Middle School

Cissy Goodridge

Head of Middle School

Ms. Goodridge, Head of Middle School, joined Havergal College in 2011. She has taught instrumental (band) and vocal music for over 20 years in both single-sex and co-ed independent schools in Toronto, Oakville and Australia. Ms. Goodridge holds a Bachelor of Musical Arts, Mus. Ed from Western University and a Masters in Education from the University of Victoria. She has worked with students from Junior Kindergarten to Grade 12 and finds joy in helping students find their musical voices. She has a passion for the middle years, and strives to create lessons and programs that inspire and ignite a love of music.

Ms. Goodridge has presented her work on Singing Spirituals at Festival 500 in Newfoundland and at the British Columbia Music Educators’ Association (BCMEA) conference in Vancouver. In October 2016, she presented her work “Igniting the Sleuth–A Research Project that Ignites Student Inquiry, Voice and Creativity” at the international Association for Middle Level Education (AMLE) conference in Austin, Texas.

Ms. Goodridge’s experience in the classroom and as a professional singer is extensive. As a professional singer, she sang with the Nathaniel Dett Chorale, where she was nominated for a Gemini Award for her work in the TV special An Indigo Christmas. Additionally, she is also a JUNO and Much Music Video Award nominee for her work with her brother, Kenny Moran, in the group Oval Emotion. As a teacher, she has a passion for giving back to the community and working with her students to create outreach programs that inspire youth to engage in music. In her role as Director of Arts at Appleby College, she worked with performing arts students to create arts programming for the United Way and Big Brother/Big Sister in the Oakville community. 

Ryan Brown

Social Sciences Teacher

Mr. Brown joined the Upper School Social Sciences Department in September 2020. He holds a Bachelor of Arts from Western University and a Bachelor of Education from OISE. His professional development has included a focus on Special Education and the Traditional Teachings, Histories, Current Issues and Cultures of First Nations, Métis and Inuit Peoples.

Having worked internationally for most of his career, most recently acting as the Social Sciences Department Chair at an Ontario-curriculum international school in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, he brings varied experiences to his current role in the Upper School. Mr. Brown has extensive experience in curriculum development in both Ontario and International Baccalaureate curricula, eagerly working with colleagues to plan engaging and meaningful lessons. He has successfully taught students of all ages from Middle School through to Grade 12 in a variety of disciplines, though teaching about global geography and exploring diverse cultures with students are his passions. 

Mr. Brown also enjoys supporting students beyond the classroom whether through clubs, coaching, or attending school events. He has a wide variety of coaching experiences including coaching soccer, rugby, and hockey teams here at Havergal. Having lived and worked in four countries across three continents and travelling extensively during school holidays, Mr. Brown merges his passions for geography, culture and history both inside and outside of the classroom. When not busy lesson planning, in his free time he enjoys playing sports, exploring the outdoors and seeking out new cuisines to try.

Christine Foster

Health & Physical Education Teacher

Ms. Foster joined the Havergal community in 2020 as a Health & Physical Education (HPE) teacher. She holds a Bachelor of Kinesiology degree from the University of Toronto and a Masters in Teaching degree from OISE. Her professional development has included seminars and workshops for coaching, impactful teaching and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), along with additional qualification courses in Special Education. 

Throughout her studies, Ms. Foster completed research where she looked at why students stop taking HPE after their Grade 9 requirement, as well as action research on student motivation and creating positive environments in girls HPE. With her passion and commitment to learning, Ms. Foster strives to aid students in creating and maintaining a positive relationship with health and physical activity and hopes to inspire them to be active for life.

Ms. Foster also enjoys supporting students outside of the classroom whether it is coaching a team or cheering students on from the sideline. She has a wide variety of coaching experiences including soccer, volleyball and rugby. When not at school, Ms. Foster can be found on a soccer field either playing or coaching her U21 women’s soccer team.

Kayleen Hogan

Languages & Cultures Teacher

Mlle Hogan is joining the Havergal Community this year as a Middle and Senior School French Teacher. She loves sharing her passion and excitement for language learning with her students, helping to nurture each student’s personal journey to finding joy and purpose in learning French. She strives to make language learning fun and relevant to the lives of teens as well as interconnected to the world around us both near and far. Mlle Hogan strongly believes that alongside the study of language, we become more open and connected to other cultures, lived experiences and perspectives, making the world a more inclusive place for all. 

