Bev Dixon
100ABCWomen Database
For over 25 years Bev worked tirelessly as a Social Services Worker at the City of Toronto where she organized job fairs, community and social events, assisted people in need by preparing them for the job market, with resumes and interview techniques. She also conducted workshops to motivate and encourage youths to be the best they can be.
Always a strong advocate for youth and seniors, she still continues to volunteer in the community with the YMCA and Malvern Family Resource Centre, where she teaches exercises and is an active member of the Senior Advisory Committee. She also teaches English as A Second Language to Newcomers and is resourceful in providing information as part of her broader effort to make their transition to Canada less stressful. Bev is passionate and resourceful and is well known and respected in her Scarborough Community of Malvern.
Beverley Rodrigues, CTDP, MSc. Learning and Development, Research and Resource Mobilization Consultant, was born in Essequibo, Guyana, South America. She is the Founder and President of Bevor Consulting and Training Services. A business she established in 2009, combining over 30 years of expertise in training and consulting in community, international development, agriculture and trade facilitation.
Beverley researches international trade and delivers projects in strategic planning, resource mobilization, program development and economic planning. Over the past five years, she designed and facilitated training for civil society leaders and business owners in Canada, Latin America and Africa (Ghana, Eswatini and Madagascar).
An advocate for continuous learning – Beverley is currently pursuing a Master of Education (MEd) at Ontario Tech University. She holds a Master of Science Degree (MSc) in Agriculture Economics from Hugo Kollataj University in Cracow, Poland (1991); a Diploma in Agriculture from Guyana School of Agriculture and a Certificate in Adult Education and Training from Seneca College, Canada and postgraduate accreditations in International Development from Open University, UK. Since 2012 she has been accredited Certified Training and Development Professional (CTDP) by the Institute for Performance and Learning, Canada.
Dr. Beverley Noel Salmon was born in Toronto to a Jamaican father and a fifth generation Canadian mother of Scottish/Irish descent. Being the first baby born that Christmas morning, Beverley received a layette from the Victorian Order of Nurses. She later became a V.O.N. Throughout her childhood and before Canadian citizenship was official, Beverley self-identified as Jamaican and was teased and name called.
Bev was the first black woman elected to Municipal Council in Toronto, serving on North York Council 1985-88. Her first motion changed “Alderman “to “Councillor”.
One of my most significant achievements is cultivating a loving family as a devoted mother and wife. Gratitude fills me as I embrace the chance to mentor and inspire others, guiding them towards transformative change. Lastly, I am profoundly blessed by the invitation extended by Dr. Bernice King to address the audience at the 2022 Martin Luther King Global Summit—an honor that amplifies my commitment to meaningful dialogue and positive impact.
Graduating with my Doctoral of Social Science degree (2022)
Having my film Ise Abe (Circumcision) selected and screened at many international film festivals most especially the Women Deliver Conference in Rwanda (2023)
Publication: proceeding paper in book “Social Engaged applied doctoral research in Canada: approaches to contemporary social management opportunities and challenges” Chapter 4 “equity, diversity and inclusion applied research: Doctoral student submission”, Royal Roads University (2021)”
Brenda Elizabeth Williams was born and raised in Freetown Sierra Leone, West Africa, by parents Isaac and Georgiana Jones. She migrated with her family to Canada in 2008 as a qualified with a Permanent Resident status. She is a mother of two beautiful children, Christel and Joshua who mean the world to her.
She is the Founder and Executive Director of New Life Project Incorporation, a Non-Profit Organization, registered in Canada, Sierra Leone, Cote d’Ivoire, and the USA with the goal of inspiring, educating, and empowering women and children through effective support systems such as empowerment forums, workshops, education and relief programs.
She holds a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in French and International Relations from the University of Sierra Leone Fourth Bay College Freetown, and a BA in Translation, from the University of Quebec in Montreal Canada. Brenda equally hold Diplomas in Administration and Business Management from the British College of Professional and Cambridge International College respectively.
I have provided college success and vocational Psychology coaching to diverse students across the world who have successfully secured $80.4M in scholarships, bursaries, differential tuition fee waivers and graduate assistantships and currently has a published directory AMEKETUNI with $446B worth of financial aid for diverse students, college professors, researchers and community members. Individuals who have benefitted from her services have recorded academic and career success rates by 98%, launched profitable businesses and transitioned into new careers in the past 5 years. Receiving the Manitoba150 Honours Award (once-in-a-lifetime) and also being recognized globally as a seasoned Learning Experience and Service Designer.
