Carli Parsons is a Principal with the Waterloo Region District School board and has dedicated her career to motivating those around her to invest in the achievement and well-being of all students.  Carli began her career teaching English and History and is a trained International Baccalaureate teacher.  She has worked as a Student Success Teacher, Blended Learning Consultant and an E-Learning Teacher over her 14 years in education. 

Working collaboratively with all stakeholders and leading from the middle to support a shared pedagogical vision is of the utmost importance to Carli.   She understands that helping educators build their capacity to achieve their vision is the way to create and sustain a thriving school community. 

Prior to teaching Carli earned a Masters Degree in Education with a focus on Curriculum Studies and Leadership Development from the University of Western Ontario.  Her Masters Project focused on the New Teacher Induction Program and helped to inform a provincial framework for new teachers to build their capacity through innovative professional development.  Carli is a community builder at heart and works with many local organizations in a variety of capacities.  Her work with the city has won awards for inclusion and diversity. 

Sandy Millar is a  Principal with the Waterloo Region District School Board who is passionate about re-imagining and redesigning classrooms and schools to best prepare students for a rapidly changing world.  

Sandy looks to foster innovation in education with the use of technology, community partnerships, and developing global competencies in staff and students.  He is the creator and director of the Highlander Innovation Lab, a new and innovative start-up incubator program designed specifically for high school students .

Sandy is focused on creating high impact learning organizations that encourage educators to experiment and grow their practice.   He has led full staff design thinking challenges and developed comprehensive school wide professional development strategies that encourage teachers to be the co-designers and  aligns with your school improvement plans. 

Sandy taught student leadership for 8 years where he developed an innovative curriculum designed around project based learning focused on developing global competencies in his students. He was also the chair of the 2017 Canadian Student Leadership Conference.  

Prior to teaching Sandy earned a masters degree in intervention and consultation in sport, physical activity and health. He  worked  as sport psychology consultant and  community health consultant.   He brings a vast amount of experience consulting, coaching and leading a variety of teams to his work with INNOVATED.