Facility Professional Development Session
Monday, May 1, 2023, 9:00 am to 4:00 pm
FREE! No-cost registration - benefit of ORFA membership. Registration not required if you are registered in one of the training courses being offered at the Spring Professional Development Program.
Ongoing professional development is a critical component of proving employee competency. Recreation supervision, management and administration cannot be taken for granted as it is continuously evolving. It requires a dedicated investment by the individual and or their employer to ensure that those responsible understand what is impacting our industry. The ORFA is committed to provide leading-edge information presentations that will assist todays recreation professionals in meeting these goals.
Accessible Emergency Preparedness
Emergency Management Ontario (EMO) provides an overview of their work and their vision of comprehensive emergency management. EMO will emphasize the important roles recreation facilities often play in a community’s emergency preparedness plan: they may act as warming and cooling centres or as potential short-term housing during a local, or regional, disaster. The design and construction of these facilities, as well as general preparedness for an emergency, does not always reflect the needs of persons with disabilities. As recreation practitioners embrace and invest significantly in the AODA as a social and moral responsibility of equal access to public facilities, the ORFA reminds facility managers that just as much investment is required to ensure that persons with disabilities can safely evacuate the facility. EMO outlines different customer service best practices and other resources to support the training of management and staff to ensure AODA compliance through anything, even a disaster.
Presenters: Emergency Management Ontario
Katee Brough, Public Education Program Officer, Masters in Disaster and Emergency Management
Sarah Goertz, Program Specialist – Public Education & Communications, Cert. Learning Experience Design
Alison MacAulay, Public Education Program Officer, former University of Toronto lecturer
A Review of the TSSA Unattended Guarded Plant Advisory
For more than 35-years, ORFA members have requested more clarity and direction specific to registered, unattended, ice sheet refrigeration plant operations and management from the Technical Standards and Safety Authority (TSSA) who is the governing agency responsible for compliance to the Operating Engineers Regulation. The ORFA is pleased to announce that this day has arrived. ORFA, Curl ON and the Northern Ontario Curling Association have worked directly with TSSA in designing information that will help clarify roles and responsibilities associated with the Operating Engineers Regulation. Although there has been no actual change to the Regulation, the clarification of ownership, responsible user and expected levels of competency of those in care and control of these industrial refrigeration plants is much more defined. The TSSA will review a recently released Advisory and this presentation is strongly recommended for any member who has operational and management responsibilities of these refrigeration plants.
Presenter: Glen Lang, Chief Officer, Operating Engineers, Technical Standards and Safety Authority
The Ontario Municipal Health & Safety Professionals Association (OMHSPA) - Is It For You?
Health and safety is a fundamental responsibility of every municipal supervisor or leader. It necessitates time, knowledge and commitment to navigate the ever changing health and safety legislative landscape in order to keep workers and workplaces safe. This can be challenging and often requires the support and guidance of safety professionals. The OMHSPA is a professional, not-for-profit association committed to improving health and safety in municipal workplaces in Ontario. OMHSPA works with provincial and municipal governments, professional designation and regulatory bodies, as well as legal professionals and safety-related associations, to collectively provide municipal input and influence towards consistent Health & Safety best practice across the Province of Ontario.
Association members meet regularly throughout the year for knowledge enhancement, professional development, and also participate in an invaluable network that can be quickly tapped into for advice, guidance or providing feedback for surveys and input on government consultations. The group is always willing to share resources that can be used for program implementation, enhancement, or training purposes. Active professionals in non-union occupational health and safety roles can be considered for membership with OMHSPA. The invaluable information shared through OMHSPA membership will help enhance your safety program and overall safety culture.
Presenter: OMHSPA Chairperson, Karen Spencer, B.Sc., CHRL, CRSP
ORFA Membership ROI Investment Update
The ORFA is an organization that is financially supported by our members. Who a member is, what they receive as part of their membership and what return on investment (ROI) they are receiving is a conversation that the Board of Directors and staff have identified as being a 2023 priority to evaluate to ensure that we are serving those who support our efforts with real value. The Association has invested in technology to ensure that we are connected with our members. We also realize that our members are often lost in a sea of emails, texts and phone calls and that at times we might be adding to their workload. Finding balance is something we are also investing in. Recreation has been and will continue to be a social environment. In this spirit, our members continue to share that would like to remain connected in real time. Building on these two platforms, it will be my pleasure to connect directly with you our member in this presentation. I will highlight what your peers are being challenged with as they reach out to us for guidance and direction, what we have been researching and developing to assist the industry with having the right tools on hand when they need them. The ORFA is your Association – as staff we are focused on serving your needs. I look forward to connecting with you.
Presenter: Terry Piche, ORFA Director Training, Research and Development
This course is worth 6 professional development credits towards recertification of any ORFA professional designation
