Board of Directors
The board of directors is involved in the planning and overall direction of the school. It is made up of leaders in the field of education and athletics.
Trina Budd
Trina is a graduate of the University of Ottawa, with an Honours Degree in Psychology and Linguistics and a Masters of Health Science Degree in Speech-Language Pathology. Trina began her career in Ottawa as a Speech-Language Pathologist consulting in all 4 publicly funded school boards. She was then hired as a consultant to the 2 Public English School Boards in the 5 Counties East of Ottawa. During her time with this employer, she continued to provide therapy, consultation, programming and training to students, staff and parents in the area of special education. She was asked to sit on the Advisory Committee for St.Lawrence College, Cornwall Campus, for the Communication Disorders Assistant Program, a position she continues to hold today. Trina is now a consultant for the Upper Canada District School Board whereby she continues to actively support the work of students, staff, and parents through assessment, programming, consultation, and training. Her strength is in helping teachers and other educational staff meet the needs of students through accommodations, modifications, and differentiated instruction strategies as needed. She is currently part of a team that is leading the nation in applying cutting-edge technology within the classroom as a tool for differentiated instruction and inclusion for all students. She is a strong believer in active and collaborative learning techniques because research indicates that this type of teaching lends itself well to differentiation and individualization of instruction. For Trina, differentiated instruction is well explained by the words of Tomlinson (1995) Meeting the needs of each student’s learning style and intellectual level by shaking up what goes on in the classroom so that students have multiple options for taking in information, making sense of ideas, and expressing what they learn.
Trina is excited to be part of such an elite team with The Peak Centre Academy in her role as consultant.
Brad Marsh
Brad Marsh brings over 15 years of NHL playing experience, along with 15 years of coaching experience, to his position of head coach of the Ottawa Senators Women’s Hockey Club. Brad played junior hockey with the OHL’s London Knights, where he was captain of the team. In 1978 he won the Max Kaminsky Trophy, awarded to the league’s Best Defenseman. He was chosen in the first round, 11th overall, in the 1978 NHL Entry Draft by the Atlanta Flames. Brad went on to become captain of the Atlanta Flames (at that time the youngest captain in NHL history), then moved with the entire franchise to Calgary. Brad was then traded to the Philadelphia Flyers, where he spent eight seasons, twice going to the Stanley Cup finals. In 1987, Brad was dealt to the Toronto Maple Leafs, where he spent three seasons, then to the Detroit Red Wings, and ended his NHL career with the Ottawa Senators in 1993. During his career, Brad was twice voted to the NHL All-Star team.
After his playing days were over, Brad was offered the position of Director of Team and Business Development by the Senators, in which he was responsible for scouting and developing young players within the Senators organization, as well as being involved in community development and fundraising. During this time, Brad became involved in coaching minor hockey, and in fact was the head coach of 15 different minor hockey teams over the years, both boys and girls, all ages from novice to midget, and ability levels ranging from initiation to competitive AA. He has also continually been involved in coaching clinics, on-ice seminars, and fundraising. Additionally, as President of the Ottawa Senators Alumni, Brad is involved in many different charitable organizations and events throughout the city.
Dr. Natalie Durand-Bush
Dr. Natalie Durand-Bush is a sport psychology professor in the School of Human Kinetics at the University of Ottawa in Ottawa. She leads the SEWP LAB and specializes in mental performance training and assessment, mental health, and coaching psychology. Natalie is the Executive Director of the Canadian Centre for Mental Health and Sport (CCMHS) – a national Centre providing sport-informed mental health care and resources to the sport community. Natalie is a Certified Mental Performance Consultant® (CMPC) and for the past 28 years, she has helped athletes and coaches of all ages, sports, and levels achieve their performance and well-being goals. Her current consulting work is with the Ottawa Senators.
A relentless advocate for the field of sport psychology, Natalie has co-founded and chaired the Canadian Sport Psychology Association (CSPA). She has also served as the Vice-President of the International Society of Sport Psychology (ISSP) and as the President of the Association for Applied Sport Psychology (AASP). Natalie recently co-edited the Essential Guide for Mental Performance Consultants and the book Mental Health in Elite Sport. She also co-authored the Mental Health Strategy for High Performance Sport in Canada as well as the Gold Medal Profile for Sport Psychology.
Natalie has played different sports throughout her life, favouring softball, curling, and taekwondo. As the mom of a daughter and son who played competitive sports growing up, and as a person who has coped with the loss of three close family members to cancer, Natalie knows firsthand how important sport, physical activity, and mental skills are in optimizing well-being and performance.
Dr. Al Reed
Dr. Reed is a national award winning career sports scientist whose work with Canadian and American sports teams has been well recognized for three decades. He has won recognition as an exceptional teacher in the programs of the University of Ottawa and the Canadian National Coaching Certification Program. As the developer of a dozen national team training programs and twice as many sport specific fitness tests, he has created many of the tools in use by today’s athletes and coaches. His original work continues with new contributions to the education, assessment, and vocational programs of the Centre.