Celebrating a Legacy: How Lorrie Temple Spent 30 Years Leading With Faith, Vision, and Heart
Now retired, this beloved Catholic education leader reflects on a career filled with purpose, progress, and the power of relationships.
When you ask Lorrie Temple what advice she’d give new teachers or school leaders, her answer is as consistent as it is heartfelt: “Build relationships. When you’re stuck, when you want to celebrate something, do it with others. That’s what makes the work meaningful.”
After three decades in Catholic education, Lorrie recently retired from her role as Superintendent of Education at the Brant Haldimand Norfolk Catholic District School Board. Her career spanned classroom teaching, principalship, curriculum leadership, and most recently, system-wide responsibility for K–12 programming, early years, faith formation, and student achievement. Through it all, she’s been guided by a singular purpose: to serve students, educators, and families with compassion and clarity.
A Calling from Grade 1
Unlike many who stumble into education, Lorrie knew early. “From Grade 1, I wanted to be a teacher. I would play school with my sister and friends on the front lawn, my bike was my classroom,” she laughed on The LearnIt Podcast.
She followed that passion through the University of Waterloo and Western University’s Teacher Education program. After graduating, she taught everything from Grade 4 to Grade 8, and fell in love with the energy and curiosity of middle schoolers. “Grade 8 was my favorite. They’re old enough to have deep conversations, but they’re still kids at heart,” she shared.
Leadership Through Listening and Learning
Though Lorrie didn’t originally aspire to system leadership, her path evolved through mentorship and opportunity. She took on roles at the Halton and Waterloo Catholic District School Boards, later joining BHNCDSB as Superintendent, where her portfolio touched nearly every area of student development.
Even at the system level, she insisted on staying close to classrooms. “Every week I was in a school. I needed to see how our decisions were playing out at the student’s desk,” she said.
One of her proudest achievements was the board’s Math Coach’s Corner initiative, a school-embedded support model that placed coaches directly in classrooms to work alongside teachers. “We had 100% buy-in, and I’ve never seen that in my 30 years,” she said. The results were clear: improved student understanding, stronger teacher confidence, and data that backed the impact.
Lorrie Temple on The LearnIt Podcast
Navigating Challenges With Creativity and Care
Lorrie’s leadership was not without its challenges. Staff shortages made it harder to release teachers for professional development, and new curriculum mandates added pressure. But Lorrie’s team responded with creativity, offering bite-sized PD, creating podcast-style learning, and coordinating job-embedded training with school assembly schedules to maximize time.
She also understood that teachers can't innovate if they’re overwhelmed. “We told them: ask questions, open your door, lean on us. No one should feel they have to do this alone.”
Her approach reflects a growing trend in Ontario and beyond: distributed leadership. According to a 2023 report by Ontario’s Institute for Education Leadership, empowering educators through collaboration and coaching is one of the most effective ways to improve student achievement.
Rooted in Catholic Values
Lorrie’s work was always grounded in her Catholic faith. She championed equity, inclusion, and belonging, especially in the early years. Her board partnered with childcare providers and municipal leaders to ensure seamless support from pre-K onward. “We wanted students to feel welcomed, that they belong, and that they can see themselves in the school. That needs to start from the moment they walk in the door,” she said.
Whether implementing Ontario’s new early screening tools or fostering self-regulation strategies for kindergarteners, Lorrie ensured the focus remained on the whole child - academically, emotionally, and spiritually.
A Retirement That’s Anything But Quiet
While Lorrie has officially retired, she hasn’t slowed down. She now works as a consultant with the Huron-Perth Catholic District School Board and continues occasional teaching at the Waterloo Catholic District School Board. She’s also eyeing a future in teacher education, where she hopes to train and inspire new Catholic educators.
“I’m still learning every day,” she said. “And I want to support others who are just starting their journey.”
Her humility, warmth, and collaborative spirit leave a legacy that will ripple across classrooms and communities for years to come. As she put it, “This has been the most rewarding job. I’m so blessed to have done it for 30 years.”
