Alumni of Influence

Peter Slan is vice-chair of The Bank of Nova Scotia and head of the bank’s global strategic client group. In his more than 22 years with Scotiabank, he has served in a wide variety of roles and has made significant contributions to the bank’s success. He is active in the community and has served on the boards of the Baycrest Foundation, the Rotman School of Management, and the United Jewish Appeal's Bay Street Cabinet, among others. He received the IR Magazine award for Best Investor Relations During a Corporate Transaction for Scotiabank’s $3.2 billion acquisition of DundeeWealth.

Catherine Tait completed an undergraduate degree in literature and philosophy, following the encouragement of the UC registrar at the time who suggested she switch from science to liberal arts. She went on to complete post-graduate degrees in communications studies at Boston University and the University of Paris. She has taken on many leadership roles in media and film, including at Telefilm Canada, Hollywood Suite, iThentic, and Duopoly, which she co-founded. She was previously the president and COO of Salter Street Films and in 2018 was appointed president and CEO of CBC/Radio-Canada. She has reinvigorated the public broadcaster on several fronts, including digital transformation, and in 2019 was named Playback’s Executive of the Year.

Jeff Wrana is a renowned cancer researcher and senior investigator at the Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute. He was awarded the McLaughlin Medal by the Royal Society of Canada (2018) in recognition of "his pivotal contributions to our understanding of biology, human disease, and its treatment." He and his team also recently discovered a new type of intestinal stem cell that may lead to a better understanding of and treatment for inflammatory bowel disease.