Community Learning Network's 2021-22 Board of Directors

Thank you to everyone who joined us for CLN's 34th Annual General Meeting virtually on September 28th.

We are pleased to share with you the CLN Board of Directors for the 2021-22 year:

                                  
Colleen Thiessen, Chair          Lois Polege, Vice Chair       

Stephanie Brown, Treasurer     Rochelle Galeski, Secretary 

                     
Cindy Heidecker, Director               Kimberly Cairns, Director

                     
Melanie Patenaude, Director         Tanya Mercredi, Director

To contact the CLN Board of Directors please email board@calp.ca.

A note from Kate Glover:
Life turns on a dime, so quickly that I have regretfully had to resign from the CLN board. I wish the very best for the new board and hope to see everyone next year at another excellent symposium.

Highlights from the Literacy and Learning Symposium 2021 (Virtual)

Thanks to everyone who attended our second ever virtual Literacy and Learning Symposium. 

We had a great 4 days of thought provoking keynotes, enlightening training sessions, well deserved celebrations and insightful conversations and connections. Your engagement and enthusiasm made this Symposium a great success.

Here are some highlights from the Literacy and Learning Symposium 2021 (Virtual):

Opening Keynote Alexandra Samuel

Colleen Thiessen, CLN Board Chair and Executive Director of Wetaskiwin Community Learning Program and Lisa Dickner, CLN Executive Director our lovely hosts!

Energizer Break with Melanie Levenberg (bottom middle)

Nancy Carlson, host of NEWS AT 6, CBC Edmonton was emcee of the Awards Ceremony

Cora Roberts, Alberta Advanced Education

Closing Keynote, Dr. Rumeet Billan

Celebration and Ceremony: National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and the 2021 Literacy and Learning Awards

Since September 30, 2021 was the first National Day for Truth and Reconciliation in Canada and is also Orange Shirt Day, CLN wanted to recognize the significance of the day. We had Elder Dr. Mary Omeasso-Moonias and Elder Dave Matilpi start the afternoon with prayer and a few words, had a performance by Chubby Cree and we had a mini-keynote, Richard Van Camp who was also one of the authors for our first ever Meet the Author sessions. 

Elder Dr. Mary Omeasso-Moonias and Elder Dave Matilpi

Indigenous hand drum group Chubby Cree

Richard Van Camp

The annual Literacy and Learning Awards Ceremony was held on Thursday, September 30th in conjunction with the 2021 Symposium (Virtual). This was an amazing time to celebrate the outstanding accomplishments in community-based literacy and learning in Alberta. 

The ceremony started with a live message from The Honourable Jason Kenney, Premier of Alberta welcoming all to the Awards Ceremony and presenting the prestigious 2021 Council of the Federation Literacy Award to The Immigrant Education Society (TIES) in Calgary. 

TIES is a not-for-profit charitable organization that has been serving Calgary for over 30 years. They have become an integral part of Calgary’s immigrant-serving community and continue to strive to give newcomers and low-income Canadians the opportunities to find their rightful place in the city.

Sally Zhao, CEO accepted the award

The CLN Board of Directors also presented two "Outstanding Contribution to Community Adult Learning" awards this year.

Deena Fuller, Executive Director of Hinton Adult Learning Society was recognized for her exemplary leadership skills and her determination to work through all limitations and challenges. She encourages her team to provide a learner-centred, trauma-aware and strengths-based learning environment. Over the past year, Deena motivate her staff to adapt with little interruption to supports and services through COVID, while following all AHS guidelines. 

Nicole Sharman, Executive Director of Drayton Valley & District Community Learning Association was recognized for her dedication to building partnerships in her community to create greater awareness of their CALP's programs. Not only did she ensure all staff and volunteers had a seamless transition to online programming, but she also worked with Northern Lakes College to build a program for her team that focused on Effective Online Learning to enhance their online instruction skills.
  

The Centre for Family Literacy presented the Ruth Hayden Family Literacy Practitioner Award to Marilyn Calkins, Literacy Coordinator at the Connect Society for the meaningful work she does in her community. 

Congratulations to all the 2021 award winners, and thank you to all of you for your exceptional work and dedication in your communities!

Literacy and Learning Symposium 2021 (virtual) Adult Learner Speakers

The heart of the work we do is to serve and support adult foundational learners, so what better way to honour these learners from around the province than to let them share their stories of triumph, hard work and determination to inspire, encourage and keep all of us motivated. 

This year, once again, we had the privilege of hearing from two Adult Learner speakers, who shared their stories. 

