Speaking

Museum of Toronto’s “The 52: Stories of Women Who Transformed Toronto”

Leading a Little Manila tour for Ismaila Alfa of CBC Metro Morning. Photo by Samantha Lui.

As a public speaker who has worked in social services, settlement services, the federal government, and four Ontario school boards, Jennilee is a sought-after facilitator.

Her topics have included culturally-responsive outreach strategies, multicultural education, the journey of a diasporic author, public speaking tips, and walking tours of North York’s Little Manila.

Whether the topics are Filipino-specific (Impacts of Separation and Reunification on Filipino Student Aspirations) or for a more general audience (The Journey of an Author), her presentations are tailor-made for audiences ranging from school board trustees to newcomer students.

Using a combination of humour, empathy, and real stories, she delivers presentations both in-person and online that are engaging and memorable.

Lastly— and most importantly— it's her personal policy to always leave her audience smiling. 

““Jennilee is a great presenter— lovely, funny and extremely knowledgeable and passionate about her community.”
”
— Carmen Condo, Settlement & Multicultural Services Halton Catholic District School Board
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“Jennilee led an incredibly fascinating tour of Little Manila, in the Bathurst-Wilson area, for my course Asian Canadian Space and Place (Canadian Studies Program, University of Toronto). She provided detailed insights into the socio-economic and cultural makeup of the neighbourhood, which gave us valuable and important perspectives beyond the landscape observations that we were able to see. Little personal touches like stopping in the bakeries and grocery stores presented us with an insider’s point of view on the unique cultures within the less well-known landscapes in Toronto.
”
— Dr. Serene Tan, University of Toronto, Asian-Canadian Studies
“The best professional development we’ve ever had. Book this speaker today. She is doing exactly what she is on this planet to do.”
— School Staff
“Jennilee was the best speaker our school could have ever invited. Engaging, funny, touching, and more honest about mental health and culture than anyone we have had in the past.
She has a gift, she really does.”
— School Staff
“Jennilee is such a good speaker and role model! Not just for newcomers like us but for ALL students. We loved her activities!”
— Newcomer Student

Salaysay Festival at the Toronto Public Library. Photo by Pearly Anne Ellarde.

At Toronto City Hall

A panel for Toronto’s FilCan Creative

At the Toronto Reference Library.

Delivering the keynote speech at Pathways to Prosperity— one of Canada’s biggest settlement conferences

On air with CBC News

Delivering the keynote speech at IRCC’s Settlement Integration Policy all-staff retreat

Accomplishments

  1. Keynote speaker at the Pathways to Prosperity Partnership Annual National Conference: “From School Settlement Worker to Author”

  2. Keynote speaker at Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada’s annual Settlement Integration Policy all-staff retreat

  3. Developed and delivered Little Manila walking tours with Museum (formerly Myseum) of Toronto

  4. Interviewed on Radio Kapwa

  5. Panelist for On Canada Project’s training modules for Kids Help Phone

  6. Interviewed on CBC Metro Morning

  7. Interviewed on Filipino TV - The Cherie Mercado Podcast

  8. Heritage Toronto tour guide in Toronto’s Little Manila

  9. Profiled by Dual Citizen documentary series on leaders in the Filipino diaspora: “Jennilee Austria, Filipino Talks”

  10. Featured Speaker for Celebrating Linguistic Diversity: “Building Bridges to Support Filipino Students” 

  11. Annual guest lecturer, University of Toronto: “Asian-Canadian Space and Place: Field Trip to Little Manila”

  12. Official partner of the Toronto District School Board

  13. Speaker at National Metropolis Conference: “Immigration Trajectories and Youth Post-Secondary Pathways in the Filipino Community” 

  14. Speaker at Bridges to Learning National Conference: “Digital Storytelling: Newcomer Youth Issues” 

  15. Speaker at York University, Transnational Filipinx Studies: “Filipino Youth in Transition”

  16. Panelist at University of Ottawa, Pinoys on Parliament: “Analyzing Supports and Resources for Filipino-Canadian Youth Interested in Post-Secondary Education” / “Sino Ka Ba? Navigating Filipino Identity Through Various Mediums” 

  17. Panelist at University College London, FiliFest: “Deconstructing Filipino” 

  18. Speaker for Equity & Inclusivity Course, Halton Catholic District School Board

  19. Keynote Speaker, York University: “Filipino Voices in the Arts and Academia” 

  20. Keynote Speaker, Toronto Catholic District School Board: “Engaging Newcomer Parents” 

  21. Guest Speaker, Seneca College: “Transformative Learning in Communities”

  22. Annual presenter, Toronto Catholic District School Board: “Proudly Pinoy Filipino family conference”

Photo by R. Esteban.

