Lisa Oscienny would like to travel during retirement. (Derek Cornet/larongeNOW Staff)

By Derek Cornet

milestone

‘It’s just time’: Oscienny ready for retirement after more than two decades of teaching

Jun 16, 2021 | 2:09 PM

Lisa Oscienny always knew teaching was her calling.

“It was always what I was going to be,” she said. “I never played house when I was little, I played school. I had a chalkboard and I remember having my barbie dolls and stuffed toys and whatever and I always played school.”

Now, after having spent more than two decades as a teacher mainly at La Ronge’s Pre-Cam Community School, she’s ready for retirement.

Oscienny, who is originally from Saskatoon, moved to La Ronge in the 1980s and graduated from Churchill Community High School. She obtained a Bachelor of Education degree from the Northern Teacher Education Program in 1993 and spent a few years doing contract work or subbing.

“My whole career has been in La Ronge,” Oscienny said. “I finally got on in the fall of 2000 in a teacher’s room who was off on leave, then a position became open and I stayed. It was Donna Olson who phoned me. She kind of gets the credit. If she hadn’t phoned me, it might not have happened.”

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During her years at Pre-Cam, Oscienny taught Grade 3, 4, and 5 with Grade 3 being her most recent. She decided to stay at the school for so long instead of moving to another because of her fellow colleagues. Oscienny enjoyed working with Olson, calling her a good leader, as well as other teachers with who she formed lifelong friendships.

In the last two decades, Oscienny explained the role of a teacher has changed dramatically. She noted with provincial cuts in education, teachers are now required to do more with less.

“It’s tough and teaching has gotten a lot tougher over the last few years just because I feel like kids have changed,” Oscienny said. “I blame a lot of it on social media and there’s a lot less playing, games and camaraderie and friendship. I think that has been a big change in how with kids everything is supposed to instantaneous and they have no patience. You sort of have to be more creative in the classroom to keep their attention.”

For those interested in education as a career, Oscienny mentioned it’s important to remember there’s a lot of work involved and being a teacher is much harder than people think. She said it takes a long time to unwind at the end of the day and prospective teachers should be ready for the career to take over many aspects of their life.

With retirement only weeks away, Oscienny is looking forward to more time for relaxation and crafting. She also has plans to travel to Europe and explore her Scottish and Ukrainian ancestry.

“It’s just time. I’m done. I’m ready to go,” Oscienny said. “The stress of the job takes a lot out of you. I’ll probably come back and sub at some point, but the stress is too much and I’m ready to settle it down a bit.”

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derek.cornet@pattisonmedia.com

Twitter: @saskjourno