SAC Provincial Election 2025-27
Candidates
PRESIDENT
Nancy Healey
My name is Nancy Healey and I am the Principal of Mary Queen of Peace Elementary in St. John’s, NL. I’ve been an educator in our province for 24 years, spending the first half of my career as a classroom teacher, where I discovered my passion for teaching and learning. The last 12 years of my career have been spent in administration, allowing me the opportunity to support educators and students on a broader scale.
From 2014-2018 I served as President of SAC Region 10 on the eastern Avalon which offered me the opportunity to form essential connections with other administrators and plan professional learning opportunities intended to help us learn from one another. Since 2018 I’ve been a member of the SAC Provincial Executive filling roles of Vice President, Communications and currently, I am honored to serve as the SAC Provincial President. In this role, I also represent Newfoundland and Labrador on the Canadian Association of Principals (CAP) Board of Directors. I would love the opportunity to continue in the role of President of SAC Provincial for the 2025-2027 term. I’m deeply passionate about providing administrators and program specialists of our province opportunities for professional learning, creating spaces for our members to connect, and advocating for our collective needs.
VICE PRESIDENT
Charlene Caines
Dear Esteemed Administrators,
I am Charlene Caines, and I am honored to stand before you as a candidate for the position of Vice President for the Provincial School Administrators Council. With six years of experience as an Assistant Principal at Carbonear Academy, I have dedicated myself to the growth and development of my staff and students and I am now eager to contribute to the continued success of the Provincial School Administrators Council.
Before stepping into administration, my career was rooted deeply in Student Support Services, where I had the privilege of holding several leadership roles, including Program Specialist and Department Head. This background ignited a passion for integrating technology, particularly assistive technology, to ensure that every student has the tools they need to thrive. This passion led me to serve two terms on the Technology Special Interest Council (TESIC), where I held the roles of Treasurer, Vice President, and Acting President. During my time with TESIC, we spearheaded significant professional learning events, such as the Summer Institute of Technology Integration (2014-2015) and STEM Fest in 2016. These experiences not only fueled my passion for technology but also opened doors for invaluable professional growth and connection.
As I transitioned into administration, I carried with me the powerful lessons learned from TESIC about the importance of collaboration and connection. I quickly sought to bring this spirit of unity to my role by running for an executive position within my regional Special Interest Council Region 9. From 2022-2024, I proudly served as Member at Large for SAC 9, where I was actively involved in planning professional learning opportunities and organizing regional retreats. This experience gave me the privilege of working with SAC regions across the province to organize the highly successful provincial conference, “Leading Forward,” held in May 2024 at Terra Nova Golf. The collaboration and leadership that went into this event further solidified my belief in the power of connection among administrators.
Currently, as Vice President of SAC 9, I continue to help shape and lead the planning of our annual retreat, working closely with our association as well as executive members to ensure that our administrators receive rich, meaningful learning experiences. My journey into administration is only just beginning, but I am more passionate than ever about fostering connections among administrators across our province.
We are at a critical juncture in our educational landscape, and the decisions we make today will shape the future of our schools. Now, more than ever, administrators must come together, break down the isolation that too often defines our roles, and build a network of support that ensures we all have the tools to succeed. The School Administrators Council has provides a perfect avenue to build this connection, and I am eager to take this vision further.
I firmly believe that a strong, united Provincial School Administrators Council is key to creating the positive change our educational system so desperately needs. I am ready to contribute my experience, my passion, and my drive to this incredible team. Together, we can continue to foster professional growth, build meaningful connections, and pave the way for a brighter future for our schools.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
Sincerely,
Charlene Caines
SECRETARY
Jacqueline Poole
Dear Colleagues,
I’m Jacqueline Poole, Assistant Principal at Hazelwood Elementary, and I’m seeking your support for Secretary of our School Administrators Council. With 25 years in the Newfoundland and Labrador education system, from a two-room Labrador school to diverse roles in metro classrooms, guidance, and administration, I bring a unique perspective.
My experience has equipped me with strong organizational and communication skills, vital for this role. I’m committed to supporting our council’s core mission: providing impactful professional learning and advocating for our members.
As Secretary, I will work to ensure:
● Accurate record-keeping and timely communication.
● Efficient meeting management.
● Dedicated support for professional learning initiatives.
● Strong advocacy for our members.
I believe in collaborative leadership and am passionate about empowering our administrators. I respectfully ask for your vote.
Sincerely,
Jacqueline
COMMUNICATIONS
Karen Kielley
My name is Karen Kielley, and I am the principal of Paradise Elementary, Paradise, Newfoundland and Labrador. With a passion for fostering positive, engaging, and inclusive learning environments, I bring 27 years of educational experience, spending the last 7 years as a school administrator. I am interested in serving with the provincial SAC provincial team, as communications officer to support a collective effort to strengthen our education system. I look forward to the opportunity to collaborate, lead, and contribute to our shared vision of a stronger, more supportive educational environment. I thank you for your consideration and hope that you will vote for me as the SAC Provincial Team Communications Liaison.
