Mental Health

About Stacy Hovey

Stacy Hovey is a Vice-Principal at Holy Trinity Catholic High School. She is a proud receipt of the Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers awarded by the Governor General of Canada. Stacy lives out the life she believes in by prioritizing servitude. She began her teaching career in 2005 with the Ottawa Catholic School Board. In addition to her role as Teacher, Department Head and Vice-Principal, Stacy has written Curriculum for the Ministry of Education and has taught at the University of Ottawa in the Faculty of Education.

Stacy believes that all schools must support students to grow into the best versions of themselves. She stresses the importance of demonstrating authentic care and respect for everyone. As a leader in her school, Stacy emphasizes the importance of ensuring all staff members feel welcome, heard, valued and truly appreciated. In order for our educators to take excellent care of our students, Stacy believes we need to take excellent care of our educators.

Connect with Stacy: Email | Twitter

Listen Now

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Resources Mentioned

Holy Trinity Catholic High School

Ottawa Catholic School Board

Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers

University of Ottawa Faculty of Education

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, and today I’m joined by a very special guest tuning in from Ottawa. Stacy Hovey is a vice principal with the Ottawa Catholic School Board. We met, I want to say, about a year ago now in the spring, and I’m so excited to have her on the show. She is a vice principal at Holy Trinity Catholic High School.

Sam Demma
Stacy, thank you so much for being here.

Stacy Hovey
Thanks for having me, Sam.

Sam Demma
Did you know when you were growing up that you wanted to work in education? I absolutely did not.

Stacy Hovey
When I was growing up, I wanted to have a job that made me as much money as I could possibly get my hands on. And then I realized when I got into that job that it wasn’t for me. And I quickly decided that money wasn’t going to be the end all be all. And I knew in my heart that I’d always loved the idea of working with kids and teaching young minds and molding young minds. So I took that path instead. And it has made me the most blessed and the most rich in ways that money could never buy.

Sam Demma
I had a mentor once tell me, money solves money problems, but those are the only problems it solves. And oftentimes in our search for meaning in life, we think that material possessions or status or money is going to fulfill us. And it couldn’t be further from the truth. Did you have someone in your life redirect you or was it a realization you had yourself when you started down that pathway?

Stacy Hovey
To be completely honest, I was redirected by God. I know that might sound a bit strange, but it was July the 4th, my birthday. I was in the United States celebrating because I’m clearly Miss America, and they already have a party there, so why not go? My mom brought me down, and we went to the Basilica, and while we were there, one of the statues, yeah, statues, winked at me. And I know statues don’t wink. And I thought I’d lost my mind. My mom thought I had heat stroke. I didn’t think much of it other than I’m clearly going crazy. My mom took down the name of the saint, which I didn’t. And when we came back home to Ottawa, my mother came running down the stairs one day with a piece of paper in her hand, and I thought she’d gone mad. But she said, Stacy, Stacy, you’re never gonna believe this. I said, what? She said, it’s the patron saint of teaching. I said, who’s the patron saint of teaching? What are you talking about? She said, the saint that winked at you when we were at the Basilica in New York. It’s the patron saint of teaching, Stacy. And I thought, oh my God, that is exactly what I, that’s what I gotta do. So I had a God moment.

Sam Demma
I just got goosebumps. Thank you for sharing that with me and with everyone who’s tuning in. I think when we’re open to guidance is when we receive it. So you must have been at a time period in your life where you were looking for a change or thinking about it or discerning it. And what a beautiful way to shift pathways and pivot.

Sam Demma
Did you always work in the Ottawa Catholic School Board? Tell me a little bit about your educational journey from that realization forward.

Stacy Hovey
So when I had that realization, I was in my undergrad and I was thinking how it’s going to be going into law. And it was when I worked at the law firm that I realized that law was not going to make me happy every day. And I knew that I needed a job that when I woke up in the morning and I came in, it was like Christmas for me. Christmas is my favorite time of year and I needed every day to feel good. I didn’t want to be one of those people who, you know, needed to call in sick or made a calendar that said I got to be off this day or that day or whatever. I just wanted to wake up every day and be happy and do something where I felt like I was really making a difference. And so, educationally, I made a shift and I went and pursued a bachelor in education. And I did all of that here in Ottawa, at the University of Ottawa. I’m a Gigi, go Gigi’s. And I started working with the OCSB about 20 years ago. I started as a teacher for 10 years. I was a department head of religious studies. And now I’ve been a vice principal for a decade.

