Facilitators
Ronnie Ali
Judith Arnold
Sookie Bardwell
Kent Bruyneel
Marsha Doiron
Marla Haines
Laura Johnson Montigny
Samantha Lewis
Kirstin Lund
Wendy MacIntyre
Annerose Mauz
Leona McIsaac Moran
Katherine Morrow
Stéphane Parent
Elizabeth Pederson
Janice Petley
Jenny (Wooldridge) Richard
Jill Stewart
Robin Sutherland
Ronnie Ali (they/them/their) is a Registered Psychotherapist (College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario) and a wellness and inclusion consultant. They are a transqueer person of colour, born in Trinidad and Tobago, and settled in Canada in the 1990s.
Ronnie has been a healer and helper in a variety of education, community and health care settings since 2010, primarily working with QT BIPOC folks. Ronnie’s focus is on analyzing and supporting humans and the systems in which they are situated. They strive to be actively conscious of the invisible influence of oppression, grounded in critical pedagogy and critical psychology, and guided by empathy, mindfulness, and ethical process. They aim to inspire flexibility in thought and action, to encourage others to deepen their awareness of self-as-other, and to teach tangible and accessible skills relevant to the topic at hand. They understand that each individual’s capacity for personal evolution is connected to our world’s natural tendency toward growth and transformation.
Some common topics covered by their consultation include: mental health and wellness, conflict transformation and critical incidents, social oppression and dehumanization, developmental and institutional trauma, and addressing the impact of colonization.
Judith teaches English as a Second Language and English for Academic Purposes both at UPEI and as a private tutor. In addition, she freelances as a copy editor and proofreader, facilitates book-based discussions in the workplace, and strives to make her mark as an author in the competitive world of fiction writing–under several pseudonyms.
Judith holds a BA in English and Theatre Arts from Goldsmith’s College, University of London, England and an MA in Applied Linguistics and English Language Teaching from the University of Nottingham, England.
When she’s not working in some capacity with the English Language, she teaches classical dressage and rehabilitates both horses and their riders.
Sookie Bardwell (she/her/hers + they/them/theirs) is passionately committed to the work of helping people be better together. She is a white settler invested in the work of decolonization and racial justice. She is also a fat, queer, genderqueer femme living with invisible disability. Her work is informed by all of these ways in which she moves through the world.
Sookie is an OCT certified teacher, has been trained as a sex and relational health educator through Opt BC, and holds an MA in Gender Studies and Feminist Research from McMaster University. She has been involved in social change/justice work for almost twenty years, and has extensive experience as an educator, trainer, facilitator and coach- with a focus on 2SLGBTQIA+ equity and inclusion, Body Liberation, emotional + relational development, and sexual health. She believes everyone deserves to be treated like a person, and that everyone deserves access to- and has the capacity to develop- the knowledge and skills needed to encounter difference with respect, compassion, kindness and genuine curiosity.
Kent Bruyneel holds a BBA from the University of Prince Edward Island; and a Masters of Publishing from Simon Fraser University. He is also a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA, CMA). Prior to moving to PEI in 2016, Kent worked throughout Canada in the creative and cultural industries and the financial sector. His work spanned publishing, strategic communication, creative design, management consulting, marketing, social media, education and film. Since 2001, he has published Forget Magazine, one of the oldest and most influential literary magazines on the internet.
In addition to being the Political Advisor for the Native Council of PEI, he is a course designer and instructor for the Faculty of Business and the Office of Professional Development at the University of Prince Edward Island. He has also advised many politicians, businesses and nonprofits on strategy, content and messaging; and edits many of the leading literary writers in Canada. He and his wife run a boutique consulting firm called The Eastsizing Co. He lives in Charlottetown with his inimitable wife Shannon; their beautiful son Andre; their two intrepid and powerful daughters Georgia and Willa; and a large, lovably dopey dog named Gus.
“Customer service shouldn't just be a department, it should be the entire company." - Tony Hsieh. Local entrepreneur, Marsha Doiron couldn’t agree more. has been an influential and passionate leader in the hospitality industry for over two and a half decades. Her fearless pursuit of excellence is infectious, as she has embraced multiple leadership roles inside and outside the tourism industry, most recently as one of the management team of Prince Edward Tours/Coach Atlantic Group.
