member notables
Member Notables Local Google Executive departs for Venture Capital Firm Steven Woods, the former head of Google’s engineering operations in Canada, is joining Canadian venture capital firm Inovia as partner and chief technology officer. According to The Waterloo Region Record, Woods will help manage $1.5 billion in early and growth-stage funds and evaluate deal flow from a technology and talent perspective. Dennis Kavelman, a former chief financial and operating officer at BlackBerry is included among Inovia’s founding partners. Woods was hired by Google in 2008 and departs as the local workforce exceeds 1,300 employees compared to six when operations commenced in Kitchener during 2005. He has also been a keynote speaker at past Greater Kitchener Waterloo Chamber of Commerce events. We commend and thank him for many years of service to both local businesses and the community.
New Dean of Social Work Appointed at WLU Wilfrid Laurier University has appointed Kathy Hogarth as their new dean of the Lyle S. Hallman Faulty of Social Work effective for September 1, 2021. Dr. Hogarth is currently an associate professor in the School of Social Work at Renison University College at the University of Waterloo, as well as a special advisor on anti-racism and inclusivity for the vice-president, research and international. Previously she worked at King’s University College, York University and Laurier as a research and teaching assistant, as well as at the University of Technology in Jamaica. Dr. Hogarth served as vice-president of the Canadian Association for Social Work Education, chair of the anti-racism advisory working group for the Region of Waterloo and was a cofounder of the Black Faculty Collective at the University of Waterloo.
Local Business Owner Appointed to Libro Board of Directors Stephanie Soulis, founder and CEO of Little Mushroom Catering and Dining Lounge in Cambridge was recently elected as a Board Director of Libro Credit Union. She previously served for six years as an Owner Representative in Waterloo. Stephanie has held leadership positions as Chair of the Kitchener Public Library, Chair of Foodlink Waterloo Region, and the Chair of the Hospitality Program Advisory Committee for Conestoga College. She also served on the Board of Directors for the Greater Kitchener Waterloo Chamber of Commerce. In 2016, Stephanie was the inaugural recipient of the Libro Growing Prosperity Award for Owner Representatives. In 2015, she was awarded the Young Entrepreneur Award in Cambridge, and was inducted into the Waterloo Region Entrepreneur Hall of Fame as the first ever Junior Achievement Alumni of Distinction.
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