About Meagan Morris
Meagan Morris is the current Vice Principal at St. Joseph High School in the Ottawa Catholic School Board, where she has served for nearly 25 years. Her career with the OCSB has included roles as a classroom and resource teacher, coach, guidance counsellor, and administrator. She has a particular passion for supporting students in grades 7 and 8.
Meagan is a firm believer in servant leadership and is deeply committed to supporting others in achieving their full potential. A strong advocate for extracurricular activities, she has coached the school’s Girls on the Run program, among other initiatives. Meagan believes that student success is rooted in positive relationships with every member of the school community, and she strives to create an environment where students feel seen and heard. Recently added to the OCSB principal eligibility list, Meagan is eager to continue her leadership journey as a principal.
Connect with Meagan Morris: Email | Instagram
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Resources Mentioned
St. Joseph High School
Ottawa Catholic School Board
The Transcript
**Please note that all of our transcriptions come from rev.com and are 80% accurate. We’re grateful for the robots that make this possible and realize that it’s not a perfect process.
Sam Demma
Welcome back to another episode of the High Performing Educator podcast. This is your host, Sam Demma, and today we are joined by Meagan Morris. As Vice Principal at St. Joseph High School in Ottawa, Meagan brings nearly 25 years of diverse educational experiences to her role, having served as a classroom teacher, resource teacher, guidance counselor, and coach. Her dedication to servant leadership and particular passion for supporting intermediate students has shaped her approach to creating an inclusive school environment where relationships are at the heart of student success. Recently added to the principal eligibility list, Meagan continues to demonstrate her commitment to fostering student growth through both academic support and initiatives like Girls on the Run. Meagan, thank you so much for taking the time to be here today.
Meagan Morris
Thanks for having me, Sam. I appreciate it.
Sam Demma
Do me a favor, share a little bit about who you are with the educator listening to this and how you got into education.
Meagan Morris
Okay, so I am actually born and raised in Ottawa and I am a product. I work for the Ottawa Catholic School Board but I’m also a product for the Ottawa Catholic School Board but I’m also a product of the Ottawa Catholic School Board. So from K to 12 or OAC back then, I attended schools in the OCSB and you know when I was graduating high school I wasn’t really sure about what I wanted to do,
Meagan Morris
which is not unusual for high school graduates. And I had a friend who encouraged me to apply to the concurrent education program at Queens. And he said, if you don’t get into the teacher’s college portion, you’re still gonna do an undergrad at Queens. And so I applied thinking,
Meagan Morris
this could be a good opportunity. And through the application process, you have to identify your work that has supported education, you know, in jobs and volunteering. And by going through the process of the application, I realized just how much work I had done with youth, and how that was an area where I felt comfortable, and it was sort of an area that I was drawn to. So I ended up being successful and I did the concurrent education program at Queens, but then I still wasn’t convinced
Meagan Morris
that I wanted to be a teacher. I just, I think sometimes when it’s too obvious, you tend to doubt it a little bit. Yeah, so I took some time and I took a year and went traveling. And I actually was offered a teaching job
Meagan Morris
by email when I was in Thailand. So I was in Thailand. Yeah, I was backpacking through Thailand. And a principal emailed me to offer me a position. And I was skeptical at first. I wasn’t even sure I wanted to go back to Ottawa.
Meagan Morris
I didn’t know what I wanted to do. And I remember going out for dinner with a group of backpackers and mulling over the idea. And to them, it was a no brainer. I mean, this was a career that I was going to be starting and it was secure and it was a job and I hadn’t had none of that. So I said yes. And I started in 2001 and never really looked back. So that’s how I got into teaching.
Sam Demma
You mentioned that you traveled. Did you travel because people in your life told you you should? I think that travel is such a beautiful opportunity to see the world, expand perspectives, build our personality and character. Tell me a little bit more about that decision.
Meagan Morris
You know what? Actually, it was a bit of the opposite. Nobody encouraged me to travel. And it was something that I think I just felt like I needed to do. Partly, I think, because at the risk of sounding cliche, I just wanted a new experience that would provide me with a different perspective. And I felt like, you know, this was an hour and ever opportunity and I had no one to go with. The timing didn’t work out well that I could have friends who would could travel with me.
Meagan Morris
They were starting careers and things were happening. So I actually went by myself. And so I traveled through New Zealand, Australia, Southeast Asia, all on my own. And that was such an incredible experience. And I remember my parents being quite nervous about me going. I was still relatively young, I think I was about 23.
Meagan Morris
And my mom actually kept copies of all the emails that I sent her. And I recently, she gave them to me, I recently read them. And it was such an incredible time in my life. And I, and to be honest, I was really scared. I remember getting off the plane in the first country I landed in New Zealand and not having a clue about what to do and just made my way and it was, it was really cool.
