OSSTF/FESSO Presents the Lamp of Learning Award to Rick Salutin

TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - May 30, 2012) - The Ontario Secondary School Teachers' Federation (OSSTF/FEESO) is proud to announce Rick Salutin as the winner of the 2012 Lamp of Learning Award.

"The Lamp of Learning Award is the most prestigious award we bestow upon a person who is not one of our members," said OSSTF/FEESO president, Ken Coran. "It recognizes exemplary contributions to public education in Ontario."

Rick Salutin, an award-winning playwright, novelist, journalist and cultural critic, is being celebrated for his series of five articles published in the Toronto Star in 2011 titled, "Saving Public Education." In these essays he examines our public school system, highlighting its successes and warning of potential threats to its present existence.

The following is an excerpt:

"Is there anything public schools do that no other form of education can? Only this: Simply by being what they are, they can teach kids about the society they live in. That's because public schools must let everyone in. What's unique about public education isn't the education part, it's the public."

Mr. Salutin has since expanded his series of essays and published them as a book titled Keeping the Public in Public Education.

"It is clear to us," said Coran, "that Rick Salutin's observations on public education are astute and thoughtful. He raises the level of discourse on the subject and helps all of us see how fortunate we are to have such a strong public education system-one that must be protected at all costs."

The Lamp of Learning Award will be awarded to Rick Salutin at the meeting of OSSTF/FEESO's Provincial Council on June 1, 2012, at 8:15 p.m. at the Westin Bristol Place Toronto Airport Hotel.

OSSTF/FEESO, founded in 1919, has 60,000 members across Ontario. They include public high school teachers, occasional teachers, educational assistants, continuing education teachers and instructors, early childhood educators, psychologists, secretaries, speech-language pathologists, social workers, plant support personnel, university support staff, and many others in education.