s Centre for Urban and Community Studies as a policy research group with a mandate to bring about a universal child care system — a role that the now-independent non-profit organization continues to play.
Martha is the author of numerous popular and academic articles, reports, chapters and two books on child care policy. She is the recipient of many awards, including an honorary doctorate from Trent University, a Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal, inclusion in Women & Gender Equality’s (WAGE Canada) Women of Impact Gallery and the Broadbent Institute’s Charles Taylor Prize for Excellence in Policy Research (2021).
Carley Holt
Principal Planner, City of Edmonton
A Look Ahead at Maytree's Annual Welfare in Canada Report
July 17, 2024
1:00PM to 2:00PM EST
The annual Welfare in Canada report enumerates and examines the total welfare incomes of example households receiving social assistance in a given year and details some key features of social assistance programs, in all 13 provincial and territorial jurisdictions in Canada. As the only publicly available resource that compiles and analyses this data, Welfare in Canada is the primary source for evaluating Canada’s progress on fulfilling the human right to an adequate standard of living for households receiving social assistance.
Welfare in Canada was established by the Caledon Institute of Social Policy in 2012 to maintain and build on longitudinal data previously published by the National Council of Welfare in its Welfare Incomes reports. In 2018, Maytree assumed responsibility for updating the series and has added additional data and analysis over time.
Please note: the Welfare in Canada report is expected to be released at the end of July. This webinar offers a preview of the upcoming report.
Image courtesy of Maytree.
Moderator: Stu Beumer, Director of Ontario Works, City of Hamilton
Jennefer Laidley
Maytree Fellow
Jennefer Laidley has focused on poverty- and income security-related advocacy and research for more than 20 years, whether supporting and learning from people living in poverty, speaking to government officials and legislative committees, or writing and publishing policy papers, advocacy resources, and public education materials.
As the researcher and lead author of Maytree’s annual Welfare in Canada report since 2020, Jennefer has contributed her deep knowledge of social assistance systems and expertise in research, data analysis, and policy advocacy to this unique and important publication. Prior to joining Maytree, she was Policy Analyst at the Income Security Advocacy Centre (ISAC) in Toronto, where for twelve years she led policy analysis and development, strategic communications, and government, network, and media relations, focused on improving social assistance and reducing poverty in Ontario. She has also served as political staff to members of the House of Commons, the BC Legislature, and Toronto City Council, worked with non-profit service providers and networks to develop their governance and strategic planning capacity, and served on numerous non-profit boards.
As a Maytree fellow, Jennefer will focus on helping Maytree develop a strategy and materials to disseminate learning about the Welfare in Canada data set and its implications for people living in poverty, assist Maytree in its advocacy efforts with the public, government, and media, and provide advice and support to advance Maytree’s income security advocacy priorities.
Jennefer’s academic work in urban planning and development culminated in the publication of two edited collections on the development of the Toronto waterfront and urban waterfronts around the world. She currently serves on the Board of the Gabriola Housing Society, which aims to build that Gulf Island’s first multi-family affordable housing project, leads data collection and analysis on the social determinants of health in the Gabriola Health Data Report series, and volunteers with local organizations in various capacities.
Mohy Tabbara
Senior Policy Advisor
Mohy leads Maytree’s income security policy file. His work uses a human rights lens to focus on reducing the rate and depth of poverty and transforming Canada’s social safety net. He co-authors the Welfare in Canada report, and authors the Social Assistance Summaries report. Before joining Maytree, Mohy was a Researcher at the Institute for Research on Public Policy where he worked on several policy issues, including income security, criminal justice reform, and institution building. Mohy holds a Master’s degree in Political Science from the University of Toronto and an Honours Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from McGill University.
A Review of Homelessness Encampments Across Canada
February 29, 2024
1:00PM to 2:00PM
Canada’s Federal Housing Advocate is a unique human rights accountability mechanism established to advance the right to adequate housing in Canada and monitor the National Housing Strategy. Located within the Canadian Human Rights Commission, the Advocate works to amplify the voices of people experiencing inadequate housing and homelessness and hold governments to account on their human rights obligations. In this session, we will introduce the right to housing and the Advocate’s mandate. The Session will include a brief overview of the Advocate’s mandate and discuss the Advocate’s final report and recommendations resulting from her national review of encampments, which has been be released on February 13, 2024.
Registration for this
webinar is now closed.
Moderator: Kelly Goz, Manager (A), Homelessness Special Projects, Housing Hub, City of Windsor
Jessica Losier
Data Research Analyst, Office of the Federal Housing AdvocateJessica Losier is a data research analyst with the Office of the Federal Housing Advocate, where she works to help the Advocate fulfill her duties tied to receiving and analyzing submissions regarding systemic housing issues. Her previous experience and research focused on international policy and human rights, more specifically related to refugees and asylum seekers.
