Alumni Council

1. Sustain an informed understanding of the strategic priorities of the University and provide alumni-focused insight into the strategy, objectives and actions based on their external perspective and experience at UWaterloo.
2. Provide feedback and advice to the President and Vice-Chancellor, University of Waterloo, and Vice-President, Advancement, on how to engage with and maximize the impact of alumni in the success of the University.
3. Actively prepare for and participate in all Alumni Council and sub-committee meetings.
4. Represent UWaterloo’s Alumni Council at events twice per year at minimum.
5. Encourage and actively promote
   • engagement with the University to the broader alumni community,
   • the activities and value of the UWaterloo Alumni Council and its connection to the University,
   • UWaterloo’s reputation nationally and internationally, and
   • participation in the University through alumni connections at every opportunity.
6. Reflect the values of Advancement by displaying leadership in supporting the University through gifts of time, talent and financial support.
7. Suggest potential general members for the Alumni Council and participate in recruitment and orientation for specific committees, as appropriate.

All new members serve a three-year term renewable to a maximum of another three-year term (exact length of renewable term will be decided through Alumni Council need and member interest).

1. Alumni Council typically will meet three-times per year; i.e. October, February and June.
2. The President and Vice-Chancellor, University of Waterloo, will be invited to attend all meetings to provide an update on the strategic direction and priorities of the University.
3. Alumni Council meetings will be focused on collaboration and the discussion of ideas rather than on status updates — this requires agendas, pre-work and readings to be circulated in advance of the meetings to get the best input from these valued volunteers.

Meaghan Kimball (nee Stoll) graduated from the University Waterloo in 2006 with a Bachelor of Mathematics with a major in statistics and minor in economics.  Meaghan's undergraduate experience at UWaterloo was diverse and stimulating.  She was a Rene Descartes National Scholarship recipient, Academic All-Canadian as captain of the varsity curling team and international exchange student during her third year studies at Heriot Watt University in Scotland.

Meaghan currently works in foreign currency risk management in the Treasury department of at a large technology company in Silicon Valley.  Previously, Meaghan worked in capital markets in Toronto and New York as a financial derivatives specialist.  Meaghan also holds a Masters of Science from Stanford University and is a CFA charterholder. 

The education and experiences Meaghan received as a student at UWaterloo were highly rewarding and she is excited to give back as a member of the Alumni Council.

Diana Vangelisti is a Retired Registered Professional Planner following a 30-year career in the field of consulting engineering where her work focused on sustainable communities and healthy environments. As a Vice President, she was responsible for business development, staffing and leadership of a regional office.  Diana has served on the Board of Habitat for Humanity Waterloo Region and as a Grant Review Team member for the Ontario Trillium Foundation (Waterloo-Wellington-Dufferin region). After moving to Wasaga Beach over 10 years ago, Diana continues to be engaged in her community and currently serves as a Trustee on the Board of the Collingwood General and Marine Hospital.  She recently completed her volunteer service on the Board of the YMCA of Simcoe Muskoka and the South Georgian Bay Community Health Centre where for each Board she served as Chair. Through these various volunteer opportunities, Diana has also developed an expertise in non-profit governance practices. She believes that volunteers are the foundation of strong communities. Diana has stayed connected to UW and is active in the ES Ten Thousand Coffees Program that connects Alumni to students and recent grads. 

Sean Patrick Murphy, CPA, CMA, FCMC, PMP is a Partner, Consulting and Technology Solution at MNP. Formerly, he was the founder, Managing Principal and CEO of A Hundred Answers Inc., an advisory, digital and technology solutions and services consultancy.

He is an accomplished business solutions project manager and business transformation architect with 20+ years of management consulting experience. Sean has an extensive background in project management, digital transformation, information management and business and IT strategy for public and private sector clients.

Sean graduated from the Faculty of Engineering in Mechanical Engineering in 1993. He then completed his Master’s Degree in Business Administration from the University of Ottawa in 1995. During his time at Waterloo, Sean was also a resident at St. Paul’s College.