Mlle Hogan completed her Bachelor of Arts degree in French as a Second Language studies with a second major in Geography from Brock University, as well as her Bachelor of Education. Additionally, she has been trained through France’s national Ministry of Education as a DELF certified examiner from levels A1-B2, which applies a world-wide recognized framework of language learning to classroom instruction, as set out by the Common European Framework of References for Languages (CEFR).

Throughout her career, Mille Hogan has been on a number of collaborative curriculum design teams and projects aimed at creating lessons and activities for the French language classroom. Areas of focus have included: more culturally responsive and inclusive teaching and content, learner engagement and agency, promoting and enhancing spoken fluency and scenario-based, experiential learning. Mlle Hogan has also focused on professional development in Understanding Traditional Teachings, Histories, Current Issues and Cultures in regards to First Nations, Métis and Inuit People, having completed additional qualification courses from Wilfrid Laurier University on this subject. In addition to this, she has completed her French Language Specialist qualification from Western University. 

Having taught previously with MEI International Academy, travelling extensively throughout South East Asia, Australia, and Europe with students enrolled in “Global High school,” and having lived for two years in Switzerland, Mlle Hogan merges her love and passion for languages, cuisine, culture and geography both inside and outside of the classroom. When she is not travelling in her spare time, she can be found cooking up a storm in the kitchen, tending to her urban garden, reading a thriller or else on the golf course trying to keep her score in the 90s.

Jennifer Pollack

English & Drama Teacher

Ms. Pollack has taught English to students from Grades 7 through 10 at Havergal for the past 16 years. After earning her undergraduate degree at McGill University, she worked at a post-production company in Toronto and then enjoyed a number of years travelling and teaching English as a second language. It was during her travels that she fell in love with teaching, and upon her return to Canada, she earned her Masters of Education and pursued her full time career in teaching.

In her years at Havergal, Ms. Pollack has been involved in a number of capacities at the school such as coaching field hockey, supervising the Grenoble Community Partnership, extending her understanding of how girls learn through the Girls & Learning team, developing school-wide initiatives as a member of the Effective Communication Strategic Planning Committee, singing in the Staff Choir and leading as the Margaret Taylor House Advisor. Her professional growth planning focuses on creating ravenous readers of her students using strategies inspired from Penny Kittle and the New Group Reading test to evaluate reading progress over the middle school years. Currently, she is very much enjoying her new position as a Grade 8 Form Teacher.

Outside of school, she appreciates her time to read (of course), swim, kayak, paddle board, downhill ski, practise yoga and walk her dog. She is a passionate member of her book club, formed with university friends more than 20 years ago. Most of all, she cherishes time with her partner and two daughters.

Carrie Steele

Middle School Guidance & Learning Support Specialist

Since arriving at Havergal College in 2012, Ms. Steele has held a number of positions and has worked in the Junior, Middle and Senior Schools. She began her Havergal career as the first Learning Support Specialist, where she was fortunate to work with teachers and students across the grades and to support students from Kindergarten to Grade 12. In her current position as Middle School Guidance Counselor and Learning Support Specialist, Ms. Steele works to build connections and to inspire and engage students through the development of self-awareness and advocacy skills and by helping them to recognize and acknowledge their strengths and needs. She also works to develop programming focused on assisting students to manage their own learning and to acquire the habits and skills necessary for success both inside and outside of school.

Throughout her extensive career at various private and independent schools, Ms. Steele has taken on the challenge of providing leadership and support in instituting and facilitating strategies and approaches to meet the diverse needs of all students. Ms. Steele partners with teachers and students on a regular basis to determine the best way to implement teaching and learning objectives and to provide balanced opportunities. Differentiation has always been at the core of her instructional practice. It is her belief that targeting individual student’s needs and providing the tools and resources required to achieve success will ultimately yield greater academic achievement within an inclusive classroom environment.

Ms. Steele’s commitment to education has led to her involvement in all aspects of school life. As a lifelong learner, with a passion for cycling and the arts, Ms. Steele works diligently to make a meaningful contribution to the school through her participation in extracurricular activities including the Study Buddies Mentor program, the Middle School play, and as an advisor for various clubs and special events. Her outside activities involve her participation in the Ride to Conquer Cancer and the Barrie 2 Baycrest rides, as well as her active involvement in a community-based theatre group.

Ms. Steele’s educational background includes an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology and Bachelor of Education from York University as well as additional specialist qualifications in both Guidance and Special Education. Her post-graduate studies include a Master of Education degree from the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, with an interdisciplinary focus on Adaptive Instruction and Special Education.