Essentials & Experiences: How EducationMatters Opens Doors for Calgary Students

We explore how EducationMatters helps Calgary students show up, engage, and graduate with momentum through three pillars: Essentials for Learning, Extraordinary Experiences, and Preparing for the Future. Executive Director Stephanie Washbrook shares stories of impact, from 2,000 backpacks to dual credit pathways and $1.1M in awards.

• Essentials for Learning: food, clothing, transit, and backpacks identified by schools
• student well‑being: action teams, belonging projects, and suicide prevention training
• Extraordinary Experiences: field trips, on‑site activities, and technology support
• Preparing for the Future: Unique Pathways dual credit, and exploratory programs, and skills competitions like Skills Alberta
• scholarships and bursaries: $1.1m distributed, including $100k awards
• access and equity: removing cost and stigma barriers
• community partners: matching supports to each school’s needs
• how to help: donate, volunteer for awards, and spread awareness
• related orgs: Brown Bagging for Calgary Kids, Edmonton Public Schools Foundation and Kids’ Literacy Collective

About Our Guest
Stephanie Washbrook is an avid supporter of public education, the proud daughter of an award-winning Kindergarten teacher, and has four children in various stages of their Calgary Board of Education journeys. She holds an Honours Bachelor of Arts in Accountancy Studies from the University of Waterloo and multiple Not-for-Profit Certifications from CPA Canada. She started her career with Ernst & Young, working in the Toronto, Cayman Islands, New York FSO, and Calgary offices, gaining expertise in audit of financial services clients before moving to learning and development, resource management and recruiting. Stephanie gained significant not-for-profit industry experience through private consulting on strategic planning, operational efficiencies, governance, stakeholder engagement, and social enterprise feasibility studies. She joined EducationMatters as Executive Director in 2025, after having managed the Palix Foundation and Alberta Family Wellness Initiative. 

What is Give Amplify Connect?

There’s a story behind every action. Give Amplify Connect is a podcast from the Wolfe Pack Warriors Foundation that gives a voice to the Alberta-based charitable organizations creating community impact, changing lives, and making a difference. Driven by honest conversations with host Kristy Wolfe, it’s a chance for passionate changemakers to share their story.

Learn more at wolfepackwarriors.com

Podcast music used with artist permission
"Okay" by Ellen Braun

Transcript

Welcome And Mission

Stephanie Washbrook 0:00

We're gonna start looking for volunteers to help us be out in community. Raising awareness has been phenomenal. I've had a really busy year, but yeah, well, we need some help out in community.

Announcer 0:11

Welcome to Give Amplify Connect, the Wolfe Pack Warriors Foundation podcast that dives deeper into the stories of the charitable organizations in Alberta that are making a difference. Host and producer Kristy Wolf sits down with the leaders of the nonprofit world to learn more about their purpose, hopes, and dreams. Settle in for an honest conversation with Kristy about the impact people are making in their communities and how they keep moving forward.

Kristy Wolfe 0:40

With me today is Stephanie Washbrook. Now, Stephanie is the executive director of Education Matters. Stephanie, will you start by introducing us to Education Matters, please?

Speaker 2 0:50

Absolutely. So Education Matters is the fundraising partner for the Calgary Board of Education. We've been around since 2003, and we support uh over 143,000 students. Just a couple. Just a couple.

Stephanie’s Path To Nonprofit Leadership

Kristy Wolfe 1:04

Oh my goodness. And okay, I want to talk about the programs, but before we do that, I want to know a little bit about how you got involved with Education Matters.

Speaker 2 1:12

Sure. So there's a long story, but I'll make it quick. I am a CEA, CPA. I worked with Ernst and Young for well over a decade in public accounting. But I had four kids. So when I had the last two, I took some time off work. And during that time, I did a lot of volunteering for nonprofits, as well as being, of course, the school council chair for our school. Got it. And then when I decided to go back to work, I really wanted to support nonprofits. So I went and did some nonprofit consulting around strategic planning and operations and trying to get, you know, set social enterprises off the ground so that they could fund themselves. As part of that work, I ended up running the uh Paylix Foundation, which is the Alberta Family Wellness Initiative, runs the Brainstory, an incredible organization. But uh I kind of helped them reorganize after COVID. And once they were up and running again, I needed a new challenge and I ended up with Education Matters.

