Yuka Nagashima: ‘Girls weren’t born hating science’

With 20+ years of experience as a senior executive, Yuka possesses skills from several domains that are rarely found in the same person: justice, diversity, equity, and inclusion (JEDI); nonprofit leadership; organizational management; policy/government; innovation strategy; entrepreneurship; and education. After founding two tech-startups, she led the tech-based economic development agency of the State of Hawaii, where she oversaw tech park development and incubation, created innovation policy frameworks, and implemented entrepreneurship and other business programs, including Innovate HI, as NIST’s Manufacturing Extension Partnership Center Director for Hawaii. Most recently, based on her executive consulting work on JEDI, and her experience with Astia, a non-profit operating globally to level the playing field for women entrepreneurs, she developed an inclusive leadership curriculum for Stanford Continuing Studies. She is currently the Executive Director of Food Shift, shifting the way people think and interact with food by uplifting communities through rescued produce: reducing waste, creating jobs, and nourishing our neighbors. As hunger is not caused by lack of food, but lack of financial security, we address root causes, providing practical solutions that are “for the people, by the people, and with the people”. US wastes 40% of its produced food that ties up significant amount of resources including over 20% of drinkable water. Because food waste in landfills causes methane, our mission puts us in the intersection of food and racial justice as well as climate change. Yuka was born and raised in Japan, educated in Canada and the U.S. having spent most of her professional life in Hawaii, she moved to San Francisco Bay Area via Denmark.

Jennie graduated from Crofton House in 2007 and went to university at Queen's, studying Engineering. Upon graduation, she went to work at a small start-up consulting firm, Isaac Operations, focused on operational process improvement. Focused on both manufacturing and white collar processes, Jennie worked with clients across North America to improve operational efficiencies and help companies drive more value by better utilizing the resources they had in house. After 5 years of travelling as a  consultant, Jennie decided to change companies in order to spend more time at home in Toronto, ironically by going to Air Canada. At the airline, Jennie focused on identifying, qualifying, and implementing strategic initiatives across the organization, maintaining a process improvement focus. Most recently, Jennie has taken her process improvement skillset to KPMG and now focuses specifically on tax transformation. She works with major companies across the country to enhance their internal tax processes, often through better leveraging technology and working with other teams within the business such as Finance.

Outside of work, Jennie still tries to get outdoors as much as possible although concedes the Ontario mountains come nowhere near Whistler or the local Vancouver mountains she grew up with!

Kimberly graduated from CHS in 2011. She has gone on to complete a Bachelors of Science Honours Health, studies at the University of Waterloo. After a few years of researching different career opportunities in the Medical Field/Health Industry, Kimberly has found herself in Massage Therapy school. For 2 years she has worked along side Physiotherapists, Registered Massage Therapists, Kinesiologist, Reflexologists, Acupuncturists, and Naturopath at a Multidisciplinary Clinic.

Stephanie Baresh is an experienced Director focusing on Marketing, Creative Campaigns and Public Relations in the skin care industry. Having worked with Eminence Organic Skin care for over 20 years, she has created over 200 award winning products and loves bringing product launches to life from conceptualization to market. As an entrepreneur, Stephanie has held a few different roles in her career from working in a dental office to starting a private language school and is excited to share her journey with you.

In addition to career changes, Stephanie experienced change early in life when her family left everything they had to flee to Canada from the Czech Republic during political unrest in 1968. Building a new life taught her that the only constant thing in life is change and learning how to embrace change is one of the most valuable skills you can learn.
 

Sarah graduated from Crofton in 2014 before attending Harvard University. While in university, she studied developmental and regenerative biology with a minor in mind, brain and behaviour. Sarah spent several years during undergrad in labs focused on the behaviour of stem cells in the development in the brain, skin, and hair. After graduation, Sarah sought to transition from pure bench science to translational medicine closer to patients, which led her to ClearView Healthcare Partners, a biopharmaceutical strategy consulting firm. The projects she consulted on spanned drug and franchise strategy, due diligence for mergers and acquisitions, pricing and market access, and overall corporate growth strategy for biotech and pharmaceutical clients. In March, Sarah moved home from the U.S. to Vancouver due to border closures and continued to work remotely for her consulting company through the summer. Recently she left her job and decided to move to Vancouver more permanently due to the pandemic. She is excited to share how she thought through different potential paths within the life sciences (e.g., med school vs. academia vs. industry), insights on the evolving biopharma space, and how she is currently assessing her own next steps.

