{"id":495652,"date":"2026-02-24T05:46:28","date_gmt":"2026-02-24T05:46:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/495652\/"},"modified":"2026-02-24T05:46:28","modified_gmt":"2026-02-24T05:46:28","slug":"rosalind-smith-honoured-as-trailblazer-in-edmontons-public-school-system-edmonton","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/495652\/","title":{"rendered":"Rosalind Smith honoured as trailblazer in Edmonton\u2019s public school system – Edmonton"},"content":{"rendered":"

This Black History Month<\/a> is a special one for students and faculty at Ross Sheppard High School in Edmonton.<\/p>\n

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This year, they are commemorating a trailblazer in the education system who recently passed away.<\/p>\n

In 1996, Rosalind (Ros) Smith<\/a> made history as the first Black female principal for the Edmonton Public School Board.<\/p>\n

The woman, known simply as \u201cRos\u201d to her colleagues and friends, carried on in that leadership role for 15 years at several high schools in the city before ending her career as a diversity and equity consultant for educators.<\/p>\n

Andrew Parker witnessed her journey as a student when she was principal at M.E. LaZerte School in north Edmonton.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe wasn\u2019t satisfied with being the only Black principal. She wanted to give opportunities to lots of people,\u201d he told Global News.<\/p>\n

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Parker said while in high school he was behaving poorly, didn\u2019t have his priorities set straight, and ultimately got into some trouble.<\/p>\n

He says it was Smith who pushed him on a path towards success.<\/p>\n

\u201cLooking back at it now, 20 years after, I know what she was doing. She knew the blueprint. She knew I wasn\u2019t just going to be a basketball player.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe knew I could be a father, maybe a teacher \u2014 or maybe help the community.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Parker says having representation from his community in a position of power not only made him feel safe, but recognize that he was also able to achieve his own dreams as a Black man navigating a predominately white space, too.<\/p>\n

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\u201cIt felt like you had an ally present with you. Like a guardian angel. Someone you could talk to that would understand your culture, your food, your language, your patois, your dialect. The experiences that you have,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n

Parker believes Smith left a huge mark on Edmonton\u2019s public education system.<\/p>\n

Before anti-Black racism curriculum, Parker says she led the tough conversations about the everyday challenges and successes Black Edmontonians faced.<\/p>\n

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\u201cHer being in that space and having the natural connection to the community allowed for conversations to happen that never happened before. She could go into spaces that teachers wouldn\u2019t feel comfortable going into,\u201d Parker said.<\/p>\n

Parker is now a teacher at Ross Sheppard High School, and at one point became colleagues with Smith.<\/p>\n

Together, they worked on creating initiatives and clubs like the Black Students Association and the Black Teachers Association of Alberta.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor years after I graduated, I kept calling her Mrs. Smith and she\u2019s like, \u2018No, I\u2019m Ros! I\u2019m Ros! That\u2019s my name now.\u2019 I never really, truly got there but I did feel like we were equals in this work,\u201d Parker explained.<\/p>\n

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Parker now leads those difficult conversations with his students.<\/p>\n

He would invite Smith to speak with the student body as a whole or one-on-one.<\/p>\n

Grade 12 student Christina Daniel says she became a mentor to her.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe was sweet. When I spoke to her, she giggles, she laughs. But she made you know that she was a person of respect,\u201d Daniel said. \u201cWhen you have that experience and when you have that wisdom, you want to listen and you need to listen.\u201d<\/p>\n

After earning her Bachelor of Education (B.Ed.) from McGill University in Montreal, she moved to Alberta and dedicated more than 40 years to public education.<\/p>\n

Denis Allie, another Grade 12 student, says Smith\u2019s backstory shows him that he has no limitations for achieving his own goals.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe definitely walked with dominance and walked with authority as well. That just shows how she lived a trailblazing life,\u201d Allie explained.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m using her life as a testimony that I can become what I want to be,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Smith passed away on Jan. 6. Her death was announced on social media by the Black Teachers Association of Alberta.<\/p>\n

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Edmonton Public School Board Chair Saadiq Sumar and Superintendent Ron Thompson shared a joint statement, wishing sympathies to her family and loved ones.<\/p>\n

\u201cRosalind Smith was far more than a principal and educator, she was a trailblazer for generations to follow. As the first Black woman to serve as a principal in Edmonton Public Schools, she broke systemic barriers and opened doors for educators to follow,\u201d the statement read.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe will be remembered as a champion of women in leadership and diversity and inclusion, working tirelessly to ensure the workplace reflected the community we serve. Her impact will continue to be felt within Edmonton Public Schools and beyond,\u201d the statement continued.<\/p>\n

Smith was also honoured in the Senate, where two weeks ago Edmonton senator Kris Wells rose to speak in her memory.<\/p>\n

Wells said while Smith was known for being EPSB\u2019s first Black female principal, her legacy reached far beyond that milestone.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt lives on in the confidence she nurtured in students, the educators she mentored and the communities she strengthened through her unwavering belief in the power and purpose of public education,\u201d Wells said.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt a time when both women and Black Canadians were rarely seen in school leadership, Ros led with grace, compassion and quiet strength.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe saw every child not as a problem to be solved but as a future waiting to unfold.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Parker hopes to lead in her footsteps.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe was intentional about connecting with her community. That\u2019s something we as a BSA (Black Student Association) are hoping to continue now that she\u2019s gone,\u201d Parker said.<\/p>\n

According to the Black Teachers Association\u2019s social media post, a celebration of life will be held in the spring.<\/p>\n

Anyone wishing to share memories, reflections, photos, or stories for it is asked to email celebratingros@gmail.com.<\/p>\n

With files from Karen Bartko, Global News<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t&copy 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"This Black History Month is a special one for students and faculty at Ross Sheppard High School in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":495653,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[194294],"tags":[198799,166061,49,48,23752,198800,198801,549,41685,198802],"class_list":["post-495652","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-edmonton","tag-andrew-parker","tag-black-history-month","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-edmonton","tag-edmonton-black-history-month","tag-edmonton-public-schools","tag-education","tag-perspectives","tag-rosalind-smith"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/495652","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=495652"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/495652\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/495653"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=495652"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=495652"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=495652"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}