We are a collective made of individuals with diverse personal and professional experiences, working together towards the same goal: to enable youth from historically marginalized communities to own their future by co-designing programs that center their voices and experiences. You can hover over each photo to learn more about us!
Meet Our Core Team
Nicole
Genereaux
Head of Program Success
and Curriculum
A proud Métis citizen, mother, sister, anty, and educator, Nicole brings 20 years of teaching experience. She manages relationships with our school partners, leads curriculum development, and spearheaded the content creation of our journal "Seasons of You".
Céline Godard
Aron
Executive Director
Céline is a mom, educator and social justice advocate. She brings 20 years of experience and oversees the organization’s, including strategic & financial planning, community partnerships, fundraising, board governance, program development & operations, and marketing.
Misha
Sethi
Program Success Advisor: Evaluation, Learning & Impact
Misha specializes in research and evaluation, employing culturally responsive and participatory approaches to develop and assess evaluation frameworks, drive evidence-based program design, and inform strategic decision-making.
Diana Mihaela
Baranga-Mazhar
On leave
Head of Learning Design
& Executive Director
Diana spearheads the learning design initiatives at UpstartED, ensuring the co-creation of programs that address the needs of learners while amplifying the voices of their families and communities.​
Meet Our Alumni
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Leopoldo
Miguel Mendoza T
Operations
Manager
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Meet Our Board
Georgia
Kiriakos
Board Secretary
Georgia is our Board Secretary. She brings her expertise as a High School teacher, at Vanguard School Montreal. She works with students who learn differently and those who experience learning disabilities.
Teacher, Vanguard High School
Montreal, Quebec
Meet Our Former Board Directors
Michel
Auger
Senior Director, exploration and innovation at Blue Cross Canassurance
Liard
McMillan
Former Chief of the Liard First Nation, Teacher at the Individual Learning Center, Whitehorse (YT)
Meghan
Callan
School Counsellor, Individual Leanring Center, Whitehorse (YT)
Michel
Lafrance
Head of School, West island,
Montreal (QC)
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Oriana
Sutorius
Visual Arts Secondary Educator, St Georges, Montreal (QC)
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Mirka
Snyder-Caron
Senior Legal Counsel, Innovation
at RBC
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Christian
Leblanc
Directeur Services Pédagogiques,
FEEP
Meet Our Advisors
As a community-centered organization, our advisors are instrumental in shaping our team and the direction of UpstartED. Our advisory group comprises Elders, youth, Knowledge Holders, subject-matter experts, and community members.
Liard
McMillan
Former Chief of the Liard First Nation. Teacher, Individual Learning Center, Whitehorse, Yukon Territory
Liard is a teacher at the Individual Learning Center (ILC) in Whitehorse, Yukon. He is also the former Chief of the Liard First Nation and has an extensive experience working in politics.
Ocean
Genereaux
Métis citizen, student
Northern Saskatchewan
Vanessa
Memeh
Student
Ontario
Heidi
Warren
Principal and trauma-informed teacher, Yukon Territory
Tammy
Reis
Developmental Therapist,
Yukon Territory
Aml
Shousha
BEd Candidate, Secondary Education and Teaching, Alberta
Heather
Krissa
Trauma-informed school counsellor, British Columbia
Abdaal Mazhar
Shafi
Former UpstartED co-founder
