CLEO welcomes Jessica (Jess) Reekie as new Executive Director
For immediate release
March 20, 2023
Toronto – CLEO (Community Legal Education Ontario / Éducation juridique communautaire Ontario) is excited to welcome Jessica (Jess) Reekie as its new executive director, as of April 3, 2023. Reekie brings more than 15 years of experience in public legal education and information (PLEI) to her role at CLEO. She joined the team on March 20 and will begin her transition into the new role.
CLEO is a non-profit organization that develops clear, accurate, and practical legal rights education and information to help people understand the law and exercise their legal rights. Our work focuses on providing information to people who face barriers to accessing the justice system.
Reekie was most recently the executive director of the Ontario Justice Education Network (OJEN). OJEN is a charitable, not-for-profit organization that develops innovative educational tools that introduce young people to the justice system, help them understand the law, and build their legal capability.
A graduate of Harvard University and Dalhousie Law School, Reekie practiced immigration and refugee law before she began working in the field of public legal education. She joined OJEN in 2008 to develop public legal education programs and resources for newcomer youth. Later, she became the director of programs where she oversaw all of OJEN’s outreach activities and work with vulnerable communities. In 2014, she became OJEN’s executive director.
Reekie currently serves as president of the Public Legal Education Association of Canada (PLEAC). The organization facilitates communication and cooperation between provincial and territorial PLEI groups, promotes knowledge-sharing and skill-development, and acts as a national voice on issues concerning the PLEI community.
“I have always admired the breadth and quality of CLEO’s work. My appreciation for the organization and its talented team has only grown in the eight years since OJEN and CLEO began sharing a workspace and collaborating on public legal education initiatives. I am delighted and honoured to join CLEO, and I look forward to being a part of the organization’s continued success,” Reekie says.
Reekie will take on her duties at CLEO with the support and guidance of CLEO’s out-going executive director, Julie Mathews, the board of directors, and the entire staff team.
“CLEO’s board is excited to work with Jess to continue our work to advance meaningful access to justice and maintain CLEO’s well-deserved reputation for leadership in delivering practical and responsive legal information to the communities we serve,” says CLEO’s board chair, Paul Evraire.
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About CLEO
CLEO (Community Legal Education Ontario / Éducation juridique communautaire Ontario) is a non‐profit organization and specialty legal clinic that provides information and resources for people and communities that experience systemic barriers to participating in the justice system, such as discrimination relating to income, race, ethnicity, literacy, and disability. For almost 50 years, CLEO has built a strong reputation for producing and disseminating high quality, effective public legal education and information in digital and print formats. As part of Ontario’s legal aid system, we work in partnership with other legal clinics and community organizations across the province.
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Media inquiries
Anqi Shen
Communications Manager
communications@cleo.on.ca