In March 2019, Mojtaba Omran and his wife immigrated to Canada from Iran through the Express Entry program for skilled workers. With a Master of Arts in English Literature, he has taught English as a Second/Foreign Language (EFL) in Tehran, Iran for a decade. OCISO, which he found online, was one of the first places [...]
We asked a few of the 2020 participants why they Run for a New Start and this is what they said: David Rain is an OCISO volunteer and he's running his 25th marathon. Back to "Run for a New Start" homepage [...]
By Suzanne Charest On a cold winter Friday evening, about 20 youth gather in YOCISO’s small gymnasium for a two-hour wrestling session. They are part YOCISO’s Wrestling with Champions and they are psyched! Among the young wrestlers is 14 year-old Adnan Al Muqdad. Adnan came to Ottawa four years ago when his family fled war-torn [...]
By Suzanne Charest On a rainy Fall morning, in a boardroom at OCISO, 18 immigrant and refugee seniors gather around a large table. They may all have different backgrounds, religions, cultures and languages -- but yet they are united in spirit and friendship as part of the seniors program. “One of the objectives of our [...]
By Sharon Deng, Manager, Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada (LINC) Program September ushered in a change in season and a very welcome back to routine for the students in our LINC program. From the very first day, nearly all of our eight full-time classes and two part-time evening classes were full [...]
The month of Ramadan is starting on May 5, 2019 The Five Pillars of Islam: The Profession of Faith. The Profession of Faith is the most fundamental expression of Islamic beliefs, which means there is no god except God Almighty and Prophet Mohammed is the Messenger of Allah. Daily Prayers. Muslims are expected [...]
