Making connections 2017: Panelist/speaker bios

Plenary panel: “Pushing the limits: How schools can prepare our children today for the challenges of tomorrow”

Kelly Gallagher-Mackay

Kelly Gallagher-Mackay is an Assistant Professor of Law and Society at Wilfrid Laurier University, and a former Research Director at People for Education. Kelly does research on issues of educational inequality and the social importance of strong public school systems. She is a lawyer who received her Ph.D. from the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education and an LL.M. from Osgoode Hall Law School. In 2017, she published two books – Pushing the Limits: How Schools Can Prepare Our Children Today for the Challenges of Tomorrow (with Nancy Steinhauer) and Succeeding Together? Schools, Child Welfare and Uncertain Public Responsibility for Abused and Neglected Children. Her two children attend Toronto public schools.

Nancy Steinhauer

Nancy Steinhauer is an outstanding educational leader, with over 20 years of experience ranging from Canada’s top private schools to extremely diverse, inner city schools. During her five-year tenure at George Webster Elementary School, one of Toronto’s first Model Schools for Inner Cities, she played a critical role in establishing one of the Toronto District School Board’s first in-school pediatric clinics. Nancy spent two years at the Ontario Ministry of Education as a Student Achievement Officer, supporting schools and systems to improve student achievement. In 2012, Nancy was the recipient of Canada’s Outstanding Principals Award by The Learning Partnership and the Stand Up for Kids award by the four Children’s Aid Societies of Toronto. Currently, she is principal at The Mabin School, one of Canada’s first Ashoka Changemaking Schools. She is the co-author of the new book, Pushing the Limits: How Schools Can Prepare Our children Today for the Challenges of Tomorrow.

Aaron Prosper

Aaron Prosper is a Mi’kmaq university student from the Eskasoni First Nation. He is in his 4^th year in Dalhousie University’s Neurosciences program, and is working as a student researcher under the supervision of Dr. Amy Bombay of Dalhousie University and the Rainy River First Nation. His main fields of research include behavioural neuroscience, epigenetics, and Indigenous health, working to bridge the gaps between Western Sciences and Indigenous Sciences. He is the President of Campus Affairs for the Dalhousie Indigenous Students Collective (DISC), and was recently recognized for his work at Dalhousie University, receiving a Dalhousie Impact Award for top student councillor.

In his spare time Aaron sings with the Eastern Eagle Singers, a Mi’kmaq powwow drum group based out of Sipe’kne’katik First Nation. He is also an avid researcher in historical Mi’kmaq culture, language, and traditions, and participates regularly in community cultural gatherings.

Aaron’s future goal is to become a physician, with the hopes of continuing to promote equality of First Nations and Inuit peoples within the Canadian health care system. Aaron encompasses within his work the goal of building future pathways for Indigenous youth to be successful to their fullest potential.

Ingrid Palmer

An alumni of York University and a certified facilitator, Ingrid Palmer is a keynote speaker and social advocate. Passionate about the development of healthy environments for marginalized groups and empowering caregivers in effective advocacy, Ingrid makes use of her lived experiences, including being a Crown Ward and legally blind, to build awareness and promote the need for community programs.

Ingrid is the co-chair of the Inner City Advisory Committee, a member of the Tenants First advisory panel, and a consultant for the Macaulay Child Development Centre.

As a result of her service, individuals, community agencies, and institutions come together, tap into diverse perspectives, and get inside bold conversations that lead to innovative collaborative opportunities for our most challenged households.

Recent activities include the TDSB’s Enhancing Equity Task Force, Parents As Partners Conference, Children’s Aid Foundation 5-Fourteen Talks, and Youth In Care Day at Queens Park.

Aaron Warner

Aaron is a Middle Years teacher from Regina, Saskatchewan. He is not comfortable sitting still… both literally and figuratively. This inherent need to keep moving has motivated Aaron to continuously strive to develop his teaching, searching and experimenting with innovative teaching practices. Aaron is keenly interested in experiential learning that is authentic, hands on, and designed to allow the most voice and choice for his students. Aaron’s favourite part of teaching is getting out of the way and watching his students’ creativity drive their learning. Aaron credits his local and online professional network as the foundation for success.