Sam Demma
At what point in your educational journey did you also write curriculum for the Ministry of Education?

Stacy Hovey
Oh, I love that. That was a lot of fun. In the summertime, the Ministry of Education had contacted me because I was piloting some projects and courses here with the OCSB, with our First Nations and Uintah-Metis community, and they needed a huge revamp on all of our Aboriginal resources. And so I had the opportunity to go down to Toronto, and for a month I got to work there and write with an incredible team of people, elders, amazing, amazing people from really all around the nation and we were able to revive and revamp the curriculum so that students had real authentic experiences here in the classroom. And now, I mean, there has been such a shift. That started for me about 15 years ago and see the growth of that, to see land acknowledgements when I’m at a 67s game, for people to actually know what residential schools are. When I was teaching them, parents, kids were looking at me like, what are you talking about, Miss? That didn’t happen. You know, now it’s not just Orange Shirt Day, it’s we’re living a world where people are appreciating our culture, appreciating creation, and frankly, are going to take better care of it because it is on loan to us. This beautiful earth is on loan to us. We need to make sure that we do everything we can to treat it with the respect that it deserves so that it can be here and flourish for future generations.

Stacy Hovey
You know, little Sam’s in the future. We got to make sure that they’ve got everything that they need.

Sam Demma
Hey, I don’t know if you’re trying to encourage me to create some little Sam’s, but I’m not ready for that yet Stacy.

Sam Demma
But you’re right, you’re right. You’re no no Sam, then there’s me Sam.

Stacy Hovey
So I’m feeling like there’s got to be a little Sam coming along someday. I know you’re young but… When I was at the school it was so clear that everything you do is about supporting and serving the staff and students in the building and helping them reach their full potential and do their best job. What are some of the things you think have helped you create that culture in Holy Trinity School of Excellence and encouraging students and staff to do their best?

Stacy Hovey
Firstly, thank you. Thank you for saying that. That is an incredible compliment. And I have to tell you, servant leadership is the most important thing to me. I can’t, words don’t define how much it matters for me to be in a position of service to others. And you get that. I know you get that because looking at Be Someone’s Taco, chapter 11, action, serve others. And one of my favorite lines or phrases in your book on page 146, for all you readers who haven’t read this. You write. Some of the most meaningful experiences in life come from being of service to others. And we, Sam, could not be more like-minded in that capacity. I believe in a school community, you need to make sure that kids have everything they need. In order to do that, where do you need to start? You need to start with your educators, your front line. In order for my staff to be well, I need to make sure they’re well. I tell them all the time, and they would laugh if they were listening to this because they know exactly what I say. I say, you can’t pour from an empty cup, and if you don’t take care of your wellness, you are going to be forced to take care of your illness. So our job is to make sure that our teachers are in a position to help our students in every way. And their cups need to be full in order for them to do the best job that they can. So it’s a wraparound support.

Stacy Hovey
It’s a support like something as simple as, I walk by, someone’s not having the greatest day, so I do a U-turn, I go get them a coffee. I walk by, someone’s not having the greatest day, I take them the coffee and I kick them out of their classroom for 15 minutes so they can go for a walk. Like it’s simple things that you can do on a daily basis in a school to make sure your teachers feel heard, feel valued, feel appreciated. If you do that in a building, you’re creating a culture where everyone is going to do well.

Sam Demma
How do you ensure in your own life that your cup remains full so you can encourage others to do the same?

