Classes

Ted is a professional economist at Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation with over 25 years of experience analyzing housing and financial markets. He currently serves on the board of directors of the Canadian Association for Business and Economics. As a housing authority, he has given expert commentary to the likes of Money magazine, BNN, CTV and CBC. In June 2020, he co-authored Property Trendsetters, a bestseller in both Canada and the U.S.

As a science reporter based in British Columbia, Vanessa was awarded the TJ Allen Memorial Award for journalism. Her articles on nature, the environment and agriculture have appeared in magazines across Canada. A fiction writer as well, Vanessa has published work in literary journals in Canada and the U.S. Her books include The Haweaters, The Things She’ll Be Leaving Behind, and Rain on a Distant Roof: A Personal Journey Through Lyme Disease in Canada.

Dr. Paul Lawrie was recently appointed Associate Dean of Arts at the University of Winnipeg. An associate professor of history, he teaches and researches the social and cultural history of modern America. Before joining the University of Winnipeg, he was an Ontario Postdoctoral Fellow of the Provincial Ministry of Economic Innovation and Development at the University of Toronto Scarborough. Dr. Lawrie’s research has been published in the Oxford Handbook of Disability History, Disability Histories and Truth in the Public Sphere. He is a past senior research fellow at the IUS (Institute of Urban Studies) and is current chair of the Axworthy Distinguished Lecture Series on Social Justice and the Public Good.

While attending York University, Ogou conducted field research in the war zone of Abidjan, Ivory Coast. When the country’s failed presidential election of 2010 saw more than 25,000 people killed, Ogou was inspired to run for office himself, “to bring about economic prosperity, innovation, positive dialogue, peace and sustainable development in the Ivory Coast,” he writes.

A paralegal by profession, Rodale founded Delivering Hope, an Ontario charity committed to feeding the homeless and those in need. In 2015, she founded Grace Unlimited Charity to give back to the community through fundraising. In 2017, she founded the Young, Educated & Talented (Y.E.T.) movement in support of young aspiring female entrepreneurs in business.

Younes co-founded a non-profit and non-partisan Canadian foreign policy think tank called the Institute for Peace & Diplomacy (IPD). Today, through publications, conferences, policy briefings and recommendations, IPD has expanded its influence through active engagement with policymakers and leaders in government, civil society and the business community.

Anthony is a marketing and business development manager at Yorkville Partners; in this role, he donated over 2,500 N95 and handmade face masks to hospitals across North America during the pandemic. He also raised funds to support LGBTQI2S+ organizations. As founder of Kuva Creative Agency, he has overseen projects for Fred VanVleet of the Toronto Raptors, record producer Murda Beatz and the Toronto Argonauts.

While attending York University, Jasvir was selected by Canada’s national baseball team to participate in the 2019 Pan Am Games in Lima, Peru. The team took home the Silver Pan Am Medal that year, which added to a Gold Medal win in 2015.

Jamie graduated from the Primary Health Care Nurse Practitioner program at York University. She went on to practise as a Nurse Practitioner at the Carea Community Health Centre in Oshawa, and most recently at the Belleville and Quinte West Community Health Centre in Belleville. She passed away on August 28, 2020.