Jennifer Lewington

Jennifer Lewington is an award-winning journalist who has reported on local, national and international issues since 1972. During a 29-year career with The Globe and Mail, she was named the Globe’s first female foreign correspondent in 1984 and became the newspaper’s first national education reporter, writing on issues from kindergarten to college and university.

Now based in Stratford, Ontario, as a freelance writer and editor, she writes on education trends for The Globe and Mail, Maclean’s, Education Today, Professionally Speaking as well as other topics for national publications. She is sought out as a speaker and emcee for public events.

AM1: Academic or Applied? Streaming in Ontario

Steve Yee

Steve Yee is the Principal at Oakwood Collegiate Institute in the Toronto District School Board. Focused on inclusivity, high expectations, high standards of excellence, engagement, equity, and most importantly, a ‘belief’, together with the faculty, Steve has started the Grade 9 Enhanced Pathways Academic Program this year – the first in the TDSB. This program, focused on elevating the learning environment for all students, places students who have traditionally selected between the Academic & Applied level courses in all academic-level programming.

Proud of his staff’s bold effort towards “doing something differently” for students, this program will ensure students keep their options open for post-secondary school and in turn, their career paths. Oakwood CI is passionate about starting our students off on the right foot, teaching them the academic skills and habits that are integral for success in high school and their future post-secondary pathways.

Being in education for 20 years, Steve has taught Health and Physical Education at Jarvis CI, Bloor CI, and Riverdale CI; and has supported learners, teachers, and parents of Monarch Park Collegiate and Greenwood Secondary/SOLE Alternative School as a Vice-Principal.

Anthony Miller

Anthony Miller is a highly motivated, enthusiastic educator who is deeply committed to student learning. He has a strong philosophy of inclusion and fosters a positive atmosphere that bolsters every student’s self-esteem. As a caring and supportive individual, Anthony strives to create an exceptional learning environment that enables all students to grow and develop academically and socially in a safe yet challenging environment.

Anthony graduated with an Honors Bachelor degree in Kinesiology and Health Science at York University and a Minor in Biology at York University. He has a Specialist in Health & Physical Education from University of Toronto and has seventeen years of teaching experience at the High School Level. Passionate about coaching, he has twenty-five years of coaching experience at the high school and University levels. He taught science and math at Western Technical School from 2000-2003, and is currently the Assistant Curriculum Leader of Health and Physical Education at Oakwood Collegiate. This year, looking to support students further, Anthony has joined the Student Success team and is working hard to help students achieve excellence.

Philip Vettese

Philip Vettese is an Assistant Curriculum Leader of English and Literacy at Oakwood CI in the TDSB. For the duration of his teaching career, he has championed skills-based rather than knowledge-based curriculum and teaching of English. Philip also has a particular interest in inclusive and anti-oppressive teaching. He has an Honors Degree in English and History from the University of Toronto, and a Bachelors of Education from Lakehead University. Philip has thirteen years of teaching experience at the secondary level and has been the Assistant Curriculum Leader of English, Literacy and Library at Oakwood CI since 2001.

Jim Sypropoulos

Jim Spyropoulos is the Executive Superintendent of Equity, Engagement and Well-Being at the Toronto District School Board. As part of this portfolio, Jim plays a significant role in implementing the Board’s Integrated Equity Framework, a strategy designed to infuse equity and inclusion into every aspect of the TDSB’s work. He also works closely with Professional Support Services staff to lead the work being done in the area of student mental health and well-being. In addition, Jim oversees Community Advisory Committees to ensure that authentic parent and community voice is present and included in the work of the Board.

Jim has been privileged to work closely with the Board’s Indigenous Education Centre, where he supported the work initiated as part of the groundbreaking “Decolonizing our Schools” report. Before becoming a Superintendent, Jim was the principal of two schools in the Toronto District School Board, Newtonbrook Secondary School and C.W. Jefferys Collegiate Institute. Jim holds a Master of Education degree from the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education as well as Bachelor of Education and Bachelor of Arts degrees from the University of Toronto.

Naeem Siddiq

Naeem started his teaching career in 1994. He spent 13 years as a school administrator, most recently as principal at North Albion Collegiate in the Toronto District School Board. He was the president of the Ontario Principals’ Council (OPC) in 2011-12, and is an Honorary Life Member. He joined the OPC as a Protective Services consultant in August of 2016. He has participated on numerous working tables on behalf of OPC members, and served one term on the Premier’s Principals Reference Group.