Stacy Hovey
My husband. That’s the first thing I think of. I could not do any of the things I do without my husband, Trevor Hudson. He is my rock. He is one of the greatest gifts God has ever given me. And I have absolutely no idea on this earth where I would be without him. He has given me two beautiful children and he is the one who makes sure I am able to do this work. And frankly, I wouldn’t even be here in the first place if it weren’t for my parents. My parents, Ron and Lena Villeneuve, let me tell you, they have taught me everything about how to simply be the best version of yourself, how to be a good person, how to treat others the way you want to be a servant leader. One quick story, my father, bless him. He said, you know, Stacy, how are things going at school? I said, well, we’re gonna be doing a food drive at the school I was working at the time.

Stacy Hovey
It was really low income, families were really in need. We wanted to create these beautiful Christmas baskets to help the family out. My family doesn’t come from a lot. We don’t have a lot in the financial department, so to speak. We’ve worked for everything that we’ve got and happy to say that and happy to do that. And one day I’m at work and the vice principal, he comes to get me and he says, there’s a food truck here and they’re here for you. I said, I’m sorry, what?

Stacy Hovey
And he says, it’s a food truck. I said, a food truck? He said, yeah, they’re unloading in the chapel. You need to come and see this. Food truck unloading in the chapel, what? So I make my way down and sure enough, there is a food truck unloading box upon box of fruits, apples, oranges, vegetables. And holy moly, it’s my dad. My dad went and talked to some local people, and his own money was able to arrange for a food truck to drop off all of these gifts for over 250 families.

Stacy Hovey
Who does that? It’s amazing that we live in a world where people like that make such a difference, but people like that are, oh my gosh, I forgot to turn off my walkie-talkie. I turned off everything, do not disturb.

Sam Demma
That’s okay, don’t worry.

Stacy Hovey
But I didn’t turn off this darn thing that tells me where to go and when there’s an emergency.

Sam Demma
They’re paging you to the front because there’s a food truck outside.

Stacy Hovey
Ha! Yeah, no, I wouldn’t put it past them, seriously. My dad’s just that kind of guy. So my parents have really been there for me all along and they fill my cup too. I would be, who takes my kids so that I can have a break, my mother. And then my husband takes me to the spa. So like they work together. That’s how I got space for both.

Sam Demma
Where did you get the passion for volunteerism? I know you were recently, you were awarded a medal for volunteerism from the government of Canada. Was that something that your parents instilled in you at a young age as well or something you discovered later in life?

Stacy Hovey
No, my daddy and my mommy, they would take me around, make sure whatever we needed to do was done. So, you know, food kitchens, making sure that people at Shepherds’ would hope here in Ottawa had what they need. My dad made sandwiches, like there was nobody’s business. He’s also like the best meatball maker in all of the world, so meatball sandwiches, but always helping out whoever didn’t have, you were to give. You just had to make sure that whoever was in need was taken care of. We never ever, my parents taught me, you never walk by a homeless person and don’t stop. You just don’t do it. Even you stop, you acknowledge them, you say hello. If you don’t have something in your pocket, that’s fine. You have kindness, you have a smile, you have time. You do what you can. You stop and do whatever you can do. So many times it would be bringing someone into McDonald’s or just talking to them or whatever. It was simple things. That’s how I was raised. And I continue that because for me, again, it’s that service. It’s living your life in a way that is wholesome.

Stacy Hovey
And so I started when I was very tiny, volunteering with a whole bunch of groups. I volunteered with Save the Children Canada, the Canadian Coalition for the Rights of the Child, Boys and Girls Clubs of Canada, you name it, I was in it. Nursing homes, oh, I have some of my best memories from nursing homes. We have lots of people in the community who just don’t get visitors. And Luigi is one of my greatest friends. I used to go and dance with him, the tarantella. There was no music, but we still danced. And I’ll never forget him. I’ve got lots of people in my life who I have been blessed to learn from. Elizabeth Seward, 104 years old, didn’t have any family members. So I used to go and bring her to church on Sundays and read to her. Rest her heart, you know. These are people who are just people who just need other people.

Stacy Hovey
I tell people all the time, we’re all brothers and sisters, you know?

