“The polytechnics, the colleges: the role that you play, as I see it, I’ve always found that anybody that I knew that went to one of your institutions always came out with much more than just a job, they always came out with a good career, whether it was radiology or education. That’s an important piece of the puzzle in Canada, because the K-12 system, doesn’t always serve us as well as it could.”
Propelling business innovation, creating jobs for tomorrow
Biographies of Presidents
Member Presidents
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Dr. Don Wright, Chair, Polytechnics Canada, and President
BCIT -
Anne Sado, Vice Chair, Polytechnics Canada, and President
George Brown College -
Robert Gillett, President
Algonquin College of Applied Arts and Technology -
Dr. John Tibbits, President
Conestoga Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning -
John Davies, President
Humber Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning -
Dr. Glenn Feltham, President and CEO
Northern Alberta Institute of Technology -
Irene Lewis, President and CEO
SAIT Polytechnic -
David Agnew, President
Seneca College -
Dr. Jeff Zabudsky, President
Sheridan Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning
Dr. Don Wright
President
British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT)
Don Wright’s career has included experience as a teacher at several universities, a senior government official, and a private sector executive.His government service has included positions as Deputy Minister in the ministries of finance, forests, economic development, and education in the Saskatchewan and British Columbia provincial governments. He was British Columbia Deputy Minister of Education in 1996-97. Don was Vice-President of Forestry, Environment and Corporate Affairs with Weldwood of Canada from 1997 to 2001. He returned to government in 2001, and was the British Columbia Deputy Minster of Forests until 2003. In 2003 he established Analytica Consulting which provided advice to public and private sector clients.
Don holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Saskatchewan, a Masters degree in Economics from the University of British Columbia, and a PhD in Economics from Harvard University. He and his wife Nancy have three children.
Anne Sado
President
George Brown College
Anne Sado became president of George Brown College in January 2004. In this role, she is responsible for driving the college’s overall direction, objectives and future growth. She is George Brown’s primary ambassador, and has led the organization through five years of unprecedented growth and renewal.
Prior to joining George Brown College, Ms. Sado spent 25 years at Canadian corporate leader Bell Canada, holding numerous positions in engineering, field operations, customer service, business development and business planning.
Ms. Sado brings strong leadership, customer service and communication skills to the College from her career in business and extensive volunteer involvement. She is past Chair of Colleges Ontario’s Committee of Presidents. In 2007, Ms. Sado was honoured with the Ontario Professional Engineers Gold Medal. She has also received the Queen’s Golden Jubilee Medal for her work with the YWCA of Greater Toronto, the Professional Engineers Ontario Citizenship Award for contributions to her community, and an Arbor Award from the University of Toronto.
Ms. Sado holds a Masters of Business Administration from the University of Toronto as well as a Bachelor of Applied Science in Industrial Engineering. She is Chair – Trillium Health Centre, Director - Toronto Region Research Alliance, Director - Legacy Private Trust, Director – ORANO, Director – Toronto Board of Trade and is a member of the Dean’s Advisory Board at OISE at the University of Toronto.
Robert Gillett
President
Algonquin College of Applied Arts and Technology
Robert C. Gillett is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Algonquin College of Applied Arts and Technology. Prior to becoming President in 1996, he served as a Governor of Algonquin College for five years.
Having forty years experience in education in Ontario, including thirteen years of teaching and administration and twenty-seven years of senior management, Mr. Gillett was Director of Education and Secretary/Treasurer for the Ottawa Board of Education.
Mr. Gillett holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Carleton University as well as a Master’s degree in Education and an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Ottawa.
Mr. Gillett is a Director and past Chair of the Ottawa Centre for Research and Innovation (OCRI). He also serves on the Ontario Centres of Excellence (OCE) Board, the Polytechnics Canada Board, the Ontario Colleges Library Services (OCLS) Board, the Ontario College Applications Service (OCAS) Board as well as the United Way Ottawa Board of Directors.
Dr. John Tibbits
President
Conestoga Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning
Dr. John Tibbits has been President and Chief Executive Officer of Conestoga Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning since 1987. Prior to joining Conestoga, he has held senior administrative positions at Dawson College in Montreal, Touche Ross & Partners in Ottawa and Canada Post Corporation in Ottawa.
In 2000 Dr. Tibbits was voted Business Leader of the Year by The Chamber of Commerce of Kitchener and Waterloo. He was also awarded the Impact Award by Communitech, a Waterloo Region industry association dedicated to the commercialization of innovation and creating economic prosperity by encouraging the creation and growth of technology companies.
Dr. Tibbits holds a Bachelor of Science degree and a Diploma in Education from McGill University, a M.Ed from the University of Vermont and a PhD in Education from Boston University.
Currently he is a member of the Board of Cambridge North Dumfries Hydro, the Accelerator Network, Canada’s Technology Triangle, Business and Education Partnership, and the Cambridge Chamber of Commerce. As well, Dr. Tibbits is on the campaign cabinet for United Way.
John Davies
President
Humber College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning
John Davies, President at Humber College Institute of Technology & Advanced Learning, formerly Vice President, Administrative Services, holds degrees and post-graduate diplomas from the University of Wales, Oxford University, the University of Toronto and Brock University.
He was, in its later phases, C.E.O. of the Education Improvement Commission, which was charged with overseeing the amalgamation of school boards in Ontario, and with the implementation of a province-wide elementary and secondary school governance structure for Francophone Ontarians.
Before joining Humber he was Chief of Staff for the Effective Schools Task Force, charged with advising the Provincial government on ways to improve elementary and secondary school education in Ontario.
He currently serves on the Boards of the LEARNX Foundation, Skills Canada-Ontario, the William Osler Health System, the League for Innovation in the Community College, the Advisory Board of the Toronto City Summit Alliance, the Mayor’s Safe City Panel and is currently the Vice President of Colleges Ontario.
