About the Speakers
Rachelle Blanchette
Rachelle Blanchette is the bilingual Child Care Advisor for the Ottawa Region of the Ministry of Education. She works collaboratively with the Education Officer responsible for the implementation of full day kindergarten. Rachelle is a Registered Early Childhood Educator with over 17 years’ experience in the early learning and child care fields. Her professional experiences range from working directly with children, supervising, licensing, and finally program and contract management.
Jacqueline Brooks
Jacqueline Brooks is a Senior Program Advisor in the Early Learning Division, where she is a member of the team working to implement the Full-Day Early Learning Kindergarten Program. She also worked as a Senior Policy Advisor in the Division’s Policy and Programs Branch. Previously Jacqueline worked as a Senior Policy Advisor in the Minister’s Office for the Minister of Training, Colleges, and Universities. Jacqueline also brings private sector experience to her role having been a Manager in Human Resources at Scotiabank. In addition, she has experience running children’s recreation programs for Toronto Community Housing and the Toronto Board of Education. She was also a Special Education Assistant.
Renée Brouillette
Renée is a bilingual Education Officer with the Early Learning Implementation Branch (ELIB). She works out of the Sudbury-North Bay regional office, providing information and support to boards and school authorities of the northernmost part of the province. She has worked as a principal and a vice-principal at the elementary and secondary levels and has been working in education since 1991, in both French- and English-language schools of the Sudbury area. She came to ELIB after having been seconded to the French Language Education Policy and Programs Branch (FLEPPB) where she worked as a member of the curriculum review team and in collaboration with the Leadership Development Branch on a project entitled Courageous Conversations. She is a specialist in first and second language acquisition and her strong curriculum background is complemented with work done in relation to EQAO testing, Assessment and Evaluation, Student Success Initiatives, New Teacher Induction Program, Differentiated Instruction, Special Education, Equity and Inclusion, as well as Safe Schools.
Karen Calligan
Karen Calligan is a Registered Early Childhood Educator with thirty-one years of experience in early learning. Her career began in a variety of community-based, school-based and workplace child care settings where she worked as a teacher, supervisor and administrator supporting programs for children from birth to age 12. Karen also taught at Mohawk College for ten years in the Early Childhood Education program. For the past twelve years Karen worked for the Ministry of Children and Youth Services as a child care licensing program advisor and program supervisor supporting child care, early learning and parenting programs through a variety of government initiatives including the Hamilton Best Start Demonstration site. In 2010, Karen was the project manager for the Ministry of Children and Youth Services (MCYS) and led the provincial transfer of child care from MCYS to the Ministry of Education (MEDU). Since January 2011, Karen has been with MEDU in the Early Learning and Child Care Implementation Branch as the child care advisor for the London Region.
Dolores Cascone
Dolores Cascone is an Education Officer from the Early Learning Division of the Ministry of Education. She collaborates with the school boards in the Toronto and area region in the implementation of the Full-Day Early Learning Kindergarten Program. She has been an educator for over 27 years working in various roles both in elementary schools and at the system level for the Toronto Catholic District School Board. Her passion has been working with and advocating for our youngest learners and their families.
Lina Davidson
Lina Davidson has worked within the early years’ sector as an Early Childhood Educator since 1986. She joined the Early Learning Division in July 2011 as Child Care Advisor. Prior to that, Lina was the manager of early years programs at the Conseil scolaire catholique du Nouvel-Ontario where she contributed greatly to the implementation of the Best Strategy as well as the Full-Day Early Learning Kindergarten Program. Over the course of her career, she has worked in a variety of positions such as resource teacher, program supervisor and executive director at the community and municipal levels as well as with a First Nation. She has also contributed to the development of future early childhood practitioners as a community college faculty member of the Early Childhood Education Program and through her volunteer work with l’Association francophone à l’éducation des services à l’enfance de l’Ontario (L’AFÉSEO).
Tony Dias
Tony Dias is a Senior Policy Advisor with the Special Education Policy and Programs Branch (SEPPB) at the Ministry of Education. He has worked there since 2006 and has been involved in a variety of projects such as multi-ministry program initiatives, Autism Spectrum Disorders activities, program and financial reviews, special education funding, and delivering presentations to various stakeholder groups.
Prior to working for SEPPB, Tony was a Policy Advisor with the Ministry’s Education Finance Branch where he worked on special education among other portfolios.
