• Christine Cunningham

  Social Service Worker, 2015

  Less than a decade after graduating from the Social Service Worker program, Christine Cunningham has established herself as a leader in the field of perinatal mental health, supporting hundreds of women in need. Christine runs a successful counselling private practice that serves perinatal clients (those who are pregnant, trying to conceive, or welcoming a baby into their family). She is also the founder and executive director of Perinatal Wellbeing Ontario (PWO), a not-for-profit organization that provides free to low-cost mental health supports to those living with a perinatal mood and anxiety disorder (PMAD). With OHIP-covered PMAD programs in short supply and high demand, Christine founded PWO to help fill the gap. They offer a number of valuable services for those who don’t have access to care elsewhere, including individual or group therapy and peer support programs, free e-courses for those experiencing symptoms of PMADs, as well as a podcast about challenges in the perinatal period. Christine also works to increase awareness of PMADs and their impacts on parents and families, and provides support and mentoring through education sessions, one-on-one consultation and supervision with other therapists. Her contributions to volunteerism have been recognized with several awards, and she works to ensure the future of quality PMAD care by acting as a placement supervisor for Social Service Worker students from Durham College and psychotherapy students from universities throughout Ontario.

• Tre Sanderson

  Culinary Management, 2015

  Tre Sanderson has made a name for himself as one of the most talented chefs in Canada. He was the winner of Food Network Canada’s Top Chef Canada Season X, showcasing his impressive culinary skills and passion for food. A first-generation Canadian with Jamaican roots, Chef Tre is inspired by his Caribbean heritage and infuses it into every dish he creates. His dishes are a reflection of his unique culinary perspective, artful plating, and explosive flavours that have earned him numerous accolades and recognition in the industry. Chef Tre has worked in some of Toronto's best kitchens throughout his career. He has been able to incorporate diverse culinary influences into his own creations, making him a dynamic and innovative chef. In 2023, he was awarded the Restaurants Canada Culinary Award of Excellence. He was also named one of Kostuch Media’s Top 30-Under-30. Chef Tre is proud to be recognized as the first Black chef to win Top Chef Canada and is honoured to be inspiring the next generation of young diverse chefs. He is a firm believer in the power of food to unite people from all walks of life and is passionate about promoting diversity in the culinary world. Through his cooking, he hopes to break down barriers and bring people together.

• Stew MacDonald

  Sports Administration, 1981

  Stew MacDonald has made quite an impact on the sporting landscape of western Canada. After graduation, the first stop on his professional journey was Regina, Saskatchewan, where he served as director of marketing and publicity for the Pats of the Western Hockey League (WHL). In 1987 he joined the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League (NHL), where he served as director of marketing for over a decade. In 1998 he was named chief operating officer of the American Hockey League’s (AHL) Saint John Flames and guided the club for five seasons. He rejoined the Oilers in 2004 and has spent the last two decades in senior management roles with the organization and was named president and chief revenue officer of OEG Sports & Entertainment in 2021. In his current role, he guides a team responsible for ticket sales, premium seating, corporate sales, marketing and business intelligence for the Oilers, the WHL’s Edmonton Oil Kings, the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors and Rogers Place arena. His teams have won three Stanley Cup Championships, as well as one Calder Cup and one Memorial Cup. He continues to support Durham College as an Alumni Leader, a participant in the DC Talks: Alumni Series, and a mentor to students.

• Kristin Atwood

  Culinary Management, 2016 and Advanced Baking and Pastry Arts, 2017

  Kristin Atwood has been combining her passion for food and filmmaking since graduating from Durham College’s Culinary Management and Advanced Baking and Pastry Arts programs in 2016 and 2017, respectively. What began as a freelance job creating media content for local restaurants has since evolved into an award-winning independent production company called Chef Studio, where she produces cooking tutorials and web series that bring the joy and magic of cooking to digital streaming and video-on-demand platforms. With more than eight million views on her channel, Kristin has been able to turn Chef Studio into a thriving full-time job, allowing her to showcase her creativity and skill in cinematography, as well as her culinary prowess as she helps others learn to cook. In 2021, her At Home Pasta series was nominated for an Emmy® Award in the Outstanding Single Camera Editing category. The series was also nominated for two Webby Awards in the Best Food and Drink and Best How-To, Explainer and DIY categories. Prior to her Emmy® nomination, Kristin was named Best New Filmmaker by the Canadian Diversity Film Festival in 2021, and recognized in 2020 with a prestigious nomination for a James Beard Foundation Award – America’s most coveted and comprehensive honour for chefs, restaurants, journalists, authors and other leaders in the food and beverage industry – for her series The Crumby Bits. She also received nominations in The Shorty Awards for Best Instructional Video and Best Micro-Influencer Strategy. Recently, Kristin was awarded a Sony Alpha Female+ Grant, which provided funding for her to pursue a unique video project that will help her create more content to share with the world. She currently works for LS Productions, an agency specializing in commercials, film and TV, music videos, and fashion and sports shoots in the United Kingdom.

