NEW Conference Location / NOUVEAU lieu de la conférence

OSCA/ACOSO is excited to announce our new partnership with the University of Toronto Mississauga.  This year’s conference will take place on the picturesque grounds of the U of T - Mississauga Campus on Thursday, October 18 and Friday, October 19, 2019.   

Registration is now OPEN!        http://bit.ly/osca2019
 

Conference Subthemes / Sous-thèmes de la conférence

Mental Health and Well-being

Ontario students come to us from diverse backgrounds and with a complex set of experiences and needs. We have seen a rise in the number of students who are dealing with social/emotional issues, and Mental Health promotion is a focus for school boards across the province. Meeting the needs related to Mental Health and Well-Being will be the focus of these workshops designed to assist counsellors in understanding and supporting today’s learner. Share how you have informed, engaged and supported all types of learners in fostering positive Mental Health and Well-Being practices. 

Modern Pathways

The landscape of the workplace is changing rapidly. Future Ready students will need strong leadership and global competencies to be competitive as they meet the expectations of this new environment. Share how you are engaging students in their future pathways with knowledge of labour market information, innovation, creativity, and entrepreneurship. 

Conference Registration Information/Informations d’inscription à la conférence

 OSCA/ACOSO encourages delegates to join our association.  You can obtain or renew your subscription at www.osca.ca before registering for the conference to get the discounted conference rate.

Registration is now OPEN! 

http://bit.ly/osca2019

Please Note:  Within a week, you will be sent an invitation to join the SCHED App. Once you join, you will have the opportunity to choose your workshops.

Conference registration is also posted on  www.osca.ca Please view for registration updates! 

For real-time updates, follow us on Twitter @OSCA_ACOSO #osca19. 

We are also pleased to be partnered with School Mental Health Ontario

School Mental Health Ontario (SMHO) is a provincial implementation support team designed to help Ontario school boards to promote student mental health and well-being using evidence-based approaches.  This team of school mental health professionals, senior administrators and implementation scientists works alongside the Ministry of Education to provide leadership and guidance, ongoing coaching support, a suite of resources, and a community of practice for all Ontario school boards and remote school authorities. 

Here is a sampling of some of the amazing workshops you can look forward to; for a complete list of workshops, please see your new copy of the OSCA Today magazine. 

• Supporting Mentally Healthy Students Across the Curriculum and Beyond
• Mindfulness in the Guidance Office 
• Supporting a Student Experiencing Mental Health Struggles - How Can an Educator Help? 
• Managing Anxiety 
• All Stressed Up With Nowhere to Go
• Building Resilience in High School Students Through a 4 Year Program
• In the driver's seat of my emotions! And anxiety in rear-view mirror!
• Guidance Toolkit 
• The Connection Between Cognitive Distortions and Anxiety
• Introduction to Mental Health Literacy
• Building a B.R.I.G.H.T Mental Health & Wellbeing Classroom 
• Supporting Students Who Experience Depression
• Eating Disorder
• L'influence de l'identité francophone sur le bien-être psychologique
• Problem Solving With Teens
• Dealing With "That Parent"
• Non-Suicidal Self Injury
• Cannabis Use
• Indigenous Youth and Cultural Responsiveness
• Purposeful Transitions: 3 keys to Positive Education and Career Development
• Revised Career Studies Course 
• What's Your Plan? 
• MIse à jour du Ministère 
• Engaging Youth in Careers in Agriculture
• Online Learning Strategies
• Supporting All Pathways for All Students
• Engaging girls in STEM career options
• Guidance Programming That Supports Education and Career/Life Planning 
• Scholarship Success: Practical Ways to Support Students
• Supporting Education & Career/Life Planning Through STEM Careers Exploration
• How Technology and Creativity Can Build a Multifaceted, Entrepreneurial Career
• Constructing A Skilled Trades Pathway
• Preparing for Ontario's new Careers curriculum
• #Neverstoplearning with TVO
• Labour Market Information to Support Student Career Choices 
• Who Do I Want to Become?
• Votre programme d'orientation à l'instar du cadre conceptuel du PPACV
• Ways to Pay for Post-Secondary
• Working with the Immigrant/ Refugee Child- the importance of knowing the stories of our cross-cultural students
• Promoting Student Voice: A Mental Wellness and Transitions Toolkit for Educators

Attention all OSCA/ACOSO Subscribers! All 2018-2019 subscriptions will be expiring on September 30th! Stay connected to Guidance and Career Education in Ontario by renewing today! Continue to receive the OSCA News delivered to your mailbox once a week, receive the OSCA Today magazine three times a year, receive yearly conference discounts, and your own copy of Ethical Guidelines available through the website subscribers lounge.

In addition, the OSCA Board has been working very hard to partner with organizations that would be able to provide further professional learning to meet the needs from the "2018 Role of the Guidance Teacher Counsellor' survey. These new professional learning opportunities will be announced shortly.

 

In the meanwhile, please plan to attend this year's conference entitled, "Constructing a Bright Future: Avenues for Career and Personal Decision Making," with sub themes: "Mental Health and Well-Being," and "Modern Pathways." This year's conference was planned around the two top professional learning needs as identified in the 2018 survey by OSCA/ACOSO subscribers. The two top needs were 1. training on skills connected to mental health and well being and 2. learning about jobs of the future and future workplace trends. The Board of Directors is excited about the theme, the keynotes, the workshop topics and the new location. We wish to see all OSCA subscribers at this year's conference which is earlier this year - October 17th and October 18th at University Toronto Mississauga (UTM). Early discounted rates are available to those that have renewed their subscriptions for 2019-2020.