In her past roles, she was responsible for product development, branding, sales and marketing strategies and event management, partnership development, media relations, customer experience/service, market research, reporting, sponsorship recruitment and government relations.
Marla Haines, EMBA, is a UPEI alumna of the Executive Master of Business program. She and her partner, Robin Sutherland, recently started a coaching business, to develop managers' and professionals’ skills in writing and public speaking. They recently co-developed and delivered the new EMBA Communications course here at UPEI. Marla's 25+ years of public speaking experience is diverse across many sectors, including theatre, academia, business, and government. She has been invited to speak at national conferences about the bias in writing, and last year, she performed in Act’s “Twelve Angry Women.”
Marla’s awards include winning Acadia University’s prestigious marketing case competition, and she has also successfully competed in international business case competitions.
Laura Johnson Montigny
Laura’s past work includes over 15 years of management and executive management positions with non profit organizations. Some of her key leadership roles included Director, Canadian Red Cross and Executive Director, Katimavik Atlantic. She has received numerous awards for her dedication to community, including a citation through the Newcomer’s Association of PEI.
She has worked as a private learning and development consultant to a variety of organizations including the Native Council of PEI, the Innu Round Table Secretariat of Newfoundland and Labrador, the PEI public service commission and Vector Aerospace. In partnership with the University of Prince Edward Island, Laura has co-designed and co-lead a series of certified professional development initiatives including a moving up to management certificate targeting public servants, a leadership and advanced leadership certificate in community management targeting indigenous communities in Atlantic Canada and a case management certificate for case management professionals.
Throughout Laura’s career a consistent theme has been relationship building, capacity building and coaching. She has honed her executive and management skills in relating to others with honesty and integrity. She is an advocate of experiential education and believes that the most important asset any organization can have are its people. Laura’s undergraduate degree is in Business Administration and her Masters is in adult education. For the last 13 years Laura has also worked as a sessional lecturer at the University of Prince Edward Island where she teaches interpersonal communication, strategic planning, change management and organizational behaviour. Her unique style of facilitation combines learning activities, academic theory and practical application and a drive to create lasting results.
Samantha Lewis has been a cultural performer for over 20 years in multiple styles; Jingle; Fancy Shawl and Hoop. She’s danced in every First Nation Community in the Atlantic except for Newfoundland and has performed internationally in Sweden and Chile. She’s a retired dancer at the moment and mostly focusing on being a mom, wife and of course her work as the Executive Director of the Aboriginal Women’s Association of PEI Inc.
Samantha says Indigenous Cultural Awareness can be addressed in different levels. “There’s Traditions, Today and Tomorrow. We have always had our traditions we use them back then, we use them now and we’ll use them tomorrow. On a more serious note of cultural awareness is understanding the effects of intergenerational trauma embedded on our communities from; 60’s scoop, Indian Residential School, Truth and Reconciliation Commission; Calls to Action, MMIWG; Calls to Justice, Treaties, Child Well-being, Status BC31, On Reserve/Off Reserve, language and so on. I’m definitely an advocate on all these topics.”
Kirstin Lund
Kirstin Lund has been providing services as a mediator, facilitator, and conflict resolution coach and trainer since leaving the practice of law in 1996. In 1997, she collaborated in the development of a UPEI Centre for Conflict Resolution Studies, and has since designed and taught numerous courses at UPEI, through her own company and for client teams, in mediation, conflict resolution, and collaboration and communication skills. She is a certified Myers Briggs practitioner specializing in personality type and its impact on conflict management. Kirstin has been an assessor for Family Mediation Canada’s national certification program since 2003. She is currently developing new tools and resources for building collaborative workplaces based on her decades of work in the area.
