New Program Developer

In February, Debra Chorney joined MARL as the Program Developer for the new Human Rights Education Program. Debra brings with her a wealth of valuable experience.

Debra was raised in Winnipeg and completed a Bachelor of Education at the University of Winnipeg. She has taught in a number of First Nations communities in northern Manitoba, and lived for twelve years in The Pas. While there, she managed the special education program at Margaret Barbour Collegiate for a number of years and also worked for The Pas Family Resource Center, Child and Family Services, and the Aboriginal Head Start Program. Over the years she has worked with all grade and ability levels including as a catalyst teacher in Frontier School Division’s Ekota program for gifted and talented students.

Since returning south, Debra has worked in special education, resource and guidance, both rurally and in Winnipeg. More recently Debra completed a Post Baccalaureate Diploma in Education, in psychology and counseling, at the University of Manitoba. Her paper, titled “Non Compos Mentis Phobia: Fear of Mental Illness”, will be published this summer in the Manitoba Journal of Counseling. It was this work in the area of mental illness and discrimination that lead to her interest in working for MARL. Over the years Debra has volunteered in various capacities for a number of non-profit community agencies including The Pas Committee for Women in Crisis, The Pas Association for Human Development, and Klinic. Debra looks forward to working with teachers and students in developing MARL’s new human rights education program.