SIOUX LOOKOUT- Michelizzi was born in Thunder Bay, Ontario and earned her Bachelor of Arts in History and Political Science and her Bachelor of Education from Lakehead University.
She has spent almost 13 years as a public-school teacher in Sioux Lookout, Ont., at Sacred Heart School.
After planting her roots in Sioux Lookout, she has specially developed her teaching practice to include and emphasize special education and instructional approaches that help foster improved literacy in children.
As a public school educator, Michelizzi was the first executive vice president of the Northwest Unit of Ontario English Catholic Teachers Association.
Here’s what Michelizzi had to say about her plans for the Kiwetinoong.
(Q) As a public school educator, what troubles you about our education system in Ontario, and how do you plan on fixing those issues?
(Michelizzi) Our students have, without a doubt, been through unprecedented times over the past two years. As an educator and a mom with school-aged children, I saw firsthand the detriments that virtual learning and time away from peers have had on my children and my students. We also saw the added stress and frustration on family units in having to coordinate child care or work from home during school closures.
Upon return to school in 2020-2021, we were all hopeful that we would be able to have a “normal” year, and again the school closures came. Instead of investing in teachers to lower class sizes to allow for distancing, we saw more cuts. Broken promises of HEPA filters in each classroom. Mask shortages for education workers. Insufficient amounts of rapid test kits for families. We cannot afford to have another four years of Ford funding cuts to education. There is no denying that it will happen, and our children will continue to lack the resources and rich learning environments they deserve.
I am so proud of the Ontario Liberal Platform for education. It was what initially drew me into wanting to support this party. Unlike the Ford Conservatives, who cut last year’s education budget by $1.3 billion, Ontario Liberals will make essential investments in our schools so that our students can make up for the lost time. We will improve the quality of our schools by capping class sizes at 20 students in all grades, eliminating mandatory online learning and ending academic streaming. We will take Doug Ford’s misguided Highway 413 investment and put $10 billion into eliminating the repair backlog in our schools. We will reinstate an optional Grade 13 as a more structured alternative to the informal and often-discouraged “victory lap.” We will end EQAO and replace it with a new assessment strategy consultation with front-line educators.
We will also have resources to support our student’s mental health needs, including hiring 1,000 mental health workers for kids provincewide. We will employ an additional exceptional education worker for every school and update the curriculum to add more Indigenous, French, and modern learning. Our province and our kids deserve the best education globally, not chaos and disruption. Only Ontario Liberals have a plan to help people find success and build a stronger, more prosperous Ontario.
(Q) Are there any changes to the current curriculum you would like to work towards? Do you want to see more STEM models being adapted, or do you think there should be more focus on setting up a curriculum that involves more diverse language skills?
(Michelizzi) It was a tragedy that the Ford government cancelled curriculum consultation meetings with indigenous educators and elders in the summer of 2018. The previous Ontario Liberal government promised to boost indigenous history, including education on residential schools, culture and traditions in the current curriculum. These meetings have not occurred, nor have the social studies, history and language curriculum changed. If we call ourselves Treaty People and commit to Reconciliation, education is the first step. Children must learn about our country's history from all perspectives, especially the views of those who were children and parents during this dark time. The new Ontario Liberal government has pledged to ensure a curriculum rewrite to put indigenous education at the forefront. I am committed to my riding of Kiiwetinoong to see this plan through as we are riding with the largest indigenous population in the province.
(Q) Transitioning from Education, I would like to ask you about your plans for health care. Since the start of the pandemic, there has been a considerable amount of information on the pitfalls of our healthcare system on all fronts. How will you fix those issues?
(Michelizzi) The Liberal Party has created a health and mental health platform that we could all get behind. Many of our candidates across the province are doctors, nurses and frontline health workers. We have consulted with those closest to the system. Ontarians have a clear choice between a Liberal Party that will make much-needed investments to clear the surgical backlog, reduce wait times for mental health services, and support modernized care for everyone.
The Ford Conservatives hoarded federal COVID-19 funding while our hospitals and long-term care homes scrambled to stay afloat. We will end the Ford Conservatives’ fight against health care heroes by raising the Personal Support Worker base pay to at least $25 per hour. Similarly, we will repeal Bill 124 and ensure that mental health services are available for all health care professionals. We will train and hire 100,000 nurses, doctors and other health care workers over the next six years as we replace retiring workers and expand our system. And we’ll clear the surgical and diagnostic backlog with a $1 billion investment in additional capacity over the next two years. We will ensure everybody has access to a doctor or nurse within 24 hours and grow the number of hospital beds by 20 per cent. We will get more people the mental health support they need by reversing the Ford Conservatives’ cuts and investing an additional $3 billion to reduce wait times. We’ll modernize healthcare with greater access to primary care through phone, email, video, and text and empower pharmacists to provide more basic services. Ontario’s health care system, and the people behind it, are stretched to their limits – but it doesn’t have to stay that way. The choice is clear.