Sam Demma
I spent the six weeks in Kenya and there was a massive protest happening in downtown Nairobi and we were fortunate to have a local connection who said, hey, early morning, we’re gonna come pick you up and drive you two hours out of downtown into a rural village where I grew up. And I’m gonna introduce you to family members of mine and friends, aunts and uncles. And first thing he said, we’d never go to the village empty-handed. So he stopped at the grocery store, we picked up a bunch of groceries to bring to his family, and a few hours later we arrive and we’re going through all these different homes. Stacy, goosebumps in every single home we stopped in. Every elder, every parent, every uncle and aunt prayed for us, prayed with us in their homes. And it was Kamata, Kamata was our driver, it was his uncle who sat us down. He used to be a history teacher, but he’s now retired. And he said, Where do we come from? And we were all sitting there and he goes, Adam, right? Adam and who and he started like questioning us about the story of Adam and Eve. And he said, if that’s if that’s the truth, and as Catholics, we believe it to be so, then every single one of us is related. We’re all brothers and sisters. And so when you do walk past that person on the street, they’re not just the homeless person. They’re a member of your family. How do you treat a member of your family with respect and kindness and dignity? And so I think it’s such a beautiful story you’ve shared about your father and how your parents have instilled that value of volunteering and of service in you as a child. It reminded me of my grandfather while you were speaking and I was getting a little emotional myself just listening. It’s such a beautiful story and it’s beautiful that you’ve carried that energy into the work you’re doing in education.

Sam Demma
What do you think are some of the things that students need now more than ever? There’s a lot of challenges in the world and there’s so much noise. Students are struggling. What do you think they need these days?

Stacy Hovey
Simple acceptance, non-judgment, and unconditional love. It’s our bad. We’re not born bad. Sometimes you got a kid, I’m the vice principal and up in my office. They’re not a bad kid. They’ve made a bad choice, it doesn’t define them as bad. The decision they made, not so great. But them, great. They need to know that there are such things as second chances, third chances. They need to know that it’s okay to not be okay. They need to know why whatever they did wasn’t right. You need to explain that to them. Walk them through it. Teach them. In a school, we don’t just teach curriculum. We teach character. We teach kids how to be and how to live and how to participate in this world. And so, for me, I say to even parents, they’re so upset, they’re so angry, they can’t believe that their child has done A, B, C, or D. And then the child leaves. And my advice to them is, go home and hug them. Love them. Yes, they might have done something that you’re not proud of. I get it. However, they will always be your son. They will always be your daughter. You are going to need to give them that love.

Stacy Hovey
And I feel like, oh my gosh, Thomas Groom said once upon a time, parents have become so open-minded, their brains have fallen out. I don’t necessarily believe that to be true all the time, but sometimes I get it. And so the reminder to me and my reminder to parents is they’re always going to be your baby. How are you gonna treat your baby? Right? So for me, loving them no matter what, no matter what they’ve done, the good, the bad, the ugly, and making sure they know it. So they don’t go to bed feeling shame and guilt every day. It’s huge, huge.

Sam Demma
I couldn’t agree more. I think even reminding ourselves to give that love to ourselves, because so often we’re our own toughest critic. And I beat myself up sometimes and I had a mentor, he said, Sam, hold your hand over your heart, like feel the heartbeat a few times, give that person love. I was like, it sounded silly, but in moments where things are falling apart or I can’t control certain circumstances and I’m allowing myself to feel certain emotions because of that, I think about those words and his suggestion and it brings me a lot of peace. And I get so many messages from students, and not only students, also staff members that are feeling challenged or burnt out, and they just don’t know the first step to take to, I guess, bring themselves back to a place of self-love and compassion. And I’m curious, have you had any periods in your own career where you felt challenged or a little bit burnt out? And in those moments, how do you, like, how did you get out of them?

Stacy Hovey
Oh gosh, absolutely, 100%. Like I said, it’s okay to not be okay. And to be honest with you, this last few weeks have been probably the most challenging of my career. One of our students was taken from us in a violent act that’s being investigated by the police. And one of our former students, and I am wearing blue today in his honour, his funeral and services are happening tomorrow. And when you lose a student, especially through tragedy in a capacity that no student should ever be lost, person should ever be lost, senselessness, it’s very, very difficult. And so, as a community of grievers, you know, we have so much support. Our school board made sure the troops were here to support the students, support the staff. And for me, part of that is just leading by example. We created a document to make sure every kid who needed to speak to a counselor had the opportunity to do so. And then I said to the counselors, I said, once all the kids have been seen, I’m gonna write in this document, staff, and I’m putting my name. And I did. There’s the school bell.