Shireen Farzadeh grew up in Vancouver, BC and graduated in 2013 and earned her Doctorate of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.)degree in 2019 at a 6-year direct entry program at St. John's University in Queens, NY. She completed post-graduate-year-1 (PGY-1) pharmacy residency at North Shore University Hospital, Manhasset, NY and worked as a front line healthcare worker on COVID-19 ICUs during the pandemic. She is currently specializing in Geriatrics (Older Adults) as a second year post-graduate pharmacy (PGY-2) resident at SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY and Clinical Assistant Professor at SUNY Binghamton University, Johnson City, NY. She is passionate about medication management in older adults and serving underserved patients. Upon completion of residency, she hopes to become a clinical geriatrics pharmacist and professor at a pharmacy school. Throughout pharmacy school in the United States, she was on an F-1 student visa and is currently on a TN work visa for Canadians. During her free time, she mentors Canadian and international students in the visa process and how to overcome these barriers. She is excited to share her experiences in choosing a career path in clinical pharmacy and navigating student and work visas, with Crofton House School students.

Phil Gerard was a fundraiser for over 15 years, working in the community service, education and university advancement sectors with a focus on major gifts. A Master of Business Administration degree with a Human Resource Management specialization set him on a new path within the fundraising profession: Fundraising Talent Management.

Phil started Gerard Search in 2012. His firm specializes in recruitment services for the nonprofit sector with a focus on major gift fundraising roles.

Phil raised close to $20 million in his career. He understands fundraising best practices, speaks the language, and knows the challenges that professionals in the field face and what they are looking for in a rewarding career.
 

Katie is a lawyer specializing in insolvency and restructuring law. Her practice involves assisting clients with resolving challenges that arise from businesses in distress and uncertain times, and providing advice to help clients save resources, preserve businesses and protect interests. When a business is impacted by events such as COVID-19, restructuring may be the difference between the business' demise and its recovery. Katie also has a fraud and asset recovery practice, acting in high-profile Ponzi scheme cases.

Her practice area is always changing, fast paced and involves different areas of law, from closing corporate transactions to appearing in court.

Katie is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania (Bachelors of Arts, Economics and Communications) and of University of Victoria (Juris Doctor, Law).
 

Dr. Rhone is currently a Clinical Associate professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of British Columbia.   She received her B.A with Honors from Swarthmore College and her M.D.    summa cum laude from Emory University in 1995. She did her postgraduate training in Obstetrics & Gynecology followed by a clinical fellowship in Reproductive Imaging at the University of British Columbia. She served as the Medical Director for the Reproductive Medicine Program at BC Women's Hospital and Health Centre from 2005 to 2013, which includes the Early Pregnancy Assessment Clinic and the Recurrent Pregnancy Loss Clinic. She became Senior Medical Director, Ambulatory & Surgical at BC Women’s Hospital and Health Centre in 2013.

She also maintains a University affiliated private practice. Her clinical interests involve a variety of women's health issues such as early pregnancy loss, gynecologic imaging, high risk Obstetrics and complex MIS surgery.

Jennifer Sanguinetti is the Managing Director of Infrastructure Development. Jennifer and her team are responsible for the planning and development of institutional facilities at UBC, collaborating with campus stakeholders to create great spaces for learning, research, and campus life.

Jennifer has worked across the development industry from crown corporations through to engineering consulting. Throughout her career Jennifer has become noted for her expertise in green building design. Recognition has included multiple national awards for her work across the building industry.

Jennifer is the past-chair of the LEED Canada Steering Committee, and is the current chair of the US Green Building Council’s LEED Steering Committee. She has a Bachelor of Engineering degree from McGill University and is a Professional Engineer registered in BC, Washington, and California and is a LEED Accredited Professional.

Anna Shojania is a Co-Founder and Senior Partner of GO Recruitment, a boutique executive search and HR consulting firm based in Vancouver. She has more than 20 years of recruiting, human resource management, and operational management experience. A trusted advisor to the executives and boards of the innovative companies she serves, she has personally completed several hundred searches at the professional, managerial and executive levels for technology companies in B.C. and throughout North America.

