Henri completed a BA Honours degree in Political Science and Public Administration at the University of Saskatchewan, with a double major in Languages and Linguistics. During University, along with working as a Teaching Assistant, he started a journey in English as a Second Language Teaching, working with International Students at the undergraduate and postgraduate level. Henri then worked in language program administration overseas for 10 years before starting with Saskatoon Open Door Society in 2011.
While running programs for Saskatoon Open Door Society, Henri’s program innovations and passion for advocacy on behalf of language training clients and programs gave him the opportunity to advise the federal government on language program policy as part of an expert consultative body, the Newcomer Language Advisory Body. Additional opportunities to inform national program policy arose as he was chosen to represent language on the National Settlement and Integration Council, and later as the sole language expert on the Settlement and Integration Program Policy Committee.
He has been active on the provincial scene with the Saskatchewan Association of Immigrant Serving Agencies for several terms as board member, President, and Past President, as well as being part of important collaborative efforts in the community on behalf of language training clients.
Language being the key to unlocking participation in Canadian society, Henri hopes to see SODS continue to provide high quality, targeted language services to clients. He is proud of the organization’s reputation of serving some of the most vulnerable clients.
Henri comes from a culturally diverse background, and has an immediate family that was not born in Canada. He is also proud to have served on various boards for community organizations, most recently SaskAbilities