UFV alumna Danielle Rowand has been recognized by UFV’s Teacher Education department as an outstanding mentor for her work with UFV Bachelor of Education students.

Rowand is a teacher at Abbotsford Secondary School who works with teacher candidates, introducing them to the life of a professional teacher. She guides them in skill development and helps them achieve professional teaching standards.

Rowand was nominated by teacher candidate Shane Stark and faculty mentor Wendy Cook. Both agree she models teaching and learning that addresses topics such as poverty, 2SLGBTQ+, gender equity and identity, anti-racism, and environmental issues. She actively mentors and provides opportunities for teacher candidates to develop and put into practice their own pedagogy for social justice and equity.

“Her classroom is a welcoming safe space for everyone with classes that are diverse in nature, including students who are international, with diverse learning abilities, and with varied backgrounds and identities,” Stark says. “They all feel welcome and heard. Her use of Indigenous ways of knowing and being are a natural practice.”

Rowand has Indigenous ancestry and believes that learning and reconciliation go hand in hand.

“I was incredibly honoured to be nominated for the teacher mentor recognition,” Rowand says. “It’s a privilege to be able to work with future teachers and help them find their own rhythm as educators. It’s an affirmation of the good work teachers do and the positive changes going on in education. The recognition from the UFV program was doubly rewarding because it came from the same program that I graduated from so many years ago.”