CREFO – OISE’s Centre for Franco-Ontarian Studies – wins prestigious award

October 10, 2017

Recently, OISE’s Centre de recherches en éducation franco-ontarienne (CREFO) won the Prix du 3-juillet-1608, a prestigious award given by the Conseil supérieur de la langue française du Québec (CSLF)*.

The award was accepted by Director Diane Gérin-Lajoie at a Sept. 20 ceremony at the Hôtel du Parlement de Québec.

Each year, this event recognizes an organization that has distinguished itself through exemplary efforts to defend and promote French language and culture in North America, while also providing exceptional services to a specific French language collectivity as well as to the entire North American francophonie (francophone community).

This award is significant for CREFO members since it acknowledges the excellence of their work across Canada.

Gérin-Lajoie says she’s “extremely proud” to have accepted the award on behalf of CREFO.

“Our strength lies in our ability to integrate research and teaching, both of which focus on the realities of the local, national and international francophonie,” she said.

As noted by the Québec Minister of Culture and Communications Luc Fortin, “the personnel in CREFO are, in essence, ambassadors of the francophonie. Their commitment towards our language is exemplary.”

CREFO’s researchers represent a wide range of disciplines, including sociology, critical sociology of education, sociology of children and youth, anthropology, and sociolinguistics.

Their work explores a variety of themes, such as the phenomena associated with:

• mobility as it relates to the school experience of children and youth
• identity among youth and among teachers working in minority settings
• equity and inclusion in Francophone schools
• the French language in relation to national and international economic markets
• issues relating to the complexity of entry into post-secondary education in French

In addition, CREFO has administrative responsibility for a new collaborative specialization in French, titled, Éducation, francophonies et diversité at the master’s level, and for training graduate and postgraduate students in research.

* The CSLF advises the Minister responsible for the Protection and Promotion of the French Language, and informs the public on any matter relating to the French language in Québec.