Building Relationships & Developing People
As Catholic leaders, we are blessed to integrate faith into our decision-making, allowing us to lead with both our head and our heart. By modeling Christ’s teachings, we build trust, inspire others, and create a shared sense of purpose. Recognizing and celebrating the unique gifts and talents of staff strengthens relationships and empowers them to contribute meaningfully to the school’s growth. Listening is equally vital, especially in new settings, as it helps leaders understand the school’s climate and build trust. Strong, authentic connections are the foundation for shared leadership, enabling collaboration and meaningful change.
School Mental Health Ontario
Faith & Wellness Daily Mental Health Resources
Catholic Leadership Examples
To initiate deeper knowledge and understanding about Black influential leaders in Canadian and global history, I developed a bulletin board to highlight our classroom learning, and we then shared our research findings with our neighbouring classrooms.
Annual participation in traditional indigenous bannock and soup. A day of education and growth. My first year at LTIS I collaborated with our FNMI Family School Liaison to plan further outreach. I organized a class walk to the “ Athabasca Native Friendship Center” to learn some words in Cree and to help make bannock.
Our classroom celebration of Chinese New Year - I organized for a guest speaker to present to each junior class and for each student to be able to participate in a traditional practice and try a traditional treat.
Reflection
As a Catholic leader, I strive to be the spiritual cornerstone of my school community, fostering trust and collaboration through authentic discipleship. I cultivate a culture of compassion, positivity, and inclusion, and this commitment is reflected in my engagement with staff and students—through my mental health practicum initiative, sharing classroom literacy and numeracy structures, and working with students, families, treatment workers, and community partners to support student success.
Guided by the Starling ECPP partnership, I embrace the “Heart, Head, Hands” framework to make faith tangible and actionable within our school community, as it largely parallels the overarching treatment goals of students recognizing and understanding their emotions, and learning strategies for regulation, and implementing those into daily practice. I actively collaborate with students, staff, families, and community partners to ensure and hold accountability to an inclusive and equitable approach.
A key example of this approach was the creation of our school’s own land acknowledgment. Recognizing the need for a meaningful and community-driven statement, I engaged students and staff in an inquiry-based process to explore its significance. This collaborative effort resulted in a visual land acknowledgment that is now part of our daily practice—an authentic demonstration of faith in action, equity, and inclusion.
Even in settings where formal religious education is not mandated, such as this ECPP program, I integrate Catholic values by drawing on scripture, parables, and contemporary stories to inspire reflection and moral connection. The “The More…The More” ICE monograph reminds us that deep engagement with faith should naturally lead to acts of love and justice. In my classroom, this means fostering respectful dialogue, critical thinking, and a sense of interconnectedness, ensuring that all students, regardless of background, find relevance and meaning in the values we uphold.
My classroom explored the meaning behind our daily Land Acknowledgement and wrote one for their own home or significant location.