James Whitehouse is Elmwood’s twelfth Head of School, promoted to the position in 2019 after seven years as Deputy Head of the Middle and Senior School. In his time at Elmwood, James has been responsible for raising the standard of teaching by creating a culture of professional growth among the faculty. He has built relationships and trust in the community, but most importantly, he has improved the quality of curriculum and learning. James cares deeply about each student at Elmwood and has made it his priority to ensure they have the skills, attributes, and aspirations to reach their full potential. 

Prior to joining Elmwood, James was Assistant Head at Seven Kings High School in Redbridge, London, which is consistently ranked as one of the top twelve state schools in the United Kingdom. James has also worked in schools in a number of countries, including Australia and Hong Kong. Prior to teaching James played Professional Rugby in London, England, which has remained a passion in his life. 

James holds a Bachelor of Arts in History and a Postgraduate Certificate in Education from Middlesex University, London, United Kingdom. James and his wife Nicola have two children– son Oliver and daughter Isla, who is currently in Grade 6 at Elmwood School.

Christine is an Elmwood alumna who was appointed as our Junior School Deputy Head in 2012. She began teaching at Elmwood in 1999 as a Grade Four teacher. Due to her previous experience working in the technology field at Industry Canada’s website—Strategis, she transferred to teaching ICT at Elmwood. She quickly moved on to teaching technology from SK to Grade 5 and has witnessed incredible changes in the program.

Christine is a hands-on leader for the Junior School, overseeing curriculum, student and teacher development and continuing to teach technology and library classes. She feels privileged to be able to work with wonderful girls and greatly enjoys sharing her love of reading, running, and creativity in a variety of co-curricular activities.

Christine is a graduate of the University of Ottawa and holds a Bachelor of Arts, B.A. in Second Language Teaching and Bachelor of Education degrees, as well as her Ontario Principal's Qualifications.

In the Fall of 2024, Elmwood welcomed Christina Schindler as the new Deputy Head of the Middle Senior School. With over 20 years of educational experience, including more than a decade in leadership roles at CAIS schools across Canada, Christina brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to our community.

As the former Head of Prep at Halifax Grammar School and having held leadership positions at Trafalgar Castle School and St. Mildred's-Lightbourn School, Christina has consistently demonstrated inspiring and instructional leadership. She excels in implementing data-driven practices in curriculum and assessment, fostering transformative educational environments.

Christina’s dedication to all-girls education aligns perfectly with Elmwood’s ethos. Her innovative approach includes integrating STEAM and academic technology within the curriculum and creating personalized, real-world learning experiences that enhance creative and critical thinking skills. Her strategic work with school boards, admissions, marketing, finance, and risk management has equipped her with a robust skill set essential for her role at Elmwood.

Christina's strategic vision, openness, and enthusiasm will be invaluable as we continue to foster an inclusive environment that encourages curiosity, kindness, and joyful learning.

Elise Aylen joined Elmwood in 2013 and became Director of Admissions in 2014. Her connection to the school dates back almost 100 years with many relatives having attended Elmwood in the past. Her daughters Marielle '05, and Christiane '07, graduated from the school, and her granddaughter Juliette is currently JK.

She brings many years of experience working in education and not-for-profit organizations and has been a board member of the McEuen Scholarship Foundation for 30 years.

Elise graduated from McGill University with a B.A. and has held positions on several boards and volunteered on multiple committees at Elmwood School over the last 25 years.

As Elmwood's Director of Marketing and Business Strategy, Jennifer leads communications, marketing, and public relations efforts to support the school’s financial targets and strategic goals. She manages the school’s branding strategy, ensuring consistent identity across all communications and platforms. Jennifer directs research-based marketing initiatives to engage internal and external audiences, leveraging digital tools and social media. She oversees the communications team and external partners and spearheads strategic initiatives across key pillars. Jennifer’s daughter Rose is currently in Grade 10 at the school.

