Ms. Alison Hunter Stewart

Ms. Alison Hunter Stewart was born in Ottawa, but grew up primarily in London Ontario. She comes from a family of readers and writers and knew that she wanted to be a teacher when she was in high school. Ms. Hunter Stewart studied English and theatre arts at Western University and Education at Queen’s University. Her first teaching job, at age sixteen, was to teach beginner riding and horsemanship skills to children. She also taught outdoor education and horse and farm animal care in Canada and the United States before joining the faculty at Branksome Hall in 1998, and then the York School in 2003. She joined the SJK community in 2013.

Coming to SJK has been a life-changing experience for Ms. Hunter Stewart. She loves being part of a small community and appreciates the fact that the school is surrounded by green space. She loves learning from others, particularly her students. She wants to be known as a teacher who motivates students to perform at their best with smiles on their faces. She sums up her educational philosophy with a quote from Goethe: "Instruction does much, but encouragement everything.” Ms. Hunter Stewart is an experienced IB teacher and an MYP workshop leader, and has instructed other teachers in the programme throughout Canada and the United States. She enjoys volleyball, horseback riding, and dancing, as well as reading, writing, theatre, working with animals.