Board Member Biographies

Ex officio

Most Rev. Christian Riesbeck, CC
Bishop Riesbeck obtained a Bachelor of Social Sciences in Political Sciences from the University of Ottawa, followed by a Baccalaureate in Sacred Theology from St. Paul University of Ottawa and a Master of Divinity from St. Augustine’s Seminary in Scarborough. He was Ordained to the Priesthood in Ottawa for the Companions of the Cross in 1996. He served in pastoral ministry in the Archdioceses of Kingston, Ottawa and Galveston-Houston, Texas, was appointed Chancellor and later Episcopal Vicar for Canonical Concerns for the Archdiocese of Ottawa, and a judge of the Ottawa Regional Marriage Tribunal. He also served as the Assistant General Superior of the Companions of the Cross. In 2014, Bishop Riesbeck was ordained to the episcopate as Auxiliary Bishop of Ottawa. He held the offices of Vicar General, Vicar for the National Language Parishes, Communities and Faithful, Moderator of the Curia, and Coordinator of English Pastoral Services. Bishop Riesbeck was named Bishop of the Diocese of Saint John in 2019.

Dr. M. Nauman Farooqi, BSc, MBA, MBA, PhD – President and Vice-Chancellor
Dr. Nauman Farooqi was appointed President and Vice-Chancellor effective July 1, 2023. He has over two decades of academic, corporate, and public-sector experience spanning Canada, the United States, South Asia, and the Middle East. Prior to coming to STU, he served as Dean of Business and Social Sciences at Mount Allison University and was the inaugural Director of the Frank McKenna School of Philosophy, Politics, and Economics. His teaching specializes in areas of finance and entrepreneurship, and his research interests are in the areas of Hawala (informal value transfer systems) and experiential learning. He has a successful record of publications in academic journals, peer-reviewed conference proceedings, and academic conference presentations, has been a keynote speaker at national and international conferences, and has been a guest lecturer at national and international universities. He has served as a board member on various non-profits and an economic development cooperative. 

Kim Fenwick, BSc, MA, PhD - Provost and Vice-President (Academic and Research)
Dr. Fenwick was appointed Acting Vice-President (Academic & Research) in January 2016. She was the winner of the University’s Excellence in Teaching Award in 2006. She is the author of numerous scholarly publications including her contribution to Witnesses and the Law. She has taught at the University of Western Ontario, in London, Ontario, and she joined the Department of Psychology at St. Thomas University in 1995. She later served as the chair of that department and many university committees.

Appointed

Stacey Couturier, BA, BEd, CPHR (Oct. 2026) 
Stacey Couturier is a Human Resources Professional who currently woks as Senior Recruitment Consultant for Accountant / Administrative Staffing’s New Brunswick location where she manages the recruitment of accounting, finance and administrative roles in the area. Stacey completed her Bachelor of Arts Degree in Sociology at St. Thomas University and her Education degree from Crandall University in Moncton and is an enthusiastic ambassador for New Brunswick as a whole. Stacey is an active member of the Canadian Progress Club, Moncton’s local chapter of Business & Professional Women as well as the Chartered Professionals in Human Resources for New Brunswick.  

Ellen C. Desmond, BA, LLB, MSW, LLM, KC (March 2027)
Ellen C. Desmond is a Commissioner to the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission. She was previously the Director of Legal and Administration with the New Brunswick Energy and Utilities Board from 2006-2020 and, prior to this, she worked in private practice. She received her Queens Counsel designation in 2015. She has also taught on a part time basis with the Faculty of Law, University of New Brunswick. Ellen was the Chair of the Administrative Law Section for the Canadian Bar Association (NB), a member of the Board for Symphony New Brunswick, a member of the Accounting and Auditing Standards Oversight Council and the Atlantic Canada Lead for Women General Counsel Canada.

Nicole Deveau, BA, MPA (Dec. 2028)
Nicole Deveau is Partner and National Consulting Practice Leader at Grant Thornton LLP, based in Halifax. With over 25 years of experience in strategic consulting, she leads the delivery of business consulting solutions to public and private sector clients across Canada, as well as First Nations organizations. Nicole specializes in people, culture, and change solutions, including recruitment, human resource strategy, total rewards, and outsourced HR support. Prior to this role, she led major change initiatives at the Workers’ Compensation Board of Nova Scotia. She holds a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Economics from St. Thomas University and a Master of Public Administration from Dalhousie University. An active community leader, Nicole has served as National President of the Canadian Progress Club and held board roles with Phoenix Youth Programs, the Canadian Progress Club Charitable Foundation, and Waterstone Human Capital.