Sam Demma
That’s how a lot of educators feel in their first year working in a school. They’re trying to figure it out. You have this passion and this idea and this motivation to get started. And then when you land in the classroom for the first time, you’re like, whoa, this is new. I got to figure out the next step I need to take. And I think it’s the same for any new experience that we have. When you think back to your first year teaching or working with young people, maybe it was even outside of the school walls, what advice do you think you needed to hear that in hindsight you could share with a person who’s just getting started in education now?
Meagan Morris
You know, I did get good advice in my first year because you are right. Your first year of teaching is like no other. And I think the advice that I got was not to be so hard on myself. So it was to invoke a bit of self-compassion because of course I was going to make mistakes. I was going to deliver lessons that would flop. I was going to mishandle classroom behavior.
Meagan Morris
There were things that were gonna happen that I was certainly not expected to do perfectly. And instead of wasting time and energy on doubting myself and chastising myself for not handling it maybe in a way somebody else would, I needed to just forgive myself and move on and learn from it. And I had a resource teacher that worked with me and she had quite a few years of experience and she was the one to say, you need to just put it in a box and move on and forgive yourself and take what you can from it, but don’t beat yourself up over it. And I think that’s the biggest piece of advice. Nobody wants you to be perfect. They just want you to try.
Sam Demma
You mentioned when you were filling out the application for teaching, you had this reflective moment where you realized I’ve done so much with youth already. I’ve worked with so many youth.
Meagan Morris
Yeah. And I was really young, like, I think I was probably 10 or 11. And I had moms in the neighborhood probably thinking I was a lot older than I was asking me to watch their kids. And it just came natural. I mean, I gravitated towards the energy of kids. And just the feedback that I got, because there’s so much, you know, there’s so little restraint in terms of the positive and the negative. But then that moved into positions where I was working at afterschool literacy programs.
Meagan Morris
When I was in high school, I was doing sports camps. I was lifeguarding. I was doing all of these things that just, you know, I sometimes just fall into. So one experience would get me the next and often I was tapped on the shoulder.
Meagan Morris
And it was just a really happy place for me to be around that energy. And I remember my mom telling me that that was a bit of a gift that I have. And I guess I didn’t see it because when you’re looking at it from the front end,
Meagan Morris
it can be overwhelming to look at all your options. But in this case, it’s proven to be the absolute right decision.
Sam Demma
It sounds like serving others is a philosophy you follow, whether it’s working with initiatives like Girls on the Run or wanting to help and support young people, and now even the staff in the building. Where did that idea of, or philosophy of servant leadership originate for you in your life?
Sam Demma
Was there a role model or, you know, I think of my grandfather when I think about servant leadership, and I think that’s where I got it from. Where did that philosophy start for you?
Meagan Morris
It started with my parents. And my parents were, my parents are both retired now, but they were civil servants, but they believed in civic duty. They believed in being part of a community. They were great neighbors.
Meagan Morris
They are excellent friends. And they instilled in me, and it’s something that I have three kids of my own and it’s something that I share with my kids. And I can remember my two things that my parents would say to me, are one to be true to yourself. And the other was to give more than you take. And the idea that we’re put on the earth not to be takers, but to be givers. And that, you know, we have to share this space with billions of people, and we don’t have the right to take away. We have a responsibility to give. And that was the message that I got from my parents regularly. Certainly they said it, but they acted on it. So it 100% came from my parents. I have a brother who’s a criminal prosecutor. I have another brother who’s a criminal prosecutor. I have another brother who’s a police officer and my other brother’s in civil service. So we were just taught that that’s the way you operate.
Sam Demma
I love the value of giving more than you take. I also think that a lot of happiness and fulfillment comes from the providing and giving more than it does the receiving or taking in my personal experiences. So I think it’s a really big win-win scenario where you feel really good about the work you’re doing and so many other people benefit from it.
Meagan Morris
But 100% and I think that’s what makes it a vocation, right? Is that you believe in the work that you’re doing. And we know, I mean, there’s, we know that people, you know, get so much satisfaction by contributing, by being a contributing member brings that level of purpose and satisfaction that gives your job, quote unquote job meaning, you know?
Sam Demma
Yeah, you have a particular passion for supporting intermediate students, you know? Yeah. You have a particular passion for supporting intermediate students, grade seven and eight students. What unique challenges do you see in this specific age group and what opportunities exist for impact?
Meagan Morris
So when I first started teaching, I was teaching at the intermediate level. So I taught at the intermediate level for 10 years. And I taught at a school that was, we consider a family support school. So there were a lot of economic challenges.