Lisa graduated from the University of Waterloo in 2017 with a BA in Arts & Business, majoring in Speech Communication, and minoring in Digital Arts Communications as well as International Studies. She volunteered with the University of Waterloo as part of the Co-op Connection Toronto Chapter after she graduated and realized how inspiring it is to continue the relationship with the university along with future alumni. While working in the Toronto area, she can be seen attending UWaterloo alumni events in order to reconnect with her classmates and professors.

Lisa currently works as a Communications Specialist for a product development firm in downtown Toronto where she utilizes the skills she had been taught at the University of Waterloo as well as through her co-ops to create blog content, social media posts, and events coordination. She has also brought her passion for communication outside of work to the influencer realm where she posts about the latest events and local restaurants in the GTA on her Instagram page. You can check out her adventures at www.instagram.com/lisa42k.

Janine is the Vice President of Strategic Accounts at NexJ Health, where she is responsible for developing, executing, and delivering on global go-to-market strategies to grow strategic business for NexJ Health, a technology company specialized in patient engagement for chronic disease management. Janine is passionate about bringing disruptive technologies to market for healthcare transformation, and she was recently featured in the book Trusted Healers: Dr. Paul Grundy and the Global Healthcare Crusade, by Dan Pelino and Bud Ramey, where she speaks about the impact technology will have on healthcare in the future, including people-centred health, advanced virtual care, and machine learning for precision medicine.

Janine holds a bachelor’s degree in Honours Economics with a minor in Gerontology from the University of Waterloo, where she was a member of the women's varsity golf team. Janine is excited to give back and continue her relationship with the University of Waterloo through the Alumni Council!

Krista McKerracher graduated in 1984 with a BSc (Hon) in Health Studies and a minor in Biology.  The University of Waterloo provided the perfect foundation for a successful career in the biotech/pharmaceutical industry. 

Krista retired from Corporate life in 2019 and is now focused on providing advisory services as an independent consultant and/or Board member. She serves as an advisor to several privately held biotech and diagnostic companies. She is a mentor at Springboard, an incubator for female led technology companies.  She serves on the board of The Valerie Fund, a non-profit organization that serves children diagnosed with cancer and serious blood disorders.  From 2014 to 2017 Krista served on the Metro Region Board for the Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association (HBA).   

In a Corporate career spanning 35 years, Krista has led both commercial and R&D teams, predominately in the specialty pharmaceutical arena.  Her last corporate role was with CRISPR Therapeutics, a leading gene-editing company based in Cambridge, MA.  She was a member of the Executive Committee, guiding the company in the transition from a research stage to a clinical stage company.   Krista and her team implemented the first clinical trial in the world using ex-vivo editing gene editing with CRISPR Cas9 technology as a curative therapy for sickle cell disease and thalassemia. 

Previously, Krista spent more than 14 years at Novartis Oncology in senior commercial and development roles.  Krista also spent 14 years at the Johnson & Johnson family of companies, starting in Canada at Ortho Biotech and moving to J & J’s corporate headquarters in the US in 1996.

In 2018 Krista was awarded the Distinguished Alumni Award by the Faculty of Applied Health Sciences.  She is proud to have been one of “Ron’s Don’s” serving as the Don of W2 in Village 1 in 1983/84

Hilary Foster-Wilson (nee Corneau) graduated from the University of Waterloo with a Bachelor of Environmental Studies in Environment and Business, minor in Geography, and Diploma in Environmental Assessment. During her time at Waterloo, she was an orientation leader, local sorority president, active community volunteer, and resident at Renison College. Looking back, Hilary is beyond grateful for her co-op experience, pragmatic learning, and the friendships that she gained at university.  

She also holds a Master’s of Science degree in Sustainability from the University of Leeds. She is a LEED GA and is Quality Management Systems & Management Systems Auditing certified. 

Hilary is a dedicated volunteer for multiple communities, has travelled to all 7 continents, loves to cook, adores her friends and family, and can be found running long distances.

