There is an outstanding team of academic and administrative professionals behind BCIT. Their leadership ensures BCIT remains a viable, accountable and world-class institution.
Dr. Jeff Zabudsky has over 30 years of experience within post-secondary and polytechnic leadership roles, both in Canada and internationally. Throughout his career, he has championed applied education as a transformative instrument to enrich lives and contribute to thriving communities.
Prior to his appointment as President of the British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT), Dr. Zabudsky was Provost for the American University of Bahrain, having also served as CEO for Bahrain Polytechnic. Before his career took him to the Middle East, Dr. Zabudsky was President and Vice Chancellor for Sheridan College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning. He has also served as President and CEO of Red River College Polytechnic and Vice President, Academic at Sault College of Applied Arts and Technology.
Dr. Zabudsky is an active member of the communities in which he works and lives, including having chaired municipal United Way campaigns for both Oakville and Winnipeg. He served on the Halton Healthcare regional board and Halton Food For Life foodbank, in addition to sitting on the boards for the Mississauga Board of Trade and Mississauga Healthy City Stewardship Centre.
Dr. Zabudsky has been honoured with distinguished alumni awards from Toronto Metropolitan University and Athabasca University. He has also received an award for the employment of Indigenous people from the Inter Provincial Association for Native Employment (IANE) and is a Paul Harris Fellow of Rotary International.
Dr. Zabudsky holds a PhD in Educational Policy Studies from the University of Alberta, a Master’s degree in Distance Education from Athabasca University, and a Bachelor of Applied Arts in Broadcast Journalism from Toronto Metropolitan University.
As Provost and Vice President, Academic, Jennifer is the senior academic officer for the Institute. She leads the creation and implementation of the academic priorities for the Institute and has direct responsibility for the Schools (via the Deans) and the learning and teaching mission (via the Associate Vice Presidents, Students and Academic).
Additionally, Jennifer has served as the Interim Vice President, Academic and Associate Vice President, Academic Operations. In these roles, Jennifer was instrumental in leading a successful academic response to the COVID-19 pandemic and forwarding the strategic Education Plan for the Institute, which included spearheading the BCIT Agile and Work Integrated Learning framework – a significant strategy in provincial workforce development and recovery.
Jennifer joined BCIT as faculty in the School of Business + Media in 2005, bringing with her nearly a decade of experience in the accounting sector in both financial and human resource management roles. She holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of British Columbia and is a designated Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA, CA). In 2015 she was the recipient of a BCIT Employee Excellence Award for Leadership and in 2017 was appointed Associate Dean of Accounting, Finance, Financial Planning, Risk Management and Insurance. Jennifer also spent 6 years as Chair of the Education Council where she was responsible for the review and approval of new and existing academic programming at the Institute.
As Chief Financial Officer and Vice President, Administration, Trish Pekeles brings over 20 years of strategic, financial, and operational management experience in both the public and private sectors.
Trish’s portfolio is responsible for the stewardship of BCIT’s physical and financial assets.
- Financial Services – Responsible for strategic financial leadership for BCIT, which involves financial planning, analysis and decision support, financial and capital reporting, budgeting, forecasting and controls.
- Corporate Services – Responsible for strategic support and advice to ensure BCIT achieves the best value. The areas of responsibility: Food Services, Bookstore, Logistics, External Events, Legal and Risk Management, Contract Management, Commercial Leasing, and Strategic Procurement.
- Campus Planning and Facilities – Responsible for planning, constructing, maintaining and operating educational and research facilities on behalf of the Institute.
- Information Technology – Responsible for providing essential support for campus-wide IT infrastructure, managing systems, networks, and technology resources to enhance learning, teaching, research, and administrative functions.
- Cybersecurity – Responsible for leading cybersecurity, including cyber threat, risk management and institutional training and awareness.
- Internal Audit and Enterprise Risk Management – Responsible for enterprise risk and assurance function that serves as a strategic partner to management and supports the Board of Governors and organization in fulfilling their risk oversight responsibilities.
Trish has served in several key senior executive roles at UBC, BC Hydro, and Vancouver Community College where she led strategic transformation initiatives, $1B Accenture partnership, real estate strategy, and was the executive co-lead on the Workday finance and HR ERP implementation for UBC.
Committed to lifelong learning, Trish holds a Master of Business Administration from Royal Roads University (Victoria, BC), is a certified Family Enterprise Advisor, and is a Chartered Professional Accountant (CGA).
As Vice President, People, Culture, and Inclusion, Chris provides executive leadership in the areas of Human Resources; Privacy, Information Access, and Policy Management; Safety, Security, and Emergency Management; and Respect, Diversity, and Inclusion. Chris leads People, Culture, and Inclusion with a focus on developing and strengthening strong relationships across BCIT and seeking out diverse opinions and perspectives.
Chris has senior leadership experience in large organizations in both the public and private sectors. Throughout his decades-long career, he has led many complex negotiations, ranging from collective bargaining to integration agreements following large mergers and acquisitions, and all other forms of dispute resolution.
Chris is passionate about workplace culture, workplace safety, and building environments where everyone feels valued and acknowledged. His goal for the purpose of People, Culture, and Inclusion is to be accessible, visible, and responsive to all the exceptional faculty, staff, and students across BCIT. Chris is proud to champion BCIT’s inclusive work environment and commitment to Truth and Reconciliation.
Chris himself is a proud BCIT graduate. Outside of work, his greatest joy is spending time with his wife and son, especially supporting his son’s love of soccer out on the pitch!
As Vice President, External, Cynthia Petrie champions the Institute’s vision and mission, providing executive leadership to a broad portfolio of departments including Advancement, Marketing and Communications, Stakeholder Relations, and Indigenous Initiatives and Partnerships – whose unified goal is to enhance the Institute’s profile locally, nationally, and globally. As the strategic connector between BCIT and its stakeholders, Cynthia works to nurture and cultivate the Institute’s relationships with all levels of government, industry, donors, alumni, Indigenous communities, and relevant strategic partners.