Dr. Holmes has been in various educational environments since convocation with a Bachelor of Education in 1990. In 2000, she completed her MA (Honors) in Organizational Learning and Leadership at Royal Roads University and in 2015 her PhD in Curriculum, Teaching and Learning at the University of Calgary. From 1997 to the present, Dr. Holmes served as an English educator, Curriculum Leader and Alberta Initiative for School Improvement Learning Leader with the Calgary Board of Education. From 1991-1997 she worked in private education at Rundle College teaching English and Drama. In 2020, Dr. Holmes joined the Werklund School of Education at the University of Calgary as an adjunct assistant professor.

Dr. Holmes is interested in educational neuroscience, specifically the link between mindful pedagogical practice and neurocognitive development. Of specific interest is the nexus between mindfulness and literacy development. She is also interested in neurodiversity and the implications for effective teaching and learning as it connects to learner profiles and curriculum design. She developed a model for teacher education exploring the interconnections between mindfulness, neuroscience, story work and system direction while writing her doctoral thesis. She was the recipient of the CATE award (2015) for her dissertation’s contribution to teacher education.