Kristy Wolfe 2:14

And so I am assuming all of your children are in the Calgary Board of Education.

Speaker 2 2:18

They are in various parts of their journey. So my oldest actually started at U of C this year.

Why Awareness Still Lags

Kristy Wolfe 2:23

Oh, okay, that's a big one. Yeah. So, Stephanie, I mean, we've talked about this because we've met a few times outside of this particular podcast, but I was a Calgary Board of Education teacher. Um, I was there for 10 years. I did my schooling in at the University of Calgary and their education program. And I just I love hearing about this because I'm gonna be honest. I taught in Calgary around 2006, 2007, and I didn't know there was a foundation. 2003. I was like, oh, they were just getting started. Maybe it makes sense. Or was I just not aware of what's happening?

Speaker 2 2:56

No, so I was school council chair for many years at Queen Elizabeth, and I had no idea that Education Matters existed. So one of my biggest goals since joining Education Matters is getting that awareness out there. I mean, Calgary Board of Education has 16,000 employees, 251 schools. There is no reason why all of Calgary shouldn't know about Education Matters.

Pillar One: Essentials For Learning

Kristy Wolfe 3:16

Okay, well, we're gonna make it, we're gonna be loud. We're gonna talk all about the programs for Education Matters, talk about how people can support students. So let's do that. Let's start with some of the programs that you wanted to highlight when you're working with the Wolfpack Warriors Foundation.

Speaker 2 3:29

Sure. So basically, we've set up three pillars of support with Education Matters. The first being um essentials for learning. So making sure the kids are at school and ready to learn. So we provide clothing, food, hygiene items, transit passes, just to make sure the kids are there in class. As part of our essentials for learning pillar, we also include student well-being. So, as part of that, the Calgary Board of Education has an amazing student well-being framework where they actually run a student well-being symposium once a year for all middle schools and high schools. So a group from each school attends, and it's really about that student voice. What does student well-being look like in our school? What's missing? What can we fix? Um, so after that symposium, each of these student well-being action teams go back to their schools, kind of disseminate the learning, and try to figure out what projects they can do in their schools to bring that sense of belonging and well-being into their schools. So I'm I'm very excited about that aspect that we support. And part of that is also we um support training for teachers. So coming up uh in the spring, we're actually supporting uh suicide prevention training for teachers, which is so important in our schools right now.

Kristy Wolfe 4:44

So that's essentials for learning. Do you have any stories related to a group of kids going back and channeling what they've learned into their school?

Student Well‑Being And Teacher Training

Speaker 2 4:53

Well, I don't have a specific example for you right now, just because there's there are so many. We have so many schools. Um, but what was really nice to track is that the kids that were part of the student well-being action team, and it's across grades, so that we have that continuity year over year, they've shown to be then uh part of their communities. So they go on and volunteer in their communities and they become leaders and set up other uh ways to bring the community together. So that is so exciting to see, you know, the ripple, ripple effects of supporting those kids. It's not just the school. No, it's not just the school. And the thing is, the kids that are on the student well-being action team are not necessarily the ones that you would assume. Yes, there's the ones that put their hand up and say, we want to do this, but teachers are also on the lookout for ones that they know might be a bit quieter, yeah, but have that leadership in them, you know. So it it's a really great opportunity there. I love that. In terms of essentials for learning, though, we have so many impact stories, families that are struggling, that when the teachers and the principals in the school can identify that they need that food and we can provide it immediately. Right. The system in Calgary community organizations are amazing, but it's tough to navigate. So to be able to have that point of contact where the kids are in the school and we can see and identify needs uh is phenomenal.

Kristy Wolfe 6:15

With that program, are you partnered with other organizations for some of like the food programs and that kind of thing? Or is it all education matters running it themselves?

