A Message from Rochelle Galeski (Director)

One of the things we discussed as a Board was our new ministry. As many of you know CALPs have moved to the Ministry of Skilled Trades and Professions. We talked about the impact this change may have and how to share a message that is brief and concise when explaining foundational learning to government, to our community and to our families and friends who ask what we do.

As we sat around the “table” (some virtual and some actually at the table), it was profound for me to hear everyone’s explanation of what foundational learning means to them.

I am always working on my “elevator” speech and am curious to know how you would explain foundational learning in 2- 3 sentences. I am progressing towards creating a description of foundational learning knowing that whoever hears it may begin to identify as a foundational learner or know someone who might feel safe enough to reach out to our program for help.

I pose this question to you: How do you describe foundational learning? In your own words, I would love to have as many people as possible post their “elevator speech” of what foundational learning means to them. I will anxiously await your responses.

Have a beautiful month of November. Stay connected to yourself and to others as we begin another programming year.

-Rochelle

Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal Ceremony

Congratulations Berniece Gowan from Calgary Learns, Colleen Pierce from Community Learning Lac La Biche and Roberta Rogers from Brooks Community Adult Learning Council for receiving the Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal! We honoured the recipients on November 3rd with a virtual and in-person ceremony at the University of Alberta's South Campus in Edmonton, Alberta.

This medal was created to mark the 70th anniversary of Her Majesty’s Accession to the Throne as Queen of Canada. The Community Learning Network was selected as a trusted partner to carry out this nomination process and recognize three deserving individuals from Alberta's literacy and learning communities. As stated by Colleen Thiessen in her opening speech, these recipients, "lead rather than wait to be led. They tackle challenges head-on. They see problems as opportunities instead of obstacles." 

We were also delighted to have Carla Corbett, Executive Director of Skilled Trades and Professions to deliver remarks at the beginning of our ceremony.

         
  Carla Corbett                             Recipients Colleen Pierce, Berniece Gowan,
                                                    and Roberta Rogers joining via Zoom

Berniece Gowan was the first medal recipient. As stated by Colleen Thiessen, "for over two decades Berniece has dedicated her career to adult literacy and has been supporting adults with literacy gaps to help them participate more fully in their lives. Adult learners and their needs have been the centre of her work. Always a lifelong learner, Berniece stays on top of emerging learner and practitioner needs across Canada, curating relevant research."
          
  Berniece Gowan

Colleen Pierce followed in receiving her medal, and was introduced with Colleen Thiessen's warm remarks that she is, "tirelessly creating barrier free access to education for learners in her rural community. She is a mentor who not just teaches, but shows learners how to build on essential skills to become successful. She focuses on the fundamentals, helping everyone learn and meeting them where they are at."

         
  Colleen Pierce

Roberta Rogers received her medal from Brooks, Alberta, along with Michelle Gietz. Colleen Thiessen detailed how deserving Roberta is of this award by remarking, "Roberta has served as the Board Chair of the Brooks Community Adult Learning Program for 20 years, but has been on this board since its inception in 1975. She has a deep sense of duty and commitment in the area of adult education, and understands that mental health can limit learning. She became the chairperson of the Rural Mental Health Conference Committee (2018) which held the first mental health conference in Canada focusing on mental health challenges in rural communities."


Recipient Roberta Rogers

                
  Colleen Pierce, Berniece Gowan,      We were joined by a wonderful audience!
  and Colleen Thiessen                        

Congratulations again to our worthy recipients. It is clear that we have extraordinary people in Alberta's CALP system who are making a difference in individuals lives everyday through their work and tireless efforts. 

Symposium 2023 Update

Announcing our Symposium 2023 Purpose & Theme 

We are excited to announce that we have confirmed our Purpose, Goals and Theme for 2023!

