Diana St. Pierre:
The Heart of the Work
Thirty years ago, she wanted to be the person who made a child light up. Now she makes sure every educator in the district can be that person
Diana St. Pierre
At the end of a long day on set, Diana St. Pierre had spent hours beside the camera, watching educators she’d supported, coached and cheered on tell their stories. Asked how it felt, she took a moment.
Today truly showed the heart of the work. Each person on camera today, you can feel their passion. You can feel their why — the reason they show up to work every day. They do the real work, and they make the real impact.
- Diana St. Pierre
Diana was 18 when she started in the field, and she’s now been in it for 30 years. She traces it back to her own kindergarten teacher, who hugged her students and made each of them feel important.
I always wanted to create a difference for children. I wanted to be that person that, when I walked in the room, the child's whole being lit up.
- Diana St. Pierre
She’s worked nearly every job in the sector: parent resource worker, special needs resource consultant, educator, supervisor, director, and ECE instructor. The way she had been taught didn’t sit well with her.
It was all about molding children for the system. They all had to do crafts at the same time. It didn't fall in line with my values. I really wanted to create that difference.
- Diana St. Pierre
Leading and coaching others turned out to be her real passion. Today she’s the Quality Assurance Coordinator at the Manitoulin-Sudbury District Services Board. That makes her part funder, part problem-solver, looking for creative ways to support the people doing the work. When educators were showing up without proper footwear, the board funded workwear. She knows the North is different: there’s no college close by, so the district often hires for heart and supports people through apprenticeships and grants.
We're getting a lot of staff who don't have their qualifications yet, but they have the heart for the work, and we can teach them the education part.
- Diana St. Pierre
What moves her most is watching people come into the field with no experience and grow into remarkable educators, and grow themselves in the process.
When you're working with children, you're building relationships, not just with the child. It's a relationship with yourself as an educator. Seeing people come into the field with no experience and then become these amazing educators, getting to know themselves as well as those children and families — that's the real impact. That's the work that we do.
- Diana St. Pierre
She recently brought a social work student along on a classroom visit. Within five minutes, the student was on the floor with the children, and they were connecting right back. That’s exactly what Diana looks for.
Someone who wants to create a difference in the life of a child. Someone who is willing to reflect on their own practice. Someone who's willing to learn and grow. That's a good educator, right there.
- Diana St. Pierre
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