MEMBERS-AT-LARGE
Carla Crocker
Carla began her teaching career in the 2007- 2008 school year after completing her Bachelor of Education at MUN and returning to her home town on the West Coast of Newfoundland. With a deep commitment to her community, Carla has dedicated her entire career to the Bay St. George area. She started her career at Stephenville Primary as an intern and got her first position at Stephenville Elementary. She also worked in Bayview Academy (formerly Our Lady of Mercy) and Stephenville Middle School for a year each, and finally made it back to Stephenville Primary (the place her love of education began), where she is currently the Assistant Principal.
In addition to her teaching role, Carla holds a Master’s in Counselling Psychology (2008) and is a Canadian Certified Counsellor (CCC) through the Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association (CCPA), as well as a member of the Newfoundland and Labrador Counselling Association (NLCPA). Her diverse expertise allows her to support the emotional and academic needs of her school community.
Throughout her career, Carla has demonstrated leadership and dedication to enhancing the school environment. She has organized and participated in numerous school-based initiatives, and fosters community engagement through collaboration with local businesses and parents. She has also been actively involved in supporting student success by promoting continuous growth among teachers, with a focus on innovative teaching strategies and fostering an inclusive classroom all while advocating for and promoting professional development opportunities for staff and fostering their individual leadership potentials.
Julie Parsons
With a career dedicated to fostering student success, I have served as an Instructional Resource Teacher (IRT) for many years, demonstrating a commitment to inclusive education. Notably, I played a role in establishing the PASS and Credit Recovery programs at Holy Heart, initiatives designed to empower at-risk students to meet success. My expertise extends across diverse student populations, providing support to help each individual reach their full potential. Transitioning into administration, I have held leadership roles at both the junior and senior high levels, as well as District School, gaining a comprehensive understanding of educational administration. Currently, my role is Principal at St. Paul’s Junior High, where my goal is to champion student growth and academic excellence; working to build a strong sense of school community for all.
Sheryl Ryan
My name is Sheryl Ryan and I have the privilege of being Principal at École Holy Family Elementary in Paradise, NL for the past 8 years. Previous administrative experience included Goulds Elementary (about 10 years), St. Kevin’s High School and Villanova Junior High. Prior to my roles in administration, I was a junior high/high school science teacher. I taught in beautiful areas such as CBS, Carmenville, Musgravetown, Avondale and Ferryland. My varied experiences have provided me with valuable knowledge of the K-12 school system in rural and urban areas of our province.
Over the years, I have learned the important role of NLTA in improving the lives of teachers, administrators and program specialists. NLTA and its varied special interest councils are key to improving our profession. I saw this first hand when I was involved in TESIC and when I served on SAC Region 10 executive as a member-at-large member (2018-20). Most recently I served on the Provincial SAC Executive as a member-at-large for the last two years.
I would like to continue the amazing, supportive work of our NLTA SAC group, which is why I am hoping to represent you again as the SAC Provincial at large member.
Alun Young
- 2010 – 2012: Principal, Epiphany Elementary School
- 2012 – 2014: Principal, Holy Cross Elementary School
- 2014 – 2018: Principal, St Bernard’s Elementary School
- 2018 – 2024: Principal, Roncalli Elementary School
- 2024 – Date: Principal, Elizabeth Park Elementary
- 2018 – 2020: SAC 10 Treasurer
- 2020 – 2025: SAC 10 President
- 2023 – 2025 SAC Provincial Member at Large
Fellow educational leaders, I am hugely excited to have my name put forward as a candidate for Member at Large for Provincial SAC. I am currently the proud principal at Elizabeth Park Elementary, and this is my 15th year in administration and 12th as Principal. I am fortunate to have a broad range of educational experience and knowledge having worked in various countries and have led small and large rural schools, independent schools, inner city schools and large urban schools during my time as an educator. As such, I feel able to talk to, and understand, the myriad of challenges faced by those across our amazing system – whether it be recruitment on the west coast, retention in Labrador, or resourcing in Central.
I have had the honour of being involved with SAC Region 10 for the last several years, first as Treasurer, and then for the last five years as SAC Region 10 President. As a group we have worked extremely hard to advocate for our members, provide engagement opportunities, and rebuild our learning networks. I was proud to be the Conference Chair for our recent Provincial Conference where we worked in collaboration with SAC Region 9 to develop and implement our first conference in nearly 5 years.
Over the next few years, we continue to go through a tremendous change as our organisation is restructured. There are three areas that I believe are vital as we look to this transition. Firstly, it is key that we have a strong, unified, engaged voice to represent our goals and needs – this means that we need to elect a committee with a focus on member engagement and on rebuilding and supporting the regional representation which is the core of our existence. We also need to ensure that our voice speaks for both administrators and program specialists. Secondly, we need to continue to develop relationships, and work in cooperation with the many amazing organisations that are also involved in our system to benefit our educational leaders, and, in turn, their students. Lastly, we need to make leadership succession and development a primary goal. We have amazing people in our system, who find the transition to leadership daunting, and extremely challenging. Our goal should be to take the amazing knowledge that already exists within SAC and transition that to our aspiring leaders, while supporting our current ones.
Thank you, in advance, for your consideration.
