Media Release: Child care workers gather for professional learning event in Thunder Bay
October 24, 2025 – The District of Thunder Bay Social Services Administration Board (TBDSSAB) hosted a professional learning event for child care professionals from across the District of Thunder Bay on Friday October 24, 2025.
TBDSSAB provides ongoing professional learning, capacity building, and mentorship to all funded programs as service system manager for child care and early years programs in the District of Thunder Bay. The professional learning event is held once a year during the week of Child Care Worker Appreciation Day (CCWAD) for all staff working in funded programs.
This year’s event theme is: “Rooted in Hope: Growing Imagination, Connection, and Wonder in Early Childhood”. The event welcomed 425 program staff from funded programs across the District of Thunder Bay, including licensed child care and EarlyON programs, over two days. Pre-conference sessions were held for specialized educator groups on October 23, including school-age, EarlyON, special needs resource consultants, and leadership. The full-day session on October 24 included keynote speaker Susan Hopkins of the MEHRIT Centre, with a presentation and workshop on the topic of “Stress Behaviour vs. Misbehaviour: Self-Regulation Strategies for Early Childhood Educators”.
In recognition of CCWAD, an art contest was held for children involved with funded programs. Program staff voted on the final design, which was digitized for use in this year’s CCWAD campaign materials, including gifts for child care professionals attending today’s event. The winning artwork is titled, “The Forest of Imagination and Wonder” and was submitted by Wren, age 7, who was a guest of honour during today’s event.
As an extension of today’s keynote presentation, TBDSSAB is hosting a free webinar for parents and caregivers with keynote speaker Susan Hopkins on November 5. The webinar is titled, “What’s going on with my child? Understanding behaviour, stress, and what actually helps”. For more information, visit: https://www.tbdssab.ca/cceyp-webinar-nov5/
Quotes:
“Having a dedicated day for professional development is just as important for educators in the early years as it is for teachers in the school system. There is always learning to do, and its important that we are all moving together in the right direction to bridge gaps for the children in our community. We are grateful to the Ministry of Education for entrusting service system managers with funding to provide ongoing education, mentorship and capacity building to ensure our service system operates at its fullest potential.”
– Brian Hamilton, Chair, TBDSSAB
“We are fortunate to have a team of educators at TBDSSAB who understand the big picture and can address what our early years service system needs for children to thrive. Through the passion that our Child Care and Early Years team brings to the table, educators and early years professionals across the District of Thunder Bay have access to growth opportunities that reflect the needs of our local community. Investing in professional learning for child care professionals is just one way to show them our respect and appreciation. We would not be able to add an additional 196 licensed spaces to our service system without our Registered Early Childhood Educators and all staff in our licensed child care programs.”
– Ken Ranta, CEO, TBDSSAB
“This is my third time attending TBDSSAB’s professional learning day, and they are always so inspiring. It rekindles the spark that we have for working with children because we are constantly learning and gaining new knowledge and perspectives that we can implement in our programs and our work with children. It’s great for the whole team to be here, because then we are learning the same things and we can figure out how to incorporate them in our program.”
– Alesha Spirka, Schoolhouse Playcare Centre, Thunder Bay
“The professional learning event hosted by TBDSSAB is a place for growth, support, and passion. It gives us an opportunity to share and put into practice what we learn. My team is here with me, and we all interpret the learning differently, which opens up opportunity for discussion and learning together. The way we view things may be different, but it gives us opportunity for growth, discussion, and to put our learning into practice in the work that we do. As a leader, I can support the families that come into the centre, and share the learning with our community partners.”
– Krysta Mineau, Early Years Coordinator, Brass Bell EarlyON, Terrace Bay & Schreiber
Quick Facts:
- TBDSSAB has service agreements with 24 licensed child care service providers (with a total of 50 program locations), as well as 22 EarlyON Child and Family Centres. These programs have a combined total of 546 staff.
- Staff in child care and early years programs often include a mix of Registered Early Childhood Educators (RECEs), child care workers, cooks, and administrative support staff. All roles are critical to the success of early years programming.
- Registered Early Childhood Educators (RECEs) belong to a regulatory body of professionals, The College of Early Childhood Educators. The ECE Act (2007), ensures protection of public interest and integrity of the ECE profession.
- Ontario’s licensed early years programs follow Ontario’s Pedagogy for the Early Years, How Does Learning Happen? This guide lays the groundwork for programs to focus on the four developmental foundations of: Belonging, Engagement, Expression, and Wellbeing.
