This episode features a presentation from our LeadMeet 2025 in Edmonton. Kim Backs, the principal at Jasper Place High School, speaks about her work in building a positive culture in schools.
This session is full of actionable tips that any school leader can use to improve the culture in their school.
To learn more about the ATA Council for School Leadership, visit our website.

Dr. Lindsay Avramovic is Principal of St. Francis of Assisi Academy and the new President of the Council for School Leadership. She also serves on the Board of Directors for the Canadian Association of Principals.

Dr. Avramovic started her career teaching elementary grades in Canmore with Christ the Redeemer Schools, advancing through roles as Vice Principal, Director of Catholic Education, and Vice Principal at a K-9 school in De Winton. Her leadership has focused on faith formation, curriculum development, and advocating for Catholic education.

Committed to lifelong learning, she earned a Master's in Administration and Educational Leadership from the University of New Brunswick and recently completed her Doctorate in Education at Western University, specializing in educational leadership and K-12 systems.

Dr. Avramovic is actively involved with the Alberta Teachers’ Association, serving on several committees and boards, reflecting her dedication to school leadership and education advocacy.

Visit the uLead website for more information on upcoming conferences.

Visit the Council for School Leadership website.

In this episode we speak with Michelle Nieviadomy, who will be closing uLead 2025.
Michelle Nieviadomy is the iskwew (woman in Cree) behind Iskwew Health, blending over 15 years of wellness industry experience with her passion for fitness and community building. As a goal-driven facilitator, public speaker, fitness instructor, and wellness advocate, Michelle’s work is guided by key principles:

• LOVE: Promoting self-love as the core message of Iskwew Health.

• HUMILITY: Lifelong learning to expand her wellness knowledge.

• RESPECT: Embracing every individual’s story.

• TRUTH: A belief in belonging within the Creator’s world.

• COURAGE: Honoring those who show up for themselves.

• HONESTY: Standing in truth and helping others do the same.

• WISDOM: Creating space for collective wisdom through Indigenous teachings.

Iskwew Health is the realization of Michelle’s dream to foster holistic well-being and community connection.

For more information on uLead, visit the conference website.
For more information on CSL, visit the CSL website.

This episode features Eliza Reid previewing her Keynote and Breakout session at uLead 2025.

Eliza Reid is a bestselling author who also served as First Lady of Iceland from 2016 to July, 2024. Born and raised in Ottawa, Canada, Eliza relocated to Iceland in 2003. As the Co-Founder of the esteemed Iceland Writers Retreat, she has advocated for Icelandic writers and literary heritage, notably through her acclaimed debut book, Secrets of the Sprakkar: Iceland's Extraordinary Women and How They are Changing the World. Her second book, a mystery novel called Death on the Island, will be published in late April, 2025.

Eliza's multifaceted career spans editorial roles at Icelandair’s in-flight magazine and Iceland Review, alongside frequent commentary on Icelandic affairs for foreign media. She is a sought-after keynote speaker on the international stage. In 2017, Eliza was named a UN Special Ambassador for Tourism and the Sustainable Development Goals. As first lady, she also served as patron of numerous organizations. Passionate about inclusion, belonging, and equality, she has wielded her influence through poignant op-eds and a compelling TEDx talk. Eliza Reid and her husband have four children together.

uLead Conference Website
ATA Council for School Leadership Website

In this episode, we present a breakout session from uLead 2024 with Jethro Ulrich. Jethro shares his story of being a sixties scoop survivor and his experiences as an indigenous student, teacher, researcher, and leader in an educational context. "The Stories We Share: An Indigenous Experience in Education" is the culmination of Jethro's graduate research that explores systemic racism in our Canadian education system and the colonial practices that continue to marginalize our indigenous students and their families.
Jethro is a teacher and current Assistant Principal with Edmonton Catholic Schools. He recently completed his Master's degree in Educational Leadership at Concordia University of Edmonton. The focus of his research is the decolonization of education through engagement and relationship building with indigenous families, elders, and their communities within the Edmonton Catholic School division. Jethro's graduate work was nominated for the Governor General's Award for Academic Excellence.
For more information on the work of the Council for School Leadership, please visit our website.
To register for the upcoming uLead conference, visit the uLead website.

In this episode we give you a preview of one of the Keynote speakers at uLead 2025, Dr. Judi Newman.
Dr. Judi Newman, founder and director of The Academy of Organisational Neuroscience Australia, holds a PhD in Organizational Neuroscience and is a leading Australian expert in social cognitive neuroscience. With a unique blend of experience in education, psychology, and neuroscience, Dr. Newman draws on her background as a former high school principal and executive coach to provide actionable insights into human motivation, learning, and influence. Her work focuses on enhancing leadership attributes, optimizing brain-based learning, training leaders in neuroscience-driven coaching, and helping organizations refine decision-making and build high-performing teams.
For more information on uLead or to register, visit ulead.ca

We are losing leaders in education. There. Let’s just name it.

And not just Superintendents or Principals, but anyone in the school system who is trying to make changes that have a positive and observable impact where it matters the most–in classrooms with students. Department heads, team leaders, instructional coaches and even our “unofficial leaders” - those good folks who choose to put their hands up to volunteer to be a part of something sounds like a pretty good idea for kids. Despite an unending will from educators to meet the needs of the children in our classrooms, the already sky-high demands placed on the school system (pushed even higher in the post-pandemic era) have transformed leadership into survival at all levels. As a result, as leaders we often find ourselves ‘drifting’, moving from crisis to crisis, struggling to know whether we are making a difference, and wondering “Is all of this worth it?”.

Here’s the good news. It is worth it. Leaders DO make a difference. A big one. At all levels. We just need to make it easier for ourselves to SEE that we make a difference. To make the impact of our leadership observable while concurrently building the collective efficacy of those who lead, teach and learn in our schools.

This episode, which was a Keynote address at uLead 2024, features Cale Birk, former teacher, high school principal, author and imagineer of “Navigating Leadership Drift”, “PLC 2.0 - Collaborating for Observable Impact”, “The PLC 2.0 Toolkit”, and “Changing Change Using Learner Centered Design” for this fun, inspiring and practical keynote address. Participants will learn about ‘the leadership drift’, how to spot when they are ‘drifting’ and how to lead from the middle by creating the conditions to make the impact of their leadership observable. Participants will also walk away having experienced a tool and protocol they can immediately use in their context!

Visit the uLead website for more information on upcoming conferences.

Visit the Council for School Leadership website.

In this episode, we bring you a breakout session from uLead 2024 called You Don’t Need a Title to be a Leader. You’ll hear Shan Jorgenson-Adam and Dr. Rita Marler speak about how Educational Leadership is different from non-educational leadership roles because student success is at the core. They ask participants to "reimagine" their leadership skills/abilities and support them in identifying and cultivating these skills in others with the ultimate purpose of ensuring success for all students.

Shan Jorgenson-Adam has been an educator for over 30 years working in a variety of educational roles (teacher, school administrator, division principal, director assistant and deputy superintendent) in both British Columbia and Alberta.

Dr. Rita Marler has worked in K - 12 public education for over 30 years in central Alberta. Rita's passion is Instructional Leadership and her doctoral work focused on the instructional leadership role of the Assistant Principal. As superintendent for 9 years, Rita's visionary leadership and relational approach paved the way for a collaborative culture that created connections amongst administrators and schools across her school division.
For more information on the Council for School Leaders visit our website.
Register for this year's uLead Conference.