LJ Bartle

LJ Bartle, BA Journalism, joined Sport Law in 2018 as a natural progression towards making a positive contribution in sport and recreation. She has been involved in sport and recreation throughout her life in her professional career and as a volunteer.

After graduating from Ryerson, LJ spent 15 years working as a journalist, mostly at CBC Television News in Toronto. While at CBC, LJ produced, reported and wrote hundreds of stories for hourly newscasts as well as current affairs programs including Marketplace, Moving On and Sports Journal. Her favourite part of the job was meeting people who were making a difference and telling their story to inspire others.

During those years she nurtured her love of sport as a volunteer coach, manager and official with several of her children’s sports including softball, volleyball and alpine racing. LJ ran women’s hockey in Stouffville for more than 20 years and in 2015 became the first female President of the Stouffville Amateur Hockey League, a 40-team league with seven divisions of men’s and women’s hockey.

When coming upon the opportunity to lead HIGH FIVE in 2007, a national quality standard for children’s sport and recreation founded by Parks and Recreation Ontario, LJ saw the potential to be able to make a difference in children’s lives by providing standards that ensured kids had positive experiences. As a parent who was mindful of the inconsistency in quality assurance in sport and recreation, LJ knew this was extremely valuable and practical. When LJ left HIGH FIVE in 2017, it was reaching more than one million kids annually across Canada.

LJ is continuing to make a difference by bringing her expertise to sport and recreation organizations through safe sport implementation and strategic planning as well as helping organizations manage their risk and measure their success by engaging athletes. LJ leads workshops and speaks on these topics to inspire organizational and cultural change.

LJ is a certified Investigator of the Human Resources Professional Association (HRPA). This feeds LJ’s passion to contribute meaningfully to organizations by supporting positive environments both internally with their staff and externally with stakeholders.

LJ continues to play hockey year-round but her true love is skiing. Please send LJ an email at LJB@sportlaw.ca to discover what she might offer your organization.