After eighteen years of dynamic leadership, Alister Mathieson has decided to retire this coming September.

Over the past six years, Alister has achieved much in his current role as Vice President, Advancement and External Affairs. His energy, passion, business acumen and creativity have helped move Humber forward across multiple areas, including internationalization, strategic partnerships, corporate training, fundraising and alumni relations, and marketing and communications.

Among his many accomplishments, Alister has played the lead role in establishing and strengthening our international partnerships and global presence, and increasing Humber’s profile as a leader in polytechnic education. He has been instrumental in engaging our donors and creating effective advancement strategies. Most recently, he helped to secure industry and partner investments in Humber students, programs and the Barrett Centre for Technology Innovation in excess of $23 million dollars.

He has also brought a fresh approach to our corporate training strategy and diversifying our revenue streams to help support our students and staff. As a result of his work, Humber will become the exclusive provider of real estate education in Ontario beginning fall 2019.

Resulting Reporting Changes

Looking ahead, we plan to realign the departments within the Advancement and External Affairs portfolio as part of our ongoing efforts to improve operational capacity and increase synergies.

Reflecting the focus in our Strategic Plan on establishing strong, sustainable collaborations with our global partners that create unique learning experiences for our students, Humber International will formally become part of the academic division. Leading our international recruitment efforts and support of approximately 6,000 international students, Drew Ness, Dean of International will report to Senior Vice President Laurie Rancourt.

To facilitate an integrated approach to partnership development and continue our efforts to generate revenues through new initiatives in fundraising, corporate education and entrepreneurial activity, the departments of Advancement and Alumni Relations and Education and Training Solutions will move into the Transformation and Strategic Partnerships portfolio. Krista O’Donnell, Chief Advancement Officer and Wanda Buote, Dean of Education and Training Solutions will report to Senior Vice President Rani Dhaliwal.

Supporting the communication of our strategic priorities, our unique model of polytechnic education and the important relationships with our government partners, Kelly Jackson, Associate Vice President of Government Relations, Marketing and Communications will report directly to me.

Alister will continue to oversee the Advancement and External Affairs portfolio until his departure at the end of September. All reporting changes will take effect on October 1, 2019, and at that point, Kelly Jackson will join the executive team. Over the next months, Alister will lead a number of key projects and work with his direct reports, Laurie, Rani and myself to ensure a smooth operational transition. We will have a chance to acknowledge and celebrate his contributions to Humber this fall.