Food, Partners, And Backpacks

Speaker 2 6:24

No, we don't run it all ourselves, so we support it financially. So we help donors get the money to the right place. So, for example, like um breakfast programs uh are run through a variety of agencies, round bagging for kids, meals on wheels, the food bank. It really depends on what works best for that school. Okay, thank you. But also part of Essentials for Learning is our backpack campaign, which is a fun one to do because we um raise money to ensure that kids are prepared on that first day of school. So they get their backpack and they have what they need in it in terms of school supplies, but also some kids need shoes on that first day, et cetera. Um, last year we were able to provide 2,000 backpacks for kids. And those kids are identified again by the principals. So it's not, it's not someone having to come and ask for it. They know who needs help.

Kristy Wolfe 7:12

As a teacher, you do know. Like it's it's conversations, it's it's building community within your school to understand what families' needs are. So I think that's a really important piece of it. It's not asking people to come forward and ask for help, it's recognizing when help is needed. And just on the topic of like school shoes, I have 11 and 13-year-old boys. And this year, my 11-year-old was like, I've never thought about how sometimes kids might not have shoes. Like it was an interesting conversation because we always think school supplies, but as a teacher, I think shoes that we always tell them they need to change their shoes, and then like that's just another expense. Yeah.

Speaker 2 7:50

And we're in Calgary. So you've got boots and jackets and mittens and hats and ensuring that those kids are safe.

Kristy Wolfe 7:55

All those little things that you have to think about that aren't just a part of like teaching the curriculum. And so I know that's what education matters really focuses on. Okay, I keep interrupting you. I apologize. I get excited. Uh, tell me about your next program.

The Cost Of Shoes And Winter Gear

Speaker 2 8:08

So our next pillar is uh extraordinary experiences. And so we think about that as the things that get kids excited to learn and be in the classroom. So it's field trips, it's uh on-site activities, it's technology. We were able to provide over $150,000 towards field trips last year, and that included 800 swimmers. So those are kids that wouldn't normally get swimming lessons, but now have that essential skill, which is so exciting to me having, you know, competitive swimmers myself. And then after that, we have preparing for the future. So now we're focusing more on the high school kids, uh, where we support the dual credit exploratory program. So the Calgary Board of Education has over 52 different programs where you can explore what your career would look like. And with dual credit, uh you actually get accredited to be able to start working right out of school, which is so important, again, for some kids. Um, in addition, the high schools uh let kids participate in skills competitions, which again is trades, but it's also graphic design, videography, um, all kinds of fun stuff. And they compete regionally. And if they get to move on, there's the provincial competition, which is unfortunately always in Edmonton. So it means a lot of financial support to make sure that our kids' registration, transportation, accommodation fees are paid to get them up there. And then we've actually been very successful in the past few years getting kids to the national competition.

Pillar Two: Extraordinary Experiences

Kristy Wolfe 9:39

Ah, okay. So I've been to this competition in Edmonton with a group of grade seven students. Our junior high used to take kids to go see what other kids are doing. And that experience without even being a part of the competition was really incredible to see just the variety of opportunities that I don't think you necessarily know about. I didn't know about when I was a teenager, right? So, how do kids in school find out about these programs? I mean, this is beyond education matters, but I'm wondering.

Speaker 2 10:10

The uh Unique Pathways does hold an information session that's advertised to all of the high schools in the fall. Uh, so you can come out and we have all the partners there, the different uh secondary schools as well as a lot of the trades organizations. But in terms of skills, it's really through the classes in the high schools. They're well advertised uh and we have really great participation in the schools.

Kristy Wolfe 10:30

Oh, that's really neat. Okay. I know I want to come and to your information session and learn more about it.

Pillar Three: Preparing For The Future

Speaker 2 10:37

Absolutely. Absolutely. And fingers crossed, um, Calgary is actually up for potentially being the national skills competition location for 2027.

Kristy Wolfe 10:46

Oh, that's we're really hoping. Yeah, no kidding. And that just helps build momentum on programs when you can say it's also happening here. And so, oh, that's really cool to hear. My fingers are crossed. I hope you get it.

