UNews - chartered accountant

Horns' alumna sees giving back as a natural act

trevor.kenney — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 20:24:25 +0000

Head coach of the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge women's rugby team, Neil Langevin (BA/BEd '91, MEd '10), describes former player and team co-captain, Amanda Riley (nee Richardson, BMgt '10), as "a superstar whose leadership as an athlete has continued on as an alumna."

Therefore it was no surprise when Langevin asked Riley to head an alumni committee for the rugby program that she tackled the task with the same energy and enthusiasm she once used on the field – even in the face of serious health challenges she encountered soon after graduation.

"In 2011, I was diagnosed with Still's disease, which is a rare form of rheumatoid arthritis. Being an athlete, I was used to aches and pains and when I started getting achy and having problems I thought it would go away but it didn't. I have learned a lot from it and I don't take things for granted; I am even happy to do laundry now because for a while there I was having trouble just walking," laughs Riley. "When I was playing rugby, Neil always focused on the power of positive thinking. I think that is one of the really important things I gained from playing on the team. Through everything I have had a positive mindset. It has helped me overcome when my feet did not work for me – and now I am back to exercising and even running a bit."

Amanda Riley, pictured here in her playing days with the Horns women's rugby program, initiated an alumni garden party that netted nearly $10,000 for the program.

With her husband often working out of town, Riley had a tremendous amount of support from her family and friends, especially fellow rugby alumni. It is this shared encouragement and sisterhood, as well as a passion for the game, that inspires Riley to continue her involvement with the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ's rugby program.

"I initiated some committee meetings last year, inviting local alumni I thought would be interested in helping out. This year we held the first annual Garden Party to raise funds for the program. Because we are strictly a girls' team, we wanted an event that was not a typical dinner. We invited all of the alumni and told them to bring their moms, aunts, sisters, grandmas, anyone they thought would be interested in coming," says Riley. "It was held at a private residence overlooking the coulees. We wore sundresses and sunhats, had appetizers (provided by this year's team) and the coaches and team manager came and served us champagne. It was really nice to meet the current athletes. Now we know who they are when we come and cheer for them at the games."

Money was raised through ticket sales, a silent auction and a 50/50 draw. Bobby Zaremba, a former rugby parent, arranged for Scotiabank to match funds raised through their Bright Future program. The event brought in $9,527, which will be used to support Horns rugby.

The inaugural event appealed to a wide range of Horns alumna, friends, family and supporters of the program.

"As a former athlete I am extremely happy with the support that we received from other alumni and community members. Financially it will give them more opportunities because it supports their general fund. I have heard some of the current athletes can't wait to have their own garden party when they are alumni so we have succeeded in generating interest in supporting the program down the road," says Riley, who is excited to give back to the program that gave her so much.

"Sometimes it was really difficult as a student-athlete, because I had to balance work, school and rugby, but my professors were so good to work with and playing on the rugby team gave me such great opportunities," she says. "I was able to grow as an individual and develop my leadership and communication skills. I learned a lot of invaluable life lessons. The girls I played with have become like family to me. I don't think I could put a dollar value on what I got out of the program."

GET THE FACTS

· Riley played for the Horns from 2005 to 2009 and was a five-time Canada West All-Star and three-time CIS All-Star

· During her time with the Horns, she was on three national championship teams and was a three-time Academic All-Canadian

· She currently works as a staff accountant at KPMG Lethbridge and is articling to be a chartered accountant

This story first appeared in the October 2012 issue of the Legend. To see the full issue in a flipbook format, follow this link.

Spoulos keeps finding his way back to the U of L

trevor.kenney — Fri, 15 Jun 2012 20:30:08 +0000

If it wasn't inevitable that Doug Spoulos (BMgt '87) would eventually return to the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge, at the very least it wasn't surprising.

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ's associate vice-president (finance) has a deeply rooted history with the U of L, so it seemed only right that circumstance aligned to bring him into the fold once again in spring 2011. He graduated from the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ in 1987, previously worked for the U of L, met his wife on campus and has a stepson who chose to come to the U of L from their home in Calgary.

So when it was time to get away from the busy Calgary lifestyle and apply the experience he'd gained in private sector positions, the U of L was there once again.

"We were looking to Lethbridge and this was the perfect job," says Spoulos. "It was a good experience for us in Calgary. I had the chance to work in a couple different industries and when I left I was the vice-president of finance, so I was getting the experience I wanted. But our kids were at an age where we wanted something a little slower and a little more relaxed – this opportunity was too good to pass up."

Doug Spoulos is instrumental in bringing people to the table to discuss priorities in the new budget process.

A chartered accountant by trade, Spoulos had worked the last several years acquiring the broad business experience he'd need for his new role at the
U of L.