• Brandon Bird

  Level 3 Plumber Apprentice Certificate, 2012

  Brandon Bird knew he would need a solid foundation of skills before he could take over his family’s third-generation plumbing and heating company. While working there part time since 2002 in various roles, he registered for college and completed his Level 3 Plumber Apprentice Certificate in 2012 to prepare himself for future leadership. As a licensed Red Seal plumber, Brandon worked his way up the ranks, always looking for ways to grow the business. This included overseeing the acquisition and amalgamation of John McKenzie Plumbing with Bird Mechanical Ltd. in 2014, allowing the company to offer more services and expand into new markets. In 2016, at just 28 years old, Brandon became the youngest CEO in the company’s history. Today, he manages a team of 200 people, including 135 tradespeople. Under his guidance, the business has doubled its annual sales revenue to $56.4 million thanks to his new approaches to service, including the acquisition of R.G. MacDuff Contracting Ltd. in 2018, a civil contracting firm. As CEO, Brandon oversees projects ranging from $5,000 to $20 million. Clients include Cape Breton Regional Health Centre, Queen’s University, Dalhousie University, Infrastructure Ontario and Cadillac Fairview. In 2018, Brandon spearheaded the opening of Bird Mechanical’s Atlantic office in Halifax, Nova Scotia, adding 25 employees and expanding operations outside Ontario for the first time. In 2021 Brandon also acquired a 50 per cent stake in Tin Knockers Custom Ltd., with an agreement to acquire the remaining shares over time. This further expanded his in-house trades to include sheet metal, CWB certified welders, structural steel and metal fabrication.

• John Draper

  Journalism, 2005

  Entrepreneur, author and motivational speaker, John Draper champions diversity, equity, accessibility and inclusion through Together We Rock! Inc., the organization he founded in 2006. Supported by a team of employees, consultants and volunteer advisors, Together We Rock! realizes its vision through presentations, learning resources and leadership initiatives. In his presentations, John inspires audiences to lead the way to make their businesses, schools, post-secondary institutions and communities places where everyone feels a sense of belonging. Through his lived experience as a person with a physical disability who is an augmentative communication user, John presents a compelling case for change. John’s articles have been featured in various business and association publications, and he has contributed to several books, including Augmentative & Alternative Communication: Supporting Children and Adults with Complex Communication Needs by David R. Beukelman and Janice C. Light; Transition Strategies for Adolescents and Young Adults Who Use AAC by David B. McNaughton and David R. Beukelman; and Curriculum Access and Participation for Students with Physical Impairment for the Queensland, Australia Department of Education. He is the author of the Together We Rock! School Leadership Tool Kit and a series of five student leadership workbooks. John has been a guest blogger for Brookes Publishing Company in Baltimore, Maryland, and he regularly reviews books on inclusive education for the publisher. John believes that research leads to new approaches and technologies. Over the years, he has volunteered with universities and rehabilitation centres as a participant and advisor in over 20 research initiatives on literacy, inclusive education, quality of life, assistive computer technology, communication patterns, and facilitation approaches for people who are non-verbal. John’s leadership efforts have earned him provincial and international recognition, including a 2007 Alumnus of Distinction award from his alma mater; the David C. Onley Award in 2017 for Leadership in Accessibility, presented by the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario; and the 2008 Possum-ISAAC Aspiration Award from the International Society for Augmentative and Alternative Communication (he used the award bursary to develop the 212-page School Leadership Tool Kit). In 2017, he was named Businessperson of the Year by the Whitby Chamber of Commerce.