Wendy MacIntyre
Wendy MacIntyre is a human resources consultant and trainer, and the owner and principal of resolveHR. She is a certified Chartered Professional in Human Resources and has worked in and advised many small to medium sized enterprises, not-for-profits and start-ups across the Island and the Maritimes. Wendy is experienced in training and development, workshop facilitation, policy development, conflict management, workplace investigations, etc. She is a Licensed Practitioner in Insights Discovery®, certified in emotional intelligence assessment and coaching using the EQ-i 2.0 model, and teaches Professional Development courses at UPEI. Most of all, Wendy loves what she does.
As a participant in Wendy's sessions, engagement is the top priority. Students learn best when they ask questions and share experiences with their peers, being able to apply what they learn to their own experiences, personally and in the workplace. With humour and genuine interest, Wendy adapts to the interests of the students to ensure they have many takeaways from every class she teaches.
Leona has been involved in leadership development and training throughout her extensive career with the provincial government. As a learning consultant at the provincial learning centre, she helped develop and deliver a 2 year Pathways to Leadership program and was professional development coordinator in the Department of Education. She worked extensively with community organizations in leadership development for adults and youth earlier in her career.
She now has a private practice as a WEL-Systems coach and facilitator with a particular interest in supporting people through personal and organizational change. She offers 1-on-1 coaching and small group retreats.
She has her Masters in Adult Education and is a sessional in the Faculty of Education at UPEI where she teaches Communication Practices.
Annerose Mauz has a MSc in Biology (University of Tuebingen, Germany) and a PhD in Human Biology (University of Ulm, Germany). She has over 30 years experience in research and development in the pharmaceutical industry. She held various positions of increasing responsibility including head of research laboratories and study director at Boehringer Ingelheim. For the last 13 years she served as the director of project coordination in the department of nonclinical drug safety while being responsible for global outsourcing, global occupational toxicology, laboratory support as well as global manufacturing and regulatory support. As senior management and global team member pharmacology and later toxicology, she has supported various research and development projects, as the responsible nonclinical author for several global submissions for new drug products. In the various roles, she was involved in strategy development for a number of international initiatives and efforts and was part of international project teams or was responsible for managing global project teams in industry corporations. This included members from different backgrounds regarding business areas, country, ethnicity, and/or company culture. Based on her professional experience, she is familiar with evidence-based management principles.
Her teaching experience includes seminars for graduate students and Ph.D. applicants (University of Tuebingen, Germany) and guest lectures at the AVC at UPEI. In addition, she was responsible for establishing and teaching a training course for technical staff during her professional career. She is a certified coach and process consultant and has been coaching staff and colleagues regarding personal and business matters.
Katherine retired from the federal public service in 2018. She spent her entire 35-year career working with Canada’s Veterans, and most of that time working in the case management world as a case manager, team manager, or educator. Katherine was an early member of the Ontario Case Managers’ Association Board of Directors and served as an expert panel member on the Department of National Defence’s RX2000 case management review. In 2012, Katherine was awarded a Diamond Jubilee medal for her work with and commitment to Canada’s Veterans. Katherine has an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology and a case management certificate, both from McMaster University. As UPEI’s case management subject matter expert, Katherine played an integral role in the development of the university’s newly developed Case Management Certificate Program. Going forward, Katherine will be one of the program’s principle facilitators. In her spare time, Katherine serves on the Upper Room Hospitality Ministry Board, walks the beaches of the Island’s north shore, and is a self-proclaimed avid gardener.
Stéphane Parent has more than thirty years of experience in the information technology industry. Stéphane has managed various projects to implement infrastructure and software across public and private organizations. Stéphane holds certifications from the Project Management Institute: Project Management Professional (PMP), Scheduling Professional (PMI-SP), Risk Management Professional (PMI-RMP), and Agile Certified Professional (PMI-ACP).
Stéphane Parent also has line management experience, having managed a team of over twenty (20) employees and contractors, across Canada. Stéphane is also an experienced meeting, workshop and training facilitator. Stéphane constantly hones his presentation, communication and leadership skills through Toastmasters. Stéphane holds the highest Toastmasters achievement, Distinguished Toastmaster.
