Alberta Teachers' Association
 | |
| Abbreviation | ATA |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1918 |
| Type | |
| Headquarters | Edmonton, Alberta, Canada |
| Location |
|
| Membership | 51,000 (2025) |
President | Jason Schilling |
Executive secretary | Dennis Theobald |
| Affiliations | Canadian Teachers' Federation |
| Website | teachers |
Formerly called | Alberta Teachers' Alliance |
The Alberta Teachers' Association (ATA) is the professional association for the teachers of Alberta, Canada. It represents all teachers and teacher administrators in all schools in Alberta's public, separate and francophone school divisions. It also represents teachers in some charter and private schools. There are currently 43,500 members of the ATA. It is affiliated with other teacher organizations in Canada through the Canadian Teachers' Federation.
The Alberta Teachers' Association, as the professional organization of teachers, promotes and advances public education, safeguards standards of professional practice and serves as the advocate for its members.
History
The Alberta Teachers' Alliance was established during the First World War, due to efforts made by John Walker Barnett, Mary Crawford and others. Faced with constant opposition from government and employees, teachers had no basic contractual rights, no guarantee of a minimum wage and no mechanism for appealing dismissals. In addition, they were generally treated poorly in the communities they served. A two-week-long strike by Edmonton teachers in 1921 secured the ATA the right to have access to the sittings of the school boards and some status as the teachers' bargaining unit.[1] Teachers learned during those difficult years that being united and having a dedicated leadership could help them shape the future. The organizing zeal of John Barnett, the first full-time general secretary-treasurer of the Alberta Teachers' Alliance, was the stuff of legend. Barnett's dedication to the profession was recognized when the Association's Edmonton headquarters were named after him.
The Alberta government passed the Teaching Profession Act in 1936, giving a legal foundation to the Alberta Teachers' Association, the new name for the teachers' union.[2] The determination to have teaching recognized as a profession united teachers and became the moral basis for the new organization. Over the next 10 years, the government approved legislation giving teachers a process for appealing dismissals, a pension plan and the right to bargain collectively. In addition, the government established the university as the home for teacher preparation, replacing the former "normal" schools.
In 2002, about 21,000 Alberta teachers went on strike for three weeks. At the time it was said to be the largest strike action in Alberta history.[3]
In October 2025, the first province-wide teachers' strike in Alberta's history began October 6 and ended on 29 October when about 51,000 teachers, members of the ATA, stayed home. The strike affected about 750,000 students in 2500 public, Catholic and francophone schools. The strike was said to be largest in Alberta's history. The trade union did not offer strike pay to its members while they were on strike.[4]
Past presidents
| Years | President |
|---|---|
| 1917–19 | George D Misener |
| 1919–20 | Thomas E A Stanley |
| 1920–22 | Hubert C Newland |
| 1922–23 | Charles E Peasley |
| 1923–24 | John E Somerville |
| 1924–25 | William W Scott |
| 1925–26 | Frederick Parker |
| 1926–27 | Alfred Waite |
| 1927–28 | Harry C Sweet |
| 1928–29 | Harry D Ainlay |
| 1929–30 | Arthur J H Powell |
| 1930–31 | Roland D Webb |
| 1931–32 | Cedric O Hicks |
| 1932–33 | Milton W Brock |
| 1933–34 | George A Clayton |
| 1934–35 | Edward J Thorlakson |
| 1935–36 | Gordon G Harman |
| 1936–37 | Eric C Ansley |
| 1937–39 | Milton E LaZerte |
| 1939–41 | Raymond E Shaul |
| 1941–43 | James A Smith |
| 1943–45 | Clarence Sansom |
| 1945–47 | Harold C Melsness |
| 1947–48 | Herbert E Smith |
| 1948–49 | Edgar T Wiggins |
| 1949–51 | Frederick J C Seymour |
| 1951–53 | Marian Gimby |
| 1953–54 | Lars Olson |
| 1954–55 | Frank J Edwards |
| 1955–56 | George S Lakie |
| 1956–57 | H J McKim Ross |
| 1957–59 | Inez K Castleton |
| 1959–60 | Richard F Staples |
| 1960–61 | Arthur D G Yates |
| 1961–62 | John A McDonald |
| 1962–63 | Hugh C McCall |
| 1963–64 | Thomas F Rieger |
| 1964–65 | L Jean Scott |
| 1965–66 | Malcolm W McDonnell |
| 1966–67 | Frank W Hoskyn |
| 1967–68 | Bernie T Keeler |
| 1968–69 | Arthur M Arbeau |
| 1969–71 | Ivan P Stonehocker |
| 1971–72 | Walter L Hughes |
| 1972–74 | Murray Jampolsky |
| 1974–76 | Patricia M English |
| 1976–77 | Halvar C Jonson |
| 1977–82 | K Mac Kryzanowski |
| 1982–84 | Arthur V R Cowley |
| 1984–87 | Nadene M Thomas |
| 1987–90 | Brendan D Dunphy |
| 1990–93 | Frances M Savage |
| 1993–99 | Bauni M Mackay |
| 1999–2003 | Larry Booi |
| 2003–09 | Frank Bruseker |
| 2009–13 | Carol Henderson |
| 2013–17 | Mark Ramsankar |
| 2017–19 | Greg Jeffery |
| 2019–Present | Jason Schilling |
Specialist councils
The ATA features a range of specialist councils created to foster professional development of teachers interested in common curriculum or specialty areas. The current councils are:
- Alberta School Library Council
- Career and Technology Studies Council
- Le Conseil francais
- Council on School Administration
- Early Childhood Education Council
- Educational Technology Council
- English as a Second Language Council
- English Language Arts Council
- Fine Arts Council
- Global Environmental and Outdoor Education Council
- Guidance Council
- Health and Physical Education Council
- Intercultural and Second Languages Council
- Mathematics Council
- Middle Years Council
- Outreach Education Council
- Religious and Moral Education Council
- Science Council
- Social Studies Council
- Council for Inclusive Education
References
- ^ Kostek, A Century and Ten, p. 221, 253
- ^ "Teaching Profession". thecanadianencyclopedia.ca. Retrieved 2025-10-23.
- ^ "A Time of Great Upheaval—April 2001 to June 2002". Alberta Teachers Association. Retrieved 2025-10-23.
- ^ "Alberta teachers are now on strike. Here's what that means for Calgary students, parents, school support staff". CBC via Yahoo News. 2025-10-06. Retrieved 2025-10-23.