• DR. NICOLE BLACKMAN, DNP, MN, RN

  Registered Nursing, 2004

  Since graduating from Durham College’s Registered Nursing program in 2004, Nicole has continued her academic path attaining her Bachelor of Science degree, as well as a Master of Nursing and Doctor of Nursing Practice, both with a specialization in Indigenous Health. Nicole is a proud member of Algonquins of Pikwakanagan First Nation and has dedicated her advanced practice nursing career to enhancing the health of the Indigenous Peoples of Canada. Following her graduation from Durham College, Nicole worked as a registered nurse at Princess Margaret Hospital in the Medical/Radiation Oncology unit. Upon completing her master’s degree from the University of Toronto, she accepted a position as director of professional practice for Weeneebayko Area Health Authority; a First Nation governed health authority located in the isolated James and Hudson Bay regions of northeastern Ontario. After devoting more than five years to improving Indigenous health in Moose Factory and surrounding communities, Nicole returned to the Durham Region for leadership positions with their Health Department, and later with the Mississaugas of Scugog Island First Nation. More recently, Nicole was hired as provincial director of the Indigenous Primary Health Care Council. In this role, her efforts focus on health care transformation regarding anti-racism work, Indigenous health promotion and advocacy for equitable opportunities to achieve healthier communities rooted in culture and cohesion.

• Tamara Green

  2018 Advanced Baking & Pastry Arts 2017 Culinary Management

  Tamara Green is a recent culinary graduate and entrepreneur whose personal chef company Indigenesis provides Indigenous ingredient-based catering drawing from the Great Lakes region and surrounding Indigenous nations. She prepares items with historical ingredients that were used prior to the colonization of Canada, avoiding the flora, fauna and animals that were introduced to the area by settlers. She uses traditional cooking methods, re-imagining them with modern techniques. Through Indigenesis, Green offers an experience focused on learning history through food, while honouring Indigenous culture and cuisine. In 2017, Green was chosen to kick off Bistro ‘67’s Heritage Series Prix Fixe by drawing inspiration from her Indigenous heritage to create and cook a meal representing the Haudenosaunee (Six Nations) people. Guests dined on fried Mohawk beans and cornbread, hay-roasted venison and enjoyed a dessert of ground cherry and honey sorbet. Later that year, she was a part of the winning team that created a video exploring the Three Sisters – corn, beans and squash – and their role in Indigenous cuisine for a prestigious competition hosted by Canoe Restaurant in Toronto. Held as part of Canada 150 celebrations, Canoe’s student series competition asked entrants to create a video answering the question, what does Canadian food mean to you? Together, Green and her team created their submission, inspired by her Indigenous heritage and the diverse backgrounds of all the team members.

• Judy Pal

  1983 Sports and Entertainment Administration

  Judy Pal has had a long and rewarding career. It’s one that has seen her hold the title of community relations coordinator for the Edmonton Oilers, television anchor for Global Television, chief of staff for numerous police organizations, and director of operations for the FBI Law Enforcement Executive Development Association (LEEDA). After beginning her career in sports, journalism and entertainment, Pal was able to take the communications experience gained from these industries and apply it to her first love, law enforcement, accepting a role with the Halifax Regional Police in Nova Scotia before moving to the U.S. After a short stint with the City of Irvine in California, Pal joined police departments in Georgia, managing public relations in Atlanta and then Savannah. From there, she received the chief of staff role in Milwaukee and Baltimore before serving as director of operations for FBI-LEEDA. In this role, Pal developed and managed leadership course curriculum and became a public speaker in the field of communications for public safety. She finished her full-time career as an assistant commissioner with the New York City Police Department (NYPD). With a wealth of knowledge and experience in communications, public relations, law enforcement and entertainment, today Pal conducts media training, communications counsel, and virtual training across North America as a consultant to ensure information officers and leaders in policing know how to better communicate within their organizations and the communities they serve.

• Caroline Wright

  1996 Sport Management

  For two decades, Caroline Wright has supported the success of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment (MLSE), one of the largest and most diverse sports and entertainment portfolios in North America. As a seasoned sports marketing professional with expertise in event operations, brand management, retail and venue strategy, she thrives in enterprise-wide project management, leading multiple teams to deliver a common vision with executional excellence. As senior director, Operations and general manager, MLSE Facilities, her current portfolio includes managing Scotiabank Arena, BMO Field, Coca-Cola Coliseum, Ford Performance Centre, BMO Training Ground, and OVO Athletic Centre that are home to Toronto Maple Leafs, Toronto Raptors, Toronto Football Club, Toronto Argos and many other teams and live entertainment – a massive responsibility that has a regional, national and international geographic scope and impact. Prior to her appointment as general manager, she also held leadership roles in the areas of venue strategy, project development, creative production, marketing, fan loyalty, retail, global partnerships and ticketing. She has overseen fan engagement strategies and implemented new service metrics and research strategies to engage fans and led marketing campaigns for MLSE lifestyle brands. Wright had a key role in the rebranding of Air Canada Centre to the new Scotiabank Arena, which included the update of more than 1,000 arena and city signs and the development and execution of a multi-partner communications strategy. The rebranding won three SIA Bronzes for Awareness & Trial Breakthrough, Partnering and Sponsorships. The Event & Arena Marketing Conference also recognized Wright’s team for their venue naming rights campaign.