Naeem is a graduate of the Richard Ivey School of Business, where he was valedictorian of the class of 1990. He received his B Ed from the University of Toronto.

AM2: Measuring What Matters – testing new ways of teaching transferable skills

Alison Boehme

Alison has been teaching with Hamilton Wentworth DSB for 13 years. She completed her Master’s degree in Education to pursue the intentional synergy of research, policy and practice in the classroom and the idea of knowledge translation for classroom teachers. With Ministry funding, she is leading the first cross-panel, research supported Professional Learning Community focused on interweaving the mathematics curriculum. She has partnered with People for Education to explore how active classroom design, paired with student-led curriculum inquiry, can deepen students’ capacity to think critically across all disciplines. Alison’s research looks at using the Measuring What Matters domains to both facilitate and assess the broad skills students need to be successful citizens in the classroom and beyond.

Lynn Strangway

Lynn Strangway is currently a Superintendent of Education in the Toronto District School Board. Two years ago, as the principal at Sprucecourt Public School, she participated in the Measuring What Matters field trials. Before that Lynn returned from a secondment on the Capacity Building and Research Team at the Literacy and Numeracy Secretariat. Over Lynn’s career as a teacher, consultant, principal and Superintendent she has been a passionate advocate for student engagement, responsive pedagogy and fair and relevant assessment for children.

Pamela Crawford

In 25 years, I’ve taught everything from ‘soup to nuts’ between Kindergarten and Grade 9, and I am very lucky to have to have landed in beautiful Muskoka as a Special Education Resource Teacher in Trillium Lakelands District School Board. I have been a Literacy and Numeracy Instructional Coach, a SWST (Student Work Study Teacher) a Student Achievement Officer (LNS), as well as teaching all grades in two provinces. Most recently, the Measuring What Matters Project has emerged as a professional focus simply because it makes such sense to me and my work with students. In addition, working with Measuring What Matters empowers me to feel part of the future of education in Ontario.

Kim Stolys

Kim has been an Elementary school educator for over 20 years. She is currently teaching Grade SK/1 at a school in Markham, Ontario for the York Region District School Board. This is her fourth year back in the classroom after a 7-year term as a Curriculum Consultant with a focus on Assessment and Evaluation and Teacher Collaborative Inquiry. Kim was a participant in the Measuring What Matters Field Trials since the 2015/2016 school year and is a member of the Measuring What Matters Advisory Committee. She is passionate about fostering creativity and building self-efficacy in all our learners – from our youngest students to the educators who are working with them.

Karen Murray

Karen Murray is the vice principal at Amesbury Middle School in the Toronto District School Board. Prior to taking on this role, Karen was a program co-ordinator for Teachers, Learning and Leading, where she supported teachers in their first four years of practice, their mentors, and aspiring leaders, providing professional learning opportunities focusing on curriculum design, teacher leadership and classroom programming highlighting issues of equity and social justice.

Karen was previously a Student Achievement Officer with the Literacy and Numeracy Secretariat – Ministry of Education, as well as the first William Waters Teacher in Residence with the Centre for Urban Schooling at the University of Toronto. In these roles, she was involved in creating professional development sessions with teachers, principals, system leaders and school boards, supporting them in adapting a lens that interrogates systemic structures, curriculum and effective instructional practices.

Karen is the co-author of the Equity Continuum – a resource that has been sold internationally to educators to assess their understanding and progress in the principles and practices of equity education.

AM3: Beyond “Native Studies” – Incorporating Indigenous perspectives in math

Lisa Lunney Borden

Lisa Lunney Borden is an Associate Professor of mathematics education at St. Francis Xavier University in Canada, and holds the John Jerome Paul Chair for Equity in Mathematics Education. Having taught 7-12 mathematics in a Mi’kmaw community, she is committed to research that focuses on decolonizing mathematics education through culturally based practices and experiences that are rooted in Aboriginal languages and knowledge systems. Lisa is equally committed to mathematics outreach through programs such as Show Me Your Math, which was developed with David Wagner, Newell Johnson, and a team of teachers from Mi’kmaw Kina’matnewey schools. This program invites Indigenous youth to find the mathematical reasoning inherent in their own community context. Lisa is a sought after speaker on Indigenous mathematics education, working with mathematics educators across Canada as well as internationally.

