Bow Valley College Board of Governors

Bowen-Smed, Shannon

Shannon Bowen-Smed is the CEO of BOWEN Workforce Solutions Inc. She serves as Co-Chair of the YWCA Hub Capital Campaign and serves as a member on the Calgary Economic Development Board, the Calgary Zoo Board and on the WXN Canada's Most Powerful Women Top 100 Advisory Board.


Competencies required for members of The Board of Governors of Bow Valley College include the core competencies of leadership and governance, and the preferred competencies of finance, human resources, legal, risk management, and/or strategic planning. Ms. Bowen-Smed was directly appointed on the basis of meeting the competencies, skills, and attributes as described above.

Quon, Anny

Anny Quon has been on the board since 2018 and serves on the Audit and Risk Management Council. She is a Specialist in Financial Accounting and Projects and Corporate Accounting with TC Energy. She is the past Treasurer with Kids at Churchill Park and past Director and Co-Treasurer with Immigration Services Calgary. She is a Certified Public Accountant in both Canada and the United States and has a Bachelor of Commerce in Accounting from the University of Calgary.

Smith, Indira

Indira Smith is an Access Retention Officer with the School of Foundational Learning at Bow Valley College. In this role, she promotes student retention by assisting students with non-academic issues that are preventing their academic success. Ms. Smith is a member of the Pride Week Working Group and is a representative for the School of Foundational Learning on the Intercultural Centre Advisory Committee. She holds a Community, Family and Child Studies diploma from Camosun College.

Hawkesworth, Bob

Bob Hawkesworth has been on the board since 2021. He is the Senior Advisor with Osborne Interim Management and a Management Consultant with Hawkesworth Strategies. He serves on several not-for-profit boards, including IntegralOrg, Board of Elders for Moravian Church in Canada, and the Calgary Alliance for the Common Good. He was the former MLA for Calgary-Mountain View and a former Alderman with the City of Calgary. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from the University of Alberta and a Master of Arts in Resources and the Environment from the University of Calgary.


Competencies required for members of The Board of Governors of Bow Valley College include the core competencies of leadership and governance and preferred competencies of finance, human resources, legal, risk management, and/or strategic planning. Mr. Hawkesworth was directly appointed in January 2021 based on meeting some of the competencies, skills, and attributes as described above.

Dubois, Dwayne

Mr. Dwayne Dubois has been on the board since August 2019 and chairs the Audit and Risk Management Council. He is the Chief Financial Officer at CANA Group of Companies. He oversees the accounting, human resources, and information technology functions at CANA. Prior to CANA, he served as Vice-President and Chief Accounting Officer at Tervita. Mr. Dubois volunteers as a General Director and Chair of the Audit Committee for the Ability Society of Alberta. He is a Chartered Professional Accountant and holds a Business Administration diploma and Petroleum Land Management diploma from Mount Royal University.


Competencies required for members of The Board of Governors of Bow Valley College include the core competencies of leadership and governance and the preferred competencies of finance, human resources, legal, risk management, and/or strategic planning. Mr. Dubois was directly appointed in August 2019 as a member on the basis of meeting the competencies, skills, and attributes as described above.

Kousinioris, John

Mr. John Kousinioris has been on the board since December 2019 and is the Vice Chair of the board and chair of the Human Resources and Governance Council. He is the Chief Operating Officer of TransAlta Corporation, where he is responsible for overseeing operations, shared services, commercial, trading, customer solutions, hedging, and optimization. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Western Ontario, a Master of Business Administration degree from York University, and a Bachelor of Laws degree from Osgoode Hall Law School at York University.


Competencies required for members of The Board of Governors of Bow Valley College include the core competencies of leadership and governance and the preferred competencies of finance, human resources, legal, risk management, and/or strategic planning. Mr. Kousinioris was directly appointed in December 2019 as a member on the basis of meeting the competencies, skills, and attributes as described above.

McLeod, Steven

Mr. Steven McLeod has been on the board since December 2019 and is a member of the Audit and Risk Management Council. He a Senior Systems Analyst of Cybertech Automation. Prior, he served as a Specialist Business Systems with Canadian Pacific Railway and was the Senior Engineering Analyst with Bonavista Energy Corporation. He holds a Bachelor of Aerospace Engineering degree from Carleton University.


