Professional
Biography

My name is Marlee Dunlop and I have the privilege to live, work, and play on my forever homeland of Vancouver Island, specifically the unceded territories of the Cowichan, Malahat and Lekwungen First Nations.

I graduated from Cowichan Secondary School in the Cowichan Valley in 2007 and then attended Vancouver Island University where I graduated with my Bachelor’s of Education in 2013.

I was hired onto the Cowichan Valley School District 79 TTOC list where I worked for three years as a substitute teacher. I enjoyed being exposed to a broad spectrum of students across varying grade levels, an experience I wouldn’t have been afforded with a permanent position. After several years of teaching on call, and one short contract in a grade ⅘ classroom, I felt ready to teach full time. Unfortunately, teaching contracts were scarce at this time and with the diminished prospects of getting a classroom of my own, I made the difficult decision to take a one year contract with Maple Leaf Foreign National School, which is a BC Offshore school in Dalian, China. Although I held the job title of “teacher” in China, I often felt like the student. During my time there I was acquainted with many different people, countries and cultures I wouldn’t have otherwise been able to experience. I learned a lot about myself as a professional teacher as well, daily challenges included language barriers, technical difficulties, limited resources and cultural boundaries.