Brittany is currently the Senior Policy and Research Analyst at the Broadbent Institute, where she is responsible for assisting with setting the research and policy direction of the organization and managing the Broadbent Institute’s Fellow Program. With an expertise in applying policy principles to matters of Canada’s most pressing public affairs. She is regularly sought out to provide research, analysis and consultation services with a focus on creating a more socially progressive Canada.
Dr. Bukola Salami is aProfessor at the Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary. She received the Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing from the University of Windsor, and a Master’s and PhD in Nursing from the University of Toronto. During her doctoral program, she also completed Certificate Programs in International Nursing, Critical Qualitative Health Research, and a graduate equivalent Diploma in Health Service and Policy Research. Her doctoral work was funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) and the Ontario Graduate Scholarship.
Her research program focuses on policies and practices shaping migrants health. Between 2014 and 2019, she was involved in over 40 funded research projects. She is the lead on 20 of these projects with funding from national and international agencies. She has lead research projects on African immigrant child health, immigrant child mental health, access to healthcare for immigrant children, African immigrant youth mental health, migration of nurses as live-in caregivers, experience of temporary foreign workers in Alberta, downward occupational mobility of immigrant nurses and parenting practices of African immigrants. Dr. Salami has over 45 published scholarly articles in peer reviewed journals (with another 20 under review), 2 book chapters, and 8 reports. She represents the University of Alberta on the steering committee of the Worldwide Universities Network Global Africa Group. She founded and leads an African migrant child research network of 26 scholars from 4 continent. She is involved in several community volunteer initiatives including serving as a public member on the Council of the Alberta College of Social Workers. She has a solid track record of training students.
She has trained over 30 students, many of whom have received awards, including the Canadian Vanier Award and the International Development Research Center Doctoral Award. Dr. Salami has received several awards for research excellence and community engagement: 100 Accomplished Black Women in Canada; Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing Emerging Nurse Researcher of the Year Award; College and Association of Registered Nurses of Alberta (CARNA) Award for Nursing Excellence; and Alberta Avenue Edmonton Top 40 under 40. She has recently been selected as a recipient of the Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society International Nurse Researcher Hall of Fame, the highest international research award in nursing.
Email: bukola.salami@ualberta.ca
Bukola (Oladunni) Salami, RN, MN, PhD, FCAN
Professor
Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary
Camille A. Mitchell’s childhood memories include a drafting board, parallel bar and a series of set squares in her family’s home in Hamilton, Ontario. Her father immigrated to Canada from Trinidad as a trained Draftsman and kept an office in the basement. Her mother was always astute to the latest trends in Interior Design. Consequently, Camille was aware of construction and shaping the built environment from early and developed an interest in an array of D.I.Y. projects. In school, she excelled with the visual arts and was strong in mathematics. She desired a career as an Architect to bring all these interests together.
Camille received Degrees from the University of Waterloo School of Architecture. This institution is a leader in design education and research and offers a full cooperative professional program. She was fortunate to work in World class cities such as New York, Paris, Rome and Montreal. Throughout her travels, she maintained connections with her hometown of Hamilton where she continues to be immersed in the city’s revitalization.
She joined the design team of KPMB Architects when she completed Graduate studies. She became fully immersed in the design of the New Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois.
My top three accomplishments would include: 1.) Building and sustaining Canadas leading online magazine for Black Canadians over the last decade. Im proud of how much ByBlacks.com has contributed to helping our community see itself in greatness. 2.) Building that business together with my husband, AND building two other family businesses, AND raising our two children AND still remaining happily married! 🙂 3.) Going from giving out free advice at conferences to becoming one of the most highly sought-after racial equity educators in Canada, helping some of the biggest organizations in the world such as Google, re-imagine their workplaces through an anti-racist lens.
Dr. Camille Logan has been an educator with the York Region District School Board (YRDSB) for 25 years. Camille was born to proud parents of Jamaican heritage and grew up in York Region, where she still resides with her husband and two sons. As a proud product of the YRDSB, she began her career as a classroom teacher committed to equity, inclusion and social justice initiatives at the school and community levels and has been well known for her strength and leadership in this area. As a result, she is frequently called upon to provide input and expertise at a variety of different levels in education to support the development of policy and procedures, in addition to professional learning for students, staff, parents and community.