Competencies required for members of The Board of Governors of Bow Valley College include the core competencies of leadership and governance and the preferred competencies of finance, human resources, legal, risk management, and/or strategic planning. Mr. McLeod was directly appointed in December 2019 as a member on the basis of meeting the competencies, skills, and attributes as described above.

Pierre-Gilles, Bettina

Ms. Bettina Pierre-Gilles has been on the board since December 2019 and is Chair of Community Relations Council. She is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer at Luxeum Renewables Group and the President and Chief Executive Officer at Phasis Consulting. She serves as a member on the Prairie Provident Resources Board of Directors, member on Queen's University Board of Governors, and Chair of Piikani Investment Corporation. She is a Chartered Professional Accountant and holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from Saint Mary's University.


Competencies required for members of The Board of Governors of Bow Valley College include the core competencies of leadership and governance and the preferred competencies of finance, human resources, legal, risk management, and/or strategic planning. Ms. Pierre-Giles was directly appointed in December 2019 as a member on the basis of meeting the competencies, skills, and attributes as described above.

Lee, Louise

Ms. Louise Lee has been on The Board of Governors of Bow Valley College since April 2020 and serves as a member on their Human Resources and Governance Council. She is a Partner with Borden Ladner Gervais LLP. She serves as Vice Chair and board member with Alberta Women Entrepreneurs, board member on the Venture Capital Association of Alberta, and Co-chair of Driven by Women, and she was a previous member with the National Diversity Committee. She holds a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of British Columbia and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science (Honours) from the University of Calgary.


Competencies required for members of The Board of Governors of Bow Valley College include the core competencies of leadership and governance as well as the preferred competencies of finance, human resources, legal, risk management, and/or strategic planning. Ms. Lee was directly appointed in 2020 on the basis of meeting some of the competencies, skills, and attributes as described above.


Yeates, Neil

Mr. Neil Yeates has been on The Board of Governors of Bow Valley College since April 2020. He is the Chair of their Academic Advisory Committee and a member on the Community Relations Committee. Mr. Yeates is a retired federal and provincial Deputy Minister whose career has spanned more than 30 years with the Government of Canada and the Government of Saskatchewan. He is Chair of the Department of Justice Canada’s Audit Committee, member of Global Affairs Canada’s Audit Committee, Vice Chair and member of Travel Alberta, and Co-Chair of C.D. Howe’s Human Capital Council. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Politics and History (Honours) from Queen’s University, and a Master of Arts degree in political science from the University of Regina.


Competencies required for members of The Board of Governors of Bow Valley College include the core competencies of leadership and governance as well as the preferred competencies of finance, human resources, legal, risk management, and/or strategic planning. Mr. Yeates was directly appointed in 2020 on the basis of meeting some of the competencies, skills, and attributes as described above.

Defensor, Jonabelle

Ms. Jonabelle Defensor is enrolled in the Business Administration program with a major in Human Resources at Bow Valley College. She is currently a health care aide at Tudor Manor Nursing Home in Okotoks. She holds a Health Care Aid Certificate from Robertson College in Alberta and was a third year Bachelor of Science student at the University of Mindanao in the Philippines.

Kaur Chadha, Mahima

Ms. Mahima Kaur Chadha is enrolled in the Health and Human Services Management Postgraduate Diploma program at Bow Valley College and volunteers as Student Councillor with the college’s School of Community Studies. She holds a Bachelor of Dental Surgery degree from Shri Guru Gobind Singh Tricentenary University in India.

Mahdavi, Flora

Dr. Flora Mahdavi is a Learning Design Consultant with the Centre for Academic Innovation at Bow Valley College. Previously, she was a sessional instructor at the University of Calgary’s Werklund School of Education. She is currently a board member on the Ismaili Education Board for Canada, a steering committee member on the Educational Developers Network of Alberta, and chair/committee member on Bow Valley College’s Brightspace Governance Committee. Dr. Mahdavi holds a Doctor of Education degree in Learning Sciences and a Master of Education degree in Educational Technology from the University of Calgary, a Bachelor of Science degree in Information Systems and Management from the University of London, and an Information and Communication Technology diploma from the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology.

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