Administrators
Principal, Home Education
simon@wisdomhomeschooling.com
simon.noster@gilbertineinstitute.com
Simon grew up on a farm in rural Alberta where he was home schooled from kindergarten through grade 12. He earned his Bachelor of Arts from Thomas Aquinas College in California, followed by a Bachelor of Education from Concordia University of Edmonton. Simon taught in the separate school system in Cold Lake before joining the WISDOM family as a facilitator in 2014.
Having worked in several capacities with WISDOM over the years, Simon now enjoys facilitating, along with the responsibility of Principal of Home Education for the WISDOM Home Schooling department of The Gilbertine Institute. Simon and his wife, Nicole, are the proud home schooling parents of four beautiful children, and feel blessed to experience the joys of their life in rural Alberta.
Head of School
ken@wisdomhomeschooling.com
kenneth.noster@gilbertineinstitute.com
Kenneth Noster and his wife, Marlane, were compelled by their firstborn child to begin home schooling in the late 1980’s. They began with no support network, and their home schooling mirrored the institutional learning they had themselves experienced. They soon recognized that learning is much bigger than schools.
Within a year, Ken was helping neighbours begin home schooling, and in 1992, he was hired by a nearby school board to organize a home schooling administration. Recognizing that support for home schooling families requires a very special approach to administration, Ken and Marlane began WISDOM Home Schooling in 1995.
Secretary Treasurer
vic@wisdomhomeschooling.com
vic.wiens@gilbertineinstitute.com
Vic Wiens first became acquainted with home schooling in Alberta when he moved to this province in 1998 to take on the role of principal at Newell Christian School in Brooks, the associate private school for a fairly large homeschool organization. It did not take long for him to appreciate the good work that parents were doing in educating their children. Since that time, he has been the principal of three other schools with homeschool administrations and also homeschooled one of his own children.
Chief Operating Officer
tobylauren@wisdomhomeschooling.com
tobylauren.burgess@gilbertineinstitute.com
"There are no teachers, only learners - it is my job as a teacher to create a learning environment." - Monty Roberts
From a young age, TobyLauren thrived in an environment where conversation and curiosity reigned supreme—no baby talk here! By four, she was already an avid reader and adventurous spirit. Eagerly anticipating her first day of school, she quickly found herself disenchanted, often left to color while her peers engaged in lessons. This led her to embrace homeschooling mid-way through grade 3, a decision that allowed her to explore her passions for horse training, agriculture, painting, writing, and both learning and teaching piano and violin.