Elizabeth has over 20 years of experience in the business world. She specializes in cultivating potential in people and in concepts. She is passionate about helping people, and sees possibilities and not barriers. Her focus is education. She has a plethora of resources and experience to share, and enjoys engaging groups when facilitating. She is an experienced, effective leader and change management agent. Positive culture in the workplace is her specialty.
Janice Petley has over 20 years of project management experience. Her experience spans a wide range of international projects. Janice’s ability to understand and appreciate both client and project requirements has enabled her to adapt to the needs of projects such as the SARS benefit concert in Toronto, World Youth Day (the Pope’s visit), and managing site requirements while touring Europe with the Rolling Stones. As many of her events were broadcast live-to-air, she fully understands the necessity of flawless project execution. She has also managed projects for many high profile corporate clients including CIBC, Chrysler Canada, Telus, and BMW.
By drawing upon this experience, Janice is able to provide scenarios in her training which are interesting and accessible to a wide variety of people and organizations. She has a special skill for demonstrating project management lessons learned by recounting engaging, memorable stories that bridge the gap between theory and practice. Janice has extensive experience with projects whose core deliverables focused on marketing, corporate communications, employee rewards, team building, and training and education.
She holds a BA from the University of Western Ontario, a BEd from Queen’s University, an MBA, and is designated as a Project Management Professional (PMP) and a Certified Agile Project Manager.
Jenny is a graduate from the Marketing and Advertising Program at Holland College. After graduating, she quickly realised her passion for Social Media Marketing and Event Management. Working for a local management company, Jenny was able to travel the Island enabling her to bring both of her passions to life.
Throughout her career (so far), Jenny has managed multiple social media accounts on behalf of companies across the Island. From food festivals to live music events, and local start-up businesses to hospitality, Jenny has experience with various social media platforms.
Jenny resides in Bonshaw with her husband Ryan, new son Maxwell, and hound dog Stanley. She fully expects you to check out her Instagram to make sure she is real: @jwool94
Jill is a Registered Social Worker in Prince Edward Island. She holds Bachelor of Social Work (BSW) and Master of Social Work (MSW) degrees, in addition to certificates in Management and Adult Education. She has been a Social Worker for almost 24 years. She has held a faculty position teaching in the Human Services Program at Holland College in PEI since 2007. Prior to this she worked in the provincial government in front-line, training, research, and coordination positions in the social services sector.
Throughout the years, Jill has taught courses on counselling skills, business communications, ethics and professionalism, mental illness and neurological disorders, case-management, interpersonal communications, personal wellness, social issues, disability rights, and working with families. She is enthusiastic, and loves to help others gain self-awareness, and reach their optimal level of personal well-being.
Jill is an engaging speaker with infectious energy. Throughout her career, Jill has given workshops across Canada, and has taught internationally. She has also helped hundreds of students become professional helpers during her work in post-secondary education for higher learning. Her most recent speaking engagements have been to health care professionals, entrepreneurs and non-governmental organization leaders regarding stress management and burnout prevention.
Jill is the founder and owner of Your Life Design Inc. which is a company that provides online therapy. While Jill has worked with people of all ages, she specializes in counselling professional helpers, caregivers, and entrepreneurs. Counselling services for youth and young adults are also offered by other registered clinical social workers at Your Life Design Inc. Jill created this service to offer a convenient option for people seeking support with privacy being the top priority.
Jill enjoys Island life near the ocean with her husband, and her dog Maggie. She also believes physical activity helps keep the mind healthy, and teaches Aqua Zumba classes.
Robin Sutherland
Robin Sutherland, Ph.D., has an extensive background as writing practitioner and educator. She holds a diploma in Technical and Professional Writing from Humber College, and has worked in corporate communications, the computer courseware industry, and as a freelance writer and editor. She also holds a doctorate in literature from the University of New Brunswick, where she taught undergraduate composition courses for many years. Most recently, she co-developed and delivered the new EMBA Professional Communications course here at UPEI, where she worked previously as the university’s Writing Centre Coordinator.
Robin received the MacLauchlan Prize for Leadership in the Development of Writing Among Students (2015), and has also received awards for her short fiction.
