Developing leaders in co-op, career services, and experiential learning on campus.

Jan Basso is the Assistant Vice-President, Experiential Learning & Career Development at Wilfrid Laurier University and a recognized leader in this field within the post-secondary context. She is responsible for leading the development of strategies, structures, programs and services, partnerships, technology and assessment that contribute to preparing students for their future, respond to employer recruiting needs and add value to the institution. Jan and her team have received numerous awards for comprehensive and innovative program delivery and the Career Centre at Laurier has been recognized with the highest score on a national study of impressive career services in post-secondary education. Jan has been active in both leadership and contributing roles within related professional associations and networks and has been committed to sharing her expertise and learning from others throughout her career.

Graham Donald has been involved in the field of recruitment and campus career development for more than 25 years and is a trusted advisor to many leading employers and educational institutions. He has developed numerous training and development programs for campus career professionals as well as many conferences and events for employers of post-secondary students and graduates.

He is also the lead researcher on the Brainstorm Student Career Interests Report that has surveyed more than 200,000 students over the past 15 years.

As part of his practice, he has led strategic planning projects on campuses including McGill University, Wilfrid Laurier University, Simon Fraser University, George Brown College, University of British Columbia, and many others.

Previously, he was the Executive Director of the Canadian Association of Career Educators and Employers (CACEE) from 1994 to 2001. During this time, he created and launched Campus Worklink, Canada’s largest job board for students, which was later sold to Workopolis. He was a founding director of the Career Edge National Internship Program; a founder and past president of the Young Entrepreneurs Association of Canada; and a co-owner and director of a children's canoe tripping camp, Camp Temagami. He received both his BA and MBA from the University of Toronto.

As Director of the University of Alberta Career Centre and Experiential Learning Blessie Mathew's portfolio also includes the Undergraduate Research Initiative (URI), and Women in Scholarship, Engineering, Science, and Technology (WISEST). Each unit connects broadly in their goal to support students, postdoctoral fellows, and alumni in engaging in career development and experiential learning activities that help them build the skills, knowledge, experience, and connections they need to progress in their careers resourcefully, and with hope and resilience.

Cathy Keates recently finished over a decade as the Director of Career Services and Experiential Learning at Queen’s University. Three of her projects – the Major Maps, the Queen’s Skills Cards, and It All Adds Up, a career health campaign with 43 career centres across Canada participating – were recognized with CACEE Innovation Awards. A 2017 research study ranked Queen’s Career Services as the second most impressive model of postsecondary career services in Canada and labelled the office’s approach the “Efficiency Model.” Cathy is passionate about making the most of resources, including staff time and talent, to have the broadest reach and impact for students.

Cara Krezek is currently Director, Co-op, Career and Experiential Education at Brock University where she leads a team of experiential and career professionals. Cara is also on the Board of Directors of Co-operative Education and Work-Integrated Learning (CEWIL) Canada serving as Past-President. Her team at Brock experienced unprecedented disruption due to the pandemic, and her leadership and ability to manage through chaos has proven effective to keep her team engaged and empowered. Her work is informed by her leadership experience within industry and higher education and she is currently doing her Master of Leadership at the Gordon S. Lang School of Business and Economics. She is passionate about leadership and other people’s passions, which is what drives her work every day.

Ben Yang has been serving as the Director, Global Engagement at Wilfrid Laurier University since 2014. In his current role, he supports and implements Laurier's internationalization strategy including international student support, international partnerships and mobility and internationalization at home initiatives. From 2011 to 2014, he served as the Executive Director of the International Recruitment and Partnerships at Georgian College in Barrie, Ontario. Prior to his leadership role in international education, Ben worked as a career counsellor at the University of Toronto for six years and served one year as the Acting Associate Director at the U of T Career Centre. His experiences in both career and international education allow him to incorporate an intercultural perspective to assess career development issues and view international education from an experiential learning and career development lens. He is a frequent presenter on cross-cultural communication and career development issues. Ben received the 2010 Canadian Bureau of International Education (CBIE) Internationalization Leadership Award.

Kimberley (she/her) is a Career Educator with UBC’s Centre for Student Involvement and Careers and works with students across all faculties and backgrounds. She has been a career practitioner for almost 15 years, and brings her background in Curriculum and Pedagogy, research interests in professional identity development, and love of stand-up comedy to her practice. Kimberley is Canada’s first Gallup-Certified Strengths Coach.