The University of Toronto Faculty Association works within a wider network of organizations committed to protecting, improving, and sustaining public post-secondary education. In keeping with its mandate and obligations to its members, that commitment is first and foremost to strengthening the voice, role, and well-being of faculty and librarians in their daily work within post-secondary education in Ontario, and all across Canada.
That’s why UTFA plays an active role in the Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT) and in the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations (OCUFA). Both organizations are committed to the defense of faculty rights, and both are articulate protectors of and advocates for academic freedom. UTFA has a strong reciprocal working relationship with CAUT and OCUFA, and it continues to serve UTFA's members well.
UTFA also collaborates with the broader community of retired faculty and librarians. UTFA has joined both the College and University Retiree Associations of Canada (CURAC) and the Association of Retiree Organizations in Higher Education (AROHE). Both organizations are committed to supporting member associations and their participation in campus and community life. UTFA is an active supporter of Senior College and the Senior College Centre.
Closer to home, UTFA coordinates with employee representative organizations and student organizations on the three campuses of the University. Many of the teaching and administrative staff of the University of Toronto belong to locals of the Canadian Union of Public Employees or the United Steelworkers. UTFA works together with these groups – whether or not they are certified unions – within the informal umbrella of UTEAU, the University of Toronto’s Employees Associations and Unions.
UTFA takes its responsibility to the wider University of Toronto community very seriously. Through our national and provincial umbrellas, we play a key role in both public policy and the defense of faculty rights. That’s what being part of a community is all about.