Nathalie Ringuette
École secondaire Vanier

Nathalie Ringuette has no idea what half-measures are. The teacher at Vanier high school never does things by halves and one day chose to don her missionary cloak and set out to conquer young people with the goal of convincing them to live out their ambitions. “The sky’s the limit” is the phrase that best sums up the way she perceives all projects submitted by students. She told me this so many times,” one of her former students is quick to point out.

“At the age of 5, I was already nicknamed “Little Miss Bossy Boots.” When I was 12 and in elementary, I campaigned for Women’s Lib in the school yard with placards,” says Nathalie Ringuette with a peal of contagious laughter. “Today, as a teacher, I want to show the way by innovating for the good of students. I sincerely believe that just because you’re growing up in an underprivileged area doesn’t mean that you can only have small projects. And this is what I teach them.”

With a smile on her face, Nathalie describes herself as a frustrated actress who didn’t have the chance to quench her thirst for the arts and admits she wants to make up for this by making sure that her students’ projects become a reality and can even sometimes take the shape of large-scale events, a scale that a lot of the time goes well beyond their initial expectations.

This was the case in fact with a mutual aid project carried out at Marguerite-Bourgeois elementary school entitled “Un Noël au printemps!” and that was held last June. For the occasion, the students succeeded in obtaining the support of a good number of partners and thus enabled numerous children from an underprivileged area to take part in an unforgettable experience. “On the day of the event, a little girl said, as she was being given her cotton candy, that it was the best day of her life. It’s at times like these that our young people realise the significance of their projects and become aware of how important it is to get involved,” Nathalie recounts.

The project is only one of many. From the planning and hosting of lectures by well-known figures such as Paul Arcand, Nathalie Simard, General Roméo Dallaire and Julie Payette, to a fund-raiser for the Gilles Kègle foundation, the organisation of various celebrations, and the drawing up with a group of students of a manifesto on children’s rights as well as steps for introducing it in the Québec National Assembly, Nathalie Ringuette’s involvement has no bounds.

One of the teacher’s finest bequests to students is probably the setting up of the Dep-explo Jeune health convenience store cooperative four years ago. The project, which channelled the creative energy of numerous students, even won several awards and secured the commitment of a large number of sponsors. Today, more than 70% of the products sold are made by students, who are thus able to develop their entrepreneurial skills. The project’s tremendous success has even been talked about all over the province, and prompted Nathalie, with the help of a colleague, to develop a start-up kit explaining how to go about implementing this type of project at other schools.

“The teacher is a magician because she has managed to accomplish great feats with not the easiest of students in an underprivileged neighbourhood and even with students on the verge of dropping out of school but who found a way of getting involved in their community and now have a reason for getting up every morning. She succeeds in making us all feel that our talents are valuable and she encourages us to continue until we attain our objectives,” enthuses Émilie Sylvestre, who is now in cégep, adding that Nathalie has played a significant role in her life.

“This vital impulse to get involved, which I have made a point of passing on to my own children because they come with me to certain events, must come from my parents. I also believe that in order to do what I do, you must above all love students. For me, these young people are my driving force. And if I manage to help them to surpass themselves and thus develop a greater sense of belonging to the community, I feel that my commitment has had a very positive impact,” says the finalist in conclusion.

Nathalie Ringuette
École secondaire Vanier