Executive Management - Catherine Vertesi

Catherine Vertesi
Vice President, International, External Relations and New Initiatives

Born in Montreal, Quebec and raised in Vancouver, British Columbia, Catherine joined Capilano University as Dean of Business Programs in May of 2001. Her academic career began in 1980 with the University of British Columbia’s Faculty of Commerce and Business Administration. As a lecturer, she later assumed the roles of Director then Assistant Dean, first for undergraduates and then for MBA and international programs. She has been Capilano’s Vice President Education for Management and International Programs since March of 2006.

Catherine says she works at Capilano University because: “I am passionate about excellence in undergraduate teaching and this is the place where I know I am not alone.”

She is the recipient of several awards for excellence in teaching, student service and in program innovation and has received the Canadian-wide award for Leadership in Internationalization from the Canadian Bureau of International Education. She has held Board positions at BC Women’s and Children’s Hospital, Ronald MacDonald House, the School of Chartered Accountancy and has served as a leadership mentor for the Minerva Foundation. She was also a founding Board member of the International Educators Association of Canada and a past member of the Commission on Royal Roads. She is often requested to present on various issues in international education at conferences around the world.

Catherine currently serves as the Vice Chair of the Board of the provincially sponsored BC Council for International Education and is a Board member of the North Vancouver Business Council and the North Vancouver Chamber of Commerce. Catherine will chair the NAFSA: Association of International Educators Annual Conference, being held in Vancouver in 2011 for approximately 10,000 attendees from more than 125 countries.

Her volunteer experience includes working with Ronald McDonald Children’s Charities, the Minerva Foundation and the Girl Guides of Canada.

She holds an MBA from the University of British Columbia.

A mother of three, Catherine lives in Vancouver with her husband, Les, and enjoys making music, photography, cooking, travelling, camping, reading and family.