A creative professional and self-proclaimed computer nerd, Matt Perreault brings his in-depth knowledge as a computer programmer and technology teacher to Elmwood’s technology program. He is responsible for technology innovation and integration at the school, as well as managing our technology program and infrastructure. Prior to joining the team at Elmwood, Matt worked at The Bilingual European School in Milan, Italy as their ICT Coordinator. He began his career working as a computer programmer for the Department of National Defence, helping to program web-applications, which facilitated communication for the Disaster Assistance Response Team. In addition, Matt is also one of our Junior and Middle School technology teachers. Matt holds a Bachelor of Science (Honours) and a Bachelor of Education from Queen's University.

A proud Old Girl of Havergal College (1984-1993), Andrea Thomson is the Director of Development and Alumni Relations. Andrea has enjoyed a 25 year career in Arts marketing, communications, relationship management and development at such institutions as the Art Gallery of Ontario and the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto and the National Arts Centre Foundation in Ottawa, where she spent 15 years prior to joining the Elmwood Team. Andrea is responsible for all fundraising at Elmwood including the annual fund, planned giving, capital projects, and special event fundraising through the Elmwood Gala. Her role in alumni relations is fuelled by her personal experience and commitment to reconnecting alumni to their alma mater and their strategic role in Advancement and Admissions. Andrea is a member of Havergal’s Old Girls Directorate (Philanthropy Advisor) and has been her class rep since 1993. She holds B.A. Hons in Art History from McMaster University, and a Masters of Museum Studies from the University of Toronto. Andrea has lived in Ottawa since 2001 with her husband Kevin (NRC, Metrology) and two daughters (Ella, McMaster University iBioMed, Class of 2026) and Camilla (Elmwood, Grade 12). 

Janet has had a long and varied career in Accounting, Finance, and Treasury at the senior management level.  Working across industries ranging from fast moving consumer goods (manufacturing and sales), to pharmaceuticals (sales and distribution)  and non-profit entities, in four countries, means Janet draws from this broad experience and applies it with a different lens to any organization she works with.

Elmwood is the second school environment Janet has worked in and she is enthusiastic about being part of a professional team and helping Elmwood continue to build on a solid base.  When not behind a computer, Janet is an avid traveller and explorer, who enjoys singing and cooking.

Jacqueline Palumbo-Sugunasiri 

Chair of the Board 

Ms. Palumbo-Sugunasiri is Senior General Counsel and Head of Treaty Negotiations in the National Litigation Sector of the Department of Justice Canada. In this role, she manages the negotiation of all international agreements between Canada and its foreign partners in the areas of mutual legal assistance in criminal matters and extradition. She was formerly the Director of the Mutual Legal Assistance and Cyber Unit, and oversaw all matters concerning international judicial cooperation in the investigation and prosecution of transnational criminal offences, including cybercrime. She is a recognized expert in these specialized areas of criminal law. She advises the Federal Minister of Justice and appears on behalf of the Attorney General of Canada in extradition cases before the Canadian courts. She represents Canada in various international fora (G7 Roma-Lyon Group, G20 Anti-Corruption Group, Commonwealth of nations) on counter-terrorism, anti-organized crime, and anti-corruption initiatives.

Ms. Palumbo-Sugunasiri provides training and instruction to Canadian and foreign police and prosecutors in these areas of criminal law. She holds degrees in Law and Political Science from the University of Ottawa. Her daughter, Bianca, attended Elmwood since Junior Kindergarten, and just recently graduated with our Class of 2023.

Dr. Denise Carruthers

Vice Chair of the Board, Development Committee, Executive Committee

Denise Carruthers was a founding Partner and Chief Financial Officer of The Permedia Research Group, a software company specializing in petroleum exploration. Established in 1998, Permedia was ultimately sold to a Fortune 200 company in 2010.

Denise also served from 2003-13 on the Board of Directors of the Alexandria Archive Institute, which was recently honoured at the White House as a Champion of Change in Open Science. Locally, Denise sits on the Ottawa Hospital Foundation Board.