Marlene Floyd, BA (May 2029)
Marlene Floyd leads Microsoft’s corporate affairs, public policy and advocacy efforts in Canada. Prior to joining Microsoft, Marlene was responsible for the execution of national stakeholder engagement and outreach campaigns while serving as the Director of Operations and Outreach to the Rt. Hon. Justin Trudeau in the lead up to the 2015 federal election. Marlene has previously worked as a Partner at a national government and public affairs firm and has served as an advisor to Prime Ministers and several federal Ministers on a diverse range of public policy matters. An avid volunteer, Marlene sits on several national and community boards and is the founder of Dress for Success Ottawa. For her career and community achievements Marlene has been a recipient of a "Forty Under 40" award, Y Women of Distinction award and a Leading Women Building Communities award from the province of Ontario.

Daniel McCarthy – BComm, FCPA, DComm (May 2026)
Daniel J. McCarthy has over 30 years of experience in the investment banking and securities industry. He has worked as Vice-Chairman at Credit Suisse Securities (Canada) Inc and as Vice Chairman of CIBC World Markets. Previously at CIBC, he was Managing Director and Head of Investment Banking for Diversified Industries. In addition, Mr. McCarthy spent a number of years as Managing Director within CIBC’s Equity Capital Markets business, where he was responsible for the distribution of new issues within CIBC’s private client brokerage division. Prior to joining CIBC in 1990, Mr. McCarthy was Managing Director of Private Client Marketing at Merrill Lynch Canada.

Sister Mary Beth McCurdy, BA, BTh, MA (Dec. 2028)
Sister Mary Beth McCurdy was the congregational leader of the Sisters of Charity of the Immaculate Conception for more than a decade. Earlier, she served in education as well as parish and liturgical ministries in both eastern and western Canada. She graduated from the University of New Brunswick and Newman Theological College in Edmonton, Alta. Later, she earned a graduate degree from the Sophia Center in Culture and Spirituality at Holy Names University in Oakland, California. In 2008, she co-founded Sophia Recovery Centre for Women in Saint John, NB with the late sister Arleen Brawley SCIC. Sister Mary Beth served as a counsellor and board member at the centre. For three years, she was a delegate to the International Union of Superiors General. She is a board member with the Sisters of Charity Federation of North America as well as the National Shrine of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton in Emmitsburg, Md. Her commitment to community outreach and social and ecological justice includes a focus on truth and reconciliation in relationship with Indigenous peoples.

Brian J. Murray, BA, BEd, MEd (May 2028)

Brian Murray has held numerous leadership and teaching positions in public and independent schools for the past two decades. In his current roles as Managing Director for REACH Student Life Management Systems and CEO of Academic Edge, Brian works closely with hundreds of schools worldwide, helping institutions create safe and efficient models while sharing best practices with a worldwide community of educators. He is a regular presenter at international boarding school conferences and offers professional development in boarding school management, minimizing risk and maximizing safety, student leadership development and strategic school planning. Brian received a Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Education from St. Thomas University and a Master of Education (Learning and Technology) from Acadia University.

The Honourable Graydon Nicholas, Chancellor (Dec. 2026)

The Hon. Graydon Nicholas earned a Bachelor of Science from St. Francis Xavier University, a Bachelor of Law from the University of New Brunswick, and a Masters of Social Work from Wilfrid Laurier University. He worked with the Union of New Brunswick Indians as legal counsel and then as its Chair and President. As a jurist he argued cases at all levels including at the Supreme Court of Canada and was a Provincial Court Judge from 1991-2009. With former Supreme Court Justice Gerard V. La Forest, he co-authored the March 1999 Report of the Task Force on Aboriginal Issues at the request of the New Brunswick Government. He was Lieutenant Governor of New Brunswick from 2009 to 2014, becoming the first Indigenous person to hold this office. He was the Endowed Chair of Native Studies at STU from 1989-1991 and was reappointed in 2015.

Daniel Stevenson, BBA, LLB, LLM (Tax) (Oct. 2027)

Vaughn Sturgeon, BA, CMA, CPA (Jan. 2027) - Chair
Vaughn Sturgeon is the president, CEO and owner of The Warren Group, a logistics and industrial services group comprised of six individual operating companies. He holds a Bachelor of Arts from St. Thomas University and is a certified management accountant. He has been active in his community, serving on boards with the Rexton Community Access Centre, Rexton EMO and Rexton Credit Union. In the transportation industry, he has served as a director with the Canadian Trucking Alliance and the Atlantic Provinces Truckers Association and has served other corporate and not-for-profit boards. Sturgeon has also participated in many regional forums on economic development in Atlantic Canada.

