CEO Update - October/November 2021

2022 Board and Panel Members

This year, we once again held our three divisional sessions in advance of the AGM General Session. I am pleased to report the following members have been selected to join and chair the Board and Panels (please note the asterisk indicates the member is also on CSSEA’s Board):

Indigenous Services:
Chair: Melanie Hudson – Island Métis Family & Community Services Society
Vice Chair: Adam Calvert* - La Societé de les Enfants Michif (Métis Family Services)

Community Living Services:
Chair: Tammy Khanna – Independent Living Housing Society of Greater Victoria
Vice Chair: Dawn Hein – Mission Association for Community Living
Ryan Cucheron* - Venture Training
Dana Gorbahn – Gorbahn Professional Alternative Resources Inc.
Tanya Sather – Burnaby Association for Community Inclusion

General Services:
Chair: Judy Valsonis – Touchstone Family Association
Vice Chair: Jaye Russell – Sea to Sky Community Services Society
Sanjeev Nand – Langley Community Services Society
Rod Santiago* - Archway Community Services

I also extend my congratulations to Rod Santiago for taking over the Board Chair position and Ryan Cucheron for taking the Board Vice Chair role. On behalf of CSSEA and the entire membership, I thank Fernando Coelho for his leadership as Board Chair for the last two years.

HRLR Staffing and Workloads

CSSEA’s HRLR team is currently experiencing a much heavier than normal workload and that is expected to continue for the coming months. As you may know, in addition to HRLR staff’s typical workloads, they are representing approximately 100 employers in local issues bargaining, and will be engaging in provincial bargaining soon. The team is also working short staffed at this time pending the filling of vacancies. We will aim to acknowledge receipt of your inquiries within 24 hours but ask for your patience and understanding while we balance additional competing priorities and may not be able to provide answers to all of your questions as swiftly as usual. Please be assured that CSSEA always strives to maintain a high quality of advice and service to members, and aims to do it in a timely way.

2021 CSSEA Conference: Presentations and Feedback

Many thanks to all members who joined us at this year’s conference, Resilience Builds Strength, which took place from October 19-21. While the event was once again held virtually, we are grateful to this year’s emcee Carol Ann Fried for facilitating the networking ice breakers that brought participants together on a more personal level. All speaker presentations are now posted on the conference website and are available for download. In addition, I encourage all attendees to fill out the post-conference evaluation by 5pm tomorrow Friday, November 5 so we can learn more about what aspects of the virtual conference worked well (or didn’t). As a token of our appreciation for taking the time to complete the evaluation, we will be randomly drawing and giving away a prize of a $50 Starbucks gift card.

Community Social Services Awards of Excellence

After a one year pause, I am pleased that we were able to celebrate the achievements of the sector once again through our virtual BC Community Social Services Awards of Excellence. We extend heartfelt congratulations to our 2021 winners – Rising Star Alexandra Bissley; Hero Florence Kao; Leader Bonnie Moriarty; and Legend Ellen Tarshis – for representing our sector with the outstanding work they continue to do. If you missed the awards ceremony and would like the learn more about this year’s recipients, please view their video vignettes on our Awards of Excellence website.

Management Leadership Courses Available December 1

At our recent conference, CSSEA introduced an online leadership learning platform that will officially open to the membership on December 1. The web-based platform will offer a number of important and practical HRLR modules, as well as live coaching opportunities and other interactive features. The full suite of courses will be available to registrants for a flat rate of $225 per leader per quarter ($200 per leader if an organization registers five or more). The first cohort is due to begin learning in January 2022 and members can find more details in the conference presentation delivered by facilitator Drew Bird, as well as in this online brochure.

MCFD Announces New Service Delivery Model

The Ministry of Children and Family Development recently announced changes to its service delivery model for children and youth with support needs. The new model is now needs-based and will allow children, youth and their families to quickly access information, expert intervention and therapies at new one-stop family connections hubs, regardless of whether they have a referral or diagnosis. For more information on the changes, please consult this government News Release. For information about the new model, as well as past and future consultations, check out this website.

2020 CSSEA Fact Book

CSSEA’s annual Fact Book is now complete and members can expect to receive a hard copy of the publication at their agencies in the coming weeks. An electronic copy can also be downloaded here.