Ruvani is the Office & Operations Manager at PFE.  With over 25 years of experience, many in the non-profit sector where Ruvani has been a key player in developing and implementing Administrative systems and procedures. She specializes in Office Management in small and large non-profit sectors and has worked for the Employers Federation in Fiji, Commonwealth of Learning in Vancouver and Springboard in Toronto.

Currently the Office & Operations Manager at PFE, Ruvani is responsible for HR, IT, Finance & Accounting and Office Operations.

Ruvani has a major in Information Technology and Web programming. She also has a diploma in Computerized Business Marketing & Sales.

Ruvani is a firm believer in a team which supports initiatives for positive change in the education space and has a longstanding personal commitment to education-based organizations.

Kate Blair manages People for Education’s Future of Public Education project. Kate’s commitment to evidence-based decision making and passion for exploring themes related to access, retention and opportunities for lifelong learning have guided her career. Now working at the nexus of research, project management, and stakeholder engagement, Kate’s efforts focus on designing and ensuring the successful implementation of PFE’s multi-year national initiative.

In her previous roles with the Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario (HEQCO) and the Evaluation Centre for Complex Health Interventions (TECCHI), Kate honed her research, evaluation and coordination skills. In these spaces, Kate identified and assessed programs in place to support access to education and healthcare for underrepresented groups, explored challenges to program implementation, and identified opportunities for ongoing program development in both sectors.

Kate holds a Master’s degree from the University of Western Ontario where her thesis focused on the educational transitions of d/Deaf youth in Ontario.

Christine Corso is the Research Manager at People for Education. She is a former teacher from Edmonton, Alberta and earned her Masters at OISE at the University of Toronto, where her research focused on assessment in K-12 education. She is currently working towards her PhD in Educational Leadership and Policy Program at OISE/UT. Christine’s research interests include policy, knowledge mobilization, and assessment and motivation in the K-12 school system.

Email: [email protected]

Summer Cowley is Communications and Research Coordinator at People for Education. Summer is a full-time PhD student at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE) at the University of Toronto. Her research in her doctoral program focuses on educational pathways of university presidents in Canada and the United States.

Outside of her graduate schooling, Summer’s work in education in the last decade has been aimed at primary, secondary, and post-secondary education. Having worked as an Early Childhood Educator, English as a Second Language instructor in the college/university sector, and in Math and English education for students in K-12, Summer has been engaged in education across many contexts. These diverse experiences, along with her work experience in education publishing, give Summer a broad perspective on the many facets of education.

Annie Kidder is the Executive Director and a founder of People for Education. Formerly a theatre director, Kidder became involved in public education in Ontario in the late 1990’s and since then has become an expert on policy education policy and funding. She regularly provides advice to policy-makers and government, and her writing on education has been published in a range of media. She is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Ontario Principals’ Council 2004 Outstanding Contribution to Education Award, the Canadian Teachers’ Federation 2005 Public Education Advocacy Award, and in 2018, an honourary doctorate from York University. She has spoken at conferences in Canada, the United States, Europe, Africa and South America.  She is regularly quoted in the media as an expert on education issues. She lives in Toronto.

Email: [email protected]

Asia (Joanna) is an educator and researcher who completed her Masters of Teaching at OISE at the University of Toronto. Her research focused on language curriculum and policy related to Indigenous language revitalization and immersion programs. She believes in the power of language learning as a tool for intercultural understanding and flexible thinking, particularly in 21st century learning. Through her love of languages, she also studied French-English translation and spent two years in France teaching English as a foreign language.

Eloise is the Research Program Director at People for Education, leading our long-term research strategy and direction. She brings over a decade of experience working in education, and has worn many professional hats over the years. Intersectionality, equity, and inclusion are central to how she approaches research, policy, and engagement whether in her role as an equity educator, research manager, lecturer, or policy advisor.

She earned her PhD in Educational Studies from McGill University, where her research explored perceptions of learning and schooling in youth outside of the formal school system. During her time at McGill, the Canadian Educational Research Association (CERA) awarded her with the David Bateson New Scholar Award for excellence in qualitative research.

Prior to joining People for Education, Eloise worked at Ontario’s Council for Articulation and Transfer (ONCAT) and ORION, Ontario’s research and innovation network. Within these organisations she led and contributed to research and stakeholder engagement initiatives that involved participation from a diversity of post-secondary institutions. She also worked in Irish higher education for five years, in the areas of curriculum reform, teaching and learning, and education policy. Her time in Ireland makes her partial to a cup of tea and a good scone.

She lives in Toronto with her husband and two kids. She is active in the community, volunteering with the Loran Scholars Foundation, of which she is an alumna, contributing to the co-op she lives in, and creating Mama Stay Woke, a social justice meet up group.

Elyse K. Watkins is the Policy and Research Manager at People for Education. She has dedicated much of her professional life to working with both national and provincial governing bodies to enhance public education and has contributed research on measuring the transferable skills students need to lead successful personal and professional lives.
Elyse’s prior experiences encompass both K-12 and postsecondary education, where she led numerous projects on the assessment of student learning outcomes and improving access to quality education. She earned her Master’s Degree in International Education Policy from the Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE) and holds a Bachelor of Health Sciences (Honours) from McMaster University. Elyse’s previous work at the Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario (HEQCO) and People for Education have shaped her research interests in education policy, skill development, and equity in public education.

Danielle is the Administrative Coordinator at People for Education. She is a Special Event Management graduate and has earned experience through her internships, both of which were in the non-profit sector. Through these internships, Danielle has gained hands-on experience with marketing, communications and events. She is well versed in creative platforms and has created annual reports, website mock-ups, blog posts, and other digital marketing collateral in her roles as an intern in the past.

Danielle strongly believes in keeping the arts & culture alive in the education system and strives to help create a colourful future for newer generations.

She lives in Toronto with her family. Over the weekends she often spends her time writing, reading, painting or exploring Toronto practising her photography.