This January, we welcomed Sandy Ma as our internship coordinator. Sandy has an honours BA in sociology and social cultural anthropology, as well as an MSW from the University of Toronto. She has over 25 years of experience in the social work field and is actively involved with church ministries and the community. Sandy will work with the community, faculty, internship supervisors and directly with students to help them secure internships.
We also welcomed David Stam this January as our new community life director. David’s role is to strengthen the co-curricular aspects of the Redeemer community by overseeing residence life vision and programming, as well as encouraging the personal and spiritual growth of students. David has over 20 years of work experience with young adults in educational and community settings, including working at the Canadian Mental Health Association and teaching in the sociology department at Sheridan College.
Hennie Schoon has been appointed to the position of interim dean of students. Hennie replaces Dr. Karen Cornies, who has taken on a new position as executive director of the Silver Lake Mennonite Camp. Hennie previously served as Redeemer’s community life director; as such, she is very familiar with Redeemer’s student development programs and procedures. She is well-loved by students and staff alike.
In the late fall, Cameron Farquharson ’13 joined us as a part-time resident director. Sharon Schotsman ’91 joined us this January to share the residence director role alongside Cameron. Cameron and Sharon seek to encourage personal growth in students, by helping them in their academic callings through co-curricular activities and by creating a safe, nurturing residence environment.
We were pleased to announce this December the appointment of Fred Verwoerd, CPA, CMA, as interim president. Verwoerd is currently serving as vice president, administration and finance and interim president at Redeemer and has experience in the Christian education field through his role as chair of the board for the Ontario Alliance of Christian Schools. Redeemer’s Board of Governors is targeting fall 2017 as the desired start date for the next president.