Vikas Gupta is a charismatic leader who defines himself as a seasoned executive with an entrepreneurial DNA. He has an insatiable passion for emerging growth tech companies and lives by the philosophy that the right corporate culture combined with innovative strategy can ignite exponentialism.

Vikas was formerly the of CEO of Big Blue Bubble and established the company as the largest independent mobile gaming company in Canada, ranking among the 50 fastest growing technology companies in the nation.

Prior to Big Blue Bubble, Vikas was the CEO of TransGaming, a publicly listed multi-national global leader in the cross platform deployment of video games and the delivery of video games to Smart TV. TransGaming’s technology division was acquired by NVIDIA, representing their foray into Canada.

Vikas enjoys venturing beyond his own industry and is an advisor, mentor, investor, board member to many organizations, from innovative start-ups to not-for-profit organizations, such as Interactive Ontario, Prince’s Charities Canada Patrons Council, MaRS, University of Waterloo Stratford Campus, and serves as an advisor on the Ontario Premier’s digital media roundtable and is on the digital media advisory board for the Ontario Minister of Culture, Tourism & Sport. Vikas is also a member of the Young President’s Organization (YPO) and is on the YPO Toronto Chapter board.

Vikas is a proud alumnus of the University of Waterloo and was the recipient of the University of Waterloo Distinguished Alumni Award in 2015. He can be found @vikaskgupta or LinkedIn: vikasgupta2010

Rina Carlini is an accomplished business executive with 25 years of experience in science and technology innovation, product development & commercialization and developing new tech ventures in the areas of medical devices & health IT, life sciences, advanced materials, nanotechnology, and cleantech. Her professional experience spans diverse industries and leadership roles, including pharma drug discovery R&D (Merck, Syntex); Xerox Innovation Group (Canada) as Director for Nanotechnology and Xerox Global Tech Incubator Network; in cleantech as Director of Commercialization at GreenCentre Canada, and as President & CEO of Haltech Regional Innovation Centre where she helped tech startups transform to viable, growing ventures. Dr. Carlini is the Founder and President of Optimal Innovation Group, a technology innovation consulting firm that helps startups to commercialize and go to market, as well advise established companies on scaleup growth strategy.

Rina's credentials include B.Sc. Honors degree from Concordia University and Ph.D. degree from University of Waterloo (Science), where she was the recipient of 1998 Alumni Gold Medal. In 2017, she was recognized as the University of Waterloo Science Alumni of Honor Award.

Lisa Bauer-Leahy received her Bachelor of Arts, majoring in History, from the University of Waterloo in 1983 and also holds a UWaterloo Athlete of the Year award. Upon graduating, Lisa spent the majority of her career in the automotive industry working as a president & CEO where she was involved in operations management, leadership and strategic planning.   Lisa has always been active in sport and was a member of the 1984 Canadian Olympic Field Hockey team winning a Silver Medal at the World Cup in Amsterdam. She currently volunteers as a coach with the KW Field Hockey team and as a trainer with the Waterloo Ravens Minor Hockey league.With education and experience gained through athletics both as a player and as a coach, Lisa has a keen sense for motivating and leading multidisciplinary teams. 

Negin graduated from the University of Waterloo in 2019, with an Honours Arts Degree (Honours Arts and Business, majoring in Speech Communication). During her time at UWaterloo, she was the Recruitment Director for the Honours Arts and Business Society, the Vice-President of Renison's Residence Council, and a residence don at Renison. She spent two of her co-op terms working at UWaterloo: her first term as the Events Programs Assistant at Velocity, and her second term as Communications Coordinator of Executive Communications. 

Now, she works downtown Kitchener at Bonfire Interactive as an Implementation Specialist, working to improve public procurement through technology. 

She's an avid writer, and can be found writing on LinkedIn (@neginsafdari) or on Medium (@neginmsafdari). 

She's passionate about UWaterloo and our unique and quirky community, and looks forward to staying involved. 

Eric graduated from HKLS with a BSc in Kinesiology in 1979. Despite being a very new program, it gave him the basis for a long career in several areas of the field.

