Jinny Sims, president of the BC Teachers' Federation, has been elected as one of four vice-presidents of the Canadian Teachers' Federation (CTF) during the national organization's annual general meeting in Ottawa, July 13–15.
Sims will help represent 215,000 teachers in 17 provincial and territorial member organizations and affiliates.
"We need to develop a national consciousness about the role of education in our lives in our way of life," said Sims. "It is imperative that we have a national organization that focusses on improvements in the conditions under which we teach and under which our students learn."
Sims said, "Public education is the cornerstone of our democracy, and teachers have to be prepared to take on the phoney 'accountability agenda.' We have to assert our professionalism. We have to ensure the joy of teaching and learning that brought us to this amazing teaching profession. We need a strong, viable CTF to be our national voice."
The CTF assists teacher organizations in difficult times: the strength and unity of 215,000 teachers provide a formidable force for any government. "The CTF has been active on a wide range of issues that affect teachers and education," said Sims. "Women's issues, tax reform, racism, day care, privatization, and advertising in the school system are just a few of the areas where the CTF will continue to advocate."
Sims has previous experience with the CTF, having served as a director. Her election victory follows on the heels of victory at home a week earlier when she led the BCTF to a successfully negotiated settlement for BC's 38,000 public school teachers.
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