ELL Teachers

I was born in Mexico and came to Canada when I was 15 years old. I attended Burnaby North Secondary and then UBC for both my undergraduate and education degrees. I am very passionate about learning, and helping youth develop skills for their future.

Ms. Chen immigrated to Canada from Taiwan with her family when she was 12 years old. As Ms. Chen understood how it feels to be a teenager arriving in Vancouver, she worked for 5 years as a Youth Settlement Worker to support the integration of newcomer youth in our communities.

Ms. Chen is involved with school clubs and community groups to support young people to shine in their own ways while finding their personal belongings and cultural identities. Ms. Chen is dedicated to support youth to speak up and to stay connected with their cultural roots and languages.

Ms K is a teacher and children‘s book author. She loves teaching, and dogs. She lives in Harrison Hot Springs, BC, but loves her students at Byrne Creek Community School so much that she does not mind the long commute.

Meena Mangat's teaching subjects are ELL, English and Social Studies. She has been a part of the Byrne Creek community since 2009. Meena has a M.Ed in Contemplative Studies and is currently a PhD Candidate (SFU). Her research focuses on the impacts of collective trauma on racialized youth, and ways to orient oneself towards anti-racist praxis.

Became a Bulldog: in 2007

In My “other life,” I am:

• Wife

• Mother

• Wanderer

Movie I could watch over and over again:

• The Sound of Music

• Annie

(Couldn’t just pick one movie and yes singing along is my favorite part of both movies.)

My Favourite Smells are:

• Eucalyptus

• Lavender

• Pine Needles

What fills me up:

• Living near the ocean

• Spending time with my family and dogs

• Seeing my students blossom

Fictional character I relate to is:

Hercule Poirot (I love solving problems. I’m a bit of a detective too and I love that Poirot was created by Agatha Christie.)

Education:

• B.A. (Psych) - UBC

• B.Ed. - UBC

• M.A. (Sped) - UBC

Became a Bulldog: in 2016

I’ve also taught at:

• Elementary Schools in Burnaby (South Slope, Second Street, Westridge and Nelson)

• Moscrop and Cariboo

In my “other life”, I am :

• Mom to 2 beautiful daughters

• Volunteer in the Ismaili Muslim Community

Favorite Netflix series:

• Prison Break

• 24

• Virgin River

Something I learned from the Pandemic:

• Appreciate each day and your loved ones

• Being healthy

• Explore and enjoy the outdoors!