PURPOSE: To provide curated content to educate, connect and inspire CALPs and community-based adult learning system partners

TARGET AUDIENCE: CALP Staff, Boards and Volunteers  

GOALS:

• Provide relevant training and PD opportunities
• Build and strengthen connections and relationships by:
  • Enhancing engagement
  • Providing networking opportunities
  • Encouraging communities of practice
  • Celebrating milestones

THEME: 
SPARK: Learning. Connections. Inspiration. Curiosity. Innovation.

Symposium Program
We also want to update you that in October we were delighted to receive 36 Call for Presenter submissions and we are now well in the midst of building our Symposium Program for 2023. Watch for more information coming in February 2023 on how to register and all the fun and exciting events planned for the Literacy & Learning Symposium scheduled for May 9-12th!
Looking for Keynote Presenters

Between now and the end of December the Symposium Planning Committee is in search of Keynote Presenters.
If you have suggestions of possible keynote presenters or topics you would like to see at Symposium 2023, please contact Pat Halewich, CLN PD & Events Specialist, at pdevents@calp.ca

And remember - SAVE THE DATES!

Literacy & Learning Symposium 2023

Tuesday, May 9th to Wednesday, May 10th – Virtual event
& Thursday, May 11th to Friday, May 12th – In-person event in Edmonton

Please mark your calendars!

New Feature on the CALP Portal

Forum Group Notification management is a new feature on the CALP Portal. Here's how to manage individual "Group" notifications:

• Log-in to your CALP Portal Account
  
  
• Go to "Forum" on the top blue ribbon (far right)
  
  
• Select a Group, e.g. "All Members and Partners"
  
  
• Click on the "Notifications On" to turn "OFF" the notifications for this group (once selected it should indicate that the notification for the group is now "Off")
  
  

  

If you run into any trouble with the process, please email Ellen at office@calp.ca or call 1-877-485-4926 Ext. 2

 CALP Portal Summary notifications and CLN Connections Newsletter notifications are managed through your "CALP Portal Profile" and are separate from the Group Notification System.

Upcoming Professional Development Opportunities

Check out the events and start dates for November’s and December’s PD opportunities for CALP staff, volunteers, board members, instructors and facilitators. Follow the links for more details. Register now to ensure your spot!

Nov 15 Holding Safer Spaces Open Circle - Taming Your Advice Monster - Do you ever struggle to have all the answers, be responsible for everything, or stay in control? Welcome to your Advice Monster, as identified by Michael Bungay Stanier in his book "The Advice Trap." Join in the discussion and identify ways to step back, listen more, and serve instead of fix those around us.

Nov 17 New CALP Staff Webinar - If you are new in your role in CALP, and still looking to get the lay of the land, please join us to connect with your colleagues from across the province.

Dec 6  Holding Safer Spaces Open Circle - Boundaries – How does it change our perception of boundaries if we witness them as acts of love and tenderness and not just acts of protection and guardedness? Join us with special guest, Heather Plett, to explore what loving boundaries look like and why we need them in our lives.

Dec 8 Tech Talk - This training is for CALP staff to gain the understanding they need to be flexible and adaptable when training others in technology, and to enhance existing classes or design new ones that better address the rapid changes occurring in the world of technology. The instructional approach is transferrable across digital devices and applications. Please take note of the dates for this training. It compresses three sessions over two weeks.

Dec 14 NEW Stepping Into Writing - Want to gain confidence giving meaningful feedback to learners so they are inspired to keep writing? Join Kate Nonesuch, a long-time literacy practitioner who has developed the Never-Fail Writing Method, a learner-centred method for teaching adults to build writing skills, building from their own strengths.  

Don’t miss these opportunities!

Explore Funding Opportunities for your CALP – Back By Popular Demand!!

For the second year in a row, CLN is pleased to provide mentoring to CALP staff. If you are looking to build your CALP programming in directions that meet the learning needs of your community and you are looking for new ideas, advice or input on initiatives you’ve started, or strategies for accessing additional funding then you can book up to an hour with a mentor. Jane Brenner has an extensive background in community needs assessment, accessing funding, and managing projects to meet the foundational learning needs through CALP. 

