Riz Ibrahim is the Executive Director of CERIC. Riz works with CERIC’s cross-sectoral Board and Advisory Committees to develop strategic and functional partnerships that enhance the body of knowledge for Canada’s career professional communities. Additionally, Riz oversees all areas within CERIC’s mandate including the Cannexus National Career Development Conference, the ContactPoint and OrientAction online community collaboration portals, the peer-reviewed Canadian Journal of Career Development (CJCD), and a host of internal and external projects including national surveys of Canadians’ perceptions about career planning and about career development and the workplace.
Contact Riz about:
- Project partnership ideas, application and process questions
- Interest in strategic partnerships
- Becoming a supporting organization for the Cannexus conference
- Volunteering with CERIC on one of our Advisory Committees
- Ideas you feel would strengthen our offerings to support Canada’s career development communities
Marilyn Van Norman is National Co-ordinator Outreach & Innovation at CERIC. She has over 30 years of proven expertise in career centre and student services management. She is the author of numerous articles and publications on career development. Her book Making It Work: Career Management for the New Workplace was a Canadian best seller. Marilyn has been the recipient of a number of awards including the Award of Merit, Outstanding Contribution, Life Membership CACEE; Contribution to Career Counselling, Ontario College Counsellors; the Etta St John Wileman Award for contributions to Career Development in Canada; The Joan Foley Award for Significant Contributions to Enhancing Student Life, University of Toronto. Marilyn chaired the National Consultation on Career Development, NATCON for 15 years.
Contact Marilyn about:
Sharon Ferriss is the Director, Marketing, Web & New Media with CERIC, where she provides leadership in the development of all communications strategies for CERIC’s network of projects and programs. She has more than 15 years of experience as a marketing and communications professional, primarily in non-profit organizations, as well as having worked as a journalist for print and television. Sharon has had senior roles with the Purchasing Management Association of Canada (PMAC) and the Human Resources Professionals Association (HRPA). She holds a Bachelor of Journalism, an MBA in marketing and non-profit management, and is an Accredited Business Communicator (ABC).
Contact Sharon about:
- Media inquiries
- Marketing partnerships
- Becoming a Knowledge Champion
- Acquiring or disseminating CERIC publications
- Having CERIC present to your organization or exhibit at your event
An experienced web designer, graphic designer and online community manager, Norman Valdez oversees the websites, social media strategy and IT infrastructure for CERIC. He is the co-founder of Vivid Design, a brand identity design firm, and has taught at the University of Toronto and Sheridan College for the Communication Culture and Information Technology (CCIT) program. He is also an avid blogger and is passionate about a range of topics like social media, politics, health, psychology, philosophy and others. Norman holds an HBA in Communications, Culture and Information Technology with a specialization in Digital Enterprise Management and an MA in Information Systems.
Contact Norman about:
- CERIC websites
- Social media
- Online registration questions
- IT-related vendor inquiries
Thierno Diouf is the Bilingual PR & Marketing Co-ordinator with CERIC. His responsibilities include developing and implementing the promotion of CERIC resources and programs. Prior to joining CERIC, Thierno worked as a bilingual communications consultant internationally at the Embassy of Senegal in Italy and for the United Nations in Germany. He holds a BA in communications and international development from the Université du Québec en Outaouais.
Contact Thierno about:
- French-language inquiries
- Media requests
- Promotional opportunities
- CERIC programs and publications
Cyrielle Filias is the Bilingual Learning & Development Specialist at CERIC. Her responsibilities include the planning and execution of webinars, co-ordinating roadshows and leading outreach to francophone stakeholders. Cyrielle brings more than eight years of experience managing diverse projects in areas of marketing, advertising, startups and innovation both in France and in Canada. She holds a certificate in Digital Marketing Management from the University of Toronto and a master’s degree specializing in marketing and innovation in Lyon, France.
Contact Cyrielle about:
- Presenting webinars
- Hosting CERIC roadshows
- Training you need or training you offer
- French-language inquiries relating to all CERIC programs
As CERIC’s Conference & Event Manager, Sandra Francescon brings over 10 years of experience in conference and event planning. Sandra has managed conferences and events of all sizes from small networking events, to large complex conferences of 25,000 – 30,000 people.
Sandra holds a post-graduate certificate in Corporate Communications from Seneca College, as well as a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and English from the University of Toronto.
Contact Sandra about:
- The Cannexus conference
- Summer Skills Academy
- Program content related to our conference and other learning opportunities
- Speaking or exhibiting at a CERIC event
- CERIC sponsorship or advertising opportunities
Diana Castano joined The Counselling Foundation of Canada in 2005 on a part-time basis as Administrative Support. She assumed the position of Executive Assistant & Office Administrator in 2010.
She attended Servicio Nacional de Aprendizage (S.E.N.A.) college in her native Colombia where she graduated with a diploma in Business Administration and Bookkeeping. She subsequently worked in these roles in a law office and in her own business for over a decade. Diana arrived in Canada in 2002 and took a related-position at Toronto Community Living (Scarborough). She currently oversees all day-to-day administrative and financial processes at the Foundation while supporting the Executive Director, Board and CERIC.
Contact Diana about:
- Attending a CERIC roadshow
- Cannexus, webinar or other event registrations or payments
- Buying CERIC books or merchandise
Ye Liu is the Marketing & Web Specialist at CERIC. As part of the Marketing, Web & New Media team, her responsibilities include researching organizations, publications and events for outreach, assisting in updating contact databases, and maintaining currency of websites. Ye earned her BA(Hon.) in Psychology from Brescia University College, and a Master’s in Library and Information Science from Western University.
Prior to joining CERIC, Ye was a research-driven student, and her areas of interest are health literacy, patient education and user-centered design. During her academic years, she co-authored a peer-reviewed article focusing on online mental health information-seeking behaviours of university students, and it was published in the high-impact journal Library & Information Science Research.
Contact Ye about:
- Subscribing to CERIC publications
- Webinar registration inquiries
- CERIC websites and social media
Lindsay Purchase oversees CERIC’s tri-annual magazine, Careering, and the CareerWise website, along with the CareerWise Weekly newsletter. She has a background in journalism, having worked previously as a digital editor and reporter. Lindsay is a graduate of Wilfrid Laurier University’s Global Studies program, where she also earned minors in French and Political Science.
Contact Lindsay about:
- Writing for an article for Careering magazine
- Contribute a blog to the CareerWise website
- Questions regarding the CareerWise Weekly newsletter
Jonathan Hutchinson is responsible for the day-to-day and ongoing IT and A/V needs for CERIC and the shared workspace it operates out of, Foundation House. He has a background in photography, non-profits and the arts.
Jonathan graduated from Ryerson University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Photography Studies.
Contact Jonathan about:
- Issues with the CERIC, Counselling Foundation, or Foundation House websites
- Questions regarding Foundation House
- Other CERIC-related technical questions