About this class Join Class Join co-hosts Don Lovisa, Durham College President, and Lon Appleby, professor, for a special alumni event as we celebrate International Women’s Day. DC graduates Lauren Bull (’06 Human Resources), Thao Nghiem (’18 Music Business Administration) and Jennifer Gaskell (’04 Public Relations) will discuss achieving an equal future and the opportunities and barriers they faced on their journey to establishing their brands and businesses. They will also be joined by Farha Khan (‘20 Early Childhood Education) and her two daughters Madihah (‘20 Fitness and Health Promotion) and Mehreen, who are currently working at the World Expo in the United Arab Emirates, and facilitating the Global Class Expo Exploration series with Lon Appleby. This event is brought to you by the DCAA and DCSA.To sign up for this event in advance and to receive login information, please go to eventbrite. Speakers Lauren Bull Lauren Bull is the founder of Canoe & Lake (canoeandlake.com). She is a mother of 4 (ages 7, 5 & 11-month-old twins). Previous to being an entrepreneur, she worked client and agency side in Advertising & Marketing for large brands such as General Motors, Sapporo, Canon, Sony, Samsung, Kitchenaid and GE Appliances. Her focus in the corporate world was on customer experience and strategy surrounding the lifestyle of customer engagement with a focus on digital and social channels. Her educational background includes an undergraduate degree from the University of Waterloo followed by a post graduate Durham College / UOIT HR & Business Management program. Canoe & Lake is a clothing brand she started in 2016 as she wanted to design cottage comfy clothing that had an inspirational purpose. She wanted to work on her own brand and remove all the layers of approvals and corporate politics. Her clothing features sayings inspired by the outdoors that remind us of our empowerment, journey and independence. This is important to Lauren as she is an anorexia survivor and previous single mom where she was forced to PADDLE HER OWN CANOE… She believes that no matter what you take academically, you should never stop learning. She changed careers into Advertising & Marketing without any educational training. However, she has carried with her principles from her education that have served her well in her career. Work ethic is everything. YouTube Instagram Website Thao Nghiem Thao Nghiem has a passion for marketing and the music business. She is the Marketing Manager at Small World Music (SWM), Founding Director of the Vietnam Music Industry Network (VMIN), host of the annual Vietnam Music Week (VMW), and co-founder of The OMAs – the annual music award in Durham Region, Ontario. Her professional work includes Associate Brand Manager at Unilever, and Label Licensing and Royalties Liaison at the Canadian Musical Reproduction Rights Agency, where she was awarded the 2021 Employee of the Year. A Music Business Administration graduate of Durham College, she also holds a Professional Communications degree from RMIT University. Jennifer Gaskell Jennifer Gaskell is the founder and CEO of Pink Palm MarCom and the co-founder of the Durham Women’s Network, a group of more than 5,000 inspirational and connected women leaders on the eastern border of Toronto. As a graduate of the Durham College Public Relations program with nearly 20 years of experience in the public relations field, Jennifer has dedicated her career to promoting and marketing local businesses and entrepreneurs. She has also committed significant time in her career to public service. Jennifer has pivoted her life and career in numerous ways within the last two years to follow her dreams and support the women within her network as they experienced the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic. Jennifer firmly believes in the strength of finding your business niche and aligning with the right clients. She values being a positive female role model and takes the initiative to mentor others in the communications field. Farha Khan Farha Khan holds a Bachelor of Science in Zoology, and is an ESL Teacher (English as a Second Language) with CELTA certification. She has been living in the UAE for the past 29 years. Along with her daughters Mehreen and Madihah, she pursued her dreams of studying in Canada and graduated from the Early Childhood Education Program at Durham College in July 2020. Together, the mother- daughters trio, were greatly involved in on-campus events and activities. Farha was at the helm of the Arabian Cultural Club, showcasing the culture of the United Arab Emirates. In recognition of that, she was awarded the DCAA Leaders of the Future Award for the year 2020. She is passionate about working with children, henna designs and volunteer work. She is currently in the UAE, helping her daughters in the Global Class Expo 2020 Exploration series. Madihah Khan Madihah Khan is a self-taught, professional henna artist and loves doing Arabic Calligraphy. Her interest and passion are rooted in the United Arab Emirates where she was born and raised .She graduated from the Fitness and Health Promotion program at Durham College in July 2020. As a student at DC, she was a part of the Fast Start Program showing her creativity in henna tattoos. She was the Vice President of the Arabian Cultural Club in which she held workshops and set kiosks showcasing the UAE culture and traditions. She also volunteered for the Campus Emergency Response Team. She is currently working at the Expo 2020 Dubai, as a School Tour Guide helping UAE school students in the Expo tours. She volunteered for the FIFA World Cup and Special Olympics games and loves socializing, travelling and the adventurous outdoors. Mehreen Mujib Khan Mehreen was born and raised in the UAE. She was in the Fitness and Health Promotion program at Durham College and graduated in July 2020. While she was a student at DC, she was greatly involved in on-campus events and activities. In recognition of that, she was awarded the President’s Award of Excellence in Student Leadership for the year 2020. She is currently working as a School Tour Guide at the Expo 2020, welcoming UAE school students attending the event. She has a great passion for learning new languages, anything creative and volunteering. Host Lon Appleby, Durham College Founder, Professor Don Lovisa, President of Durham College Resources Class Plan
