The BC Teachers’ Federation (BCTF) is seeking four teachers to participate in a Ministry of Children and Family Development’s Child and Youth Mental Health Policy and Prevention and Early Intervention advisory/working group.
BCTF members selected will represent the BCTF as follows:
| Grade Level/Specialist Area |
Number of BCTF representatives |
| Grades K–7 |
1 |
| Grades 8–12 |
1 |
| Learning support teachers, behaviour support teachers and counsellors |
2 |
Purpose
Last year, the Children’s Health Policy Centre at Simon Fraser University, in collaboration with the BC Representative of Children and Youth, published a report confirming a high prevalence of mental disorders for children with neurodevelopmental conditions in B.C. Since the release of these findings, in addition to extensive consultations and feedback, building the capacity of parents, educators and care providers who are supporting neurodiverse children and youth with co-occurring mental health challenges has become one of the Ministry of Children and Family Development’s (MCFD) Child and Youth Mental Health Policy and Prevention and Early Intervention (CYMH-PEI) team’s priority areas of focus.
Earlier this year, the CYMH-PEI team led a neurodiverse mental health project, involving the development of a collection of short videos with accompanying resources for parents and care providers, with the goal of increasing mental health literacy, while also broadening an understanding of mental health in relation to neurodiversity. This collection is close to completion and will soon be made publicly available online and will be hosted by MCFD’s Healthy Minds BC website. Throughout this project, and from information received from an Advisory Table (including parents with lived experience and professionals supporting families with neurodivergent children and youth) it was evident that educators could greatly benefit from similar resources to help build their capacity in supporting neurodivergent students.
Term and remuneration
The first advisory/working group meeting will take place early the week of November 4, 2024, and a second advisory/working group meeting will follow in late November. Filming for the short videos will take place in early December.
Members of the working group will be invited to participate in the filming component (i.e., via providing an interview to share their perspectives), but this will not be required.
A third Advisory/working group meeting will then take place mid to late January 2025, once the video drafts are available for review and feedback. It is anticipated that most of the working group meetings will be 1.5 hours in length and that there may be additional opportunities for members to be involved, depending on their interest and capacity.
The estimated time commitment between early November 2024 and March 2025 for each group member is 7 hours, and upwards of 10–12 hours for those who wish to be interviewed for the videos.
Participating members will be compensated at a rate of $50/hour for this work.
Selection criteria
- active BCTF membership status
- awareness of the role and responsibilities of representing the BCTF and the teaching profession, including the ability to work collaboratively in a co-constructive team environment and meet deadlines
- relevant teaching experience and expertise that can contribute to the success of the project
- balance of diversity—gender, Aboriginal, regional representation, etc., will be sought.
Deadline for application: Wednesday, October 16, 2024, at 5:00 p.m.
(late applications will not be accepted)
To apply
Complete the online CV form.
Email your application to applications@bctf.ca
Direct enquiries to:
Grahame Rainey, BC Teachers’ Federation, government-liaison@bctf.ca
604-871-1845 or 1-800-663-9163, local 1845
An applicant may wish to provide, on a voluntary basis, information as to whether they self-identify as a member of an equity-seeking group.