Ruby Bissett
Data Research Analyst, Office of the Federal Housing AdvocateRuby Bissett is a Research Analyst at the Office of the Federal Housing Advocate, where she works to help the Advocate fulfill their duties tied to receiving and analysing submissions regarding systemic housing issues. She has a background in social work and public policy, having previously worked with youth experiencing homelessness.
Ian Hamilton
Senior Advisor, Office of the Federal Housing AdvocateIan joined the Office of the Federal Housing Advocate at the Canadian Human Rights Commission as a Senior Policy Advisor in November 2020. He served as Executive Director of Equitas from January 2004 to June 2020. He first joined the organization in 1997. Before coming to Equitas, Ian worked for the Coordinating Committee of Human Rights Organizations of Thailand for 16 months in Bangkok, assisting their campaign for the establishment of a National Human Rights Commission. From 1992-1995, he worked in a number of positions, including Asia Program Officer, at the International Centre for Human Rights and Democratic Development (Rights and Democracy) in Montreal.
Emily Paradis
Senior Advisor, Office of the Federal Housing AdvocateEmily Paradis has more than 30 years' experience as an activist, front-line worker, researcher, educator, and advocate on issues of homelessness, housing, and human rights. Dr. Paradis is Senior Policy Advisor with the Office of the Federal Housing Advocate.
Catherine McKenney
Special Advisor, Engagement, Office of the Federal Housing AdvocateCatherine (they/them) is the co-founder of CitySHAPES a national nonprofit organization working to make Cities better for everyone - and a consultant working with others who share these common goals. Catherine cares deeply about equity through affordable housing & ending homelessness, climate action, transit & active transportation, trees & greenspace, and how we build our cities so everyone can thrive in them. Catherine is a former Ottawa city Councillor. They worked at the City in senior roles prior to becoming elected in 2014.
Resources
Upholding dignity and human rights: the Federal Housing Advocate's review of homeless encampments
Federal Housing Advocate's Observational Report - British Columbia
Catherine (they/them) is the co-founder of CitySHAPES a national nonprofit organization working to make Cities better for everyone - and a consultant working with others who share these common goals. Catherine cares deeply about equity through affordable housing & ending homelessness, climate action, transit & active transportation, trees & greenspace, and how we build our cities so everyone can thrive in them. Catherine is a former Ottawa city Councillor. They worked at the City in senior roles prior to becoming elected in 2014.
2023 Speakers Series
Implementing CWELCC in Ontario (July 13, 2023)
Session Description and Resources
This webinar will explore the current implementation of the Canada-Wide Early Learning & Child Care Program (CWELCC). Attendees will hear our guest speakers share their insights on the implementation of CWELCC in Ontario. Please see our invited speakers and presenters.
Speakers:
- Moderator: Satinder Klair, Director, Children's Services, Regional Municipality of Niagara
- Dr. Gordon Cleveland, Consultant Economist, President of Cleveland Consulting: Early Childhood Education and Care Inc.
- Beth Deazeley, LL.B., Registrar and CEO, College of Early Childhood Educators
- Kim Hiscott, RECE, Executive Director, Andrew Fleck Children's Services
Resources
Member Housing and Homelessness Initiatives Discussion (August 18, 2023)
This session will bring together OMSSA Members to discuss the initiatives they've designed to address the current challenges in housing and homelessness. We'll hear from a spectrum of Members on, but not limited to, the following issues:
- How has homelessness changed since the pandemic, as well as in the last year?
- How has the Waterloo encampment decision changed the approach to homelessness in your area?
- What work are you doing to connect housing and health?
Please see our invited speakers and presenters.
Speakers:
- Moderator: Al Fletcher, Manager, Investment in Affordable Housing/Neighbourhood Development at the City of Hamilton
- Abigail Bond, Executive Director of the Housing Secretariat, City of Toronto
- Nicole Cortese, Manager of Homelessness Operations, Regional Municipality of Niagara
- Lisa McIntosh, Director of Income Employment and Homelessness, Regional Municipality of Durham
- Tyler Venable, Manager, Housing Services, District of Nipissing Social Services Administration Board
Continuing the Local Municipal Champion Conversation (August 24, 2023)
Building on our conversation at OMSSA's 2023 Exchange Conference, four of this year's Local Municipal Champion award recipients will tell the story of the programs that were developed for their communities, with particular emphasis on the successes they have seen and the challenges they have overcome. They will also answer the many questions attendees had as part of the discussion.
Please see our invited speakers and presenters.
Speakers:
- Moderator: Brian Marks, Chief Administrative Officer, Cochrane District Social Services Administration Board
- Kelly Goz, Coordinator, Housing Administration & Development, City of Windsor
- Kristine Haines-Chiarello, Manager (A), Employment and Social Services Central, Community and Social Services, City of Ottawa
- Ian Hanney, Supervisor, Homelessness Prevention and Social Planning, County of Lambton
- Whitney Kitchen, Coordinator, Housing Administration & Development, City of Windsor
- Jennifer Lible, Manager, Social Assistance Programs, District of Thunder Bay Social Services Administration Board