Alumni win top honours for athletic achievements

Justine Colley-Leger

Jackie Barrett

Suzanne Muir

Saint Mary’s has a long history of athletic excellence. This fall, three exceptional former student-athletes are being given top honours for their accomplishments.

Basketball legend Justine Colley-Leger BComm’14, powerlifter and Special Olympian Jackie Barrett BComm’98, and soccer star Suzanne Muir BComm’93, will be inducted into the Nova Scotia Sport Hall of Fame on November 15 in Halifax.

They are among five athletes to be celebrated not only for their outstanding contributions to Nova Scotia sport, but each rising to national acclaim.

A force to be reckoned with in the sport of powerlifting, highly decorated Special Olympics athlete Jackie Barrett will make history as the first Special Olympian joining the Hall of Fame this year.

Originally from Spryfield, Barrett has dominated Canadian Special Olympics powerlifting competitions throughout his career with 20 gold medals, and he has represented Canada well at the World Special Olympics competition with an incredible 13 first-place finishes. In his final year of competition (2015), he set three Special Olympics world records, lifting 277.5 kg, 297.5 kg and 697.5 kg in the squat, deadlift and triple combination events respectively. In the same year, he also became the first Special Olympics athlete to be nominated for the Lou Marsh Award as Canada’s top athlete.

Justine Colley-Leger is the all-time leading scorer in the history of CIS women’s basketball. Her impressive play earned her two CIS National Player of the Year awards and she led the Saint Mary’s Huskies to four consecutive AUS championships and CIS silver and bronze medals. She was also a two-time AUS MVP, four-time All-Canadian and five-time AUS first team All-Star, while playing more than 40 games with the Canadian national team.

Suzanne Muir was named AUS Rookie of the Year during her time playing with the Saint Mary’s Huskies women’s soccer team. Her standout skills also earned her two AUS MVP awards, five-time AUS All-Star status and two-time All-Canadian honours. Twice named Athlete of the Year at Saint Mary’s University, Muir went on to play with Canada’s national women’s team from 1992 to 1999. She played with the national team at the 1995 and 1999 World Cups. She was inducted into the Saint Mary’s Sport Hall of Fame in 2014.

On a related note, Justin Palardy BA’11, geography major and former Husky, was a pro football player with CFL and now a coach for the Dalhousie Tigers. He is being inducted on Nov 1 to the Colchester County Sports Hall of Fame.

Tickets for the 2019 Induction Night are on sale now at the Nova Scotia Sport Hall of Fame. Call 902-404-3343 to place your order.

Congratulations to 2019 Alumni and One World Award winners

On Thursday, October 3, Saint Mary’s hosted the One World Alumni Awards Gala.

This annual event acknowledges outstanding alumni with special awards, and in the spirit of working with the community, supports 2 deserving charities and 2 student societies through the One World Awards.

Congratulations to the 2019 Alumni Award Recipients:

• Distinguished Community Service: Karen Oldfield, QC BA'82

• Paul Lynch Alumni Volunteer of the Year: Karen Ross BComm'77 & Joann Boulos-Callias BA'82 BEd'83 MEd'89

• Young Alumni of the Year:
  Sylvia Gawad BSc'14 & Dr. Henry Annan BSc'14

• Associate Alumni of the Year: Glen & Nancy Holmes

The 2019 Student Society Award, valued at $7500, went to World University Services Canada (WUSC) Saint Mary's, and the Nova Scotia Gambia Association was awarded $7500 as the winner of the 2019 Charity Award.

Runners-up Enactus Saint Mary's and Easter Seals Nova Scotia were delighted when SMUSA matched their respective awards, bringing their total awards to $2000 each!

Learn more about these exceptional alumni, and watch the videos about the finalist charities and student societies at https://smu.ca/alumni/one-world-alumni-awards.html

Saint Mary’s PhD graduate wins international award

Dr. Samantha A. Penney

Saint Mary’s University is proud to announce that Dr. Samantha A. Penney, a recent PhD graduate in Industrial/Organizational Psychology, has received the prestigious 2019 Kenneth E. Clark Student Research Award from the Center for Creative Leadership and the International Leadership Association.

“It is an absolute honour to have my dissertation research recognized internationally,” said Dr. Penney.

In her award-winning paper on leadership titled Fostering a Psychologically Healthy Workplace through Leadership, Dr. Penney created and validated a scale to assess leadership behaviours that contribute to a healthy workplace, and then designed a workshop and phone-based coaching program which she delivered to leaders in eight organizations across seven provinces.

