Jessie began her career as a teacher in 2017, with previous experience studying and
practicing as an artist. She still considers herself a maker and creator today, and as such seeks to push her teaching practice to be one of embodied interaction with
materials, spaces, and ideas. She is inspired by the myriad ways children are innately connected to our world, and works to welcome the unknown as a collaborator in creating contexts for wonder, connection making, and disrupting dominant narratives. She has worked at the Bishop Strachan School for the past 8 years, where she has taught a variety of grades and subjects. Within this Reggio-Inspired environment, Jessie has had countless opportunities to learn alongside her remarkable colleagues about this pedagogy and consider how we might honour its tenets in tandem with the pedagogies of the Indigenous Folk whose land the school is situated on. She is dedicated to connecting her teaching practice with the broader community of Toronto, and works alongside a team of public school educators on an action research team with the University of Toronto focused on environmental sustainability education. Jessie is so excited to be joining the ORA as a board member; this work always leaves her feeling deeply hopeful in the futures that are made possible when we honour the capacities of children to lead the way.