Daniel To
Surrey K-12 Cohort, 2006
When asked about the EdD program, Daniel To comments, “The instruction has been beyond belief, the peer leadership has been unmatched, and the overall learning process has been life altering.”
Professionally, Daniel wears many hats. Currently, he is the Athletic Director and Graduation Transitions Coordinator for Earl Marriott Secondary in the Surrey School District and for the past four years, has also been a Summer School Principal for the Continuing Education Department in the same district. In addition, he also serves as an executive on the BC High School Girls Volleyball Association and on the Scholarship Committee of BC School Sports. To add to this extensive mix of job profiles, Daniel recently took on two more new roles. He is a Site Assistant to three Master of Education (MEd) Cohorts at the SFU Surrey campus and recently appointed as a Board Member on the Global Civic Policy Group with UBC and SFU on Policy initiatives.
Since he joined the EdD program in 2006 in the K-12 Surrey Cohort in 2006, Daniel says that he has become a more conscientious and critically analytical educator. In his experience working in the education system, he finds that many teachers, in the elementary, secondary and post secondary levels are often "stuck" to a certain course of action. Even those who believe they critically evaluate their work and constantly search for growth sometimes get bogged down and stuck in a cycle of mundanity. He points out that, “The EdD program has opened my mind to the notion of praxis and the idea that what I do at work informs my academic work and vise versa.”
Daniel describes the program as being very synergetic where he found himself being led by other professionals and leading others in return. Overall, he says that it has been a very emotionally stimulating and educationally enlightening experience.
Furthermore, being part of a cohort and getting to know his professors and fellow cohort members as professionals and as individuals has been the most enjoyable about the program. Daniel says that he found his group to be: critical, yet encouraging; pensive yet energetic; pedagogical yet visionary. He recommends the program to anyone who wants to be an educational leader - in their district, their city, their province and even beyond!