Aaron Prosper

Pamela Agawa

Pamala Agawa is an Anishinaabe kwe from Batchewana First Nation and a mom to three girls ranging in ages 4-10. Employed as a Curriculum Coordinator for First Nation, Métis and Inuit Education in York Region District School Board, Pamala’s goal is to support the system in deepening its understanding in Indigenous Ways of Knowing. Her passion for learning is modelled in how she supports and facilitates learning with her colleagues in a good way.

Kris Archie

Kris Archie, a Secwepemc and Seme7 woman from the Ts’qescen First Nation, is passionate about heart-based community work and facilitating positive change. In her own words: “My lived experiences as a mixed blood woman, mother and community member informs my desire for inclusion, accessibility, and justice”. Kris was the project manager for the Vancouver Foundation’s youth homelessness initiative, called Fostering Change before becoming the Executive Director of “The Circle on Philanthropy and Aboriginal Peoples in Canada”, an open network to promote giving, sharing, and philanthropy in Aboriginal communities across the country. In all of her roles, Kris works to transform philanthropy and contribute to positive change by creating spaces of learning, relationship-building and activation.

AM4: There’s more than one way to peel a carrot! Engaging students in healthy eating.

Sunday Harrison

Sunday is the founder and Executive Director of Green Thumbs Growing Kids, a downtown Toronto
grassroots organization working in partnership with a cluster of 4 inner-city elementary schools to grow
and prepare fresh garden foods, cultivated in an environmentally sustainable manner. The goals are to
foster healthy eating through a food justice lens and enhance science/environment learning as well as
provide community/summer programming in the school gardens for all ages. The organization has
developed programming over 17 years geared to children, youth and families who would otherwise
have little access to nature, green and food-producing spaces. Sunday has a certificate in Landscape
Architecture, a background in design and project management, and has a Masters in Environmental
Studies.

Liz Lundy

Liz Lundy is a Toronto elementary school Library and French teacher. She works to infuse food education into her program through cooking and gardening with all of her students. Kids learn to plan, plant, weed, water, tend and harvest their school garden as well as cook and eat what they grow.

Liz works with a strong team of parents, colleagues and students who volunteer to keep the school garden a major focal point of the school community.

Liz has also worked at WWF (World Wildlife Fund) as their education manager and has a Masters of Education focusing on environmental education.

Stefan Sommer

Beginning in 2014, Urban Farming Innovation Project Specialist Stefan Sommer began installing vertical hydroponic units into several school classrooms in the Toronto District School Board. By partnering with science and green industries classes, Stefan delivers a unique field-to-table learning experience for Toronto students from Grade 6-12 by instructing them in the practice of raising hydroponically grown produce and overseeing their harvests. With all food grown being used in each school’s cafeteria, the project connects the urban life experience with the practical side of growing sustainable food while promoting healthy eating habits and low-emission growing techniques. The project continues in several local Toronto schools and senior’s residences and will soon be appearing in such locations across Ontario.

Agata Rudd

Agata recently moved to Canada from the UK, where she worked both in the corporate and not-for-profit sectors. In her last role in the UK, she headed up outreach activities at Ark, an international educational charity working towards eradicating educational inequality in the UK and India. She is currently working with the Escarpment Biosphere Conservancy as a Development Manager, and has just joined the board of Directors for the Alternatives Journal, Canada’s environmental magazine. She has a decade long experience in facilitating workshops and in public speaking. She has an MSc in Organizational Behaviour from the University of London, UK.

AM5: To close or not to close – the challenge for small schools in Ontario

Karen Pitre

Karen Pitre is the Premier’s Special Advisor on Community Hubs and Chair of the Premier’s Community Hub Framework Advisory Group. The Advisory Group was appointed to review provincial policies and develop a framework for adapting existing public assets to become community hubs. In August 2015, the Advisory Group released Community Hubs in Ontario: A Strategic Framework and Action Plan, a report with recommendations on how the Government of Ontario can support community hub development. Karen, with support from the Advisory Group, is working with the government and stakeholders to implement the recommendations outlined in the report.