As a strong school leader committed to student achievement and well-being, equity, human rights and social justice, these principles serve as the pedagogy for ensuring that all students, regardless of circumstance or social identities, are provided with the opportunity and necessary supports to achieve. Currently, Camille assumes responsibilities at the Ontario Ministry of Education as a Student Achievement Officer on secondment from YRDSB. At the Ministry level, Camille has been a contributor to a number of resource documents for educators. She is featured in an Equity of Outcome webcast on the Literacy Numeracy Secretariat website and was a member of the Ministry Equity Strategy Round Table, which developed the internationally renowned Ontario Equity Strategy,; A Promise of Diversity. Previous to Camille’s secondment to the Ministry, she had district responsibilities in Leadership Development and was the founding principal of the YRDSB’s first Inclusive School and Community Services department. This newly revised service department within the YRDSB is dedicated to supporting the work of equity and inclusive education practices across the school district.
Implemented a revamped, impactful community investment program at Standard Life.
Negotiated over $2 million to fund expansion of programs and double the Alzheimer Society of Montreal’s clientele.
Contributed to the development and adoption of the Anti-Black Racism Action Plan to dismantle systemic racism in the Anglican Diocese of Montreal.
.My current position as the Director of Education for the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board has been a significant professional accomplishment. Secondly, the completion of my Masters of Arts degree was a very important accomplishment, as I had to navigate many competing priorities in that journey. My most significant personal accomplishment has been my family and guiding three marvelous young Black women to adulthood.
1) Raising three conscious, secure, and talented children after having been a teenaged mother
2) Surviving a tumultuous childhood and adolescence, and continuing to achieve against all odds
3) Ultimately completing my doctorate as a Black woman in a white supremist institution, in spite of institutional racism/sexism, while working full-time, supporting my family, and raising my young children
Candace Thomas is a proud native of East Preston, Nova Scotia and resides in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia with her husband, Lieutenant Commander Easton Dunkley (retired), and their daughter, Marguerite.
Candace is a graduate of The Fashion Institute of Canada, Saint Mary’s University and the Schulich School of Law at Dalhousie University. She is a partner in the law firm, Stewart McKelvey, Atlantic Canada’s first regional law firm with a distinguished heritage reaching back to Canada’s confederation. It is one of the 20 largest law firms in Canada with more than 200 lawyers in six locations in Atlantic Canada. Candace joined the partnership in 2005 and is the firm’s first Black female partner, following in the footsteps of Senator Donald H. Oliver (retired), who was the first Black partner in the firm’s history.
As a member of the Business Law Group, Candace has a diverse corporate-commercial practice, advising clients on matters ranging from mergers and acquisitions and financings to corporate governance and charity law. Candace was included in the 2017 and 2018 editions of The Best Lawyers in Canada for her work in Corporate Law. She received her Queen’s Counsel designation in 2017, an honour that recognizes exceptional merit on the basis of professional integrity, good character and outstanding contributions to the legal profession.
Candies Kotchapaw is a registered Social Worker and the Founder and Executive Director of Developing Young Leaders of Tomorrow, Today (DYLOTT). She was born in Westmoreland, Jamaica and at the age of fourteen migrated to Canada with her mother and sister. She completed her education in Canada. She obtained a Child and Youth Worker diploma from George Brown College and the Bachelor and Master of Social Work degrees from York University.
She worked in Social Services for over thirteen years. Most recently, she worked as an independent researcher on precarious work within the Black community and policy practice for social workers course co-developer. These combined experiences led her to create a program for Black youth.
She created DYLOTT so that Black youth who are interested in professional careers, but struggle to get relevant quality exposure, do not continue to fall through the cracks of society.
“Founding a registered charity Carion Fenn Foundation and ensuring that anyone diagnosed with Syringomyelia and Chiari Malformation doesn’t have to go through it alone. Hosting and producing a Television show, Health 180 with Carion Fenn on Rogers TV Durham. Becoming a Lakeridge Health Board of Trustee, Board Quality Committee Member & Co-Chair for Ajax Pickering Hospital Community Panel. Establishing a successful career as high profile interior decorator and designer. Receiving six awards for my community service work including the highest award from the Town of Ajax. My boys, Ron a Fire Protection Engineering Technology Student and Eithan, a competitive Gymnast.”
Carlotta Weymouth was born and raised in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia and a mother of six children. This unsung hero began her involvement with community service and labor movement when she decided to rejoin the work force after her youngest child entered public school.