Stephen Arsenault from Camrose Camrose & Area Adult Learning Council

Stephen spoke at the Opening Ceremony, and shared his story on how he made a choice to change the direction of his life having lived a life impacted with homelessness, alcohol, drugs, and financial problems. He walked through the doors at Camrose Adult Learning Council and became their biggest success story. Three months later he left with a GED (highest marks in the province) and even enrolled in Athabasca University.

Leslie Forrest from Kneehill Adult Learning Society

Leslie spoke at the Awards Ceremony. She has a visual impairment which made school difficult. Without supports, she failed 3 grades and only went as far as modified grade 10. Now, at 58 years of age, Leslie is engaged in tutoring at Kneehill Adult Learning Society and she loves it!

Symposium 2021 (Virtual) - Overall & Training Evaluation Forms

We want to thank everyone who presented, attended, and made our second virtual Symposium such an outstanding success! We hope that all of you felt that the connections and learning were meaningful and valuable. 

Overall Evaluation

Thank you to everyone who took the time to complete the overall evaluation form on Chime Live. If you didn’t get a chance to complete it, we have kept the Chime Live site open until Thursday, October 15th for you to still do so. We'd like to invite any additional feedback you may have to inform our planning for 2021. Please login to Chime Live at https://symposium2021.can.chime.live using your email and Chime Live password and click on the “Event Evaluation” tab on the left hand side.

Training Evaluation

If you did not have the time or opportunity to complete the training evaluation forms for the Track Sessions here are the Track Sessions evaluation links (by Track A, B, C and D depending on the session):

https://calp.ca/profile/symposium-2020-session-evaluations-track-a.htm

https://calp.ca/profile/symposium-2020-session-evaluations-track-b.htm

https://calp.ca/profile/symposium-2020-session-evaluations-track-c.htm

https://calp.ca/profile/symposium-2020-session-evaluations-track-d.htm

Please complete the evaluation forms by Thursday, October 15th.

Protecting Your Data: Two-Factor Authentication for CLN Websites

Later this month, CLN will be implementing key system upgrades to increase the security of your online accounts across all our websites. The websites that will be impacted by this security update include the CALP Portal, the CALP Database, and AdultLearningAlberta.ca.

Beginning the week of October 25th, CLN will be rolling out 2-Factor Authentication (2FA) for logins to these sites.

What is 2FA?

Two-factor authentication (2FA) is an extra step in the login process, which provides an added layer of security to your online accounts. 2FA requires the user to provide two forms of identification to access their accounts and their personal information and data.

What does that mean for me?

Starting the week of October 25th, when you enter your username and password to access one of our CALP websites, you will be prompted to enter a code to complete your login. This code will be sent to you by email.

What do I have to do to prepare? 

• Make sure that you have added portal@calp.ca and news@calp.ca to your “safe senders” lists
• Ensure the email address on your profile(s) is up to date

How do I check my account(s)?

To update your CALP Portal account (www.calp.ca), use the “Edit Account” link at the top of your screen:

For the CALP Database, you can access your user profile as a drop-down option under your name at the top of your screen:

 For Adult Learning Alberta, your login and user profile information appear at the bottom of the home page:

When will these changes come into effect?

2FA will be implemented across our websites the week of October 25th.

Questions?

Contact Odette Lloyd, Communications Specialist at news@calp.ca.

Upcoming CLN Trainings, Connections Cafés and Mentoring

Register for the following CLN Trainings that have upcoming registration deadlines and spaces still available!! Click on the name of the training to get to the registration page directly. If the training is full please add yourself to the wait list. Please note if a training is not posted below, then the deadline has already passed. 

Training

Required Training

• Introduction to Adult Foundational Learning (November - FULL) *Will be offered in 2022
• CALP Essentials for Family Literacy Programs (November)
  • Morning Session
  • Afternoon Session

Training in Literacy and Numeracy Instruction and Practice

• Instructor in Foundational Literacy / Instructor in Foundational Numeracy Micro-credential – starts October 11, ongoing intake

October:

• Database Bits and Bytes: Entering Learning Opportunities
• Database Bits and Bytes: Entering and Registering Learners

November:

• ALL In Family Literacy Programs
  • Afternoon Session
  • Evening Session

Mentorship

Explore Funding Opportunities for your CALP

Have you started looking for the possibilities for your CALP to expand on the work that you do by accessing additional funding? If you want to think outside the box to meet the learning needs of your community, then take this unique opportunity to meet one-on-one and learn from Jane Brenner, the former Executive Director of a robust CALP for over 35 years. Explore these topics and more with Jane:

• Community needs assessment to identify learning needs
• Prioritizing needs and targeting funding sources
• Proposal writing
• Managing multiple projects
• How to shift the mindset in your CALP to think outside the box
• What’s next, if the needs of the community go outside the mandate of the CALP grant?