Karen has extensive stakeholder consultation, strategic planning, and project management experience, including working at Metrolinx as the consulting Executive Director of Electrification. Karen has also worked with the Toronto District School Board, where she developed a framework to create the Toronto Lands Corporation for the management of surplus capital assets. She has worked with all three levels of government, including as part of her work with the Toronto 2008 Olympic Bid and with Waterfront Toronto.

Doug Reycraft

Doug Reycraft is currently the Chair of the Community Schools Alliance and the Municipal Employers Pension Centre of Ontario. He also works as a private consultant on government relations. Doug was the mayor of Southwest Middlesex from its incorporation in 2001 until December of 2014. While a municipally elected official, he served a term as president of the Association of Municipalities of Ontario, and was a caucus member with the Federation of Canadian Municipalities. He also served two terms as the Member of Provincial Parliament for the riding of Middlesex.

Doug continues to serve his community with the Glencoe District Lions Club, the local Masonic lodge, the Communities in Bloom committee, and as a trustee of Trinity United Church in Glencoe.

Before his “retirement”, Doug’s day job was in education. He first taught in elementary schools, then in a secondary school in Glencoe, and finally in a secure custody facility for young offenders.

Linda Staudt

My career in education began with the Windsor-Essex Catholic District School Board, teaching biology and chemistry, followed by service as a Secondary Vice-Principal and Principal. Next, I was engaged in system level work as Student Success Leader and Superintendent of Education. Subsequently, I accepted a secondment to the Ministry of Education Student Success Branch in Toronto.

In 2013 I was appointed as Director of Education for the London District Catholic School Board. As Director of Education, I have the privilege of working with and learning from dedicated educators and staff throughout the district addressing the faith formation, student achievement and well-being needs of our students.

Midhat Aqeel

Midhat is a researcher at People for Education, working on our annual Ontario school survey. She is a graduate of the Harvard Graduate School of Education, with a Master’s degree in Learning and Teaching. She has contributed to People for Education’s research since 2014, including the Parent Involvement Committee report, Measuring What Matters, and most recently, the 2017 School Closings report. Midhat also serves as the Communications Director for The Citizen’s Foundation (TCF) Canada, an educational non-profit striving to improve access to education in Pakistan.

Plenary panel: Assessment and reporting

Sam Sellar

Dr. Sam Sellar is Reader in Education Studies at Manchester Metropolitan University. Sam’s research focuses on education policy, large-scale assessments and new accountabilities in schooling. Sam is currently working with a team of colleagues on an international study of data infrastructure in schools and school systems in Australia, the USA, Canada and Japan. Sam also works closely with teacher associations around the world to explore the impacts of datafication, commercialization and alternative visions of rich accountabilities for schools and communities. He is an author of Globalizing educational accountabilities (2016, Routledge) and The global education race: Taking the measure of PISA and international testing (2017, Brush), and an editor of National testing in schools: An Australian assessment (2016, Routledge).

Norah Marsh

Norah Marsh was appointed as CEO of EQAO in August 2017 to lead the agency’s modernization process. As a passionate advocate for public education for more than 26 years, Norah has worked with Ontario’s education community to strengthen student achievement at the school, board and provincial levels. She has extensive senior leadership experience in two Ontario school boards and several provincial-level education associations, and has dedicated her career to creating growth opportunities and inclusive learning environments for students. Norah received her Bachelor of Arts with Honours degree from the University of Ottawa, and her Bachelor of Education and Master of Education degrees from Queen’s University.

Ian Pettigrew

Ian Pettigrew has been a teacher for 24 years. He joined the Ontario Teachers’ Federation (OTF) in 2013 as Director of Curriculum and Assessment. Among other responsibilities at OTF, Ian liaises with numerous stakeholders to address assessment and curriculum policies and practices.

Before joining OTF, he held a variety of roles – department head, resource teacher and instructional coordinator – in the Peel District School Board, where he served for 20 years. Ian was also President of the Ontario History, Humanities and Social Science Consultants’ Association (OHHSSCA) for five years.