Stephen Ward, BA, MA, PhD (May 2027)
Stephen Ward is a philosopher, journalist, educator and award-winning author. He started as a legislative reporter for the Saint John Telegraph before moving to the Canadian Press. He has worked as a foreign reporter, war correspondent and news room manager. He covered conflicts in Yugoslavia, Bosnia and Northern Ireland, and was often the only Canadian reporter in battle zones. Following his career in the field, he became the first faculty member at the University of British Columbia’s School of Journalism and made media ethics his area of expertise. His book, The Invention of Journalism Ethics, is now a standard reference around the world and his recent book Global Journalism Ethics: A Global Approach is one of the first philosophical examinations of ethics for global media.

Faculty Members

Michael Dawson, BA, MA, PhD (Oct. 2026)
Michael Dawson is Professor of History at St. Thomas University where he teaches courses on Canadian History, the global history of sport and tourism, the relationship between history and entertainment, and the comparative history of national identity and popular culture in Canada, New Zealand and Australia. He served as Chair of the History Department from 2006 to 2010 and Associate Vice-President (Research) from 2015 to 2020.  In 2014 he was elected to the Royal Society of Canada's College of New Scholars, Artists, and Scientists.

Dev Gupta, BA, MA, MA, PhD (Oct. 2026)

Dev Gupta is Professor and Chair of Economics at St. Thomas University, where he teaches courses in economic theory, quantitative methods, international trade, development, and econometrics. His research focuses on applied econometrics, globalization, and the economics of happiness. He has published six books, including four edited volumes on globalization and development, and a co-authored statistics textbook that has been adapted into French. At St. Thomas, he has also served as Coordinator of Business Studies, Director of University Research, President of the Faculty Association, and STU’s representative to the Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute. He is a recipient of the St. Thomas Merit Award for Scholarship (1998), the Excellence in Teaching Award (2001), and the Students’ Union Teaching Award (2000).

Alumni Members

Stephanie Underhill Tomilson, BA, BEd. Med (Dec. 2028)

Stephanie Tomilson is a leader in the educational community. She is currently an Education Specialist with AEI Canada, and prior to this role, she had been Principal or an Assistant Principal in schools in the Fredericton and Saint John region since 2007. Stephanie has been an educator for over 20 years. She spent 11 of those years in administration and greatly contributed to various community outreach programs in her school. Tomilson received a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Education from St. Thomas University, and a Masters of Education (Educational Foundations in Administration) from the University of New Brunswick. She is also a board member of various organizations, including Children’s Wish/Make-A-Wish, KV Oasis Youth Centre, and Hestia House Women’s Shelter.

Melissa Wah, BA (Oct. 2025)

Observers

Jeffrey Carleton, BA, MA

Jeffrey Carleton is Senior Advisor to the President. He has worked in the post-secondary sector for more than two decades and has served on various committees at the university. He holds a BA and MA from UNB, and has been a communications practitioner for 35 years in the corporate and post-secondary sectors. 

James Culligan, BBA, CPA,CGA (Vice-President, Finance and Administration)

James Culligan is Vice-President (Finance and Administration) at St. Thomas University. He is a Chartered Professional Accountant. He joined STU in 2022 following a successful career at Service New Brunswick where he held progressively responsible senior positions in accounting, budgeting, and administration. For the last six years prior to his move to STU, he was Executive Director of Finance and Administration overseeing a large operating and capital budget, as well as having responsibility for financial forecasting and reporting. He also has private sector experience as he worked for Irving Transportation Services before joining SNB.  He earned a Bachelor of Business Administration (Accounting) from UNB and holds designations from the Certified General Accountants of Canada. 

Jodi Misheal, BA, BEd (Vice-President, Advancement and Alumni Relations)
Jodi Misheal was appointed Vice-President (Advancement & Alumni Relations) in April 2017. Over her career, she has been a director of capital campaigns, annual funds, and major gift programs, and has directed alumni relations programming. She was Director of Development at St. Mary’s University, Assistant Campaign Director at Acadia University, and Senior Development Officer and Alumni Fund Director at Mount Allison University. She was also Director of Alumni Affairs at Mount Allison where she was responsible for chapter events, reunions, annual fund, and class projects. She was partner/owner of Red Letter Philanthropy Counsel, a company that provides guidance and support to non-profit organizations. Misheal holds a Bachelor of Arts from Mount Allison University and a Bachelor of Education from St. Francis Xavier University.

Ana Lucía Pavón (May 2026)

Ana Lucía Pavón is President and CEO of the St. Thomas University Students’ Union. Originally from Tegucigalpa, Honduras, she is in her fourth year of study, completing a Bachelor of Arts Honours in Criminology with a Minor in Philosophy. She has been involved in student government since her first year, and is Vice-Chair of the New Brunswick Student Alliance.