Leadership

President and CEO

Dr. Penner was appointed as Northern College’s President and CEO in August of 2020. She previously held the role of Northern College’s Vice President, Academic and Student Success, where she worked since 2014. With a doctorate in Education, Dr. Penner has previously served as Director of Learning Support, Applied Research, and Transitions at Holland College in Prince Edward Island for a number of years, where she has championed excellence in teaching and learning. Dr. Penner’s experience in leading diverse faculty and staff, curriculum design and learning management systems, as well as in expanding Indigenous programming, and developing mutually beneficial partnerships has enhanced the learner experience both academically and socially while being responsive to the needs of diverse student populations through the provision of appropriate services.

Senior Vice President of Corporate Services

Mitch Dumas was appointed Vice President of Corporate Services at Northern College in the fall of 2019. Mitch is a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA) and received his Honours Bachelor of Commerce from Laurentian University in 2006 and his Masters of Business Administration (MBA) from Laurentian in 2013. Mitch has sharpened his leadership skills in several progressive positions at mining and contracting operations in and around the Timmins area. Dumas oversees the Finance department at the College, and also the Human Resources, Northern Training Division and Plant & Property departments.

Vice President Academic and Student Success

Aaron Klooster MSc., is the Vice President Academic and Student Success at Northern College. Born and raised in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Klooster returned to Northern Ontario following graduate studies at Western University and has been with Northern College for over 17 years, as a faculty member and Dean, and in his current position since May of 2021. As the senior academic officer of the institution, Klooster is a strong advocate for education as a driving force in our local, provincial, and national economy and, with this in mind, oversees all academic programming at the College.

Chief Cultural Officer (CCO)

Susan Hunter joined Northern College as Director of Marketing, Communications, and External Relations in November of 2019 and became the organization’s Chief Cultural Officer in January of 2022. Guided by a strong sense of purpose for empowerment through education, Susan earned an honours undergraduate degree from Western University and the University of Nice, France, a Bachelor in Education from Althouse College at Western, and a Master of Arts in anti-racism, Indigenous empowerment, and critical pedagogy from the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE) of the University of Toronto. Susan is also an Ontario Certified Teacher.

Chief Information Officer and Director of Information Technology

Frédéric Nickner joined Northern College as the Chief Information Officer and Director of Information Technology in October, 2021.  Frédéric holds an Honours Baccalaureate in Commerce with options in Finance & Accounting (B.Com, cum laude, 2005) from the University of Ottawa.  True to his Northern Ontario mantra of access to quality post secondary education, Frédéric has also completed his Masters of Business Administration (MBA) at Laurentian University in 2011.  Outside of his post-secondary experience at four colleges, Frédéric has worked for the Parliament of Canada, the Office of the Auditor General of Canada, Canada Post Corporation and MacLean Engineering & Marketing Co. Ltd., within the mining sector.

Executive Director, Community, Business Development, and Employment Services

Since 2014, Christine Heavens is the Executive Director, Community, Business Development, and Employment Services. Before this, she has been a member of the College’s administrative team since 2011 in the Trades and Technology department. As a senior administrative representative of Northern College, Ms. Heavens brings a wealth of knowledge related to Northern College’s strategies for culturally inclusive, flexible learning and building strong community and business partnerships. Her collaborative efforts and innovative means of removing barriers to education have granted her respect in the development of international partnerships, specifically in the mining extractive sector. Christine is a Certified Engineering Technologist and recently completed her Executive Masters in Business Administration (MBA).

Director of Student Services, Institutional Research, and Registrar

Cam McEachern joined the senior management team at Northern College in the summer of 2018 with experience in higher education serving in management and faculty roles at both college and university institutions in Canada and the United States. Cam holds a MA degree from McGill University, Quebec, and BA degree from Queen’s University, Ontario. McEachern prides himself as a learner-centered organizational change agent implementing new initiatives that achieve superior post-secondary access and success with expertise in online and hybrid programming, quality assurance, applied research and strategic planning. As Executive Director of Student Services, Institutional Research, and Registrar, Cam has college-wide responsibilities providing strategic vision, leadership, direction, and management to a very diverse service area of the College.