Ian holds a Bachelor of Arts with Honours (Trent University), a Master of Arts (McMaster University) and a Bachelor of Education (University of Toronto).

Annie Kidder

Annie is the Executive Director and a founder of People for Education. A former theatre director, she became engaged in public education as a civil society issue in the late 1990’s when there was a great deal of disruption and debate in Ontario’s public education system. Since then, she has received numerous awards for her education advocacy and is regularly sought out by the media as an expert on public education issues. She has been a keynote speaker at conferences across Canada, in Europe, Africa and South America.

PM1: Getting away from A’s – New approaches to student assessment and report cards

Iram Khan

Iram Khan is the principal of McLeod Road Traditional School in Surrey, British Columbia, and has been an educator for 20 years. She is the co-creator of and blogger for the education website, CanTeach. She has presented many sessions internationally and in her district on topics such as digital portfolios, evidence of student learning, gaming in education, and makerspaces. As a parent of a 7 and 10 year old, Iram also understands personally how important it is for schools to communicate student learning with parents regularly and through a variety of ways.

Shelley Brett

Shelley has 30 years experience as a teacher of K-7 and educational leader, and as the principal at Brookside Elementary and Surrey Academy of Innovative Learning in Surrey BC. She is a life-long learner, innovator, change agent, wife, mother, and fitness enthusiast. She is passionate about assessment practices that promote learning and develop resilient learners #no letter grades!

Pamela Crawford

Elizabeth Bristoll

Elizabeth Bristoll is an educator with the Toronto District School Board who is passionate about activating student voice through local social actions. Working with students with a variety of strengths and needs, she continues to engage in a professional inquiry towards discovering different forms of assessments that truly makes individual students’ thinking visible. This year, working with students with special education needs, she is discovering her students learning trajectory in mathematics and language through project based inquiries stemming from individual students’ interests. Ask her about her student’s journey in creating his “kicks” line.

David Cameron

David Hagen Cameron is the Research Director at People for Education. He is an educator and education policy sociologist with research interests in school change and the interrelationship between educational policy intentions or design and peoples’ experiences within policy frameworks. David has twenty years of experience working in the school systems of Ontario, U.S. and U.K. Most recently, David worked as a senior researcher within the Literacy and Numeracy Secretariat at Ontario’s Ministry of Education. David believes that P4E’s work in support of an enriched and vibrant public education system in Ontario is critical to the continued success of an outstanding public education system.

PM2: Students are doing it for themselves! How students are changing their schools, their communities, and our world.

Sakaana Yasotharan

Sakaana Yasotharan is a 20-year-old Professional Communications student at Ryerson University. She describes herself as a hardworking student, passionate artist, and a young social activist who is always learning. Her journey started back in 2015 at John Polanyi Collegiate Institute, when she was tasked with a cumulative assignment from the Rotman’s i-Think program, which challenged society’s perceptions of the education system and pushed her to find integrative solutions to any identified issue. Working collaboratively with a team, she was able to provide a brand new solution to what many students thought was an unresolvable issue.

Tessa Hill

Tessa is a grade 11 student living in Toronto. In late December of 2014, Tessa and Lia Valente created We Give Consent, an awareness campaign to advocate for consent to be a topic in the updated Ontario health curriculum. The two created social media accounts and a petition on Change.org that gathered over 40,000 signatures. They met with Premier Kathleen Wynne to discuss the new curriculum, as well as Education Minister Liz Sandals. The campaign started with a class project at their alternative middle school, creating a short documentary about rape culture in the media. Their 35 minute documentary, titled ‘Allegedly: Rape Culture in Our Society’, premiered at an event at the TIFF Bell Lightbox and on the Huffington Post. They have spoken at events all around Ontario and have been featured on CBC’s Metro Morning on CBC and in the Globe and Mail.

Lia Valente

Lia is a grade 11 student living in Toronto. In late December of 2014, Lia and Tessa Hill created We Give Consent, an awareness campaign to advocate for consent to be a topic in the updated Ontario health curriculum. The two created social media accounts and a petition on Change.org that gathered over 40,000 signatures. They met with Premier Kathleen Wynne to discuss the new curriculum, as well as Education Minister Liz Sandals. The campaign started with a class project at their alternative middle school, creating a short documentary about rape culture in the media. Their 35 minute documentary, titled ‘Allegedly: Rape Culture in Our Society’, premiered at an event at the TIFF Bell Lightbox and on the Huffington Post. They have spoken at events all around Ontario and have been featured on CBC’s Metro Morning on CBC and in the Globe and Mail.