Meagan Morris
There were a lot of socioeconomic needs. And that was new to me. Like I was a suburb kid who back in the nineties when I went to high school, it was predominantly white. And so I didn’t have that experience with diversity. And so I remember leaving that school and saying that, the students at this school taught me more than I could have ever have taught them. And particularly at the intermediate level, they’re really finding their way. They’re not elementary level, they’re not K to six level in the sense that they’re still following rules because the rules are in place. They’re starting to question things, they want autonomy, they’re dealing with hormones, they’re dealing with interpersonal skills, they’re thrown in our case with our board being a seven grade seven to 12 model, they’re technically thrown into a high school and learning to navigate that. There are so many challenges that it creates a sort of perfect storm of potential behavior, but also for growth. And they’re still young enough that they are so impressionable.
Meagan Morris
So it’s a great time to take even those behavioral moments, even, you know, dysregulated actions. It’s an opportunity for learning. And I just feel like they are really special. A lot of people can be intimidated at that intermediate level for all those reasons and can shy away. But I just think it’s a really special time because they’re really in flux. And so it’s so important that they have people in their lives that see them and hear them and validate what they’re going through.
Sam Demma
You’ve worked as a teacher in intermediate and junior high, high school. You’ve worked as a coach. You’ve also worked as a guidance counselor. How has your experience as a guidance counselor shaped your beliefs around leadership today and ensuring students feel seen, heard and supported?
Meagan Morris
So that’s a great question because when I first, you know, as I was moving through teaching, my end game was always to be a guidance counselor. I didn’t envision myself being an administrator, it was sort of the leadership piece that moved me in that direction. But my real passion was that sort of guidance, counselling support.
Meagan Morris
My undergraduate degree is a psychology degree. And so at some points, I thought about going in different directions and maybe pursuing a master’s in psychology, but in the end I went the teaching route and so it lent itself really well to being a guidance counsellor. and it just the perspective you get when you are able to have some one-on-one time with students and understand them, understand the motivation behind their their choices and their successes and and perhaps lack of successes is so important because you can you put things in perspective and you also remember that you’re teaching and working and supporting the whole student, not just the academic side. And I think in the classroom, sometimes teachers don’t know the whole story. I think it’s important to get to know your students, but sometimes you don’t know all the details. But I think teachers have to assume, you always have to assume that there is something you’re working with.
Sam Demma
It’s that backpack.
Meagan Morris
It’s the, and I, and that’s why when you came to our school and gave your presentation, I thought this is resonate so well with me because everybody has a backpack, everybody has something. And they’re never going to be able to work with that backpack unless they feel like somebody understands what’s in it. And a guidance counselor, being a guidance counselor, I would also say that being a guidance counselor before being a vice principal has given me a level of empathy, which is needed. I mean, you know?
Sam Demma
The question I’m curious about, and I think another educator might be thinking the same thing, is how do you build that trust and relationship with a student where it gets to the point where they’re comfortable sharing with you as the caring adult, some of the things that are in their backpack? I think there’s a lot of educators that would love to be able to support their students. And not that every teacher can be a counselor, that’s not possible. But for them to have some of that context would be helpful.
Sam Demma
I think that there’s something special about guidance counselors and the way they approach those conversations that enables those students to feel safe and feel supported. What are your thoughts on building relationships with young people?
Meagan Morris
So I think, you know, sometimes what we do is we rely on our own experiences with school. And a lot has changed. And our experiences, and that’s one thing that I learned, my experience was completely different than a lot of the students that I came into contact with.
Meagan Morris
And I think it’s really important first to be vulnerable, to understand that I’m not teaching them necessarily. Sure, there’s things that, there’s curriculum that I’m teaching them, and I’m mentoring them, them and I’m supporting them and I’m an example in the classroom, but we’re kind of learning together. And so you have to be vulnerable enough to show them that we’re learning together. I’m learning about you. I’m learning about who you are, how you learn, how this works with you. So I think you have to be vulnerable. And one thing that I always say to teachers that I work with is you can’t take behavior or dysregulated actions as personal. It’s not about you. We know that every student wants to succeed. And when they’re not succeeding, it’s because something is happening that is preventing that. And nine times out of ten, it’s not about the teacher. And so you have to have that level of unconditional support.
Meagan Morris
And when they know that you’re still going to be there after they’ve had a dysregulated moment, or they’ve, you know, done something that’s not appropriate, if they know that you’re still going to be there, then they start to trust you. And then that’s not appropriate. If they know that you’re still going to be there, then they start to trust you. And then that relationship starts forming. But at the end of the day, it can be, behavior in a classroom can be frustrating.
Meagan Morris
It can be exhausting. It can be, you know, but behavior comes from somewhere. And understanding that it’s not about us really takes the pressure off us, but it also helps us to continue to support those students.