Dr. Glenn Feltham
President and CEO
NAIT
Dr. Glenn Feltham assumed the role of NAIT’s sixth President and CEO on March 1, 2011.
Dr. Feltham has a long and varied academic background. After two undergraduate degrees – a BA from the University of Alberta and a BS with a major in Business Administration from the University of Montana – Dr. Feltham completed an MBA, also from the University of Montana. Following that, he went on to complete an LLB at the Faculty of Law at Queen's University and, later, a PhD with a major in Taxation and minor in Finance from the School of Accountancy, University of Waterloo. He is a designated certified management accountant (Man.), a fellow of the Society of Management Accountants of Canada, and was formerly enrolled as a barrister and solicitor of the Law Society of Alberta and served as president of the Canadian Academic Accounting Association.
Prior to joining NAIT, Dr. Feltham spent seven years as the dean of the I.H. Asper School of Business at the University of Manitoba, where he focused on building and maintaining program relevance and excellence. Leading up to that role, he served as director of Undergraduate Business Programs in the School of Business & Economics at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, then as department head of Accounting at the College of Commerce, University of Saskatchewan, where he was also Potash Corp. Chair (Chuck and Norma Childers’ Chair) for Saskatchewan Enterprise.
Dr. Feltham believes it is critical that he play an active role in supporting a variety of community initiatives. While in Winnipeg, he served as chair of the board of Canada’s Royal Winnipeg Ballet and as a board member with the Winnipeg Airports Authority Inc. and the Crown Corporations Council of Manitoba. Born and raised in southern Alberta, Dr. Feltham takes the same approach to his current role.
Irene Lewis
President and CEO
SAIT Polytechnic
Irene Lewis became president and CEO of SAIT Polytechnic in 1998. In 2007, Ms. Lewis introduced a 100-year capital expansion plan that aimed to triple SAIT’s student body. She has led a campus transformation, overseeing the restoration of the historic Heritage Hall, the construction of the Heart Building, a new residence tower and underground parking garage. In 2010, SAIT was named one of Alberta’s Top 50 Employers by Mediacorp Canada Inc. and one of Alberta’s Best Workplaces by Alberta Venture magazine.
Prior to joining SAIT, Ms. Lewis was president of a college in Edmonton and led its transition to an independent board-governed institution. She also worked in Singapore for more than five years, where she had a central role in shaping that country's vision for workforce development. Ms. Lewis was instrumental in bringing the international WorldSkills competition to Calgary in 2009.
In 2010, Ms. Lewis received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from the University of Calgary. She was presented with the Chair Academy’s 2009 International Exemplary Leader Award and was named the 2009 Woman of the Year by Consumers’ Choice of Calgary.Ms. Lewis was recognized with the 2008 Distinguished Leadership Award from the Council of Advancement and Support of Education, named a 2008 Woman of Vision by Global Calgary, one of Alberta’s Most Respected Corporate Leaders in 2007, and one of Alberta’s 50 Most Influential Citizens in 2005. She has received the Premier’s Gold Award of Excellence, a Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal and a University of Alberta Alumni Honour Award.
Ms. Lewis is an Adjunct Professor at the University of Alberta. She is a member of the Alberta Health Services Board, responsible for overseeing the province’s health care system. Ms. Lewis also chairs the Alberta Economic Development Authority’s Energy Resource committee and has served in advisory roles to Polytechnics Canada, the Post-secondary International Network and many other organizations.
David Agnew
President
Seneca College
David Agnew became the President of Seneca College on July 1, 2009.
Mr. Agnew brings extensive experience in the private, public and non-profit sectors to Seneca. Most recently he served as the Ombudsman of Banking Services and Investments. Previously, Mr. Agnew was the President and CEO of UNICEF Canada, a Principal at the strategy consulting firm Digital 4Sight and Executive Vice-President and Corporate Secretary for the Credit Union Central of Ontario.
Mr. Agnew was also the head of the public service as the Secretary of Cabinet in the Government of Ontario from 1992 to 1995, led the Public-Private Partnerships Project and was Chief of Staff to the Premier of Ontario for two years.
He was seconded to the University of Toronto from 1995 to 1996, was a Senior Resident at Massey College and is a graduate of Memorial University of Newfoundland. Mr. Agnew's experience extends to the field of journalism, having worked as a newspaper reporter in St. John's, Ottawa, Toronto and Edmonton.
Raised in Toronto, he is active in community affairs and volunteers as a Director of the Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre.
Dr. Jeff Zabudsky
President and CEO
Sheridan Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning
Dr. Jeff Zabudsky became the President of Sheridan in 2010. He previously served as President and CEO of Red River College, Manitoba's largest college, with over 32,000 students and eight campuses for six years. While at Red River, Dr. Zabudsky served as Chair of the 2009 United Way of Winnipeg Campaign, and belonged to the Premier's Economic Advisory Council and the Manitoba Innovation Council.
Prior to joining Red River College, Dr. Zabudsky worked at post-secondary institutions in Nova Scotia, Ontario and Alberta, including the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology, where he was Dean of Technology and Curriculum Innovation.
Dr. Zabudsky spent the early years of his career in broadcasting, producing Open College programs at CJRT Radio in Toronto. He holds a PhD in Educational Policy Studies from the University of Alberta, a Masters of Distance Education from Athabasca University, and a Bachelor of Applied Arts Degree in Broadcast Journalism from Ryerson University.
Currently, Dr. Zabudsky is a member of the Halton Industry Education Council, the City of Mississauga’s Post-Secondary Task Force, and the Toronto Board of Trade “Liveability” Subcommittee.
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