The training includes knowledge of what a healthy workplace is, leaders’ roles in creating that healthy workplace, and goal setting and skill development to act on that knowledge. “For example, infrequent feedback, such as only having annual performance reviews are a concern in organizations. Research has suggested that employees are more likely to change their behaviour and attitudes when they receive frequent positive and constructive feedback,” she explained.

 “The results demonstrate that leadership behaviours can be trained,” said Dr. Penney, adding that while many of the leadership behaviours identified aren’t new information, giving leaders the tools and training to apply the knowledge is key. “Employees often move up within an organization into a leadership role because they’re good at their jobs, but they don’t always have leadership skills.”

 “Working with leaders and organizations to provide practical recommendations is something that I am very passionate about, and my research ties into my new role of conducting leadership assessments for the purposes of selection and development,” she said.  

“Dr. Penney, and her research, are very deserving of this international recognition,” said Dr. Arla Day, her dissertation supervisor. “Not only does this award demonstrate her expertise and innovation in the area, but it also reinforces the reputation of Saint Mary’s as a high-caliber training institution with a strong level of research expertise in occupational health psychology.”

Background

Dr. Penney recently completed her PhD in Industrial and Organizational Psychology at Saint Mary’s. She completed her Master of Science in Applied Psychology at Saint Mary’s and has an Honours Bachelor of Arts from Lakehead University.

She has authored several journal articles and book chapters on leadership and employee well-being, and has presented her work at national and international conferences.

Her experience as an independent consultant and leadership coach, developing both leader-level and employee-level training programs, and as a facilitator, delivering workshops and seminars to corporate clients aligns with her background in Industrial/Organizational Psychology.

She recently accepted a role as a Talent & Leadership Development Assessment Analyst at Lee Hecht Harrison Knightsbridge in Toronto.

About the Kenneth E. Clark Award

The Kenneth E. Clark Student Research Award recognizes one outstanding unpublished paper by undergraduate and graduate students each year. It is sponsored by the Center for Creative Leadership (CCL) and the International Leadership Association (ILA).

Papers are evaluated by 13 CCL research faculty members through a multi-rater, blind review process. Winners of the international award receive a cash prize, and a trip to ILA’s Annual Conference to present the winning paper there and in various multimedia ILA publications.

Dr. Penney follows in the footsteps on another Saint Mary’s alumna in winning this award. Aleka MacLellan, who was then a recent PhD graduate in Industrial/Organizational Psychology, and won the same award in 2017.

The Dauphinee Centre is on track to open this season with a surprise for Huskies Stadium

The paint is drying, and the seats are installed as The Dauphinee Centre continues on its path towards opening day this fall. The varsity dressing rooms are coming along nicely, as is work on the ice surface, where the piping is in place, and the concrete surface has been laid.

“Although construction only began about a year ago, we are now closing in on the final month of this project,” said Gary Schmeisser, The Dauphinee Centre project manager. “Everyone involved in this project has been doing a great job to keep us on schedule. We all keep looking toward the opening with anticipation, and we are excited to share the finished product with our community.”

The flooring has, for the most part, all been installed and all the interior walls are in place. The elevator has been installed, and the interior and exterior of the arena have all been painted. Landscaping for the centre has already begun, showing just how close this project is coming to completion.

Earlier this summer a ceremony took place to where the iconic smoking pipe of the late Bob Boucher was laid at centre ice. This ceremony brings a direct connection between Saint Mary's storied hockey past with the future of the sport at The Dauphinee Centre. Bob was rarely seen without his smoking pipe, which became a symbol of the well-loved coach and the tradition of excellence he brought to the university’s hockey program.

While the project is winding down, other aspects of the project will soon be appearing on campus, coming as a pleasant surprise for Huskies fans.

“As some of our Saint Mary’s community members may have noticed, the scoreboard for Huskies Stadium is no longer in place,” said Scott Gray, director of Athletics and Recreation. “I am happy to share with you that as part of this project, the stadium will receive a new scoreboard that will include a video screen. Now Huskies fans will never miss a moment of the action.”

The Dauphinee Centre is scheduled to open this fall. Don’t miss out on the action, purchase tickets to the Men’s and Women’s hockey home openers and more  at http://www.smuhuskies.ca/fan_zone/Tickets.

