Board of Directors
The Rexdale Women's Centre is governed by a dedicated and committed Board of Directors comprised of volunteers who fulfill their fiduciary duties for the good of the organization. This dedicated group of individuals manages the organization's operations through policy development and service planning. The Board of Directors also ensures organizational goals are set and met and adopts and adheres to objectives and standards for effective service delivery and fiscal management.
Their commitment ensures the future success of the organization.
Chairperson-President
Sabina Filipescu, Honours B.A.
Sabina joined the board of directors of Rexdale Women's Centre in 2015. After moving to Ontario from Romania in 1998, Sabina and her family relied heavily on critical community supports in the first phase of settlement. This experience encouraged her to pursue a career in the Government of Ontario, where she has been working since 2007 on leading the design and implementation of various programs and services to benefit people across Ontario, including seniors groups and social assistance recipients. She is passionate about helping vulnerable communities and individuals thrive, both personally and professionally. Sabina has been in the role of President of the Board at RWC since 2019.
Vice-Chairperson
Dr. Valentina Vaguengueim, MBA, Doctorate
Dr. Valentina Vaguengueim has over 15 years of operational, leadership and advisory experience across several industries including Pharmaceutical, Clinical Research and Biotech in regulated environments of the Americas, Asia Pacific, Africa and Europe. During her career, Valentina worked for multinational giants as well as smaller innovative firms providing strategic leadership of all aspects of operations, regulatory compliance, client relationships and innovation. She was involved in research of new technologies and the development of a small business. Currently, Valentina manages projects at Deloitte Canada designing agile operational solutions and delivering superior client experience. Valentina has completed an Executive MBA from the Richard Ivey School of Business. She also is a volunteer advisor to healthcare ventures at MaRS Discovery District. Being an immigrant herself, Valentina is passionate about giving back and contributing to the communities helping them to prosper.
Secretary
Florentina G. Stancu-Soare, Hons. B.A
Florentina is the Director of Public Affairs and Regulatory Standards at the Canadian Marketing Association. She manages the Canadian Marketing Code of Ethics and Standards, supporting compliance and best practice guidance, and is a regulatory lead on issues impacting the marketing profession. An experienced public affairs and communications professional, Florentina is a consensus builder with a proven track record as a public policy influencer, project manager, advocacy campaign designer, and effective volunteer and grassroots mobilizer. Florentina holds a degree from the University of Toronto.
Directors
Ankita Mahesh, B.Eng, MBA
Ankita is passionate about social justice and addressing systemic inequalities. As an immigrant to Canada, she understands the challenges and barriers that new immigrants need to overcome in order to thrive in their new home. She is a healthcare professional currently working as a Marketing Manager at Johnson & Johnson. She has an MBA from the Rotman School of Management. Prior to this, she had 5 years of international experience in engineering, quality, sales and marketing at Volvo and Toyota.
Hamdi Jimale, Honours B.A, MPP
Hamdi joined the Board of Directors in 2019. She currently is an Associate at MaRS Discovery District, focused on programs and ventures capital initiatives to support the growth and adoption of Canadian technology. She brings over 5 years of experience in policy, M&A integration, and business operations. She holds a Bachelors's degree in Forensic Psychology and a Master's in Public Policy at the University of Toronto.
Elena Kaminsky, B.A. (HONS.), J.D.
Elena is a legal counsel and social justice advocate. In her professional life, her expertise has included both employer and employee advice and representation on a wide range of labour and employment issues in Ontario and British Columbia, including human rights and workers' compensation benefits. She has a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Creative Writing from York University (2007) and a Juris Doctor from Western University (2011). Elena has volunteered for Olivia Chow's office, the Toronto Rape Crisis Centre/ Multicultural Women Against Rape 24-Hour Crisis Line and Vancouver Rape Relief & Women's Shelter, and Toronto's and Vancouver's Fringe Festivals.
Asvini Keerawella, MBA, B.A. in Economics
Asvini Keerawella is the Senior Manager, National Programs at MaRS Discovery District (MaRS), where she leads the Women in Cleantech Challenge and the RBC Women in Cleantech Accelerator. The goal of these programs is to identify and empower top female innovators from across the country who are developing technologies to tackle the world's most daunting environmental challenges. Asvini has an MBA from the Schulich School of Business, York University and B.A. in Economics from the University of British Columbia.
Lara Roccatani,
Hons. B.A., Fundraising & Volunteer Management Certificate
Lara joined the Rexdale Women's Centre board in 2017. She is a University of Toronto graduate with over 9 years experience in the not-for-profit sector working for a variety of NGOs including NIFC, MSF, Earth Rangers, University of Toronto, the Green Party of Canada. Lara also is a volunteer with a community group sponsoring their second family from Syria. Lara has lived in Rexdale for 28 years and has a keen interest in helping improve the opportunities available for women, and their families, living in Rexdale today.
Abby Lee, B.Math, MAcc, CPA
Abby is a Chartered Public Accountant with experience with charities, healthcare and non-profits. She currently works at the Ontario Hospital Association who serves 140 hospital members through thought leadership, data & analytics, and advocacy. Abby focused on empowering others through mentorship, and enriching discussion and decision making with evidence and financial insights. Abby graduated with a Bachelors in Math and Masters in Accounting, both from the University of Waterloo.
Tina-Marie Nairne,
B.A.(Hons.), Canadian Immigration Consultant Certificate
Tina-Marie joined the Rexdale Women's Centre Board of Directors in November 2021.
Tina-Marie is an engaging communicator and exceptional project manager with over 15 years of experience in fast-paced, client-focused environments. Tina-Marie's passion for supporting the success of others is reflected in her previous work of managing national women's economic development programs at the Canadian Women's Foundation and helping foreign nationals interpret Canadian immigration policies, while with professional service firm Williams Immigration. During her tenure with the Government of Jamaica, Tina-Marie led the strategic promotion of policy goals developed to champion the economic growth of the Jamaican small business sector, and to improve recognition of the growing social enterprise economy.
Tina-Marie provides strategic consulting and develops compelling content that support a positive profile for Sun Life Financial Group Retirement Services (GRS). In her role as Proposal Content Manager, Tina-Marie works closely with client relationships and sales support teams to respond to the proposals for Sun Life's GRS.
Tina-Marie holds a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in Business Administration (Human Resources) and French Studies from Trent University and a diploma in Canadian Immigration from Humber College.