Kherto Ahmed

I am a life science student at McMaster University, and I am always looking to positively change my community. I believe in leading the younger generation onto a positive path and helping youth academically, socially, and emotionally. I am a huge advocate for doing what you love, and my passion lies in the strengthening of my community. I believe change starts with the youth in our generation and involving them in programs and clubs is one of the best ways to create a relationship with them.

In high school, I was involved in many clubs and activities, including Success Beyond Limits, a youth program that encourages healthy relationships and academics, and Generation Change, which planned community events such as toy drives and barbecues.

Now that I am in university I am continuing to grow as a leader and work to be a positive influence on youth. I am a member of the “Smiling over Sickness” committee, which gives me the opportunity to build relationships with the patients in the McMaster Children’s Hospital, and the McMaster Global Medical Brigades, which supports under-served rural areas by treating patients and improving their water, sanitation and economic support.

Shams Mehdi

Shams Mehdi is a grade 12 Extended French student at Leaside High School in Toronto, and is currently in his second year as Student Trustee with the Toronto District School Board. Additionally, he is the President of the Public Board of Ontario for the Ontario Student Trustees’ Association (OSTA-AECO). Shams has been very involved with student advocacy and is passionate about the issues and concerns of all students.

PM3: Fundraising and equity – Strategies for more inclusive school fundraising

Christine Corso

Christine Corso is the Researcher and Project Coordinator at People for Education. She studied Health Sciences at McMaster University and went on to earn her Master of Teaching at OISE. Christine recently spent two years teaching in Edmonton, Alberta and is happy to join the P4E team. In her role as Researcher and Project Coordinator, Christine oversees P4E’s Annual Survey of Schools and is involved in the Measuring What Matters research initiative.

Jacqui Strachan

Jacqui is the Communications and Engagement Director at People for Education. A former lawyer, she has been actively involved in education issues for over 20 years, working full-time at People for Education since 1998. In her role, Jacqui develops content for People for Education’s website, e-bulletins, and reports; coordinates a network of parents, education partners, and community agencies; and runs workshops at conferences and school events across Ontario.

Mike Gill

Mike Gill is a graduate of McMaster’s Integrated Science program and a Venture for Canada Fellow who currently works at the Toronto-based startup CareGuide. First introduced to education policy through the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance, Mike has published on the topics of post-secondary student wellness, promoting meaningful experiential education, and peer-mentorship in the university setting. As a co-author of People for Education’s Annual Report in 2017, he explored the challenges inherent to the current fundraising paradigm in Ontario’s public schools. He is excited to listen, engage in critical discourse, and collaboratively move education forward within our province.

PM4: Building informed citizens through math

Beverly Caswell

Bev Caswell is the Director of the Robertson Program for Inquiry-Based Teaching in Mathematics at the Dr. Eric Jackman Institute of Child Study, and Assistant Professor, Teaching Stream (OISE/UT). She works collaboratively with educators to design compassionate and participatory learning environments that promote equity and invite learners to engage with mathematical ideas and to participate in the exciting pursuit of learning mathematics.

Since 2013, she has worked in partnership with innovative educators, Indigenous educational leaders, families and children with the Seven Generations Education Institute and the Rainy River District School Board – with the goal of improving mathematics teaching within a framework of reconciliation and reciprocal learning.

Her experience as an elementary school teacher provides a strong foundation for innovative teacher professional development and research. Bev is a co-author of Taking Shape: Activities to develop geometric and spatial thinking: Grades K-2.

Robin Coyle

Robin Coyle is currently a grade 1/2 teacher at George Webster ES, where she has been a teacher for 8 years. She has taught grades 1 to 5 over her 13-year teaching career in the TDSB. Robin continues to develop her passion for engaging children in mathematics and has achieved her Math Specialist as well as being involved in projects combining culturally relevant pedagogy with mathematics.

