10 Concordians head to Parliament

Faycal El-Khoury, BEng 84, Liberal, Laval–Les Îles, Que.

Faycal El-Khoury earned a civil engineering degree from Concordia and then established his own construction company. Since 2005, the native of Lebanon has been a consultant specializing in business relations with the Middle East.

Francis Scarpaleggia, MBA 84, Liberal, Lac-Saint-Louis, Que.

Francis Scarpaleggia has been the MP for the Lac-Saint-Louis riding since 2004 and has served on a number of House of Commons committees. In addition to his MBA from Concordia’s John Molson School of Business (JMSB), Scarpaleggia holds a BA in economics from McGill University and an MA in economics from Columbia University.

Brenda Shanahan, MBA 88, Liberal, Châteauguay–Lacolle, Que.

Brenda Shanahan is a financial educator, investment advisor, columnist for a variety of Montreal-based publications, and a public speaker who hosts conferences on financial literacy. She holds an MBA from JMSB as well as a Bachelor of Social Work from McGill University.

Anju Dhillon, BA 02, Liberal, Dorval–Lachine–LaSalle, Que.

Anju Dhillon is the first Canadian Sikh to practice law in Quebec. She has long been active in the Sikh and local communities and for the Liberal Party of Canada. Dhillon earned a BA in political science from Concordia and an LLB from Université de Montréal.

Anthony Housefather, MBA 02, Liberal, Mount Royal, Que.

Anthony Housefather has been mayor of the City of Côte Saint-Luc, Que., since 2005. He is executive vice-president, Corporate Affairs and General Counsel, at Dialogic Corporation. Housefather holds an MBA from JMSB and BCL and LLB degrees from McGill University.

Tomacz (Tom) Kmiec, BA 05, Conservative, Calgary-Shepard, Alta.

Tom Kmiec, a native of Poland, was manager of policy and research with the Calgary Chamber of Commerce, registrar for the human resources profession in Alberta and director with the Human Resources Institute of Alberta. He earned a BA in political science from Concordia.

Eva Nassif, BA 05, MA 09, Liberal, Vimy, Que.

Eva Nassif is a certified translator and terminologist and worked as a teacher for the Laval School Board. A nursing sciences graduate from her native Lebanon, after arriving in Canada she earned BA and MA degrees in translation from Concordia. She was also an advisor and co-chair of the Concordia University Graduate Students Association in Translation.

Sherry Romanado, EMBA 11, Liberal, Longueuil–Charles-LeMoyne, Que.

Sherry Romanado is assistant director of continuing education at Champlain College in Saint-Lambert, Que., and a lecturer at McGill University’s School of Continuing Studies. She completed JMSB’s Executive MBA program in 2011.

Peter Schiefke, BA 07, Liberal, Vaudreuil–Soulanges, Que.
Peter Schiefke co-founded the award-winning Concordia Volunteer Abroad Program, which helps victims of the civil war in East Africa, and co-founded and served as president of the non-profit Youth Action Canada, which promotes youth involvement in fighting climate change. Schiefke earned a BA in political science at Concordia and an MSc in renewable resources from McGill University.

Daniel Blaikie, MA 10, NDP, Elmwood–Transcona, Man.

Winnipeg native Daniel Blaikie is an electrician by trade and an active member of his union. He also worked as a minister’s assistant in the Manitoba provincial government and an organizer for the federal NDP. Daniel holds a BA in in history and philosophy from the University of Winnipeg and an MA in philosophy from Concordia.