• Ellen (nee Stitt) Campbell

  2013 Water Quality Technician

  As a Walkerton, Ontario native, providing access to clean water has been Ellen Campbell's calling since 2000, when more than 2,300 people in her hometown became sick and seven people lost their lives after a heavy rainfall event contaminated the drinking water supply with E.coli. Since earning her Water Quality Technician diploma in 2013, Campbell has nurtured an incredible career. Currently, she is a senior operator and mechanic with the Ontario Clean Water Agency (OCWA) and the marketing manager for the Ontario Association of Sewage Industry Services. With her educational background and industry experience guiding her, she was able to attend Waterlution’s H20 Global Leadership Training, and participated in their Water Innovation Labs in Australia and Canada. There she was chosen to receive the seed funding for Rain It In, a national non-profit and annual competition she founded that challenges post-secondary students to create innovative solutions to mitigate the impacts of intense rainfall events and floods. Since graduating, Campbell has returned to her alma mater as a member of the program advisory committee, sharing industry trends and concerns. She also mentors and hires placement students to gain experience through Rain It In, and was part of the Durham College’s Young Women in Science, Trades and Technology Conference as a panelist for the Women in Science: Innovation and Disruption Panel in 2018.

• Tamara Dus

  1993 Registered Nursing

  Tamara Dus is a progressive and innovative health care leader with expertise in collaboratively steering system transformations, while ensuring positive stakeholder outcomes for sustainable health care practices to meet community needs. She was a frontline Registered Nurse for 14 years, and later transitioned into leadership positions at Lakeridge Health, including clinical manager, Systemic Therapy and Cancer Research; clinical director, Durham Regional Cancer Centre and the Central East Regional Cancer Program; clinical director for the Women and Children Program; and finally, clinical director, Emergency, Critical Care and Central East Prehospital Care Program. In her positions with Lakeridge Health, Dus was responsible for the development and management of administrative and operational activities within the large multi-site community hospital, including four emergency departments, three critical care units, inpatient respiratory therapy, a domestic violence and sexual assault department and the Central East Prehospital Care Program. Today, Dus is director of Health Service, Occupational Health and Wellness for the University Health Network (UHN). In 2020, she became lead for UHN’s COVID-19 employee response, addressing frontline worker burn-out and stress from the pandemic, and co-lead of the provincial pilot vaccination roll-out to support Ontario's immunization strategy for vaccine clinics. In this role, she had direct involvement in establishing the first COVID-19 vaccine clinic in Ontario, and in December 2020, Dus administered the first Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine in the province.

• No Premier’s Awards were selected due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

• Andy Popko

  Andy Popko has spent over 40 years in the oil and energy sector working closely with western Canada’s Indigenous peoples to develop equitable joint venture partnerships that will protect Indigenous land rights. In 1997, Popko established the Aboriginal Relations department within Encana Corporation’s North American oil and gas division, becoming vice-president of Aboriginal Relations. Under his leadership, Encana was the first company to bring together four northeastern Alberta First Nations bands to jointly own and operate a new drilling rig in 2001. For this work, Popko was named an honourary Chief at Heart Lake First Nations and also won a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Tribal Chiefs Institute in 2003. Presented on behalf of the Treaty 6 Chiefs, Popko is the first non-Indigenous person to be presented with the award. He was also recognized as a Durham College Alumnus of Distinction in 2004. During his tenure at Encana, Popko and his team were able to broker more than 50 joint venture opportunities for Indigenous peoples in the area. In 2004, he was selected for an 18-month secondment at the Privy Council Office in Ottawa, Ont. to consult with Prime Minister Paul Martin, provincial premiers and five national Indigenous organizations on the Kelowna Accord. Today, Popko is vice-president of Aboriginal Relations at NC Services Group Limited and a director at energy startup Bitcrude, a company that has the technology to move solid bitumen from Alberta Athabasca tar sands to international markets without having to use pipeline.

