The Bluewater District School Board has named a new Director of Education.
Lori Wilder has been appointed to the role. The school board says in a release she while the hire is effective Oct. 1, 2020, she will start as Director Designate June 27.
Wilder is currently the Superintendent of Education for the Bluewater District School Board. She is replacing Alana Murray, who is retiring after 38 years in the education field after first starting at Chesley District High School in 1982.
“On behalf of the Board of Trustees, I am thrilled to welcome Lori as Director of Education,” says Bluewater District School Board Chair Jan Johnstone in a statement. “Lori’s collaborative leadership approach, vast experience, and involvement in programs geared towards supporting some of our most vulnerable students, will be a wonderful asset in guiding us into an exciting future for the students, staff, and families of Bluewater.”
Wilder, an Owen Sound resident, comes to the role with many years of experience in local public education. She started as a teacher at Georgian Bay Secondary School, and also served as a vice-principal and principal.
The Bluewater Board says she became Student Success Leader in 2005, which led to numerous system level responsibilities as Superintendent of Education spanning more than a decade.
“Her portfolio has included oversight of areas of elementary and secondary schools, special education, student mental health, parent involvement, supporting the student voice, adult education, the skilled trades, and human resources,” a board release explains. “She has also been a devoted champion of Indigenous learning for students and staff, student athletics, and fostering inclusion and acceptance by implementing Gay Straight Alliances in many schools.”
Wilder says she is extremely honoured and humbled to be appointed as Director of Education, and looks forward to building on the work of the departing Director Murray.
“Continuing her legacy of strong leadership is especially important as we navigate the challenges related to COVID-19,” says Wilder. “I thank our trustees for their confidence in me, and my amazing colleagues at both the school and system levels, whose years of partnership and support have been imperative in preparing me to fulfill this new role on behalf of those we serve.”