A long-time Kapuskasing educator is the new Superintendent of Education for the Northeastern French Pubic School Board. Natalie Joncas-Raymond has spent the past 18 years in various roles from a teacher to principals at several elementary and secondary schools. Joncas-Raymond says working in education wasn’t her first career choice, but it grew on her in high school.
“As I started helping out different people with their class work, I saw it as something I really would like to do, make a difference in how people get through it,” she said. “So it kind of grew as a passion of mine.”
Joncas-Raymond says that’s where the influence of one teacher made a difference.
“Mrs. Doris Kott, she was my guidance counsellor in high school and she made an impact on me,” she said. “I’ll always remember that.”
The French public school board is one of the largest in the north, covering Parry Sound to Hearst, but Joncas-Raymond doesn’t see that as a problem. She adds that technology brings everyone closer together and much easier to communicate and share information.
She said she is looking forward to visiting all of the schools from Parry Sound to Hearst and seeing what makes each of them so special.