• Cailey Jones

  Over the last ten years, Cailey Jones has worked her way up from volunteer to full-time teacher, vice-principal and finally principal of Botshabelo Urban Kids Educentre (UKE) in Midrand, South Africa. Today, she manages a team of 13 staff and provides up to 120 low-income preschool students, ages 3 to 6, with a high-quality education every year. Driven by the knowledge that early access to education can change a child’s life, Jones has helped build Botshabelo’s preschool program from the ground up, filling a need for children who may not otherwise access preschool education. There, she’s introduced play-based learning, parent workshops, standardized assessment processes, and regular teacher evaluations and training. She is also using her skills to work towards securing funding for those UKE employees to pursue their own additional education. With a goal to establish partnerships with local universities to have students studying Occupational Therapy, Child Psychology, Art Therapy, Speech Pathology intern at UKE, Cailey hopes it will become a resource centre not only for its students but for other preschools as well. In 2019, she was recognized as a Durham College Alumna of Distinction and was a guest speaker during the college’s Global Grad event.

• Beverley Woods

  With a career that spans three decades, Bev Woods has given thousands of people a reason to smile. Since graduating from Durham College's (DC) Dental Assisting program in 1980 and the Dental Hygiene program in 1986, she has worked in private and public health settings, including owning a dental hygiene practice and serving as program director of dental hygiene for Maxwell College from July 2006 to August 2008. Bev also held a council position with the College of Dental Hygienists of Ontario and was president of the Bay of Quinte Dental Hygienists Society and Ontario Dental Hygienists' Association. In 2009, Woods founded Gift from the Heart, a non-profit organization and annual one-day event that brings together dental hygienists across the country to offer no-cost dental hygiene services to those unable to afford or access care. The event takes place across Canada each year during National Dental Hygienists Week and has provided over $1.2 million in no-cost dental hygiene care to vulnerable populations. In recognition of Woods’ generous work with GFTH and meaningful contributions to dental hygiene and her community, the Canadian Dental Hygienists Association presented her with an Award of Merit in 2014 recognizing and celebrating her volunteer service as it upholds the organization’s national competencies of advocacy and community involvement. She was also recognized as a Durham College Alumna of Distinction in 2019

• Manjula Selvarajah

  Journalism – Print and Broadcast, 2014

  Manjula Selvarajah works as a technology columnist and associate producer for Canada’s public broadcaster, CBC Radio. There she has appeared on and produced a variety of shows including Metro Morning and Big City Small World. She has also presented on the Live and Learn and Fresh Air shows. Manjula uses her training and voice to help the Tamil community, leveraging media platforms to tell their stories. She co-hosted one of the few English shows on Canadian Tamil television, Crossroads on Tamil Vision International, where she moderated panels on issues that affected Tamil Canadians and has blogged on tamilculture.com.

• Brandon Bird

  Level 3 Plumber Apprentice, 2012

  As chief executive officer (CEO) of Bird Mechanical Ltd., Brandon Bird is continuing the company’s three generations of excellence. Since taking over in 2016 as its youngest CEO, Brandon has generated $30 million in sales revenue while overseeing a team of 80, 60 of which are tradespeople. Through strategic expansion and service offerings, the company has worked on projects ranging from $100,000 to $20 million; its clients include the Hospital for Sick Children and Cadillac Fairview. Brandon also chairs his college’s Mechanical Techniques Program Advisory Committee and serves on the Education Committee for the Mechanical Contractors Association of Toronto.

• Lorraine Sunstrum-Mann

  Registered Nursing, 1988

  Lorraine Sunstrum-Mann’s passion for nursing and advocacy shines through in her role as chief executive officer of Grandview Children’s Centre, the only children’s treatment centre in Durham Region. There she has championed its unprecedented growth and expanded its service offerings, while also giving back to the community. She has sat on and led both provincial and national committees focusing on children’s rehabilitation, has used her expertise to help develop Ontario’s Special Needs Strategy and has worked in direct care and senior-leadership roles at St. Michael’s Hospital and Lakeridge Health Oshawa.