Speaker 2 10:58

So then the rest of our preparing for the future program is really around student awards. So we have phenomenal donors that support uh various student awards for our kids. We were actually able to distribute over $1.1 million to students last year, and part of that is we have one particular donor who's created the Investing in the Future award, which is a million dollars that goes to 10 students. So each student gets $100,000 to cover their entire post-secondary education. Wow. It is incredible. And the kids that get it, phenomenal, just outstanding. So, you know, it it makes such a difference for them. And it's just exciting.

Kristy Wolfe 11:43

I'm sure a lot of work goes into preparing their applications for that and looking through the applications. I can only imagine how much work goes into that. So, does education matters determine who gets that, or does the donor determine who gets that?

Speaker 2 11:58

So every situation is different, but for the investing in the future, we shortlist applicants uh just because there are hundreds and hundreds of applicants for that one, um, and provide a shortlist to the donors so that they can make the final selection.

Skills Competitions And Access

Kristy Wolfe 12:11

And then when you're thinking about many of your scholarships and bursaries, are they uh for Alberta specifically? Are they for university versus trade schools, or are they kind of like whatever students decide to do? How does that work?

Speaker 2 12:24

So every award it has different criteria in terms of who's eligible or what kind of program you'd be going into, but it is a variety. So there are quite a few that support trades, there's quite a few that support university. Where you go to post-secondary doesn't have to be in Alberta for most of them. Um, it's just that you were an Alberta high school student. Most of our awards are for Calgary Board of Education specifically, uh, but there's some that are a bit more broad as well.

Kristy Wolfe 12:51

Okay, okay.

Speaker 2 12:52

I'm gonna look into that.

Kristy Wolfe 12:53

So thanks for bringing that up.

Speaker 2 12:54

No problem.

Kristy Wolfe 12:55

Any other programs or pillars that you want to talk about?

Speaker 2 12:58

Those are our big ones. It's kind of across the whole kindergarten to grade 12.

Kristy Wolfe 13:04

Well, and that's a lot of different ages and stages and development levels. And like, I mean, we're talking about getting kids into school and then getting kids into their futures as well. And so I can imagine that you're balancing a lot of different things there. Are there any examples? I know we talked a little bit about this with essential skills and and with the wellness initiative, but are there any other examples that you wanted to share around like how education matters has made a difference in people's lives?

Awards And Life‑Changing Scholarships

Speaker 2 13:29

I want to share one of my favorite stories just around the dual credit program because we do have a student where she didn't quite fit in in high school. I had a strong interest in animals and found our Bet Tech dual credit program. As part of that program, you're actually connecting with students from other schools because it's it's a joint program with Old College. And so she was able to find her people, right? Became more comfortable in her skin through this program. But not only that, she graduated high school, already certified to be a vet tech. Oh, wow. She got into the veterinary program at the University of Calgary. Yeah. And is paying for it now through working as a vet tech. Oh my gosh. It's just a heart wearing, phenomenal story of yes, our financial support. It wasn't huge, but it was enough that she could attend the program. And from there, I mean, the future looks so great for her.

Kristy Wolfe 14:25

Well, and I love that piece that you're explaining too about just like the connecting with others and finding community and belonging. So financial support is one piece of it. And sometimes it isn't a whole lot, but it's introducing somebody to a new idea and maybe it's not a new idea, but just like how to get there. And so that is a really incredible story that showcases that. Oh, I love it. Okay. How can our listeners give, amplify, or connect with education matters?

Eligibility, Trades, And University Paths

Speaker 2 14:53

Really around our essentials for learning is our highest need for fundraising. Uh, so we will be having our backpack campaign starting around April so they can watch out for that. But just on an ongoing basis, if you look at our website, we have our three pillars right up there. We would happily accept any kind of help for any of those pillars there. In addition, we do uh like volunteers. So our student awards committee is a volunteer committee. In addition, we're gonna start looking for volunteers to help us be out in community. Uh, raising awareness has been phenomenal. I've had a really busy year, but now uh we need some help out in community.

