/ R E P E A T -- George Brown College President Anne Sado appointed Member of the Order of Canada/

TORONTO, June 28, 2013 /CNW/ - Anne Sado, president of George Brown College, has been appointed Member of the Order of Canada by His Excellency the Right Honourable David Johnston, Governor General of Canada.

In her citation, President Sado was recognized for enhancing the role of colleges in the education sector and bringing new vision to George Brown College since being named president in 2004.

"I'm honoured and humbled to receive this news," she said. "As I approach a decade in education I feel privileged to lead an organization that is making a measurable difference in the lives of Canadians and on our economic future. I accept this as a proud advocate for the college and polytechnic sector in Canada."

The Order of Canada is one of the country's highest civilian honours, established in 1967 to recognize a lifetime of outstanding achievement, dedication to community and service to the nation.

Since becoming the college's first female president in 2004, President Sado has balanced strong team and people management with focused strategic thinking, resulting in extraordinary growth and renewal. Under her leadership, George Brown has become one of Canada's largest, most diversified and respected colleges. It has more than doubled in size during this time, broadened its international partnerships and increased its commitment to strengthening the cultural, social and economic fabric of Toronto.

During her tenure, Anne has built partnerships with industry and government, who have joined forces with the College to create new opportunities for students in the GTA. Most recently she opened the college's third main campus at Toronto's Waterfront, providing education in Health Sciences to more than 3,000 students each year.

Anne has also served as Chair of Colleges Ontario's Committee of Presidents, playing a key role in the ongoing development of a more effective and transparent credit transfer system to better enable students to combine theoretical and applied learning. She is currently Chair of Polytechnics Canada, Chair of the Board of Orion and past chair of Trillium Health Centre, while sitting on the boards of organizations such as the Toronto Region Board of Trade, Legacy Private Trust, Mount Pleasant Cemetery Group and the Toronto Financial Service Alliance. She previously sat on the boards of the YWCA of Greater Toronto, Junior Achievement and the Canadian Hearing Society Foundation.

For President Sado, the Order of Canada marks an apex in a highly decorated career. In the past year, she was named one of Canada's Top 100 Most Powerful Women for the second time by the Women's Executive Network as well as being named a Women of Influence Diversity Champion. She also received the YWCA's Women of Distinction in Education award, the Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal for her role impacting the socioeconomic vitality of the city through her work at George Brown and the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal for her work with the YWCA of Greater Toronto.

An engineer by training, Anne holds a Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, from her alma mater, the University of Toronto in addition to her Bachelor of Applied Science in Industrial Engineering and a Masters of Business Administration.  She was inducted into the prestigious Engineering Hall of Distinction at the university in 2010 and also received its Arbor award. Her profession has recognized her with the Ontario Professional Engineers Gold Medal in 2007, the Professional Engineers Ontario Citizenship Award in 2001.

ABOUT GEORGE BROWN COLLEGE
Toronto's George Brown College has established a reputation for equipping students with the skills, industry experience and credentials to pursue the careers of their choice. The college offers programs from its three main campuses located across the downtown core, including its newest location at the Toronto waterfront, which opened in September 2012. George Brown offers 148 full-time and 1,600 continuing education programs across a wide variety of professions to a student body of approximately 64,000 (including those enrolled in full-time, part-time and continuing education programs). Students can earn diplomas, post-graduate certificates, industry accreditations, apprenticeships and four-year bachelor degrees.

SOURCE: George Brown College

Jodi Salem 

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