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JOHN WOODS \/ FREE PRESS<\/p>\n
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Noni Classen is the new teacher conduct commissioner, the province will announce today. She vows to work \u2018for the underdog.\u2019<\/p>\n
\u201c(I\u2019ve always) really, really loved working with kids and especially, working for the underdog,\u201d the former resource teacher said Monday.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was always just something that was in my DNA \u2014 being there to support and help elevate voices.\u201d<\/p>\n
The 57-year-old will be in charge of fielding and investigating allegations about teacher misconduct and incompetence across the province.<\/p>\n
Classen is anticipated to run the first public hearings organized through Manitoba\u2019s teacher disciplinary system. The first is scheduled for May 20.<\/p>\n
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She will be responsible for overseeing the online database, which contains teacher names and certification details.<\/p>\n
Manitoba\u2019s online teacher registry shows Classen \u2014 listed as Naomi Ann Classen \u2014 was certified in 1994. She is a Class 4 teacher in good standing.<\/p>\n
Education Minister Tracy Schmidt said she\u2019s confident the new commissioner will bring \u201ca fresh perspective\u201d and \u201cgreater focus on systems-level improvements.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI can\u2019t imagine a more qualified and passionate commissioner than Noni Classen. Really, I couldn\u2019t have drawn one up myself,\u201d Schmidt said.<\/p>\n
\u201c(I\u2019ve always) really, really loved working with kids and especially, working for the underdog.\u201d<\/p>\n
Classen contacted the province last month to inform them she was leaving her current position and available for any education-related projects.<\/p>\n
Before any system-wide changes, Classen said she wants to focus on raising awareness and understanding about her office.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need to make sure people know how to access it and what that looks like in practice and make it accessible,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Classen\u2019s appointment comes in the wake of the original commissioner\u2019s tumultuous exit from the publicly funded office.<\/p>\n
Bobbi Taillefer said she quit as teacher commissioner earlier this spring after it was revealed she had been working remotely. Premier Wab Kinew later said she\u2019d been fired.<\/p>\n
Taillefer, a francophone teacher whose resum\u00e9 includes multiple union management roles, oversaw the launch of the new disciplinary system and registry in January 2025.<\/p>\n
She faced no shortage of criticism \u2014 from Classen and others \u2014 during her approximately 16-month tenure.<\/p>\n
Longtime bureaucrat David Yeo has been serving as interim commissioner.<\/p>\n
\u201cI can\u2019t imagine a more qualified and passionate commissioner than Noni Classen. Really, I couldn\u2019t have drawn one up myself.\u201d<\/p>\n
The incoming commissioner said she will welcome feedback.<\/p>\n
\u201cI want to be aware of blind spots,\u201d Classen added.<\/p>\n
Manitoba Teachers\u2019 Society president Lillian Klausen said she hopes the new leader shares a commitment to upholding the status and integrity of teaching.<\/p>\n
\u201cA kindergarten-to-Grade 12 public education background was non-negotiable for us, and we\u2019re pleased to see that reflected in this appointment,\u201d Klausen said in a statement.<\/p>\n
The union, representing 17,000 public school teachers, is looking forward to working collaboratively with the new government appointee to ensure the best interests of teachers and students, she added.<\/p>\n
Classen spent the first decade of her career working with students who had mental health challenges, trauma and experience with the justice system in what\u2019s now the Louis Riel School Division.<\/p>\n
She played a key role in founding \u201cthe alternative classroom,\u201d a program focused on instruction for students who required accommodations.<\/p>\n
Since 2004, Classen has worked on initiatives to prevent and combat child sexual exploitation, including the Cybertip.ca tipline and Commit to Kids teacher training program.<\/p>\n
(In order to work with children, Manitoba teachers are required to complete either Commit to Kids or Respect in School. Both are online training programs with modules focused on teaching users how to identify and prevent abuse.)<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel like everywhere I\u2019ve been has really been to prepare me for this job \u2013 for this role, for what I\u2019m going to do now.\u201d<\/p>\n
Classen said she was incredibly reluctant to leave the public school system until she realized she could reach more students via Child Find Manitoba, the predecessor of the Canadian Centre for Child Protection.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel like everywhere I\u2019ve been has really been to prepare me for this job \u2014 for this role, for what I\u2019m going to do now,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
That includes everything from babysitting to serving as a special adviser on a national commission that recently undertook an independent review of Canada\u2019s sport system, Classen said.<\/p>\n
The education minister\u2019s office is expected to make a formal announcement about Classen\u2019s appointment today.<\/p>\n
maggie.macintosh@freepress.mb.ca<\/p>\n
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Maggie Macintosh Maggie Macintosh reports on education for the Free Press. Originally from Hamilton, Ont., she first reported for the Free Press in 2017. Read more about Maggie<\/a>.<\/p>\n Funding for the Free Press education reporter comes from the Government of Canada through the Local Journalism Initiative<\/a>.<\/p>\n Every piece of reporting Maggie produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print \u2014 part of the Free Press\u2018s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press\u2019s history and mandate<\/a>, and learn how our newsroom operates<\/a>.<\/p>\n
Education reporter
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