Meagan Morris
And that’s how you build relationships is by having them see you as somebody they can trust.
Sam Demma
I’m assuming one of the other ways you build trust with young people is giving them some time. Is that one of the reasons you got involved in extracurricular activities, running programs, like girls on the run? Tell me more about when in your career, you started getting involved in more extracurricular activities and what prompted that?
Meagan Morris
So when I first started teaching, I was a phys ed teacher. So that lends itself to a lot of coaching. And it’s actually a nice segue into counseling because when you are a phys ed teacher and you’re a coach, you are always seeing students in an unstructured environment. A phys ed class in grade seven and eight can be organized chaos. So you’re often seeing students in their natural habitat. And so it allows you a way of getting to know students in a way beyond curriculum delivery. And coaching also lets you see the skill set that students may not be able to demonstrate in the classroom. They can show, you know, when they’re on a team or when they’re part of a club, they can demonstrate leadership, they can demonstrate teamwork, they can demonstrate collaboration, compassion, all of those things. And so I got started out of necessity, because when you’re a phys ed teacher, you coach. But then I never really left it. And I had the opportunity this year to run the Girls on the Run program, which is basically a run program for students who identify as female. And in addition to training them to run a 5k, we also work on the social emotional side.
Meagan Morris
So you do a little bit of running, a little bit of internal work, and then it culminates in a 5k race. So super empowering. And I think it’s just, especially now as a vice principal, it’s so great to be working with students in a proactive role instead of a reactive role.
Sam Demma
That program sounds amazing. I remember when I was graduating from elementary school and starting high school that I ran cross country for the first time. And some of my fondest memories from elementary school and starting high school that I ran cross country for the first time. And some of my fondest memories from elementary were running the perimeter of the fence in our schoolyard after the school day ended with our cross country teacher. We didn’t have the social emotional learning aspect of it, but I enjoyed those moments and I remember them a lot. I’m sure you’re creating moments like that for all of the girls for all the students who identify as female students in that program. So that’s has it been around for a while? Is it a new program?
Meagan Morris
Well, apparently it’s been around for a long time. It started in the United States, but it just recently came on our radar at the OCSB. There was a principal in the elementary panel who kind of put it out to the OCSB and a bunch of us jumped on it. And it’s really, really cool. But I mean, I agree with you, we know that getting involved in extracurricular has protective factors, right? It supports mental health, and it supports well being. What’s happening in the classroom, obviously, is paramount. But those are the things that students remember. They remember extracurriculars. They remember field trips. They remember those connections They made with their coaches and their club, you know leaders That’s what makes and you know, if we learn nothing from Kovac that’s what makes the high school experience what it is because When we don’t have that we’re not having different forms of connection, which is so important.
Sam Demma
As you prepare for this next step, I know you’re a vice principal now, you’re filling in as a principal this week. As you prepare for that next step, what vision do you have for creating a culture that balances academic excellence and strong relationship building?
Meagan Morris
Well, I think like you mentioned in the introduction, I do believe in servant leadership. And that does come back from what I know. But I think when you are leading a school community, it’s like an inverted pyramid. And the administration is actually at the bottom of the pyramid.
Meagan Morris
And our job is to be of service to every level above us. And that’s your staff, that’s your students, that’s the family, that’s the community. And so that is going to help those relationships build. And that is going to get the best out of your school. Like right now, I’m responsible for supporting the intermediate panel, which is a love for me. But one of the things that I’ve done this year is I’ve done a monthly lunch and learn. So we have a lot of new teachers. And I recognize that, you know, when you’re in a really big school, like we are, it can sometimes be hard for new teachers to connect with mentors. So once a month, I bring everybody together. We order pizza, we hang out and we talk about different topics, because I know that if I’m supporting the teachers and the teachers feel like we have a solid relationship, they feel seen and heard. That’s only going to translate to the connections those teachers are building with students and their families. So my job really is to make sure the staff is in a healthy position to do the best and to do right by the students that they work with.
Sam Demma
That whole concept of inverted pyramid is such a powerful way to think about leadership, not only in the context of a school, but any organization. I really appreciate you sharing that. For anyone listening to this who wants to ask you a question or reach out and connect, what would be the best way for them to get in touch with you?
Meagan Morris
Well, I shared my Instagram, but also I would almost say email. Email is the best. Yeah.
Sam Demma
We’ll make sure to pop that in the show notes for anyone listening. Meagan, this was a lovely conversation. Thank you so much for taking the time, sharing your journey into education, some of your beliefs around building relationships with students and administration. I really enjoyed this conversation.
Meagan Morris
Well, thank you, Sam. Well, thank you, Sam. I really enjoyed it too.
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