Who Can Apply?

Eligible to participate in Individual Training:

Position must be funded by CIC/MCI. These include frontline workers, managers, coordinators, and executive directors.

NOTE: Staff on maternity-leave are also eligible to apply

Depending on the size of the agency, PET will approve up to 4 people per agency in one fiscal year. Preference will be given to new applicants who have NEVER used the PET funding. The Employment Letter must demonstrate a direct connection between the competencies required to effectively do their job and the course(s) chosen.

How to Apply?

Application Process for Individual Applicants

To Register Online:

• Interested participants should read PET information and follow application procedure outlined in the HELP GUIDE
• The application must be submitted online.
• The employer’s letter confirming employment in an illegible CIC program will be requested. When signing the letter, the Program Manager must discuss with the staff the importance of the connection between the course being taken, and the competencies required to do their current job
• Applicants must undertake the course upon receipt of approval from OCASI.
• CONDITION: All courses must be registered for and completed before March 31 each year. Approved participants must inform PET Coordinator immediately when there is a course cancellation or if they are unable to undertake the course, to enable fast reallocation of funding.

Course Selection Process

Courses to be undertaken by participants will be approved by OCASI on an individual basis. Settlement staff wishing to apply for funding under the PET project is encouraged to search for and select part-time courses of their choice, provided that the course is approved by their immediate supervisor and is also linked to the goal of their organisation’s needs. The courses could be delivered through various educational institutions across Ontario, including, but not limited to community Colleges, Universities, Boards of Education, Professional Certification courses and Private Institutions.

Relevant Fields of Study

(Note: This list of reflects areas of knowledge and expertise needed to do settlement work. You may not find these exact terms being used in course titles or descriptions. However, you will find courses that cover these materials in the program descriptions and in course catalogues at relevant institutions)

Program Support and Monitoring - covering areas such as:

• program development and Planning, including evaluation
• Management, including performance management, human resource management and development, conflict management, team and leadership development
• Resource development, including funding proposal development
• Administration, including office management data collection and management
• Communication (written, oral and interpersonal)
• Information technology development and management
• Regulations, including human rights, labour rights, worker safety
• Worker support, including promotion of self-care and self-knowledge.
• Intake and reception work - including Client relations; Information and referral.
• Needs assessment - including newcomer needs assessment; client assessment tools development; case management; assisting newcomers to set priorities etc.
• Referral to community services - covering, among others, information and referral; networking skills; community relations.
• Information and orientation - including resource development and appropriate information and referral; group facilitation.
• Interpretation and translation - including Policy and procedures.
• Para-professional counselling - delivering non-therapeutic services and appropriate client referral; supportive para-professional counselling with specific groups, such as families, women, youth, seniors; cross-cultural communication.
• Employment-related Services - including providing employment assistance (resume writing, interview skills etc.).
• Service bridging - including community needs assessment and community development and networking; access to mainstream services; media work; anti-racism work; community development; public relations; cultural diversity; working with other service providers, immigrant services sectoral issues.

Individual Reimbursement

All eligible participants are entitled to a reimbursement of the course fee up to a maximum of $750 for individual training and up to $2000 for In-House Group training. To be reimbursed, participants must submit:

1. A fee payment receipt electronically to OCASI
2. Course completion statement (certificate of completion or grade report or statement) from the appropriate training institution to OCASI
3. At the PET website applicants must submit a:
• Completed PET project evaluation
• Completed course evaluation
• Completed reimbursement claim form

In-House Training

Under the PET project, assistance is available to all immigrant services organizations funded by Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) to undertake In-house Group Training. An eligible agency may apply for up to $2000 to cover facilitator’s fee. The funding for In-House training DOES NOT cover accommodation, transportation, meals or refreshments. PET does not pay an organization to facilitate their own training (as their own training provider), and will not pay an organization for a ‘subject’ of which it is an expert.