Photo by R. Esteban at the Halton Catholic District School Board.

Clients

  1. Asian-Canadian Writers’ Workshop

  2. Burlington Public Library

  3. Canadian Council for Refugees

  4. CBC Metro Morning

  5. Centre for Social Innovation

  6. Citizenship and Immigration Canada

  7. Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board 

  8. Eden Mills Writers’ Festival

  9. Filipino-American International Book Festival

  10. Filipino Canadian Book Festival

  11. Filipino-Canadian Social and Community Workers Network

  12. Filipino Centre of Toronto

  13. FilCan Creatives

  14. gritLIT Festival

  15. Halton Catholic District School Board

  16. Hamilton Public Library

  17. Havergal College

  18. Heritage Toronto

  19. HotDocs

  20. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada

  21. Jamii Hub

  22. Kababayan Multicultural Centre 

  23. Kapisanan Philippine Centre for Arts and Culture

  24. Kids Help Phone

  25. LiterASIAN

  26. Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities 

  27. Myseum of Toronto

  28. New Roots Radio

  29. North York Community House

  30. On Canada Project

  31. Ontario College of Art and Design University

  32. Ontario Institute for Studies in Education

  33. Pathways to Prosperity Partnership Annual National Conference - Keynote

  34. Peel Multicultural Council

  35. Philippine Edmonton Events and Arts Society (PHIDEAS)

  36. Pinoys on Parliament

  37. Saskatchewan Festival of Words

  38. Seneca College 

  39. St. Mary’s University

  40. Toronto Catholic District School Board

  41. Toronto District School Board

  42. Toronto International Festival of Authors

  43. Toronto Lit Up

  44. Toronto Metropolitan University

  45. Toronto Metropolitan Centre for Immigration and Settlement

  46. Toronto Public Library

  47. United Way of Greater Toronto

  48. University College London, UK

  49. University of Ottawa

  50. University of Toronto

  51. University of Toronto School of Continuing Studies

  52. West Neighbourhood House 

  53. Whistler Writers Festival

  54. Word on the Street

  55. World Education Services

  56. Working Women Community Centre

  57. YMCA of Greater Toronto

  58. York University

 

Top Workshop Topics

  1. “From Community Worker to Author” (Audience: frontline workers, educators, emerging authors, general public; 30-60 minutes)

  2. “Building Bridges to Support Filipino Students” (Audience: educators, non-profit organizations, frontline workers; 3 hours)

  3. “Walking Tour of North York’s Little Manila” (Audience: general public, university students; 2 hours)

  4. “The Journey of a Filipino-Canadian Author” (Audience: middle school and secondary school students; 1 hour)

  5. “Public Speaking for Authors” (Audience: emerging and established authors; 60 minutes)

  6. “Social Media for Authors” (Audience: emerging and established authors; 60 minutes)

  7. “Unleashing Your Public Speaking Potential” (Audience: middle school and secondary school students; 1 hour)

  8. “Filipino Curriculum Explorations: Filipino Literature Through a Culturally-Responsive Lens” (Audience: Educators; 1 hour)

  9. “Success Strategies for Reaching Filipino Clients” (Audience: non-profit organizations, frontline workers; 1.5 hours)

  10. “Impacts of the Caregiver Program: Education, Youth Aspirations, and Family Separation” (Audience: policy analysts, government workers, frontline workers, educators; 2 hours)

  11. “Supports and Resources for Filipino-Canadian Youth Pursuing Post-Secondary Education” (Audience: Filipino-Canadian youth; 1 hour)

  12. “Career Aspirations: Meeting Role Models from the Filipino Community” (Audience: Filipino-Canadian youth; 1-2 hours)

  13. “Get Involved! The Power of Community Involvement” (Audience: Secondary school youth; 1-2 hours)

For bookings and inquiries, please click here.