Kristy Wolfe 15:35

Okay, so getting involved, I really appreciate that. And I'll make sure to put some links into that as well in the show notes. All right, Stephanie, tell us about another organization or a person you've worked with or maybe that you want to work with that inspires you.

Speaker 2 15:49

I would be remiss not to mention my counterpart in Edmonton. So Catherine Bay runs the Edmonton Public School Foundation, and they are phenomenal. Uh, they actually support uh full day kindergarten up in Edmonton, as well as technology, nutrition, and literacy programs. So they do what we do up there, and uh it's incredibly important across all the school boards.

A Vet Tech Success Story

Kristy Wolfe 16:14

And one of the things that we were talking about from the Wolfpack Warriors board side of things is that we're working with Education Matters, obviously Calgary-based. Wolfpack Warriors Foundation is across Alberta. And so we started talking about the fact that many, if not most, uh public school boards have a way that donations can be made to them. So if you're listening to this and you're thinking, oh, this is exactly what I want to be doing and supporting people within the public education sector, have a look at your local school district and see if there's a way that you can donate through them if Calgary is not your home base. But yeah, so thank you for bringing up Edmonton. We have them LinkedIn on our landing page with Education Matters. Just a lot of our listeners are in Edmonton. So I appreciate you bringing that up. And I haven't met Catherine, so maybe I need to reach out. She's fantastic.

Speaker 2 17:01

And the other one I wanted to mention, though, is the Kids' Literacy Collective. Stacey Pinney is running that one. They basically came out of what was Calgary Reads. So I don't know if you know about the Dandelion, you know, they kind of disseminated all the programs from Calgary Reads across different organizations. But then they realized that the convening, no one was convening, and then really bringing the um issues to light around literacy. Kids' literacy collective came about, and uh their goal is really to mobilize adults, promote literacy for children to ensure that everyone can read by grade three. So they've just launched their year of reading program, which is fantastic.

How To Give, Amplify, And Connect

Kristy Wolfe 17:46

I am definitely gonna look more into that organization. I was, I taught grade one for a long time. Like the early literacy piece is really important to me, and it's something that with a little bit of support, all kids can have success. And I think that sometimes um, you know what? I'm not gonna say more things there. I could go off on a tangent.

Speaker 2 18:08

So, so having four kids, my third, we found out in grade two that she couldn't read. She was so tricky and found all of the coping mechanisms. Yep. Um, my mom was a kindergarten teacher. We did all the songs and all the things. Um, so if she's sneaky enough to get by me not being able to read by grade two, I can only imagine kids with less involved parents.

Kristy Wolfe 18:33

Those personal stories that we have around a particular topic. We uh one of my children had a lot of support with literacy as well. And it's something that I ended up supporting a lot, both with teacher education as well as in my own classroom. And it just, it really does hold my heart. Does um education matters have a connection with the Calgary Public Library? Not specifically, no. I love the library. I literally got a tour maybe two months ago and I learned a lot more and I realized I don't know very much about libraries, though I have always gone to one.

Sister Orgs And Literacy Movement

Stephanie Washbrook 19:04

I know. Well, that's the same libraries, hospitals, schools. Like you just assume that everything's functioning well. And yep, yep. But no, everywhere needs uh community support.

Kristy Wolfe 19:14

Uh Stephanie, thank you so much for coming on Give Amplify Connect for talking about education matters and sharing the pillars with us. I really appreciate that. Uh, I have a few things that I want to look a little more into, but it's been really great to learn about what Education Matters is doing for Calgary students. Well, thanks so much, Christy. We really appreciate the Wolfe Pack Warriors support. Thank you for joining us today. The purpose of the Wolfe Pack Warriors Foundation is to give, amplify, and connect. Visit our website, WolfePack Warriors.com to learn more about this initiative or connect with us about a registered charity that is important to you. Don't miss the next episode. Follow Give, Amplify, Connect on your favorite podcast platform to hear from other Alberta based nonprofits about the work they are doing. On a final note, remember to take care of yourself. And your pack.

Ellen Braun 20:02

Okay, you're gonna be okay. You're gonna be okay. Hush my darling, gonna be okay. You're gonna be okay.