Leading Through Change: A Conversation with Cindy Finn
What does it take to run a school board in a time of constant disruption? On the latest episode of the ShiftEd Podcast, host Chris Colley sits down with Cindy Finn, Director General (DG) of the Lester B. Pearson School Board, for a wide-ranging conversation about leadership, mental health, cell phone bans, and what the next generation of students is teaching us.
Finn began her tenure as DG just six months before COVID hit—a baptism by fire that, she says, taught her the most important lesson of the job: “Change is the only constant.” Rather than treat that as a burden, she’s made it her operating principle. From pandemic response to teacher strikes to spring flood threats, the role demands someone who can stay calm, stay curious, and keep connecting the right people to the right problems.
The Quebec Reality
A significant part of the conversation focuses on the unique pressures facing English-language education in Quebec. Finn speaks candidly about Bill 96, CEGEP eligibility, and the anxiety rippling through students, parents, and teachers. Her response is grounded in something deeper than policy debate: a belief that minority communities thrive when they collaborate, share resources, and refuse to be defined only by what’s working against them.
Mental Health Is Everyone’s Job
Perhaps the most powerful thread in the episode is Finn’s discussion of mental health in schools. The science is clear, she explains: stress is contagious. When teachers and administrators are struggling, students feel it—and vice versa. That insight has reshaped how her board approaches well-being, with multi-tiered systems of support, trauma-informed practices, and a recognition that schools cannot be therapy centers, but they can build the conditions where every student feels seen, safe, and ready to learn.
On the province-wide cell phone ban, Finn offers a refreshingly nuanced take. She acknowledges the pedagogical wins—even students appreciate fewer distractions—while pushing back on the idea that any ban is a complete solution. The harder, more important question, she argues, is teaching students how to navigate technology, not just removing it from their hands.
Reasons for Optimism
Finn closes with what may be the episode’s most hopeful note: today’s students are remarkable. They’re compassionate, civic-minded, and confident in ways previous generations weren’t at their age. Whether it’s six-year-olds presenting at green fairs or high schoolers organizing for community causes, they’re already acting like citizens of the world. Our job, Finn suggests, is simply to listen.
It’s a conversation that will leave educators feeling both challenged and energized. Tune in—you’ll come away with a lot to think about.