To Register Online:

• The agency designator should read PET information and follow application procedure outlined in the Help Guide. A video is also provided.
• The application must be submitted online. No paper form will be accepted.
• In particular, the Program manager and Coordinator encourage proposals with the following qualities:
1. Clearly defined program purpose
2. Evidence of sufficient institutional support
3. Sufficient number of trainees to ensure value for money
4. Demonstration that the proposed trainer(s) have provided high quality services in similar work
5. Having a plan to coordinate training and sharing of training resources among agencies.

OCASI Application Review Process

In-House Group Training applications go through the OCASI review process by the members PET Coordinator and the PET Manager. Each application is reviewed on the merits of each proposed program. However, reviewers look favourably on proposals that successfully argue the urgency or critical nature of the problem to be addressed by the training, and those that have broad reach, involving more participants either from one or more organizations. In this respect, joint training sessions with staff from other agencies as a means of maximizing value and minimizing cost are encouraged.

Reviewers look favourably on proposals that delineate the source and extent of all resources required and that demonstrate evidence of interest and support by the applying agency/agencies.

Condition: All Workshops registered for must be completed before March 31st of each year.

In-House Group Training Reimbursement

It is the responsibility of the applying agency to contract and pay the trainers and to claim a reimbursement from OCASI. It is not OCASI’s responsibility to pay trainers directly.

To be reimbursed, agencies must submit all of the documentation below:

1. A completed PET IN-HOUSE REIMBURSEMENT CLAIM FORM to be completed online by the in-house training workshop organizer
2. A fee payment receipt and/or cheque stub from applying agency
3. A written letter from the trainer stating when the training took place
4. Completed PET IN-HOUSE WORKSHOP EVALUATION online to be completed by the organizer for each in-house workshop attended

MORE FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (More to add)

Can OCASI hold funds for me or my agency?

PET will not hold fund unless you apply. Funds can only be allocated for those that have completed a PET application and been approved. It is important to apply as soon as possible as there are always more applications than we can approve.

Will I be penalized if I dropped a course/s?

Approved participants must inform PET project staff immediately if they are unable to undertake the course, to enable fast reallocation of funding, whether the decision was made based on information from the educational institution or for any other reasons. If you do not, you will be penalized for future years.

Can I take courses that are part of a diploma/certificate/degree?

Should have relevance to the sector and the duties performed by settlement workers.
Decision must be based on the need for skills and knowledge in the following areas identified by the OCASI community members as relating to settlement work.

What if my course/s scheduled during working hours?

Scheduling issues should be discussed with your program manager. Courses should not conflict with regular working schedules of settlement service workers. All staff must be given the opportunity to enhance on your skills and knowledge.

Will OCASI provide us with facilitators for In-House Group Training?

OCASI kept in-house a directory of names as reference only which included trainers from some evaluations, and others from the OCASI Conference’s list. OCASI suggests facilitator’s names to service providers that require assistance, but they are advised to research facilitators’ references themselves. Based on the in-house applications, agencies have been contracting other consultants of their choice, and have been involving staff from other OCASI agencies as facilitators. Facilitators are usually a healthy mix between the immigrant serving and other sectors.

Why OCASI Encourages In-House Group Training?

• The training costs less, since participants from several agencies can attend for the same cost
• The training is tailored to meet the organization’s need
• It enhances collaboration among agencies, as the training can be organized by one or more agencies for staff from a group of agencies, enabling staff from the smaller agencies in different regions to participate
• It enables exchange of ideas between agency staff who do similar jobs in different agencies
• Training needs are analyzed by the participating agencies, which entails motivation and buy-in
• Staff involved more directly in the work to which the training applies, thus making the training even more relevant.

In-House Group Training Characteristics?

The following positive characteristics were observed from previous in-house group trainings:

• The applications came from various regions in the province
• In most cases, more than one agency attended the proposed workshops. Last year, in one city, all the OCASI agencies were involved in the training that was organized by one agency
• Applying agencies showed great interest, and made additional financial or in-kind contribution to cover the cost of training