Agnes Dufournaud
Agnes Dufournaud is an Education Officer in the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Branch of the Ministry of Education. She joined the Ministry two years ago after a career in teaching and administration with the Waterloo Region District School Board, the City of Pittsburgh, and the Toronto District School Board. She has been part of the team at the Ministry that has been responsible for the implementation of Growing Success: Assessment, Evaluation, and Reporting in Ontario Schools in provincially funded school boards and with First Nation communities.
Heather Exley
Heather Exley is an Education Officer with the Early Learning Implementation Branch of the Ministry of Education where her focus is ensuring the successful implementation of the Full-Day Kindergarten Program. She has the privilege of working with all school boards and communities across the Thunder Bay region. An experienced educator for the past 30 years, Heather’s teaching career has spanned elementary to post-secondary education. A kindergarten teacher and registered early childhood educator, she is also a former Program Coordinator and Faculty for the Early Childhood Education Diploma Program at Confederation College. As an elementary school principal, Heather was fortunate to have opportunities leading early learning / kindergarten initiatives in her former school board and community. Her work continues to be dedicated to the successful implementation of the Full-Day Early Learning Kindergarten Program in northern Ontario and across the province.
Danielle Galipeau
Danielle Galipeau is now the Acting Bilingual Senior Outreach Advisor for the Early Learning Division of the Ministry of Education. Danielle has extensive experience with the Francophone community, which enables her to engage stakeholders and build partnerships with regards to the implementation of full-day kindergarten for four- and five-year-olds.
Prior to coming to the Ministry of Education, Danielle was the Provincial Coordinator of the French-language childcare project, whose strategy is to increase the number of preschool childcare facilities in French-language schools across the province. She was working for the 12 French-language school boards and was responsible for planning and coordinating the strategy with its relevant partners.
Danielle was also the Community Services Manager for the Conseil des écoles catholiques du Centre-Est (CECCE). She was responsible of the expansion of childcare in schools, the partnership of the full-time kindergarten, the school readiness program, Best Start initiative and the harmonization project at Le Petit Prince School. Danielle manages various early year programs with local partners.
Paul Grogan
Paul Grogan has been an educator for 21 years and came to the Special Education Policy and Programs Branch of the Ministry of Education in 2008. He was a teacher in primary, junior and intermediate classrooms as well as in a Care and Treatment program for students with mental health issues. Prior to coming to the Ministry of Education Paul was a Principal and Vice-Principal in both secondary and elementary schools.
Isilda Kucherenko
Isilda Kucherenko is a Registered Early Childhood Educator with twenty-five years of experience in early learning. She began her career as a teacher in a Regional Municipality of Peel child care centre and shortly after became a Children’s Services Worker completing fee subsidy assessments and co-ordinating care for parents in the Home Child Care Program. In 1993 Isilda joined the staff at Family Day Care Services when the Home Child Care Program was transferred. Isilda worked part-time for 12 years while raising her two daughters, which gave her an opportunity to diversify her early learning experiences. These experiences included the role of Educator with the Dairy Farmers of Ontario delivering educational programs to elementary school children in the Region of Halton as well as a Child Care Representative with the Regional Municipality of Halton. For the past seven years Isilda worked for the Ministry of Children and Youth Services as a child care licensing program advisor and acting program review and compliance manager. In August 2011, Isilda joined the Early Learning and Child Care Implementation Unit at the Ministry of Education as the Child Care Advisor for the Toronto Area.
Kelly Massaro-Joblin
Kelly Massaro-Joblin is currently a Child Care Advisor for the North Region in the Early Learning and Child Care Implementation Branch for the Ministry of Education. She has been in the field of Early Childhood Education for thirty years, started three Reggio-inspired child care programmes in Thunder Bay and travelled to Reggio Emilia twice to participate in study tours. She has brought forward new initiatives to her community to improve the quality care and education of young children through her work with the AECEO as the past president and a member of the Best Start Network in Thunder Bay.
Jack Nigro
Jack Nigro is presently an Education Officer in the Toronto and Area Regional Office of the Ministry of Education. His portfolios currently include Peel DSB liaison, Faculties of Education liaison, NTIP, TPA, Parent Engagement, and Equity and Inclusive Education.
