Wade Richardson

Chair

Wade is currently the OYAP Recruiter for the Halton District School Board. Wade is a strong supporter of Technological Education and believes in putting students first in order to help each student to discover their own pathway.  He currently works with the HDSB SHSM board lead as well as the Experiential Learning Lead to ensure student success on many levels. Wade has been involved in OCTE project management, writing and has taken the lead on many HDSB Technological Education initiatives. Wade sits on the executive of the Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program Provincial

Dave Lewis

Past Chair

Dave ‘retired' in June 2017 from Halton District School Board as the Coordinator of Technological Education and Pathways. He has also worked as a Manufacturing Technology teacher, department head, coordinator, Guidance and Coop teacher and been very involved over the years developing programs in SHSM, OYAP, Dual Credits and Robotics. Dave is a passionate voice for Technological Education and Pathways within the HDSB and across Ontario, sitting on many provincial committees lobbying for the expansion of Technological Education and the "re-culturing" of our system to value all post-secondary destinations. Dave is committed to working hard as OCTE Past Chair to continue growing the association and strengthen the voice for Technological Education in the province.

Bill Fetter

Secretary and Provincial Technological Education Board Lead

Bill is a dedicated educator and teacher consultant with the Greater Essex County District School Board in southwestern Ontario. Bill has been a member of OCTE for many years and has been re-elected as vice-chair on the Technological Education Board Leads, a sub-committee of OCTE. Bill has written curriculum and developed resources for technological education courses and likes to collaborate with others in the interest of promoting technological education. Bill has presented at the annual OCTE Conference in partnership with Public Services Health and Safety Association and promotes technology programs.

Clarke Perry

Treasurer

Clarke is thrilled to offer his time to the OCTE Executive. As a marketer, entrepreneur, and business owner, he has worked with many school boards in Ontario. This and his experience as an independent businessperson, brings a unique perspective to the OCTE executive. Clarke has always been a strong proponent for Technological Education needs and awareness in Ontario and continues to help drive that message in this role. Clarke has recently completed his pre-service teacher training and is currently teaching Communications Technology.

Tiffany Olmsted

Vice-Chair Communications

Tiffany Olmsted is a Communications Technology teacher in the Halton District School Board. She is a proud graduate of the Television Broadcasting program at Mohawk College. Tiffany has been volunteering with OCTE for years; she started by facilitating sessions for CommTech teachers at the annual May conference and more recently has been involved with the Communications team to create promotional materials for “Take Tech.” She is passionate about Tech Ed in Ontario and looks forward to continuing this rewarding work.

Rachel Allen

Experiential Learning Lead

Rachel has a varied teaching experience that covers almost every grade from 1-12 in both English and French, with a sweet spot for grades 7&8. She strives to bring students learning opportunities with context and authenticity, with the goal of avoiding the dreaded “why do we have to learn this”. Rachel is currently the Experiential Learning Lead with the Toronto Catholic District School Board and loves to work with educators and students to “bring the learning out of the textbook”. Rachel has worked with OCTE for the past 2 years creating resources for experiential learning and looks forward to this new opportunity.

Lee Ann Armstrong

Vice-Chair Secondary-Education

Lee Ann is a dedicated secondary teacher that strives to do what is best for students. She taught for many years in Hairstyling and Aesthetics, Health Care, and Hospitality. She also taught co-operative Education and developed a successful Program connected to Ontario Public Service for in-risk students. Her love for experiential learning brought her full circle when she became the OYAP consultant and then moved to the Lead of Experiential Learning for HWDSB. She holds a certificate of Qualification in Hairstyling and learning by doing has always been a part of her career. Lee Ann believes that all students have potential and it is finding the pathway that is the best fit for each individual! As the representative for Experiential Learning with OCTE, Lee Ann has worked with other Leads and Teachers across the Province to build experiences and writing resources for OCTE. Engaging all students, in all pathways, continues to be the goal!

Mario Blouin

Francophone Lead

Mario has taught for 33 years at ÉSC Hearst in Robotics, Manufacturing, Design and IT, and was also responsible for the Technology Studies and SHSM sector. He is now the coordinator of EduTek, the Teacher Education Program for Technological Education at the University of Ottawa. He has been actively involved in Skills Competitions for 28 years. He was also co-chair of the Skills Robotics Competition for 16 years. He has been involved with OCTE since its inception. He was co-chair of the Technological Education Board Leads TEBL for several years. He works with the Education Committee and manages the French information on the OCTE.CA website. He looks after the translation of documents. He wants to increase the participation of Francophones in technology-related activities and conferences. He represents Francophones within the association and ensures the survival of French technology in Ontario.