"In my last position, I had the chance to work beyond the accounting side of things and look at the business aspect as well, how businesses run and how they operate. That's the more interesting part, because you can sit there and just work on the numbers or you can take those numbers and figure out how to apply them and determine what the business should be doing."

His first order of business at the U of L was to play a key role on the President's Task Force on Budget Process, the mandate of which was to review the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ's budget process and make recommendations to the executive team supporting both short and long term planning.

Consisting of President Mike Mahon, executive director representatives Carrie Takeyasu and Chris Eagan, dean representatives Chris Hosgood and Rob Wood, Spoulos and the group sought input from throughout the U of L community on the budget process.

"The number one thing that came out of those meetings was a consensus that people wanted to tie budget priorities to the Strategic Plan," says Spoulos. "They wanted to see a rationale as to why money was going where it was going."

Another emergent theme came from the existing budget committee, its members expressing that the three-year sitting term was not long enough to gain a full understanding of the process to make their contributions effective.

"The basic conclusion we came to was that we already have a group of people who have a good understanding of the budget process," says Spoulos. "Those on the committee should be the people who are responsible for the budgets in their units, the deans and executive directors."

In not wanting to exclude the rest of the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ community from the process, the task force recommended that business units and faculty members have input through priority presentations, within their units and faculty councils, that speak to their specific areas.

"It's a build-from-the-ground-up approach when it comes to setting priorities," says Spoulos. "Priority presentations are not about dollars, they're about what priorities you've established in your area. We look at them, the themes, and prioritize them in relation to the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ's Strategic Plan and decide whether they should be funded. These presentations are open to the entire ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ community. It gives everybody the opportunity to see what is being funded and why. You might not agree with every decision but at least the process is transparent and you can see the rationale behind the decision."

A third key theme of discovery centred on the timing of the budget process. Having always worked on a September to March cycle, Faculties indicated that to hire the most desirable candidates, they needed to start looking for people in November and December, far before they had any idea of what budget dollars were available to them. The cycle has now been adjusted to work from April to October.

"This first year will be a pretty difficult transition year because by the time this recommendation was made, we'd already put ourselves a month behind in the new system," says Spoulos.

As a result, the priority presentation process has been pushed back from June 25 to September.

"At the end of the day, our goal is to make the entire budget process transparent and accessible, so that everybody understands what goes into the creation of the budget," says Spoulos. "We want to make it equitable, so that not only do people have input into the process, but the right people have input."

GET THE FACTS

· The final report from the President's Task Force on Budget Process can be viewed at www.uleth.ca/president

· Spoulos met his wife, Bev, when they both worked at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ previously. She just started a new position at the U of L as an administrative assistant in the Department of Native American Studies

· Spoulos and his wife have three children, two daughters aged 12 and 13, and a son who is entering his second year of psychology at the U of L

· Prior to his first term at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ, Spoulos worked at KPMG as a chartered accountant, auditor and manager

This story first appeared in the June 2012 issue of the Legend. For a look at the entire issue in flipbook format, follow this link.

Alumni earn top honours

trevor.kenney — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 19:09:31 +0000

Three ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Faculty of Management (accounting) alumni recently earned top honours on the Uniform Evaluation (UFE), the exam written by all Chartered Accountant (CA) hopefuls.

Andrea Harper (Young Parkyn McNab LLP, Lethbridge), Kelsey (Watson) Stimson (Meyers Norris Penny, Lethbridge) and Eric Van Dyk (BDO Canada LLP, Edmonton) claimed three of eight national honour roll positions from a pool of 479 people in Alberta who wrote and passed the exam.

All simultaneously earned a spot on the ICAA's [Institute of Chartered Accountants of Alberta] prestigious Vic Dzurko Honour Roll and will be awarded the Winspear Medal of Excellence and a $1,000 cash prize.

For a look at the Legend in a flipbook format, follow this link.

The U of L inside government

trevor.kenney — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 18:43:31 +0000

A look at several ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ alumni who now contribute to the inner workings of our government

Melvin Wong

Inspired by the experiences, travels and success stories of several ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge alumni working in Ottawa, as well as the guidance of several ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ faculty and staff, Melvin Wong (BA '78), assistant deputy minister of Alberta Advanced Education and Technology, embarked on a lifelong career in civil service.

"Originally, I thought of becoming a chartered accountant, then I had an 'a-ha' moment when I spoke with a counselor. She helped me find out what career opportunities I would have with an economics degree. That's when I decided to go into public service," explains Wong.

Wong's first experience with government began in his third year with the economics club.

"I went to a club meeting and someone nominated me for president. It drew me into the administration of the economics department. I learned about the administration and culture of academia, and how universities run. That helps me in my current job because I deal with the universities and colleges throughout Alberta."

Wong has been working in government since his graduation in 1978. He worked in Ottawa initially, as well as at the departments of tourism and small business, economic development, innovation and science and advanced education and technology in Alberta. He travels extensively and has years of senior management and business development experience. He taught economics, international business and marketing, and multinational finance at several post-secondary institutions.

