The annual Premier's Awards Gala celebrates some of the most impressive and successful college graduates across the province each year.
Seven Humber Polytechnic graduates have been nominated for a 2024 Premier's Award. The winners will be announced at the gala happening on November 25 in Toronto.
The annual awards are given to graduates from colleges across the province in recognition of their outstanding accomplishments. Both the winners and the nominees have attained professional success after graduation while being actively involved in the community and making notable contributions to their respective sectors.
This year's Humber alumni nominees are:
Jeff MacGregor - Advertising Copywriting (2008): MacGregor is a communications executive who's leading multi-billion-dollar mission-driven portfolios for organizations including the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative and as Chief Communications Officer at Baszuki Group, a social change venture launched by Roblox founder David Baszucki focused on mental health, climate initiatives and electoral innovation. He's received more than 50 marketing, communications, advertising and film awards and helped create two of the most successful global marketing campaigns in banking history.
Kenneth Hykawy - Law Enforcement (1977): Hykawy had a more than four-decade career in policing and frontline service in Alberta, receiving the Long Service Medal and Exemplary Service Medal for Police with a 30-Year Bar and the Alberta Emergency Services Medal with 22- and 32-Year Bars. He's among one-tenth of a per cent of police officers in Canada bestowed annually with the Order of Merit of the Police Forces, recognizing the highest qualities of citizenship and service to Canada, the police community and humanity. Upon completing a volunteer mission in war-torn Kosovo, Kenneth earned a United Nations Peacekeeping Medal.
George Stroumboulopoulos - Broadcasting-Radio (1993): Stroumboulopoulos is a globally renowned Canadian media personality, broadcaster and humanitarian who's synonymous with creative arts and entertainment. From the helm at the iconic MuchMusic to the historic Hockey Night in Canada to Strombo' on Apple Music Hits heard in over 165 countries, Stroumboulopoulos was named to Billboard Music Canada's 2024 Power Players List as one of the most powerful and influential people in the music industry. In 2023, he was appointed to the Order of Canada for his leading contributions to Canadian media and journalism.
Steve Urszenyi - Paramedic (1983): Urszenyi is a paramedic, tactical medic, and CBRNE (chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and explosives) specialist who has spent 40 years on the frontlines of emergency response. Urszenyi has earned the Governor General of Canada EMS Exemplary Service medal and 30-Year Bar. He was commander of the Ontario Emergency Medical Assistance Team and received the Ontario Public Service Amethyst Award for Outstanding Achievement for medical operations leadership at the Toronto 2015 Pan Am/Parapan Am Games. Urszenyi's 2023 debut novel "Perfect Shot" was a finalist for three literary awards.
Sanchari Sen Rai - Immigration Consultant (2019): Rai is the co-Founder and CEO of Education Consultants Canada (ECC Hive) and SSR Immigration Service Inc. who has received a Canada's Most Powerful Women: Top 100 Award. ECC Hive has supported more than 50,000 aspiring international students while working with 70 learning institutions in Canada, the US, the UK, Australia and Singapore. A newcomer from India, she became a licensed immigration consultant and champion for immigrant women and students.
Lindsey McInerney - Public Relations (2009): McInerney is a highly regarded technologist and futurist, speaker and educator, and Founder and CEO of Black Sun Labs, helping brands and personalities comprehend and optimize cutting-edge technologies. As Global Head of Technology and Innovation at AB InBev, McInerney led one of the first major brand executions in the Metaverse for the consumer market goods sector. She's also Co-Founder and CEO of Sixth Wall, the digital arm of Mila Kunis' Orchard Farm Productions, exploring the intersection of technology and entertainment.
Tony DiGiovanni - Landscape Technology (1978): DiGiovanni served as Executive Director of Landscape Ontario, which represents, promotes, and fosters the advancement of the horticultural industry, for more than 30 years. Under DiGiovanni's leadership, Landscape Ontario became one of the world's largest horticultural associations, representing 3,400 landscape horticulture businesses and professionals across the province. DiGiovanni is also Partnership Manager for Canadian Trees for Life, a registered charity planting trees to fight climate change. Its first two campaigns the Highway of Heroes Tree Campaign and the GrandTrees Climate Solutions project raised over $12.4 million, enabling the planting of more than two million trees.
Humber alumni to receive Premier's Awards in recent years include Public Relations graduate Carrie Baker (2023), Ambulance and Emergency Care graduate Michael Sanderson (2023), Primary Care Paramedic graduate Mark Cameron (2022), Social Service Worker graduate Baldev Mutta (2021), Ambulance and Emergency Care graduate Peter F. Dundas (2019), Funeral Service Education graduate Allan Cole (2018), Industrial Design graduate Andrew Bowerbank (2017), Marketing graduate Ron Suter (2016), Culinary Management graduate Candice Ekonomakos (2014), Landscape Technician graduate Peter Van Stralen (2014), Industrial Design gradate Lee Renshaw (2013) and Paramedic graduate Rahul Singh (2011).