Denise received a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree from the University of Waterloo, Bachelor of Arts Honours Degree in Anthropology from Carleton University, and a Doctoral Degree in Archaeology from the University of Edinburgh in Scotland. She was awarded the Prestigious Overseas Research Scholarship from the United Kingdom and a Carnegie Scholarship from the Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland to complete her doctoral research. Denise was awarded a Post Doctoral Honorary Research Fellowship from the University of Liverpool’s Department of Archaeology, Classics and Egyptology in 2003-2006. She has published in the journals of Levant and Antiquity.

Denise has a daughter, Kaylah,  graduated from Elmwood with the Class of 2022.

Dr. Véronique French Merkley '96

Secretary

After graduating from Elmwood School in 1996, Véronique completed an undergraduate degree in Human Kinetics at the University of British Columbia and obtained her MD from the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Ottawa. This was followed by postgraduate Family Medicine training, as well as a fellowship in Care of the Elderly.  Since 2016, she has been Head of the Department of Care of the Elderly at Bruyère Continuing Care and the Division of Care of the Elderly in the Department of Family Medicine at the University of Ottawa.  Her clinical work at Bruyère is shared between the inpatient Geriatric Rehabilitation Service and the outpatient Geriatric Day Hospital, focusing on optimizing the health, function, and well-being of frail, community-dwelling elderly patients.  Her academic interests include medical education, polypharmacy, and the development of system partnerships to improve care.  Véronique has one daughter at Elmwood in Grade 4. 

Allan Bifield

Treasurer, Chair of Finance Committee

Mr. Bifield is a senior finance executive with over 30 years’ experience in leadership, finance, and business re-engineering in markets in North America, Europe, Asia, and Latin America. Mr. Bifield currently holds the position of Deputy Chief Financial Officer for George Weston Ltd. Previously, he was Chief Financial Officer of Nortel after holding a number of senior positions throughout his career with Nortel. Mr. Bifield is a member of the UK Chartered Institute of Management Accountants. Mr. Bifield is also mentor of women in business working with the Menttium Corporation. Mr. Bifield is the father of three Elmwood graduates: Sophie ’02, Kate ’05 and Alice ’12.

Dr. Xiaobei Chen is professor of sociology in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at Carleton University. She holds degrees from Guizhou University, University of Hong Kong, and University of Toronto. She received a prestigious Killam postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Alberta. Her research and teaching interests include: sociology of childhood and youth, governance and power, citizenship, racism, colonialism, gender, and Asian diasporas especially the Chinese diaspora. She is the author of Tending the Gardens of Citizenship: Child Saving in Toronto, 1880s – 1920s and a co-editor of The Sociology of Childhood and Youth in Canada and Reading Sociology, among other publications. She was the recipient of Canadian Sociological Association Outstanding Contribution Award in 2023.

She was Associate Chair (2018-2019, 2020-2021) of the Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Carleton University. She was elected President (2020-2021) and Past-President  (2021-2022) of the Canadian Sociological Association.

She has one daughter who has attended Elmwood since Junior Kindergarten and is currently in Grade 11. Prof. Chen is currently a member of Elmwood’s Development Committee.

Andrea is a corporate and technology lawyer and partner with the global firm of Dentons. Her practice bridges venture capital, private equity, M&A, securities, and corporate governance. Andrea has worked on many of the largest technology transactions in Canada and has received many recognitions for her work, including from Chambers, The Best Lawyers in Canada, Lexpert, and Acritas. She has served on advisory committees for the Ontario Securities Commission, the Toronto Stock Exchange, and the Ontario government. Andrea is a member of Dentons’ Canada Region Board and is one of the global co-heads of Dentons’ Private Equity group. Andrea is a former member of the board of directors of Hydro Ottawa and a current director of health tech company Wellteq.