Huskies hockey memento laid at the heart of The Dauphinee Centre

A piece of Saint Mary's hockey history now lays at the heart of The Dauphinee Centre.

In a ceremony this summer the iconic smoking pipe of the late Bob Boucher was laid at centre ice, connecting Saint Mary's storied hockey past with the future of the sport at The Dauphinee Centre.  Bob was rarely seen without his smoking pipe, which became a symbol of the well-loved coach and the tradition of excellence he brought to the university’s hockey program.

An inductee of the Saint Mary's University Sport Hall of Fame in 1998, Bob Boucher was the coach of the Saint Mary's men's hockey team for 13 years. During this time, he compiled an astounding record of 231 wins, 33 losses and four ties and led the Huskies to the national championship game in four consecutive seasons from 1970 to 1973. He also coached the Dartmouth Moosehead Mounties who won the Hardy Cup national championship.

Bob came from an illustrious hockey family with connections to numerous NHL teams. A star junior player with the Montreal Junior Canadiens when they won the Memorial Cup in 1957, and with the Toronto Saint Michael's, an eye injury precluded his promising NHL career. Nevertheless, Bob went on to play senior and semi-professional hockey in Europe and the USA before being joining the Saint Mary's community.

He revived hockey at Saint Mary's, and also started the Saint Mary's Hockey Camp of Champions, a summer program for minor hockey players. He left Saint Mary's in 1980 for the NHL’s Philadelphia Flyers to be an assistant coach to his former teammate, Hockey Hall of Famer Pat Quinn.

"Sharing the rich hockey history and sports tradition of Saint Mary's makes a difference to our student-athletes," said women's hockey coach Chris Larade. “Ceremonies like today for Bob, honouring his contributions to hockey and the Saint Mary’s community, show our student-athletes the lasting impacts that we have as a team on our community."

The recognition meant a lot to Anne Boucher and her son Robert. Anne is a former figure skating coach who worked out of the Alumni Arena. It was here that she met her husband, Bob Boucher.

"A lot of memories came flooding back today, it was very special to be able to share it with some of Bob's players and today's coaches," said Anne Boucher. "We have fond memories of the old arena, and we spent a lot of our time there. We actually lived on campus our first two years of marriage."

"The arena has always been a special place at Saint Mary’s. The games, the atmosphere, the place was always electric. I am really looking forward to that atmosphere at The Dauphinee Centre.  I know Bob would be very happy to see that passion back on-campus and to be a part of it in a new home for hockey."

MassChallenge Picks Ashored

Ashored co-founders and Saint Mary’s alumni Aaron Stevenson, Ross Arsenault and Maxwell Poole.

After fielding 3,000 applications, MassChallenge this month accepted 100 startups into its international accelerator for 2019, and it included only one Canadian company – Ashored Innovations of Dartmouth.

In an interview after the announcement, Ashored CEO Aaron Stevenson said he was thrilled to be accepted into the Boston-based program and spoke about the doors it will open for the company. But he was more eager to discuss another aspect of his company’s experience – the opportunity to join the global discussion on protecting marine environments.

Ashored is developing commercial fishing equipment that aims to avoid harm to sea life and the marine environment. Stevenson said the company is still “firmly in research and development mode”, but as it develops the product Stevenson and his five colleagues have been involved in events around the world discussing how to better protect our oceans.

“In so much of the commercial fishery, there’s a gap between where they are today and . . . and where the public would like to see the wild fishery,” said Stevenson. “The whole idea of sustainably caught wild fish . . . that’s where people want to go. It’s clear that the old ways of doing things are not going to be tolerated for much longer.”

Read more about Ashored Innovations, the MassChallenge and more at Entrevestor.com.

Dr. Michael Durland installed as University Chancellor

Dr. Michael Durland BComm’87 DComm’10 (SMU), PhD (Queen’s) was installed as the Chancellor of Saint Mary’s University at convocation ceremonies this morning.

For more information, see the media release announcing his appointment: Michael Durland named Chancellor of Saint Mary's University.

To watch his installment, see the May 15 - Morning ceremony.

Slideshow

Canadian Football Hall of Famer and SMU Huskies legend Chris Flynn to have his jersey retired

Chris Flynn’s No.1 jersey to be retired.

For the first time in the 217 year history of Saint Mary’s University, a jersey will be retired for all-time to celebrate and honour a Saint Mary’s Huskies and Canadian university football legend, Chris Flynn.