Future Professional Development Opportunities 

Watch for these popular trainings over the coming year! Registration opens the first week of the month prior to the start date (e.g., registration opens in December for all January training dates).

Introduction to Adult Foundational Learning (required training) 

• January 26, 2023 (5 Thursdays) 

CALP Essentials for Family Literacy Programs (required training for organizations offering family literacy programming)

• January 25, 2023 (3 Wednesdays)

NEW! Indigenous Literacy Assessment

• January 31, 2023 (1 session)

Holding Safer Spaces

• January 17, 2023 (11 Tuesdays)

Adult Literacy and Learning (A.L.L.) in Family Literacy Programs

• March 2, 2023 (3 Thursdays) 

Tech Talk

• April 5, 2023 (3 Wednesdays)

 Communities of Practice

Join your peers in informal online discussions facilitated by CLN staff. Grab a coffee, bring a question, share a success or challenge, and settle in for five minutes or all sixty. 

• Ask Us Anything About Metis and Indigenous Worldview: Nov 16
• New Staff Chat: Dec 12
• North Connections Café: Nov 22, Dec 20
• East Central Connections Café: Nov 22, Dec 14
• West Central Connections Café: Nov 21, Dec 20
• Central Connections Café: Dec 21
• South Connections Café: Dec 14

Literacy In Action

November is Financial Literacy month.

Many families are being challenged by the rising cost of living impacting all of us, including foundational learners. Financial Literacy's focus on managing money and understanding banking is a Community Capacity Building focus under the CALP Guidelines and it is very important to everyone. Promoting Financial Literacy month in your community can be a great way to connect with foundational learners. Not sure if your Financial Literacy program is LFL or CCB? See CALP Grant FAQ. 

The theme for this year is Make Change that Counts: Managing Your Money in a Changing World. The focus is to provide practical tools and tips to support Canadians in managing their debt and balancing their financial needs.

The Financial Consumer Agency of Canada has created messages you can copy for your social media account. You can add your own information to promote the programs you offer around financial literacy here.

You can find more information about Financial Literacy Month and promotional materials you can use in your community here. 

The Financial Consumer Agency of Canada works with Canadian non-profits, public and private organizations to help strengthen the financial literacy of individuals and families and build their financial resilience.

This Month's Spotlight

Holding Safer Space & the Open Circles

Holding Space, as defined by Heather Plett, is “being willing to walk alongside another person in whatever journey they are on without judging them, making them feel inadequate, trying to fix them, or trying to impact the outcome.”

The idea of holding space is not new. It’s the way we support each other with grace, and seeing and caring about the humanity in each other. But when we are living in times of great social change, such as reconciling our colonial history and its impact on the Indigenous people, experiencing a pandemic, going through political unrest and wars along with natural disasters, we will find ourselves challenged by how to be a source of support. How do we know what to say, what to do? Where are the lines between personal and professional? How do we know if we are the right person to hold space for another person?

The Holding Safer Spaces program gives us an understanding of the simple and complex ways that our humanity shows up in our work interactions. Meeting weekly provides a safe space to gather together and explore these concepts. It is important to learn strategies to discuss not just the big things that are going on around us but also the everyday experiences that we face; like when a co-worker experiences the loss of a loved one or is struggling with their workload, or when a learner can’t focus or follow through because they are overwhelmed from the demands of a family and working two jobs. 

The goal of this training is professional, but the practice is personal.

We encourage you to consider joining the Holding Safer Spaces circle when the training starts on January 17th. It’s a new day and time – Tuesday’s from 9:30-11:00 am.

If you’re still not sure if this is a good fit for you, check out the upcoming Open Circles:

Taming your Advice Monster – November 15th
https://calp.ca/events/holding-safer-space-open-circle-taming-your-advice-monster-2022-11-15.htm 

Boundaries - with guest host Heather Plett – December 6th
https://calp.ca/events/holding-safer-spaces-open-circles-boundaries-2022-12-06.htm