• Brent Lessard

  Mechanical Engineering Technology, 2014

  After graduating at the top of his class from Durham College’s Mechanical Engineering Technology program in 2014, Brent co-founded rLoop Inc., a non-profit online think tank and talent resource company that focuses on developing and launching world-changing technology. One of the first projects rLoop worked on was the Hyperloop. The brainchild of Elon Musk at SpaceX, the Hyperloop is a ground-based method of transportation to take people from one place to the other in a matter of minutes. rLoop was one of the more than 1,200 teams that competed in an open-source competition to help bring the project to life. Brent, along with his collaborators, made a name for themselves with SpaceX by winning the Hyperloop Pod Innovation and Best Non-Student Hyperloop Design Awards. He also won the Best Hyperloop Design, Drama and Excitement Award in a competition held by Asite and the Dubai Future Foundation. In addition to these pursuits, Brent simultaneously found time to work as a technical coordinator and sales representative at International Leak Detection (ILD), which provides roofing and waterproofing integrity testing. He has also generously given back to Durham College by serving as an advisor on the President’s Panel, representing the School of Science & Engineering Technology, and appearing as a 2017 Durham College Alumni in the Pit speaker.

• Joyce Hunter

  Journalism – Print, 2003

  After receiving her diploma in Durham College’s Journalism – Print program in 2003, Joyce began her career at The Daily Press in Timmins as a general assignment reporter/photographer. She then moved on to the aboriginally owned and operated Wawatay News to work as a reporter before being promoted to editor. She has spent more than 10 years working as a journalist and has won national and provincial awards for her work, including the 2008 Canadian Community Newspaper Award for Best News Story, the 2006 Ontario Community Newspapers Association Award for Best News Story and the Canadian Ethnic Media Association’s Innovation Award in 2013. She has a deep and personal connection to the legacy left by residential schools due to her older brother’s sudden death while attending St. Anne’s Residential School in Fort Albany, Ontario. She successfully lobbied for his repatriation to her community many years after. Joyce is currently the Aboriginal Liaison Strategy Coordinator for the City of Thunder Bay where she is working on continuing to develop the city’s relationships with the Indigenous community.

• Hannah Elkington

  Police Foundations, 2014

  After graduating from Durham College’s Police Foundations program in 2014, Hannah Elkington was hired as a police constable with York Regional Police, she currently works with Durham Regional Police. She spent five years working in the Youth in Policing program, including two years as program co-ordinator. In 2014, she received the prestigious Public Hero Award from the Intercultural Dialogue Institute.

• Melody Gaukel

  Public Relations, 1998

  Melody Gaukel saw her career take off rapidly after graduating from the Durham College Public Relations program in 1998. Starting as a senior consultant with a Toronto-based public relations firm shortly after graduating, she quickly moved into senior positions in larger agencies, rising to her current position as vice-president, Corporate and Finance, at Environics Communications, one of Canada’s largest public relations and marketing firms.

• Philip Pritchard

  Sport Administration, 1985

  Since graduating from Durham College’s Sport Administration program in 1985, Philip Pritchard has visited more than 35 countries and attended a number of key amateur and pro hockey events, including the Olympic Games and World Championships, promoting the Hockey Hall of Fame (HHOF) and Museum as well as exhibits in its collection. In addition to his responsibilities with the HHOF, he has served for many years on the board of directors for the International Sports Heritage Association (ISHA) as well as the Canadian Association of Sport Heritage.

2015

• Michele Roberts

  Biomedical Engineering, 2006

  Since graduating from the Biomedical Engineering Technology program in 2006, Michele Roberts has established herself as an exceptional leader in the health-care industry. She currently serves as a project manager with Philips Healthcare Canada, where she was recognized with the Vice-President Most Valuable Player Award in 2010 and the North American Sales and Service Silver Pinnacle Award in 2011, which represents the highest level of achievement within the company.

• Russ Montague

  Advertising, 2004

  Since graduating from the Advertising program in 2004, Russ Montague has become a very successful entrepreneur with two unique companies – ShirtPunch, a website, which specializes in geek-themed and meme T-shirts, and Nerd Block, a monthly subscription service that delivers niche-themed toys, collectables and T-shirts. ShirtPunch was awarded Best New E-Business and Consumer’s Choice by the 2012 Canada Post E-Commerce Innovation Awards.

• Debbie Low

  Sports Administration, 1985

  After graduating from the Sports Administration program in 1985, Debbie Low established an influential career as a respected leader in high-performance sports across Canada, most recently in her current role as chief executive officer of the Canadian Sport Institute Ontario. Low has also been recognized for her contributions to the athletic community, earning the Canadian Foundation for Physically Disabled Persons King Clancy Award in 2010 and the Governor General of Canada’s Diamond Jubilee Medal in 2012.