After teaching in the Toronto Catholic DSB, Jack began his work at the Ministry in 1997 in the Independent Learning Centre, the province's Distance Education branch. There, he was responsible for program development (online and paper-based), as well as overseeing the teaching unit. From 2000 to 2003, he served as Practicum Co-ordinator, instructor and then Director of the School-University Partnerships Office at OISE/UT in the Initial Teacher Education Program. He has won numerous awards for his work in online teaching and learning, and currently serves on the Editorial Board of the International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, as well as other advisory boards. Jack returned to the Ministry in 2003, and is enjoying his work supporting teacher candidates, teachers, parents and students in the Toronto and Area Region.
Michael O’Gorman
Michael O'Gorman is a retired educator who lives in Toronto. He spent the last twelve years of his educational career working at the Ministry of Education where he oversaw the development of the Grades 1-8 Language curriculum document, the Grades 9-12 English curriculum document and the Growing Success Assessment, Evaluation and Reporting document. Previous to his ministry experience Michael worked with the Toronto Catholic Board as an English teacher, department head, Vice Principal, Principal and Language Arts Coordinator.
Ana Marie Prokopich
Ana Marie Prokopich is an Education Officer – Early Learning Division who currently has the privilege of working with and supporting educators in boards and schools within the Barrie region. She is an experienced educator who has spent her career working and serving students and parents in both the elementary and secondary panels. Most recently, Ana Marie has been a school administrator and Assistant to the Superintendent of Secondary Schools. Her experiences include Staff development, Principal/Vice Principal mentoring and coaching, developing, planning and implementing Student Success and Specialist High Skills Major initiatives, as well as coordination of Alternative Education Program Initiatives.
Rod Peturson
Rod Peturson is an Education Officer with the Early Learning Division of the Ministry of Education, where he is a member of the team working to implement Ontario's new Full-Day Early Learning Kindergarten Program. Previously, Rod worked as a teacher, program consultant and finally, Superintendent of Program and Instructional Services, with the Greater Essex County District School Board. He is the author of numerous books and elementary teacher resources focusing on the areas of science and technology, social studies, language arts/reading/writing, and play-based kindergarten programs. He has had the opportunity to work with teachers throughout North America and has been invited, over the years, to share his expertise at numerous educational conferences.
Christine Riedel
Christine Riedel has been an Education Officer with the Special Education Policy and Programs Branch at the Ministry since 2008. Current projects and initiatives include Learning for All, Kindergarten to Grade 12, Individual Education Plans and Special Education Advisory Committees. Prior to working for the Ministry, she was a Special Education Coordinator responsible for coordinating special education programs and services for elementary and secondary schools. In addition, she has taught additional qualifications courses for York University and Loyalist College.
Dianne Riehl
Dianne Riehl is currently seconded to the Ministry of Education as an Education Officer working on the Full-Day Early Learning Kindergarten Program. She has also been the Program Coordinator of the Early Years Department in the Toronto District School Board. In a previous secondment to the Ministry of Education, Dianne oversaw the revision of the Kindergarten Program Document and was the ministry representative on the Expert Panel on Early Learning and participated in the development of the Early Learning for Every Child Today and Every Child Every Opportunity Documents.
Maria Saunders
Maria Saunders is a Registered Early Childhood Educator with twenty-eight years of experience in early learning. Throughout her career Maria has worked in a variety of community-based, workplace and municipal child care settings as a teacher, resource teacher, supervisor and manager supporting programs for children from birth to age 12. Maria also taught at Georgian College in the post diploma Resource Teacher Program and was involved in the national research project “You Bet I Care” on quality child care. Maria has worked for the Ministry of Children and Youth Services for more than 17 years as a child care licensing program advisor and the acting manager of the Program Review and Compliance Unit. In May 2011, Maria joined the Ministry of Education, Early Learning and Child Care Implementation Branch as the Child Care Advisor for the Barrie Region.
Zineb Sebbane
Zineb is a bilingual Education Officer with the Early Learning Implementation Branch (ELIB). She works out of the Toronto regional office, providing information and support to boards and school authorities of the southern part of the province. As an Education Officer, Zineb works closely with the three French-language boards in southwest Ontario and takes on a co-ordination role with all 12 French-language boards and their partners to support the implementation of the program.
Zineb has extensive experience working in all levels of education. She had joined the ELIB from the Ministry’s French-Language Education and Educational Operations Division, where she worked as an Education Officer. Her role involved working with the French school boards as a coordinator of the Provincial Numeracy Strategy and developing action plans which addressed the needs of the French school boards.
