She has held higher-profile positions in the past, but for the next superintendent of the Flin Flon School Division, small-town education is the best place to effect change.
Dr. Constance McLeese, currently living in Ottawa, is the division’s next top administrator, bringing decades of experience and a community-centric vision to the position.
“I wanted to live in a smaller community where, when you make a change or you do something, it actually has an impact,” she said in a phone interview Wednesday.
McLeese’s career in education has spanned more than 30 years. Starting out as a core French teacher in Halifax, she has taught all grade levels and a variety of subjects. She later spent a number of years as an administrator for the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board.
She is presently senior education officer for children’s education management with Canada’s Department of National Defence. In this role, she oversees the education system utilized by children of active-duty military members, wherever they live in the world.
McLeese holds a doctorate in patristic studies (the study of early Christian theologians) and has lectured at both Concordia University and the University of Montreal.
Trustee Murray Skeav-ington, chairman of the Flin Flon school board, was visibly enthused as he announced McLeese’s hiring at Tuesday’s board meeting.
“She’s going to bring something to this community that I don’t know if this community has seen before,” he said.
Skeavington, who had earlier phoned McLeese to tell her she was hired, said he didn’t believe he had ever spoken to someone so excited to land a job.
McLeese was one of about 22 applicants for the position, with resumes coming in from as far away as China, the North West Territories and Nunavut.
She will take over as superintendent from the retiring Blaine Veitch on July 18, giving her seven weeks to get her feet wet before classes start.
McLeese describes her educational philosophy as one that recognizes the important role of education and schools in a community.
One of her favourite aphorisms is “it takes a village to raise a child” – and she says “the educational system is our educational village.”
“You’re building the future every day with every kid that walks through any school building that you’re responsible for,” McLeese added. “That’s a humbling and energizing sort of task.”
Originally from tiny Westmeath ON, McLeese was looking to relocate to a small community when she came across the Flin Flon position advertised online.
“It sort of sounded like it was written for me,” she said.
McLeese, a mother of four grown children, knew little about Flin Flon other than the name, so she researched the community and was pleased to learn about its vibrant arts scene and outdoor-living opportunities.
As passionate as she is about education, as a young woman she had designs on becoming a united church minister. She began her post-secondary studies with that goal in mind, but ended up shifting gears somewhat by earning her doctorate in patristics.
McLeese started teaching and discovered it was her true calling. Her career has included stops in a number of communities and countries, including Holland and the Magdalen Islands, and, closer to home, Montreal, Halifax and Kingston, Ontario.
