Palliser School Division is pleased to announce that Lori Neufeld, Music Teacher at Dorothy Dalgliesh Elementary, is our Edwin Parr Award nominee for 2023. The award honours outstanding first-year teachers in Alberta. Lori has already made an incredible impact on her school and community in her first year of teaching.
Lori’s journey to becoming a teacher has been a long one. After high school, she finished her Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance. She taught music privately for many years and was very active in her own children’s education. Eventually, she spent time substitute teaching in Prince Edward Island, where there was a pressing need for substitute teachers at the time and a university degree was the prerequisite. It was at this point she decided she would act on her desire to finally complete her degree in education.
Upon completion of her degree and practicum, she was very pleased to find a role at Dorothy Dalgliesh where she could teach music. The school is equally pleased to have welcomed Lori. “The student buy-in and community excitement at the musical opportunities that Lori has brought to Dorothy Dalgliesh School is outstanding”, says Principal Crystal McGregor.
“Early on it became obvious that Lori has an unwavering belief that all students can learn and experience success. Lori is driven to provide creative and engaging ways to meet the vast learning needs of her students”, adds Crystal.
Lori realized that students had some challenges coming out of the pandemic and drew on music as a tool to help build some social skills and emotional resilience, “creating an environment where everyone feels safe and accepted was important to me”, notes Lori.
Lori has also been an integral part of the school’s journey toward adopting a growth mindset and transforming mathematics instruction. Lori infuses intentional and meaningful literacy and numeracy learning in her musical instruction through picture books, games, songs, and other enjoyable activities. Lori is invested in honouring Indigenous knowledge and has shared Cree, Blackfoot, and Seneca-Iroquois songs and stories with her students.
Despite all these successes, Lori did not anticipate this nomination.“I am surprised and honoured. I feel like I’m just doing my job and the fact that people are recognizing me for what I’m doing makes me feel like this is what I’m supposed to be doing.”
Congratulations to Lori Neufeld on being selected as Palliser School Division’s Edwin Parr Nominee.