Board of Directors

Providing Province-wide Access
to Scholarships for Students

The Scholarship Society is registered under the B.C. Societies Act and is a federally registered charity led by a 11-member board of directors. The board is governed by a constitution, bylaws and statement of founding principles.

Collectively and individually, the Board members bring vision, integrity and commitment to providing access to post-secondary education.

Rajiv Gandhi, Chair
Mel Berg, Director
Susan Brown, Director 
Barbara Crocker, Director
Jim Hamilton, Director
Deborah Hull, Director
Shirley Kamerling-Roberts, Director
Allan Okabe, Director
Mary Shaw, Director 
Dawn Tipton, Director
Stuart Walton, Director

Susan Brown, Director - Member since August 2014

Susan has been with the Government of British Columbia for over 30 years. She is currently the Executive Director, Strategic Policy and Planning, responsible for strategic policy and service planning, international education, intergovernmental relations, BCcampus, the BC Council on Admissions and Transfer, and the BC Electronic Library Network. Prior to this appointment, Susan was the Executive Director, Research Universities and Health Programs, Ministry of Advanced Education. She has also held program, policy, and senior management positions in the Ministry of Regional Economic and Skills Development, Ministry of Advanced Education and Labour Market Development, the Deputy Ministers' Policy Secretariat (Office of the Premier), and the Ministry of Labour. Susan is a member of the Premier's LNG Working Group Board and is the Public Administrator for Okanagan University College.
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Barbara Crocker, Director - Member since May 2013

Throughout her career, Barbara has engaged with students at both the secondary and post secondary level at institutions across Canada. Barbara served as Head of an independent school; Director, Athletes Village for The Canada Summer Games; Associate Director Student Financial Assistance, Director Housing and Financial Assistance; and at UBC, Manager of Green College, Director Student Financial Assistance and Awards and currently Director of The Student Financial Support Project. Barbara has served as President of the Association of Administrative and Professional Staff at UBC, Vice Chair of the Association of Student Aid Professionals and as a member of the Board of the Canadian Association of Student Aid Administrators. She currently serves as Chair of the Ike Barber Transfer Scholarship Adjudication Committee. Barbara is active in her community; including serving on the executive of the Board of the Family Support Institute and volunteering currently with Dress for Success, an organization helping low and no income women transition into the workforce. Barbara holds a B.A. from St Francis Xavier University and a BEd and MEd from Saint Mary's University.
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Jim Hamilton, Director - Member since May 2011

President of Okanagan College since 2004, Jim Hamilton has an association with the institution that dates back more than 30 years. He began his career with the institution in 1980 teaching English in what then served as the Vernon Campus - the old Canadian Forces army barracks. Over the years he has also served as an Okanagan University College Board of Governors member, and the Regional Principal of the North Okanagan Region. Hamilton has also worked for School District 22 as a K-12 administrator and served a term as a school trustee. He holds a Master's Degree in English Literature from Queen's University and was a Graduate Research Fellow on that university's Disraeli Project (1975-80). Hamilton also has a background as a consultant in media and public relations, strategic planning, and market research and has worked with many community organizations, particularly in the North Okanagan.

Since becoming President of Okanagan College, Hamilton has served as President of the Trades Training Consortium of British Columbia (TTCBC) and is currently its Vice President. He also served as Chair of the BC College Presidents group, is currently serving as Chair of the BC Council for International Education, as a Board Member of the Asia Pacific Gateway Skills Table and as a Board member of the British Columbia Council for Admissions and Transfer.
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Deborah Hull, Director - Member since February 2011

Deborah received a law degree from the University of Victoria in 1995. Following her Call to the Bar in 1996, she did consulting work for various government ministries and agencies, including the Ministry of Municipal Affairs, Ministry of Forests, and the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food. Deborah joined the Ministry of Advanced Education in 1998 as Senior Legislative Analyst. She has worked in a management role since 2000, first as Manager, Legislation for the Ministry of Advanced Education, and then as Acting Director, Child Care Policy, for the Ministry of Community, Aboriginal and Women’s Services. She was appointed Director, Private Institutions and Sector Initiatives for the Ministry of Advanced Education in December 2002, and as Director, Post Secondary and Industry Training for the Ministry in July 2004. In July 2006, she was appointed Executive Director, Universities and Institutes Branch. She is currently Executive Director, Universities and Aboriginal Programs Branch in the Ministry of Science and Universities.
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Shirley Kamerling-Roberts, Director - Member since June 2015

Shirley completed a career with Human Development Resources Canada, funding community development and managing retraining initiatives. She accepted several secondments to the Government of BC, including to the  inistry of Jobs, Tourism, and Skills Training, and to the BCMinistry of Forests. In 2000 Shirley joined Langara College as Manager of Student Financial Assistance, including student awards, and subsequently Student Development. Shirley has adjudicated awards for The Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation, the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada, the Garfield Weston Foundation, and the Irving K. Barber British Columbia Scholarship Society. She served as Board member for the BC Association of Student Aid Professionals and as Vice-Chair on the Board of the Canadian Association of Student Aid Administrators, providing field input to the Government of Canada on student borrowing and grants. She also served on the Board of Directors of the United Way of the Lower Mainland, and on Vancouver Foundation funding committees. Recently retired from the post secondary sector, Shirley remains active in the scholarship community, adjudicating Transfer and Aboriginal awards for the Irving K. Barber Scholarship Society, and serving as Board member for the bursary awarding Stepping-stone Foundation. Shirley completed her BA(Hons) at Simon Fraser University, and MEd at the University of British Columbia.
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Allan Okabe, Director - Member since June 2015

Allan is a member of the Lhoosk'uz Dene Nation. He was an apprentice and journeyman shipwright and spent over 17 years as an owner and operator of shipyards in BC and Southeast Alaska. He is the Proprietor and Senior Consultant of Ganhada Management Group,a First Nation management consulting firm that has been based in the lower mainland since 1993. The firm has been actively engaged in business and economic development, providing services to over 450 First Nations, Tribal Councils, Aboriginal organizations, corporations and entrepreneurs over the past 22 years. Ganhada has been providing third-party management and co-management services on behalf of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada and Health Canada since 2004, and is currently engaged in BC and Yukon.  Allan has served on several Provincial and Public company boards since 1988, and served as a board member and chair of Nicola Valley Institute of Technology for 7 years. He received his ICD.D certification as a corporate director in 2009 and a CAFM designation from AFOA Canada in 2011.
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