Biography

Yvonne identifies as a Scottish Canadian with South-East Asian roots, of Chinese ethnicity. Yvonne began her teaching career in Edinburgh, Scotland at the secondary level, then worked in K-8 when she came to Ontario. She was a principal in York Region District School Board and was at the Ministry of Education as a Student Achievement Officer. 

Yvonne is the coordinator for the Centre for Leadership and Diversity at OISE, University of Toronto. She has presented at numerous conferences, such as the Association for Multicultural Education (NAME), the International Congress for School Effectiveness and Improvement (ICSEI), and more recently at The International Study Association on Teachers and Teaching (ISATT) and the Federation of European Literacy Associations (FELA).

She is the 2025 recipient of the Ludwik & Estelle Jus Memorial Human Rights Prize - Emerging Leader Category and the 2024 OISE Recipient of the University of Toronto Student Leadership Award. Her research interests include leadership through the lens of anti-racism and anti-oppression, the evolving role of school principalship, challenges faced by racialized and marginalized educators and school leaders, and how prior experiences influence teacher and teaching.