"I chose a life in government because you can work in so many areas and be exposed to so many things," says Wong. "It keeps life really interesting. I am pretty happy right now."

Greg Weadick

Graduating from high school, Greg Weadick (BASc '76), Lethbridge West MLA and parliamentary assistant to the minister of advanced education and technology (PA), spent a year working construction before realizing that he wanted to get an education.

"I started at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge in pre-med and later decided to complete my degree in biology. The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ was quite small and everybody knew each other. We often played bridge in the hallway, had coffee with professors and fellow students in the cafeteria or attended cabarets in the evenings. It was quite collegial," remembers Weadick. "I think one of the important things I got from attending the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ was that I learned to question everything and come up with answers for myself, not just accept other people's opinions. Perhaps the most important things I gained from attending the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ, however, were the relationships I built, relationships with staff, professors and students because those were the people in my community."

Weadick certainly understands community. He is a local businessperson and has spent several years doing environmental work for two local engineering firms. He also served on Lethbridge City Council from 1991-2001, and was the founding president of both Fifth on Fifth Youth Services and the Dragon Boat Festival.

In 2008, Weadick was elected MLA and served as the Chair of the cabinet policy committee on the economy before being appointed to his current position as PA in January this year.

"My goal is to represent the citizens of Lethbridge in Edmonton and make sure that our people are well represented," says Weadick.

Brendan Wade

As executive assistant to the Leader of the Alberta Liberal Caucus, Brendan Wade (BA '10) is on a voyage of self-discovery – a journey he began while working towards his bachelor of arts in political science and history at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge.

Growing up in Vulcan, Wade spent many hours helping at school and community events and developing an important sense of community. With its smaller campus and close proximity to home, the U of L felt like a perfect fit for Wade.

"I can't say enough good things about my campus experience. I got involved with several clubs. I was the founding president of the food and beverage club, which is still going strong and helping make the university experience great for other students," says Wade. "I found that my professors at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ demanded a fair amount of work and that was a good thing. I still connect with some of my profs because I welcome and value their advice and input. Working in partisan politics like I do, I really appreciate the skills I learned at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ, one of those being the ability to look at issues from all sides."

Such critical thinking skills are a vital asset to him in his job as he does everything from preparing briefs and face books to chauffeuring and scheduling appointments for the opposition leader.

"This job is a great learning opportunity. It has helped me cement some of my beliefs and call others into question," says Wade. "As I continue to learn and grow I know I am developing valuable skills that will help me in the future."

Mike Simpson

Following his father's footsteps, Mike Simpson (BA '00), executive assistant for the solicitor general and minister of public security, intended to become a lawyer when he started a political science degree at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge. Taking a drama class in his second year changed his mind.

"I knew after that class that I did not want to go into law. I played in a band with my cousin. I acted in plays. I changed to a double major and figured I would go into fine arts after I graduated," recalls Simpson. "In my third year I got involved in student politics. I was the fine arts representative on the students' union. In 1999, I ran for students' union vice-president internal affairs and won. It was pretty interesting. ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ was great for preparing me to do work. Learning to write monologues helped me write speeches. Learning the theories and processes in political science and learning how to research have all benefited me."

In 2001, Simpson's music career was literally leaving him hungry. Simpson began volunteering for the PC Constituency Association; after all, they had food. With a full stomach, Simpson caught the political bug and soon worked his way up the political ladder from research officer to his current position as executive assistant.

"My job is to help the solicitor general do his part to keep the government moving in the right direction," says Simpson. "I am happy doing quiet change. It might be behind the scenes, where nobody else recognizes, but I know that I have made a difference."

Warren Chandler

For Warren Chandler (BA '01), executive assistant to the minister of transportation, attending the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge was more than the next step on his life's journey; it was an investment in a future he could not wait to begin.

"I always assumed I would go to university, and the U of L was always my number one choice of schools. My dad and uncle went there and I looked forward to going there," says Chandler. "I enjoyed the small classes, the academic challenges. My professors were always pushing us to think outside the box and think critically. In class one day, Dr. Paul Viminitz declared he was a feminist and I think he offended most of the women in class, but on further analysis, he was able to back up his claim. He taught me to back up what I say and to think critically."

Critical thinking and the ability to deal with stress and pressure and to write and communicate clearly are skills that Chandler honed at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ – skills that are vital to his success in the political world. He began working in an introductory research role at the legislature in the fall of 2001. Since then, Chandler has steadily moved up the ranks to his current position.

"I do anything and everything that the minister needs in order to conduct his daily duties," explains Chandler. "It can be extremely stressful, but it is very exciting and I am very happy where I am."

UNews - chartered accountant

Horns' alumna sees giving back as a natural act

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