Trent Alumna Dianne Lister, president & executive director of the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) Governors (Foundation) has been named one of Canada’s Top 25 Women of Influence.
Having first attended Trent as an undergraduate student in 1971, Ms. Lister returned to the University in 2006 as the vice-president of External Relations & Advancement (ER&A), to help establish a refreshed philanthropic vision for the institution. (During that time, Ms. Lister was thrilled to see her daughter, Sarah, also graduate from Trent with top marks in June, 2010.)
Prior to her leadership role at Trent, Ms. Lister was president and CEO of the largest hospital foundation in North America, SickKids Foundation, which raises funds for The Hospital for Sick Children. She is the first Canadian who ever held the position of the International Ethics Committee of the international Association of Fundraisers (AFP), where she served as the inaugural chair of the Board, Canadian Council.
Ms. Lister is among several well-known and respected senior-level fundraising professionals and academic leaders featured as a chapter writer in the book Ethical Fundraising: A Guide for Nonprofit Boards and Fundraisers.
Ms. Lister holds an Honours B.A. in English Literature from Trent University (1976) and an LL.B. from Osgoode Hall Law School (1980) in Toronto. She has been a leader in the charitable and Canadian not-for-profit sector since 1986, and received the international Certified Fundraising Executive designation (CFRE) in 1995.
The Top 25 Women of Influence is an annual ranking that provides national recognition to Canada’s top female influencers of the year, whose successful achievements contribute to the Canadian and global economies as well as to their communities.
The official ranking of the Top 25 will be released in the Winter Issue of the Women of Influence Magazine (January 2012). The Women of Influence organization is also running a social media campaign asking people to vote for which of the top 25 should be featured on the cover of the January issue.
Posted on Thursday, November 24, 2011.