If you are an individual wishing to renew or start a subscription, please go to: https://www.osca.ca/about-us/membership/how-to-renew-single-or-bulk.html for more information.

If you are a board lead and wish to purchase a board bulk subscriptions, please email the OSCA office at
oscadesk@gmail.com so we can assist you. RENEW today!

The OSCA 2019 Conference is quickly approaching. With the new timing of the conference being in October, your OSCA Board has worked very hard to reserve hotel rooms for your convenience, but now there is a quicker deadline to consider. Although the rate will continue to apply up until the conference, room availability may become limited. For this reason, we suggest you plan on booking your hotel at discounted prices as soon as you can. Although you may not have yet registered for the conference, please book your hotel room early so that you're not disappointed!

The Ontario School Counsellors' Association has a longstanding tradition (over 40 years) of recognizing and awarding those who stand out in the field of Guidance and Career Education. Each year at our annual conference, OSCA recognizes individuals and/or organizations that have made a significant contribution to Guidance and Career Education in Ontario. We can say with confidence that our past award winners have helped thousands of students to find their pathways to successful futures!

OSCA's awards are an excellent way of recognizing your most dedicated peers in the following categories: 

• Curriculum and Resources
• Counsellor Professional Development
• Elementary Guidance
• Peer Helping
• Contribution to Guidance and Career Education

Consider nominating a worthy colleague today!

OSCA/ACOSO is pleased to offer Additional Qualifications Part 1 and Part 2 for Guidance and Career Education this fall. Taught by a current Guidance-Teacher Counsellor in an Ontario school, this course uses an online virtual classroom setting, making the course accessible for all. The course outlines all the necessary practices for delivery of a comprehensive Guidance and Career Education program for your school. There is no textbook with this course, and the fees also include a copy Ethical Guidelines as well as a one-year AQ student subscription to OSCA.
Course dates are September 23rd to December 6th.
Cost: $650.
Please visit OSCA's website to register at www.osca.ca.

2019 Ontario College Information Fair (OCIF) The largest College Information Fair in Ontario!

Enercare Centre – Exhibition Place, Toronto
Wednesday October 23, 2019 - 5:00 pm to 9:00 pm
Thursday October 24, 2019 – 9:00 am to 2:00 pm

Send your students to the Fair on us! OCIF offers bus subsidies of up to $250/bus to any school who wishes to send their students to the event. Instead of planning your own College Fair, send your students to the largest College Fair in Ontario! ocif.ca

OUInfo 2020 includes a refreshed look and new logo, while maintaining the same functionality. It was renamed to better align with the Council of Ontario Universities' new branding and the Ontario university community, and to more closely reflect the content of the website.The new Ontario Universities’ Info 2020 is live! Find and compare Ontario university programs, plus research residences, scholarships, campus visits and more.

OUInfo is the only resource that is updated directly by the Ontario universities. Visit: www.ontariouniversitiesinfo.ca and www.ontariouniversitiesinfo.ca/fr

Universities post updates to OUInfo throughout the year – check back regularly.

Find more information about Extenuating Circumstances on the Guidance website.

All the best in the new school year!

Le nouveau site Web d’Info des universités de l’Ontario 2020 est disponible! Recherchez et comparez les programmes des universités de l’Ontario. Vous y trouverez aussi des renseignements sur les résidences, les bourses d’études, les visites de campus et plus encore.

Info-UO 2020 comprend un tout nouveau look et un nouveau logo, tout en maintenant les mêmes fonctionnalités. Il a été renommé afin de s’aligner plus étroitement à la nouvelle image de marque du Conseil des universités de l'Ontario et à la collectivité des universités de l’Ontario, mais également de mieux refléter le contenu du site Web.

Info-UO est la seule ressource mise à jour directement par les universités de l’Ontario. Rendez-vous au : www.ontariouniversitiesinfo. ca/fr.

 Les universités mettent à jour leurs données tout au long de l’année; nous vous conseillons donc de consulter régulièrement le site Web Info-UO.

 Trouver de plus amples renseignements au sujet des circonstances atténuantes au site Web d'Orientation.

Meilleurs succès en ce début de nouvelle année scolaire!

 

See all 21 Ontario universities under one roof at the 2019 Ontario Universities' Fair (OUF)! The OUF takes place September 27-29, 2019, at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. Admission is free! 

The OUF Passport registration website will open in July at www.ontariouniversitiesfair.ca/passport. 

By registering for an OUF Passport, students receive a QR code that they take to the OUF and get scanned at university booths and presentation rooms of their choice.

It's the easiest way for them to share their contact information to receive more info about the universities they are interested in. 

OUF Guidance Counsellor Tool Kit 
We've compiled a tool kit to assist you with promoting the OUF to your students. It includes key messages, sample school announcements, social media posts and ways to follow the OUF on social media. 

Next steps for you: 

• View the OUF Tool Kit at: www.ouac.on.ca/guidance/counsellor-resources/ouf-tool-kit
• Leave messaging about the OUF on your school sign for the summer and help keep the event on everyone's radar.
• Share the OUF messages in your morning announcements and via the school communication app Remind.
• Follow the OUF on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and share our posts.
• Add the OUF to the calendar on your school website.
• Include information about the OUF on your school website for parents to access.
• Schedule social media posts for August and September.

We hope you find this information helpful. If you have questions, please contact ouf@ouac.on.ca.