“To be the first player to have their jersey retired by Saint Mary’s University, the place where I have made so many memories, is truly an honour,” said Flynn. “I am incredibly proud of what we were able to accomplish as a team during my time at Saint Mary’s. Looking back, I want to thank all my teammates, coaches, trainers, students, and professors, really the whole Huskies community, for their support. We wouldn’t be celebrating this today without you.”

Originally from Buckingham, Quebec, Flynn played football for Saint Mary’s University from 1987 to 1990. During his time with the Huskies, he led the team to two Vanier Cup games as quarterback. He was an integral part of the resurgence of the team in the late 80s and early 90s, which is reflected in the accolades he received from his peers and university sport. The only player to win the Hec Crighton Trophy three times as the most valuable player in Canadian university football, Flynn was a three-time All Canadian with the Saint Mary's Huskies.

“To be the first player to have their jersey retired by Saint Mary’s University, the place where I have made so many memories, is truly an honour. ”

— Chris Flynn

Chris Flynn with the Hec Crighton Trophy, awarded to the most valuable player in Canadian university football. Chris would win the trophy a record setting three times.

Following his time at Saint Mary’s, Flynn went on to play professionally in both Canada and Europe. In 2011, Flynn became the first-ever Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) player to be inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame. He was also voted the #1 CIS player of the past 50 years of Canadian university football by Sportsnet.ca.

“Chris Flynn was a transformational player for the Huskies, whose name is synonymous with university sport success,” said Scott Gray, Saint Mary’s director of Athletics and Recreation. “Chris was a leader for our team and someone who raised the bar for quarterback play in Canada. We are proud to call him a Husky and to honour his legacy.”

Saint Mary’s University is proud to celebrate and honour the achievements of Chris Flynn and retire his No. 1 football jersey forever at this year’s homecoming, October 2-6, 2019.

Saint Mary’s Viola Desmond Bursary celebrated at the Nova Scotia Legislature

From left to right: Tom Brophy, Dr. Malcolm Butler, The Honorable Tony Ince, The Honourable Wilfred P. Moore, Q.C., LL.D., Ms. Jane Adams Ritcey, Sylvia Parris-Drummond, Deborah Brothers-Scott, Erin Sargeant Greenwood, and Tony Colaiacovo.

On April 9th, 2019, the Honorable Tony Ince, Minister of the Public Service Commission and Minister of African Nova Scotian Affairs, recognized the generosity of the donors behind the creation of the new Viola Desmond Bursary.

The Honourable Wilfred P. Moore, Q.C., LL.D., and Ms. Jane Adams Ritcey were recognized with a Notice of Motion read by Minister Ince before the legislature, receiving a round of applause from its members.

“The most important part of today is the recognition of Viola Desmond and the bursary available to African-Nova Scotian students at Saint Mary’s,” said the Honourable Wilfred P. Moore, Q.C., LL.D. “This recognition was a very nice gesture that my wife and I appreciate very much.”

The Viola Desmond Bursary was announced on November 8, the date of Viola’s heroic anti-discrimination action in 1946. The bursary is fully-endowed and will be given out every year to full-time African-Nova Scotian students at Saint Mary’s. The bursary was established with the permission of the Desmond Family.

The initial award amount will mark the year of Viola Desmond’s anti-segregation action, 1946, with students receiving $1,946. While this award is not renewable, it may be awarded to the same student more than once.

While preference for the bursary will be given to students in the Sobey School of Business, the bursary may also be awarded to students in programs featuring entrepreneurship. Preference will also be given to female students from Halifax County. Students must also have a financial need.

 More about the Viola Desmond Bursary at Saint Mary’s

• Saint Mary’s University celebrates the new Viola Desmond Bursary

• Viola Desmond Bursary inspires alumnus to give back

Celebrating International Women’s Day 2019

Please join the Saint Mary’s University community in celebrating International Women’s Day. There are a variety of events taking place across Halifax and here on campus for you to take part in.

At Saint Mary's University, we celebrate the incredible accomplishments of our many women leaders. On International Women's Day 2019, we're highlighting some of the major acknowledgements that have taken place in our community over the past year. #IWD2019 #balanceforbetter

— SMU Halifax (@smuhalifax) March 8, 2019

This year's theme for International Women’s Day, #InnovateForChange, is a call to action, asking everyone to harness the power of technology to create a more equal world. By removing the barriers facing women in STEM, we can unleash new ideas and solutions that will transform our society and strengthen our economy.

