International Womxn’s Week ft. Dominique Lacroix

My name is Dominique Lacroix, I am 28 years old, and I grew up in Timmins, ON. I moved to Ottawa after high school to pursue my post-secondary education and began my teaching career afterwards. I currently teach French Immersion at the grade 7 and 8 level. My first language is French, but I am fully bilingual, and committed to helping my students become bilingual as well.

My current job title is Intermediate Teacher and Curriculum Leader at St Paul High School

I am a uOttawa alumni, and I graduated with a Baccalauréat spécialisé approfondi en lettres françaises. I then attended uOttawa’s Faculty of Education through the concurrent Ed program. I graduated in 2015.

Over the past year, the pandemic has had a profound impact on our personal and professional lives. In order to overcome the chaos, agility has become a part of our collective DNA. How has your work been affected?

As a teacher, agility has definitely been a necessary ability, as myself and my colleagues had to completely change our teaching methods when the pandemic first began in March of 2020. Suddenly, we were attending staff meetings online, as well as having to attempt to teach our current students online, when some did not have a proper device or internet in some cases, which was quite challenging.

As we returned to in person learning in September of 2020, agility was needed once again, as we had to adapt to all of the new COVID requirements, such as wearing a mask and making sure our students were properly distanced in class, in the cafeteria, as well as outside during recess. However, our biggest goal was to continuously make sure that our students knew that it was ok to not be ok in this weird situation, and that support was available if they needed it. It has definitely required resiliency and an open mind, but I think educators have done such a wonderful job adapting to these constant changes, and doing so with professionalism.

The uncertainty brought about the pandemic has forced us to be nimble, resourceful and kind. Can you describe a new project, new process, new method or new business you’ve initiated or created to adapt to this new reality?

I did start a new project this year that I named the “Kindness Calendar” where I had my students complete a series of activities to show kindness to themselves, to their peers and to the environment. We did things like clean up our school yard, plant some tulips at the front of the school, send Christmas cards to the Canadian Army. We also made some compliment flyers that we placed in our hallways, and sent thank you letters to custodians and to our administration, who definitely don’t get thanked enough for all that they do. I think it’s so important to recognize that it should be our priority to be kind ourselves in moments of stress and anxiety, and that our students are definitely feeling and sensing the same stress all adults feel. That being said, I think these activities let them take the time to spread some kindness and positivity to those around them.

In addition to becoming more agile, did you discover (or develop) any new entrepreneurial characteristics and / or abilities you perhaps didn’t know you had?

I definitely discovered that I can adapt to change and persevere through challenging situations. I am someone who does not enjoy change, I like a routine and sticking to it as much as possible! But, when faced with a pandemic that is constantly throwing you curveballs, I think it’s been a good experience for me to learn how to roll with the punches and not stress over things I can’t control.

One ability I think I was able to develop even more is my leadership. I quickly realized that my students would be watching my every move and my every reaction to ongoing events happening in our world, and that my reaction could very much affect their perspective. Therefore, I’ve developed a stronger sense of seeing the glass half-full, and always being hopeful in times of uncertainty.

The last 12 months have truly tested our ability to react and adapt in challenging and confusing situations. Nevertheless, through these dark times, we’ve witnessed some of the greatest acts of generosity, innovation, bravery, kindness and unity. What is one thing resulting from the pandemic you are grateful for?

I am grateful for every single person who is working either on our front lines, or behind the scenes, to fight this pandemic and make sure we are all safe. Of course my first thought are our healthcare workers, who must be so tired and worn out from working long hours to take care of multiple patients at a time. But, I also think of our unsung heroes, like our truck drivers who are making sure our grocery shelves are stocked, or our small business owners who have been so creative and so resilient during a time of extreme stress. Those people deserve to be thanked as well. Lastly, I am grateful for those who are wearing their masks and doing their best to follow the restrictions despite their personal opinions. This pandemic has definitely required a team effort and I think many of us have done a great job at rallying together.

We appreciate the importance of taking a moment to step back, to reflect, and to recalibrate in the wake of the chaos and uncertainty. If you had to give your pre-pandemic self one piece of advice, what would it be?

I think that as a woman, we are quick to be hard on ourselves in any situation, but especially when we are faced with a pandemic, where we tend to overthink our relationships, our career, and our everyday decisions. So, the advice I would give myself pre-pandemic is : “You are about to experience something that will affect you and those around you in major ways, but don’t panic. Stay calm, and try to take it one day at a time.”

*This feature was published in honour of the International Womxn’s Week, 2021.