What CALPs are saying about mentorship with Jane: 

“Our CALP was delighted to have an opportunity to participate in a mentorship session with Jane Brenner. Jane has an extensive background within the CALP system of over 36 years' experience and her expertise was demonstrated during our session. Jane was able to target key aspects that our organization needed to focus on through the review of our community adult learning needs assessment and provide us with practical resources and recommendations that could benefit our CALP in the future. Jane is an excellent resource”

To book at time with Jane, click here

Regional Connections Cafés

Grab a coffee, bring a question, share a success or challenge, stay for five minutes or settle in for all ninety. These monthly Connections Cafés are an opportunity for you to connect with CALP staff in your region.

 East Regional Connections Cafés - October 12 and November 16

South Regional Connections Cafés - October 12 and November 15

North Regional Connections Cafés - October 12 and November 16

West Regional Connections Cafés - October 12 and November 15

Central Regional Connections Cafés - October 13 and November 16

CLN's 2020-21 Annual Report

The CLN Board and Staff are pleased to share our accomplishments of the past year, and our reflections on the year that was 2020-2021.

Please click on the image below to see the animated digital Annual Report. 

The Community Learning Network is committed to maintaining our strong history of fiscal responsibility and transparency. Every fiscal year, CLN voluntarily submits to an external financial audit. Our 2020-21 Audited Financial Statements are available here.

CLN's Updated Cancellation Policy

Please note that CLN's updated cancellation and refund guidelines are now in effect. 

For paid training, professional development and other events hosted or coordinated by the Community Learning Network, please be advised of the following cancellation and refund guidelines:

If you are unable to attend a training event, you must notify Community Learning Network via email of all cancellations prior to the first day of the training. Non-attendance does not constitute notice of withdrawal.

• Notice of Cancellation that is given within the required number of days before the training event will ensure you can transfer registration to someone else in your organization. Events with CLN trainers require 7 days notice and events with guest trainers, not from CLN, require 10 days notice before the training event. 

• If Notice of Cancellation is given fewer than 7 or 10 days (as stated above) before the first day of the training event, the registration fee is non-refundable and non-transferable.
  
  
• Registration fees are non-refundable.

Important Note: The CALP Portal also promotes relevant professional development, training and/or literacy-focused community events hosted by partner organizations and Community Adult Learning system stakeholders.

For external events that are posted on the CALP Portal Training & Events Calendar, please check with the hosting organization for information on their registration, cancellation and refund policies.

CLN's guidelines can also be found on the Portal at https://calp.ca/cancellation-and-refund-guidelines.html.

Digital Divide Project Survey

You are invited to participate in a survey from the Digital Divide Project at Calgary Learns!

Back in June, our first survey asked about your experiences in shifting to online, remote, and blended learning, and about the barriers your learners face in accessing it. Your responses revealed rich insights and reflections that paint a clear picture of what the last 18 months have been like in adult foundational learning programs.

In response to what we heard from you, we created a second survey to dig deeper into the wise strategies and practices that you and your learners are using to navigate this new reality. 

In Survey #2, we ask you:

• To share how you have adjusted to online, remote, and blended learning with your observations, insights and successful strategies
• To share learners’ voices and perspectives by integrating our suggested learner questions into your processes (eg. during your registration or onboarding of learners), and sharing back with us what you hear from your learners.

CLICK HERE to take our survey.

The Digital Divide Project has the potential to impact policy and practice across Alberta in order to reduce barriers and to share wise practices for how to deliver online learning. But to have a strong impact, we need to hear from you.

The survey will be open during the month of October, starting on October 1st. 

We strongly encourage you to participate, regardless of whether you did our first survey or not.

We look forward to hearing, and sharing, your perspectives.

Many thanks for your time and collaboration in strengthening our CALP community.

Monica Leong, Project Manager, Digital Divide Project

(CLICK HERE for more information about the survey and the Digital Divide Project.)

This Month's Spotlight

This month's spotlight is Cyber Security Awareness Month (CSAM) in Canada.

CSAM is an internationally recognized campaign held in October to help the public become more aware of the importance of cyber security. The theme this year is “Life Happens Online”.

This past year most of us have been more reliant on technology for work, connecting with learners and also seeing our friends and families online. This campaign helps Canadians stay secure online by teaching them simple steps to protect themselves and their devices.

To find out more on what you can do to protect yourself, your work place and your family online go to https://www.getcybersafe.gc.ca/en/cyber-security-awareness-month.