Eric spent his first 8 years working in the ergonomics/human engineering field with the Canadian Forces and then as a consultant in several automotive manufacturing environments. That was followed by a rewarding 27 year career as a sales specialist and account manager in the respiratory medical equipment business based out of Vancouver and servicing Western Canada.

Eric retired from Cardinal Health Canada in 2015 and spends much of his time now staying active and volunteering as a patient advocate/ambassador for several medical organizations and support groups including Trillium Gift of Life (ONT), Lung Health Foundation, and UHN Lung Transplant Program. The genesis of this was his receiving a successful double lung transplant in December 2018 and a subsequent desire to share his knowledge and experiences from that journey and his related medical career with patients, caregivers and healthcare workers.

Eric is an avid golfer and was notably an Event Host in the Vancouver Athletes Village at the 2010 Winter Olympic Games. Since returning to Ontario in 2014 Eric has regularly attended Reunion, Black & Gold, AHS and Alumni events on campus and in the Toronto area. Eric lives in Toronto.

Ron earned his BASc (Chemical Engineering) degree from the University of Waterloo in 1982. The  co-op Engineering program was the foundation for many technical and leadership skills used throughout his career.

Ron now provides consulting and coaching services to several firms after many years in Executive leadership roles with pharmaceutical and consumer goods companies. He is associated with various consulting and advisory organizations designed to connect executive teams with experienced individuals who can help mentor a company’s growth to the next level.

Dow Chemical provided several years of petrochemical experience after graduation before Ron moved into the pharmaceutical world through Dow’s wholly owned subsidiary. From there he worked in the US for a few years before accepting an Executive role in a relatively small Canadian pharma company at the time – Apotex. Over the next 15 years, as EVP - Operations, he helped the company grow tenfold to become a leading global player in generic pharmaceuticals. Several innovations in manufacturing technology were built into the world class facilities constructed in the early 2000’s that provided Apotex with an advantage over other generic providers. Ron has more recently held Executive positions in Sanofi Pasteur (a leader in vaccine development and manufacturing) and with KIK Corporation (a leading manufacturer and supplier of private label consumer goods in North America).

This new role on the Alumni Committee gives Ron an opportunity to come full circle and join a team of experienced individuals trying to help the University of Waterloo meet the challenges that today’s world offers.

Lee Anne graduated with a Bachelor of Environmental Studies (Honours Urban & Regional Planning) from the University of Waterloo in 1981. Throughout her 33 year career Lee Anne held various non-traditional senior management positions in development planning, municipal administration, building and by-law enforcement in both upper and lower tier municipalities in southwestern Ontario until her retirement as the first female Executive Director of Building/Chief Building Official at the City of Windsor in September 2014. She continues to give back to her profession and community as an Independent Municipal Management Professional.

Her strong leadership skills and professional excellence have been recognized and awarded by numerous organizations. In 1999 she was received the ATHENA International Leadership Award by the Windsor –Essex Regional Chamber of Commerce for her professional excellence, service to the community, and assistance to women in realizing their full leadership potential.  Lee Anne is the 2006 Recipient of the OPPI Members Service Award presented by OPPI for her outstanding leadership contributions to the Institute and the planning profession. A strong advocate for mentorship, Lee Anne founded the successful City of Windsor Employee Mentoring Program which received the 2010 E.A. Danby Award by AMCTO as an effective succession planning tool for municipalities. 

Lee Anne’s commitment and passion for the University of Waterloo remains unwavering. She is a SURP '81 Class Champion preparing for the virtual 40th SURP Class Reunion on Alumni Weekend, June 5 2021 and has launched  the SURP Class of '81 Entrance Scholarship Fund campaign with the goal to raise $10,000 before the Reunion in June. She was appointed as the Waterloo School of Planning 2017-2018 Planner-in-Residence to share her planning experience and knowledge as the Plan 403  “Professional Practice, Public and Private Administration” Winter Semester Lecturer.