Overview
The 2021 AAISA Settlement & Integration Conference is designed for front line professionals and managers from settlement and integration agencies. The conference will provide settlement and integration professionals with an opportunity to build capacity, share new knowledge and expertise with peers while generating practice insights and strategies to better serve newcomers.
Goals and Objectives
The goal of the 2021 AAISA Settlement and Integration Conference is to enhance the capacity and quality of newcomer services delivered by settlement and integration professionals in the province. It is our hope that the conference will leave attendees with a shared understanding and strengthened commitment to help all newcomers succeed.
Audience
This event will bring together about 300 front line professionals, managers, and leaders from the settlement and integration agencies. The 2021 AAISA Settlement & Integration Conference will be held as a VIRTUAL event.
Topics
Newcomers wish to succeed for themselves and their families. Much of this success is attributed to the quality and ease of access to services that assist them with language training, employment, and community connections. We invite you to submit a proposal for a presentation or workshop that would address one or more of several major areas of interest identified. You could also submit an innovative proposal on other themes that would be of interest to the conference audience.
The major areas of interest are:
- Language and Employment
o Learning disabilities and developmental delays
o Low literacy programming
o Language Assessment Needs
o Supporting newcomers in unemployment and underemployment
o Employment based networking for newcomers
o Best practices in virtual language instruction
- Working with Diverse and Vulnerable Populations
o TFWs and international students
o Supporting seniors and those experiencing social isolation
o LGBTQ+ newcomer programming
o Collaborating with Francophone agencies
o Supporting rural newcomers
o Culturally competent mental health supports
o Newcomer children and youth
o Bridging Case Management and Settlement supports
o Best practices in refugee resettlement
- Organizational Capacity Building
o Leadership coaching
o Integration of pandemic learnings in a post-COVID world
o Best practices with centralized and standardized NAARS
o Supporting staff with vicarious trauma and burnout
- Community Connections and Outreach
o Antiracism programing
o Intercultural competence
o Bridging the gap between newcomers and Indigenous populations
o Strategies for digital outreach
o Working with zonal agencies to promote programming and connect with new clients
o Connecting with employers
- Digital programming
o Supporting newcomers with low digital literacy and access
o Digital programming for staff with low digital literacy
o Transitioning between virtual, hybrid, and in-person service delivery