In addition to her consulting activities, Anna has been actively involved with various industry, academic and philanthropic organizations. She has served on boards and board committees for the UBC Sauder Alumni Association, the Arthritis Society of BC, BCTIA, and BC Social Venture Partners. She is also a visiting speaker for UBC Sauder Career Centre, UBC Sauder (BCom and MBA), UBC Faculty of Medicine, and Crofton House School.

Anna holds a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Business Administration from the University of British Columbia's Sauder School of Business.

Alison heads a Communications team for a leading Canadian investment management firm. Her group relies on strong writing, data analytics and project management skills to produce compelling communications, reports and publications for clients and prospective clients. Our clients are known as institutional investors and include Canadian corporations, not-for-profit organizations, First Nations communities, unions, universities, cities and governments.

Credentials: CHS grad ’83; BA (International Relations), UBC; MBA, University of Ottawa; various certificates from La Sorbonne (Paris, France), the Universidad Internacional Menéndez Pelayo (Santander, Spain), and the Canadian Securities Institute.

Career progression: Alison began her professional career in Ottawa in communications positions with two not-for-profit organizations. In 1996, she and her boyfriend quit their jobs and drove out to BC where she honed her communications skills in the financial services industry. She has been with her current employer since before this year’s CHS grads were born!
Community: Alison’s two teenage children, her husband, friends and colleagues at work inspire her community involvement. Her current focus is on children, food security, and protecting BC’s environment.
 

From TIME’S UP to frog design, Silo agency, and numerous museums, Tas has worked with a variety of clients including: American Express, BNY Mellon, United Technologies, Hyundai Motor Group, and Museum of the Moving Image.

Tas is a passionate mobilizer and advocate for communities of color. She regularly contributes pro-bono work to local non-profits and cultural organizations including Jhal, Laal, and Mahfuzul for 24. She is also a co-founder of BiCi, a bike education program for girls of color in Brooklyn & Queens where she gathers communities to take ownership of their bodies and neighbourhoods.

Shannon launched Taylor Made Business Solutions in 2009, a marketing consultancy practice where she helps clients build their brands and business. Prior to consulting, Shannon had a lengthy and distinguished career as a senior leader at TELUS. One of her favourite jobs was putting together the marketing and communications plans for TELUS' bid to be the 2010 Olympic telecommunications partner.

Shannon holds a Masters of Business Administration from the University of British Columbia and a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Victoria.

Shannon's daughter Olivia Folick is a CHS grad - class of 2014. Shannon was very involved at CHS as Chair of the Communications Committee for the Senior School and ECE buildings and developing the new CHS brand strategy and logo.

She is an active volunteer, book lover, traveller and enjoys competitive running and tennis – as long as it’s for fun.
 

Karen Thompson is a Director and Portfolio Manager at Odlum Brown Limited, a full-service investment firm headquartered in Vancouver, where she leads a team dedicated to providing financial guidance and portfolio management to an established clientele.

Karen has been involved in the financial industry for over 30 years and is a graduate of the University of Toronto. She is a Fellow   of the Canadian Securities Institute (FCSI) and holds the Family Enterprise Advisors (FEA) designation and Certified Professional Consultant on Aging (CPCA).

Karen is a mother of 2 Crofton House School Graduates and believes in giving back to the Community. She has been actively involved in community sports and served as Director and Chair of the Vancouver Youth Soccer Association and on the BC Soccer Women in Soccer Committee and BC Soccer Diversity Working Group Committee.

Karen is a strong supporter of several charities and currently serves as a Director and Chair of the Governance Committee of the Alzheimer Society of BC.
 

Angela Wang is a Manager in Bain & Company’s New York office. She joined the firm in 2018 and has previously worked with clients across the Insurance, Tech Distribution and Industrials space. She has also spent time in Bain's Private Equity practice performing due diligences for PE clients. At Bain, she is actively involved in recruiting, and also spends time working with small businesses via a pro-bono advisor program.

Prior to joining Bain, Angela worked as a Credit Research Strategist at Morgan Stanley in New York, responsible for providing fixed income research and credit strategies to investment managers.

Angela received an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. She is also a graduate of Columbia University, from where she received a BA degree in Economics and Political Science.

Angela is currently living and quarantining in the Tribeca neighborhood of Manhattan with her boyfriend (who also happens to be from Vancouver!).