Carlotta’s first job was a Counselor with Birthright, an organization that assisted women with their choices around birth. This was a pivotal moment in Carlotta’s life because her experiences with this organization made her realize that service to others was her calling; that being a voice for those who were not able to speak for themselves was something she was very passionate about. She also found it rewarding, especially knowing that she had effected change to better someone’s life.
Parenting with my husband of 39 years, a daughter who now contributes to her community. Mentoring young black women, who are all now successful and well-adjusted adults carving out spaces for themselves in this rapidly-changing world. My contribution as a healthcare professional to the health and well-being of others.
One is parenting. I learned so many lessons while bringing up my son in Canada. Being a very young new parent, this proved very challenging as I navigate the type of systemic discrimination we experienced as immigrants in the 70’s and beyond. Those lessons however, strengthened my resolve and I am proud to say it served me very well as I mentor and counsel my two grand daughters and the many members of my teams throughout the years. Another, is my success in the corporate world where I achieved many successes and awards. At times, I was the only black and female in many situations. For eg I was one of five women and the only black in my 1990 Executive MBA program. Developing a strong sense of self actualization is another accomplishment that I am very proud of since it gave me a toolkit to be used in my day to day life.
Her Worship has had a rewarding career in the legal profession, fuelled by a longstanding passion for the law. Her entrance into the legal field began as a legal assistant in a small boutique family law firm. She went on to become a paralegal with the Public Prosecution Service of Canada, as well as holding positions as a part time adjudicator with the Toronto Licensing Tribunal and the Ontario College of Pharmacists. Her Worship Cushnie was appointed as a Justice of the Peace in 2017.
Carol Mundley- Born in England, but migrated to Jamaica as an infant and then migrated to Canada as an adult. For almost 18 years working at the Center for Addiction and Mental Health as a nurse, the Co-Chair for Joint Health and Safety Committee, the Workplace Violence Prevention Committee, and the Horizontal Violence, Anti-Racism, and Anti-Oppression Committee.
As a union activist in OPSEU, the first black woman to hold the Chair for the Provincial Women’s Committee, and the Coordinator for Health and Safety for the Province-wide Mental Health and Addiction Division where the birth of the Violence in the Workplace toolkit was created. Lobbying Government and policymakers to change laws. Continuously mentoring women especially racialized women in having a voice not only at work but in their communities.
Carol Sutherland is an award-winning activist, trade unionist, teacher, volunteer, veteran, wife, mother, and proud Black, West Indian/Canadian woman. Carol is a Client Service Representative in the Office of the Registrar at Ryerson University. She holds a B.A. in Public Administration and Governance (Minor in Business Communication), with Certificates in Human Resources Management and Occupational Health and Safety, and a Grad Certificate as a Teacher/Trainer of Adults. Carol is currently pursuing a TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) certificate at the University of Toronto, Woodsworth College.
Carol migrated from Trinidad & Tobago in the 1980’s with a sense of social responsibility already firmly planted in her mind. This was thanks to her mother who, in the 1960s and 1970s, would use their household to provide shelter for marginalized members of Trinidad’s LGBTQIA community. This meant that from an early age, Carol had internalized the message that we are our brother’s and sister’s keeper. And today, Carol Sutherland remains committed to the advancement of black people within both the academic environment and the wider society.
Dr. Carole Chauncey born in Guyana, South America, holds an undergraduate degree in Biology from Richmond College of the City University of New York in 1971. She worked in the healthcare industry as a Medical Technologist for New York City Department of Health and Veteran’s Administration Medical Service Centre, Cleveland, Ohio. Carole decided to change careers and returned to graduate school after the birth of her daughters. After completing a Master’s Degree in Library Science, (M.S.L.S) in one year, 1980, she entered the doctoral program in Information Science, in 1987. Both degrees were completed at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. Carole was awarded two Higher Education Act Fellowships, while she was enrolled in both the graduate and post graduate programs.
Carole migrated to Canada in 1988, and worked for Baxter Corporation in the Systems Department. She was an Advisory Board Member for the Computer and Communications Network Degree Program, Centennial College. She was also an Advisory Board Member of the Global Partnership Literacy, School Net, Guyana Consulate General. She began teaching at the Ted Rogers School of Information Technology Management, Ryerson University, and taught there for twenty-four years during which time she served as Chair of the Equity Committee of the Ryerson Faculty Association. She was a member of the Status of Women Committee for the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations as well as other departmental and university-wide committees.
Carole founded and administered a mentoring program in Ted Rogers School of Information Technology Management.