Introducing Susie Saliola: The Education and Research Analyst at Esri Canada
Susie Saliola is a new member of the Education and Research group at Esri Canada. Find out what she’ll be doing to support GIS education across Canada and learn about her volunteer work as a GIS Ambassador.
We are thrilled that Susie Saliola has joined the Education and Research group at Esri Canada. She brings her passion for GIS to her new role as an Education and Research Analyst.
In her previous role at the Toronto Catholic District School Board (TCDSB), Susie used ArcGIS software to support the Planning Department in their decision making on the adjustments of school boundaries, assessing the location of new school programs, such as French Immersion, and acquiring real estate.
I first met Susie when she started volunteering as a GIS Ambassador about a year ago. Through her work at the TCDSB, she and her colleagues from the Planning and 21st Century Learning Departments facilitated a couple of professional development days for high school teachers at the board. The idea was to promote the use of GIS to all teachers. Geography, history, fine arts and photography teachers signed up and learned a new software program that they could integrate into their teaching.
A new member of the Education and Research group – Susie Saliola.
The teachers found the hands-on workshops engaging and relevant, as they learned about ArcGIS Online, story maps and the use of GIS at the TCDSB and other real world applications. They were excited to find out that ArcGIS Online and Esri Canada resource support is available to them for free.
Susie believes “the GIS Ambassador Program is incredibly beneficial for everyone involved because students and teachers have an opportunity to connect with a GIS professional and learn about the power of GIS through a hands-on experience while ambassadors can share their GIS expertise, support the use of GIS in K-12 education and network with great people.”
Susie also volunteers her time on the URISA Vanguard Cabinet, an advisory board made up of passionate, young geospatial professionals who strive to engage young practitioners, increase their numbers in the organization and better understand the concerns facing these future leaders of the geospatial community. In addition, she is also involved in the GoGeomatics Canada Toronto group where she co-organizes the monthly networking socials that are open to GIS professionals, teachers and students.
In her new role at Esri Canada, Susie will be providing technical expertise and support to higher education clients, and she will continue supporting K-12 teachers by creating resources and providing technical support, as well as conducting GIS workshops and presentations.
We welcome her to the Education and Research group, and we look forward to working closely with her to provide great GIS support to educators across Canada.