Dean’s $55,000 gift empowers women at the John Molson School of Business
Anne-Marie Croteau has served as dean of the John Molson School of Business since 2017.
In a move that further underscores her commitment to gender equity, Anne-Marie Croteau has donated $55,000 to support women students at the John Molson School of Business.
The gift from the first woman dean to lead the school will fund scholarships for women in the undergraduate Business Technology Management (BTM) program and the Master of Science (MSc) in Business Analytics and Technology Management.
A Concordia alumna in actuarial mathematics, Croteau has been a fixture at the John Molson School as a professor and administrator since 1997. She made her gift as part of the Campaign for Concordia: Next-Gen Now.
With more than 9,000 undergraduate and graduate students, the John Molson School is one of the largest business faculties in Canada and has made enormous strides, she notes.
“As Executive MBA director, I was part of the first cohort that took up office and classroom space in the newly opened John Molson Building [MB] in 2009,” says Croteau.
“The faculty members at the time had many discussions about naming plaques and study rooms. This sparked an idea about how I could contribute one day.”
This vision became clearer after a fellow Campaign for Concordia donor, Mark Goodman, BComm 81, supported one such initiative at his alma mater.
A plaque outside a study room in MB now commemorates Croteau and her achievement as the school’s first woman dean. The Anne-Marie Croteau Scholarships for women in BTM will be awarded as of the fall 2024 term.
A study hall in the John Molson Building now bears Croteau’s name.
‘A significant rise in female enrolment’
The field of BTM is one where women are still underrepresented. Croteau herself was the first woman to obtain a PhD specialized in management information systems from Université Laval in Quebec City.
“I’m proud of the fact that under my tenure as dean, the BTM undergraduate program, which now comprises 600 students, has seen a significant rise in female enrolment from 30 per cent to 40 per cent.
“There’s still room for improvement, which is why I was eager to support scholarships for women in the program. Professionally, too, the field could benefit from stronger women representation, across the board, and more importantly in top roles like chief information officer.”
By some estimates, there are more than three times as many men as women in BTM-related jobs across North America. In executive positions, the disparity is even starker.
At a time when demand for programs like the Master of Science (MSc) in Business Analytics and Technology Management — which is designed for students who wish to become strategic, data-driven industry specialists — has risen at top-tier business schools, it is imperative to encourage a wider pool of talent, adds Croteau.
“A big part of my mandate has been to broaden access to more students, particularly women,” she says. “This is why it was such an important milestone when we became the first-ever business school in Canada to earn a gender-parity certification from Women in Governance.
“The Barry F. Lorenzetti Centre for Women Entrepreneurship and Leadership, established with donor support and another first in Canada, was paramount as well.”
‘It’s about creating a culture’
Croteau’s commitment to gender equity is shared by Concordia’s largely women-led executive team, two members of whom — Pascale Sicotte and Annie Gérin — lead the Faculty of Arts of Science and Faculty of Fine Arts, respectively, as deans.
The three administrators recently co-authored an op-ed, timed with Women’s History Month in March, on the need to nurture more women decision-makers and experts.
“As leaders, it’s our turn to support our teams and colleagues on their journey, taking into account the particular conditions they face,” they wrote in the piece.
With her donation to strengthen women students at the faculty she has served for close to three decades, Croteau has definitely taken up the mantle to support the next generation.
“It’s about creating a culture and environment where women, and everyone, frankly, have the opportunity to thrive and contribute,” she says. “This is what Concordia and the John Molson School have excelled at, and I’m proud of the initiatives we continue to put into place to meet this goal.”