This morning Saint Mary’s professor Dr. Clarissa Sit is one of five “remarkable women researchers’’ participating in a special panel discussion at the IWF International Women’s Day breakfast on Friday, March 8.

Between 300-350 people are expected to attend the event at the Westin Hotel in Halifax to celebrate the occasion.

Moderated by Dr. Alice Aiken, VP Research at Dalhousie University, panelists will speak about how their work addresses the UN Sustainable Development Goals for 2030, and how they are having impact locally, regionally, nationally or internationally.

Dr. Sit completed her PhD at the University of Alberta before moving to Boston to work as an NSERC Banting and Alberta Innovates Health Solutions Postdoctoral Fellow at Harvard Medical School. She is now an Associate Professor at Saint Mary’s; her lab investigates microbial warfare and other interactions between environmental fungi and bacteria. The team uses an applied science approach to tackle human health challenges, such as antibiotic-resistant bacteria, and ecological pests, such as White Nose Syndrome in bats and American Foulbrood Disease in honey bees.

The event was organized by the International Women’s Forum - Atlantic Chapter (IWF Atlantic). The IWF is a global non-profit, non-partisan membership organization created in 1982 to exchange ideas, to learn and inspire and to build better leadership. The Atlantic Chapter of IWF Canada annually hosts a breakfast on International Women’s Day.

This evening, the Saint Mary’s University Women’s Centre is holding an event that will feature performances, speakers and a student panel. The Celebration of Women event will feature prominent alumna Candace Thomas, Q.C., a partner with Stewart McKelvey, who was named one of the top 100 accomplished Black Canadian Women.

The Celebration of Women event takes places from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. on the 5th floor of the Student Centre. While the event is free, they will also be accepting donations that will go to Adsum house. Visit the SMU Women’s Centre Facebook page for more information.

More information on events taking place across Halifax.  

More information on International Women’s Day.

Michael Durland named Chancellor of Saint Mary's University

Dr. Michael Durland

Saint Mary’s University’s Board of Governors is proud to announce that alumnus Michael Durland BComm’87 DComm’10 (SMU), PhD (Queen’s) has accepted the role Chancellor of Saint Mary’s University.

“As an institution, we are incredibly honoured and proud that Michael Durland is taking on the role of Chancellor of the University,” said Saint Mary’s President and Vice-Chancellor Dr. Robert Summerby-Murray.  “His long and successful career in corporate Canada and as an entrepreneur and investor positions him as an excellent role model and inspiration for our students and our community. This appointment builds upon his loyal and generous support of our students as a mentor, university champion and through the Durland Innovation Fund. Today is a great day to be a Santamarian.”

Durland is the former Group Head and CEO, Global Banking and Markets, for Scotiabank. He retired from Scotiabank in 2016 to pursue a variety of business, philanthropic, and academic interests. Today, he is the CEO of Melancthon Capital.  

“Every time I walk through the front door of Saint Mary’s, I see a group of passionate students and professors thinking beyond the problems of today to what is on the horizon,” said Durland. “The university’s innovative, interdisciplinary approach to learning, teaching and research places them on the forefront of educating the next generation of leaders and entrepreneurs. To serve as Chancellor at this special university that has played such a critical role in my life and for my family is an honour.”

In addition to his role as CEO of Melancthon Capital, Durland is:

• a founding principal in Cabot Links;

• Chair of the Board of Directors of Price Street Inc.;

• Chair of the Board of Directors of TruLeaf Sustainable Agriculture;

• Chair of the Board of Directors of Dessa;

• Chair of the Board of Directors of Receptiviti;

• a member of the Board of the Dalhousie Medical Research Foundation;

• a member of the Board of the True Patriot Love Foundation;

• a professor of global practice, Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy at the University of Toronto.

In accepting the role of Chancellor, Durland takes over from Paul D. Sobey, DComm’11, former President and Chief Executive Officer of Empire Company Limited, who served in this role since 2014.

“While his time as chancellor has come to a close, Dr. Paul Sobey continues as an active and engaged leader in the Saint Mary’s community,” said Summerby-Murray. “We are incredibly grateful for his continued commitment to Saint Mary’s and his exemplary leadership during his tenure.”

Durland will be installed as University Chancellor at a convocation ceremony on May 15, 2019.