Ariel Vente

Ariel is a proud TDSB teacher in his second year as a K-12 Learning Coach. He is also a part-time M.Ed student in Curriculum, Learning and Teaching at OISE. Ariel is passionate about creating a fair and equitable school system that dismantles barriers to student learning and success. He also believes in the power of the Arts as a means of developing literacy and numeracy skills, and for students to gain a deeper understanding of Equity and Social Justice issues. When not teaching, Ariel is a father of 3 (cats), and enjoys volleyball, softball, chocolate, coriander, and cool office supplies.

Martha MacNeil

Loving her job as trustee for the Upper Grand DSB since 2014, Martha represents Wards 1 and 5 in the City of Guelph. Prior to being elected, she was school council co-chair for 3 years, while also chairing the UGDSB’s Parent Involvement Committee and acting as a parent representative on many board-level committees. Parent involvement is near and dear to Martha’s heart and she continues her work with the group as the trustee representative. Currently the chair of the UGDSB’s Policy Management Committee and a member of several other committees, Martha continues to be a strong advocate for parent involvement and the engagement of families in their students’ education.

PM5: How can we help more students go on to post-secondary education?

Terry Cooke

Terry Cooke is President and CEO of the Hamilton Community Foundation, which has played a leading role in mobilizing the community to address issues like increasing access to post-secondary education, strengthening neighbourhoods, and reducing poverty. Terry’s career includes leadership positions in the private, public and non-profit sectors. He served as Chairman of the Region of Hamilton-Wentworth from 1994 to 2000. Terry is a past Chair of the Canadian Urban Institute, and serves on the board of Community Foundations of Canada, as well as a number of corporate organizations. In recognition of his community service, Terry has been a Paul Harris Fellow, a two-time recipient of the Queen’s Jubilee Medal and was inducted into the Hamilton Gallery of Distinction in 2016.

Matt Goodman

For seven years Matt Goodman has been the Vice President, Grants and Community Initiatives at Hamilton Community Foundation. In this role, Matt has led HCF’s work in developing, implementing and evaluating grant programs and collaborative community partnerships. This includes HCF’s major strategic initiatives: ABACUS — Advancing Post-secondary Access, and Hamilton’s Neighbourhood Leadership Institute. Matt is a social worker by training and operated a health and social policy consultancy firm for 10 years prior to joining HCF. He has a strong interest in partnerships, community building, and systems change. He is married, the proud father of Hannah and Jonah… and loves tacos.

Jennifer Pearson

Jennifer Pearson is the project co-ordinator for Grad Track, Hamilton Community Foundation’s early intervention program that works with two groups of middle school students in Hamilton to facilitate their aspiration, access and achievement of post-secondary education. Grad Track is a part of an initiative called ABACUS, which aims to increase high-school graduation and post-secondary access in Hamilton. Jen has a Bachelor’s Degree in Health Sciences and a Master of Science in Health Policy and Economics. She endeavours to bridge the gap between policy, dissemination and practice, social finance strategies and behavioural public policy. When not working, Jen enjoys hiking, eating chocolate and learning Spanish.

Patrick Case

Patrick Case, LSM, LL.B., LL.M. is the Assistant Deputy Minister and Chief Equity Officer in the Education Equity Secretariat of the Ministry of Education. He was most recently an assistant professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Guelph. He is an adjunct professor at Osgoode Hall Law School and director of the Osgoode Hall Law School Certificate Program in Human Rights Theory and Practice.

Minister’s Address

Mitzie Hunter

Mitzie Hunter is the Minister of Education, and the MPP for Scarborough-Guildwood. Prior to this post, she served as the Associate Minister of Finance, responsible for pension reform.

Mitzie Hunter understands our community and the power of working together. A lifelong citybuilder, she is passionate about unlocking the city’s potential by ensuring fair and inclusive access to employment and prosperity

As the former CEO of the Greater Toronto CivicAction Alliance, Mitzie worked to solve some of our toughest social, economic and environmental challenges. She was also previously the Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) of the Toronto Community Housing Corporation, Vice-President with Goodwill Industries and a Regional Director at Bell Canada.

Mitzie and her family immigrated to Canada from Jamaica in 1975. She grew up in Scarborough, graduated from U of T (Scarborough Campus) with a BA, and recently completed her MBA from the Rotman School of Management.