Stephane Veilleux

Co Chair, TEBL, French

A biography and photo for Stephane will be coming soon.

Roy Smith

Stakeholder Relations

A biography and photo will be coming for Roy Smith soon.

Brent Coakwell

Ontario Principals' Council (OPC) Rep

Brent Coakwell is a Principal, currently working as a system principal with the Halton DSB, with over twenty years experience in public education. Brent has written and consulted on curriculum documents, and provincial guidelines and resources for Technological Education, Specialist High Skills Major and the Food and Beverage Policy. Brent is a Chef who completed his apprenticeship and then became a teacher, as well as an advocate and champion for youth to pursue their passion in the development of their skills, regardless of the pathway they choose, and has supported this through local, national and international work. Academically Brent has a Masters of Education focusing on International Education Leadership and has traveled to work in schools in East Africa.

Lydia Hamilton

Specialist High Skills Major Lead

From Entrepreneur to Educator, Lydia has spent the last 22 years at the Ottawa Carleton District School Board (OCDSB) implementing differentiated teaching opportunities for learners exploring Technology Education and experiencing Industry sectors through coop. Her start as a Textiles and Design instructor, grew to embrace additional teachables in, Communication, Construction, Green Industries, Coop and Special Education. Lydia's passion for supporting student's in their exploration of the possibilities, lead to her role as Technology Department Head at Ottawa Technical Secondary school, then to the Specialist High Skills Major (SHSM) Board lead at OCDSB. As a long time member of OCTE, Lydia continues to collaborate with creative and energetic professionals focused on developing people and resources in supportive environments for students, parents, colleagues and community partners.

Derek Murphy

Industry Representative

Derek Murphy is the General Manager for global services at Studica Ltd. In this position he is responsible for Studica’s consulting services, product development and education offerings. Derek has more than 25 years in the education technology and design industry, with the last 20 spent focusing solely on education and training. Derek provides a wealth of manufacturing and technological design experience. He regularly speaks at key business and industry events. His key areas of expertise are Robotics, CAD/CAM, Design and Technology, and the curriculum development process throughout education.

Alex Duketow

Board Member

Alex grew up in his father's metal fabrication shop and has experience as a Mechanical engineer in the aerospace and large building mechanical systems industry. He has taught math, physics, and co-operative education for the PVNC Catholic District School Board. For the past 10 years he has served as Student Success Consultant and Applied Tech Board lead where he manages the Dual Credit and Specialist High Skills Major programming. Alex especially enjoys working with local industry and economic development to create solutions that benefit local businesses and inspire students.

Gord Nicholls

Board Member

Gord is the Technical Support Manager for Sales and Operations at BMP Metals Inc. in Brampton. He has worked in the area of sheetmetal and machine shop manufacturing for over 35 years. Gord has been an amazing supporter of Technological Education with over two decades of support for high schools and colleges for the Apprenticeship Trades related to his industry. Gord has also been a FIRST Robotics mentor for over 10 years dedicating countless hours to help build manufacturing related programs in high schools in Ontario. He has a reputation of being able to fabricate anything from metal.

Ingrid Scully

Board Member

Ingrid is an intermediate teacher from the Halton District School Board and is a passionate advocate for Technology Education in elementary schools. Ingrid has been a part of several initiatives throughout the Halton District School Board and province, including co-facilitating Halton’s Application Room Safety Training and co-writing the Council of Directors of Education Health and Safety document, Student Safety in Elementary Science and Technology, Grades 7 and 8.

Katherine MacIver

Board Member

A biography and photo for Katherine is coming soon.

Christine German

Manager of Growth & Innovation

Christine is our Manager of Growth & Innovation and thrilled to be hired as OCTE's first full-time employee. In her role, Christine is responsible for leadership and strategic development, conference and PD planning, member communications, grant writing and report development, financial management, website updates and supporting each OCTE Committee to accomplish their goals. Prior to her manager role with OCTE, Christine worked at the Halton District School Board for over 13 years as Pathways Project Manager and the board lead for Specialist High Skills Major and Dual Credit, and spent 3 years as the administrator for OCTE. Christine is committed to supporting all OCTE members and moving Technological Education forward across the province.

Email Christine with any questions or feedback for OCTE!