Zineb was also Principal at a French school, an elementary and secondary Teacher, a Pedagogical Advisor for the project FARE South. Further, she has taught at Brock University and still teaching at Laurentian University at the École des sciences de l’éducation.
Kim Slomka
Kim Slomka is currently an Education Officer with the Special Education Policy and Programs Branch (Program Policy & Coordinated Services Unit) of the Ministry of Education. Kim has 32 years’ experience in the education system and has worked in regular and special education at both the elementary and secondary panel. Most recent projects she has been involved in at a school board level include Assessing Achievement in Alternative Areas (A4), Individual Education Plan (IEP) Reviews, Learning for All, and Alternative Dispute Resolution (Shared Solutions).
Jacques Torjman
Jacques has been working in Education for 36 years. He taught in both the Elementary and Secondary panels. He has a specialist in Special Education and has lectured at the University of Ottawa. He was a curriculum consultant at the Ottawa-Carleton DSB and wrote four curriculum documents. At the Ottawa board, he was also President of the Vice-Principals’ Association as well as the Principals’ Association. He worked as a school administrator for 17 years with experiences in a various settings. He worked for six years as an Education Officer with Field Services Branch and one year with the Early Learning Division (Implementation Branch).
Laura Tryssenaar
Laura is a freelance Education Consultant who retired early in order to complete her PhD in Education after 29 years as a Family Studies teacher and department head. Laura designs and instructs on-line Additional Qualifications courses in Family Studies for Queen's University. Prior to this she was an instructor of Primary/Junior and Intermediate/Senior Family Studies at the Faculty of Education of University of Western Ontario. As a curriculum writer, textbook author, and professional development co-ordinator and leader, Laura brings her practical knowledge and her passion for literacy to her role in promoting Financial Literacy.
John Verbakel
John Verbakel is a recently retired principal, having served with both the Grand Erie and Thames Valley District School boards for twenty of his thirty four years in education. For a period of his career, he was a principal of curriculum at the Thames Valley District School Board central office. While in that role, he facilitated the development of Board published assessment and evaluation documents and the training of his colleagues around how assessment and evaluation should be conducted in both the elementary and secondary panels.
Currently John is contracted by the Ministry’s Student Success Branch and the Ontario Principal’s Council as a principal coach and is working in this coaching role with active administrators in the province as they focus on being effective curriculum leaders with their teachers.
He has a blended family of eight children, two of whom have special needs. It is this personal experience that enables John to see education from a variety of perspectives.
Jane Witte
Jane Witte is a Lecturer in the Faculty of Education, University of Western Ontario. She also teaches AQ courses for Queens University Faculty of Education. Previously, Jane worked at OISE and Brock University. Jane’s classroom experience includes both elementary and secondary work in Family Studies, History and Special Education, working at the Peel, Toronto and Thames Valley District School Boards. Jane is an experienced author and has written textbooks as well as teacher support materials.
Jill Worthy
Jill Worthy is an Education Officer – Early Learning Division who currently has the privilege of working with and supporting Education Officers in the field as well as staff in the Early Learning Implementation Branch at Mowat Block. She is an experienced educator who has worked in three boards as well as the Special Education Branch at the Ministry of Education, serving students and their families in both the elementary and secondary panels. Most recently, Jill Worthy was a Superintendent of Education in the Toronto District School Board where she served a large family of elementary and secondary schools in addition to holding board-wide responsibility for the early years and environmental sustainability. Her experiences include working as a special education consultant, leading staff development, mentoring and coaching prospective and new system leaders, and teaching AQ courses at York University.
Zheng Xu
Zheng Xu has been an Education Officer with the Special Education Policy and Programs Branch, Ministry of Education since 2008. Zheng has led various projects including the development of resources Caring and Safe Schools in Ontario, Supporting Students with Special Education Needs through Progressive Discipline Approach and Draft Learning for All, K- 12 and associated regional projects. Zheng has also been involved in policy work in Special Education Funding and has delivered presentations to stakeholder groups, international educators and teacher candidates.
Prior to joining the Ministry of Education, Zheng was a Special Education Consultant in Toronto District School Board after she had taught in various elementary schools. Zheng gained a wide range of special education experiences both at elementary and secondary panel. In addition, she was an Adjunct Professor for the pre-service program at York University.