Stacy Hovey
And I did that not only because I actually needed the support, because I do, and I did, but I also did that because I wanted people to know, if they saw the document and they saw my name, it’s okay for Stacy to get help, it’s okay for me to put my name down and for me to get help too. The kids first, of course, but then us. Because really, truly, we at that front line need that help. So I would say taking care of your wellness is huge. You have to find what works for you. For me, reading works, walking works. Sometimes walking turns into jogging, not too far though. 5k is like my maximum capacity. Cooking for me is a thing. I find therapeutic. My husband knows when I am like in a mood or a situation when all of a sudden there’s a whole bunch of things coming out of the oven or on the stove at the same time. I think you just have to find your thing. But I also think you need to know that if you need support that is beyond somebody you love and care for, that is professional support, you should not feel shame or guilt in getting that. We need to have people that we can talk to and that’s what those people are for. And I cannot imagine how anyone could go through this life without needing some sort of support. And believe me, that is me included.

Stacy Hovey
Amen.

Sam Demma
I say it all the time, courage is not carrying the challenges alone. Courage is reaching out for the support when you need it most. And there’s been so many moments in my life where if I didn’t reach out for the support, I wouldn’t have been in a good space. I wouldn’t have, I wouldn’t have known how much other people love and care about me at times, you know? And I think it was a realization I had partway through the start of my own career because I had a coach for three years and COVID hit and things fell apart and I called him bawling my eyes out. And something he did that was so beautiful too is he didn’t try and solve my problem, he just stayed on the phone for like 40 minutes and I was talking the whole time. And only until the end of the call was I like, hey, can you help me with this? Or what are your thoughts? And I thought what a beautiful lesson he taught me that day, most of the time people would just need a shoulder to lean on or an ear to listen. They’re not, you know, sometimes even looking for a solution. And I think that’s so beautiful.

Sam Demma
And I’m so sorry to hear about the loss in the community. That’s absolute tragedy. And I hope everyone finds peace in the situation however they can. I’ll be keeping the community in my prayers. And I’m so inspired by you and this conversation. If there’s another educator who’s listening to this and wants to reach out to you or get the meatball sandwich recipe, what would be the best way for them to get in touch?

Stacy Hovey
The only social media I have literally is Twitter. So I have an email account, of course, but Twitter would be the best way. So it’s @sthovey. And I would be more than happy to pass out my dad’s meatball recipe or talk or do whatever anybody needs. I’m all about filling the cup as much as possible. And honestly, Sam, it’s been my pleasure. You really are absolutely incredible. From the second you walked into this school with that backpack that was unbelievably ginormous, and taking the time to empty it and remind me. You know, there are so many places in your book that, you know, I found myself stopping and very literally tagging pages because there were things that I thought, wow, does that ever connect with me? So I feel like you’re going to be one of those people, A, anybody who meets you, they’re never going to forget you, ever. And B, it’s people like you who are going to make our world what we really want it to be, a world filled with service.

Sam Demma
I receive that. Thank you so much. I can’t express my gratitude enough for you taking the time for this conversation, for the work you’re doing. I look forward to crossing paths again soon. And until then, keep up the amazing work, keep filling people’s cups and bringing them coffees when they need it. Keep leading with your heart and I’ll see you soon, my friend.

Stacy Hovey
Absolutely will.

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The High Performing Educator Podcast was brought to life during the outbreak of COVID-19 to provide you with inspirational stories and practical advice from your colleagues in education.  By tuning in, you will hear the stories and ideas of the world’s brightest and most ambitious educators.  You can expect interviews with Principals, Teachers, Guidance Counsellors, National Student Association, Directors and anybody that works with youth. You can find and listen to all the episodes for free here.