Andrea currently sits as a member of Elmwood’s Development Committee and has played a central role in its recent successes. Andrea's daughter Sydney graduated Elmwood with the Class of 2024. 

Louise graduated from Queen’s University in 1990 with a Master of Arts in Economics, majoring in Public Finance and Industrial Organization. She also obtained a Bachelor of Arts in Economics with High Honours at Carleton University.

She currently chairs the Better Evidence Council, Blueprint (a non-for-profit organization dedicated to the use of evidence in decision making), and is advisor to the research team at the Institute for Research on Public Policy (IRPP). Louise was the Executive Director for Canada, Ireland and the Caribbean at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) from November 2018 to July 2021, and the World Bank Group (WBG) from March 2020 to July 2021. Prior to joining the IMF and WBG, Louise served as Deputy Minister of Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) from May 2016 to October 2018, and served as the Chair of the Labour Market Information Council. Prior to joining ESDC, Louise served as Associate Deputy Minister for the Department of Finance.

Louise has one daughter, Alexandria, in Grade 10 at Elmwood. 

A graduate of the Faculty of Medicine at McGill University, Dr. Mathew holds specialty fellowships in both General Surgery and Critical Care Medicine.  She is currently a staff surgeon and the Director of Critical Care at the CISSS Outaouais, where she also most recently assumed the role of Assistant Medical Director of the regional hospital network.

As an Associate Professor with McGill’s Faculty of Medicine, Dr. Mathew is actively involved in undergraduate medical and residency training. Additionally, she is a Medical Coordinator with Quebec Transplant and has been involved with several international non-profits in setting up critical care facilities in Eastern Africa and Nepal.

Dr. Mathew has been a parent of Elmwood since 2012. One of her daughters is a 2022 Elmwood graduate and the other is completing her studies at the school.

Simon currently manages a portfolio of technology and real estate investments.

Previously, Simon co-founded Protus™ IP Solution where he held the position of Chief Technology Officer (CTO) for 12 years. As co-founder and CTO, Simon oversaw the growth of Protus from a start-up to a very successful mid-size international business.

Prior to Protus, as General Manager of BBTel Corporation, Simon managed all aspects of
telecommunications projects, from pre-sales through development and support. Previously, he held several management positions in the software development field. Simon has one daughter at Elmwood in Grade 9.

Tim is a former CFO and finance executive with international experience in large public companies and private equity-backed startups.

Tim is a Fellow of the Chartered Professional Accountants Institute of Canada (FCPA, FCA) and is a member of the Institute of Corporate Directors.

Tim has two daughters who graduated from Elmwood with the Class of 2020. 
 

Reba is a fourth-generation real estate professional. She has worked in commercial and residential real estate in both Toronto and Ottawa since 2014, and transitioned to the luxury residential real estate sector after brokering five of the highest-priced transactions in Ottawa. Reba has been a Christie’s top tier International Master’s Circle member since 2020. She was named a Christie's Luxury Specialist in 2016 and earned her Certified Negotiation Expert designation in 2015.

As Broker of Record for Marilyn Wilson Dream Properties® Inc., she leads a small team of the city’s most dedicated and successful real estate professionals, ensuring their compliance with industry standards and helping them meet their annual sales goals. She also oversees the brokerage’s marketing and development strategies by driving its day- to-day functions through overseeing staff, handling trust accounts and developing sales and marketing plans.

Reba has been a committee member of the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) NEXT Program based in Toronto since 2018. She is also a member of the Ottawa Real Estate Board’s Professional Standards Committee (PSC), which investigates local industry complaints to ensure ethical practices. She is an alumna of both Elmwood School and Ashbury College and currently sits on Elmwood’s Development Committee (2021-present), having previously served as Head of Communications for the Alumni Committee from 2021-2022.

For more than 20 years, David served as Co-Founder and Vice President for a leading and successful chain of fitness health clubs across Ontario.

David is a member of the Facilities Committee and has two daughters– one in Grade 10 and one who graduated from Elmwood with the Class of 2022.