Media Release

Toronto, June 3, 2015

Ana White recently joined Seneca as Vice-President, External, formerly Strategy and College Affairs. In this role, she leads teams in Advancement and Alumni, Marketing and Communications, and Strategy and Public Affairs.

Ana joins Seneca from the Nature Conservancy of Canada where she was Vice-President, Marketing and Development. She brings an extensive background in all areas of advancement, marketing and development, including building and leading major fundraising campaigns, organizational branding and strategic planning.

She started her development career with World Wildlife Fund Canada, moving through progressively senior positions before joining the Toronto International Film Festival as Director of Development. She was the Vice-President of Marketing and Development for UNICEF Canada and vice-chair of UNICEF’s international fundraising think-tank. A consultant for several years, she has worked with a diverse set of clients including Seneca, the University of Toronto and the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health.

Ranjan Bhattacharya has joined Seneca as Dean, Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering Technology.

With more than 18 years of experience in postsecondary education, including roles as a Professor, Project Consultant, Program Co-ordinator, Associate Dean, and Dean, Ranjan has provided strategic and operational leadership in a number of college settings in Canada, the Caribbean and the Middle East.

Ranjan was previously the Dean of Technology, Energy, and Apprenticeship at Lambton College. He is the founding Dean of Lambton’s Centre of Excellence in Energy and Bio-Industrial Technologies. During his time at Lambton, Ranjan launched four new credentials, facilitated several articulation agreements, grew program enrolment, and led applied research initiatives.

Ranjan holds a B.Sc. in Chemistry and Physiology from the University of Alberta and an M.B.A. from Heriot Watt University, in addition to a number of industry certifications. He has extensive industry background in analytical instrumentation, acquired through various operational and supervisory roles in the petrochemical industry.

Dr. Jean Choi will join Seneca on June 12, 2015 as Dean, Academic Quality. With more than fifteen years of experience in postsecondary education, Jean has provided academic and administrative leadership to teams of faculty and students, as a Chair, Professor and Researcher/Principal Investigator.

Jean is currently the Chair, School of Liberal Arts and Sciences, in the Division of Preparatory and Liberal Studies at George Brown College. Her portfolio includes General Education and Liberal Studies electives, the Assaulted Women’s and Children’s Counsellor/Advocate diploma program, and the General Arts and Science certificate and diploma programs. Jean led George Brown’s successful application to the Postsecondary Education Quality Assessment Board (PEQAB) for college-wide breadth capacity.

She and her colleagues secured funding from HEQCO to engage faculty in teaching and learning opportunities focusing on the explicit teaching of critical thinking and problem-solving skills. Most recently, she co-led a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) Community and College Social Innovation proposal with a team of faculty and community members.

Jean holds a B.A. (Hons.) in Psychology from the University of Western Ontario, and an M.A. and Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology from York University.