Our Board

Join our Board of Directors – Now Recruiting

Join us at our Board Recruitment Open House to learn more about our
Board & Committee opportunities.

January 14 | 4:30-6:30pm
YWCA Edmonton | 10402 124 Street NW

YWCA Edmonton is inviting community members to apply to join our Board of Directors and committees. These roles offer a meaningful opportunity to contribute your skills, perspective, and lived experience to work that supports equity, leadership, and well-being across our community.

Serving on the Board or a committee is a chance to deepen your leadership, strengthen your connection to community, and help guide programs and advocacy that support women, girls, and gender-diverse individuals. Our volunteers play an important role in shaping the direction of our organization, offering insight, accountability, and care as we respond to evolving needs.

Whether your interests lie in governance, finance, program insight, or truth and reconciliation, there are several ways to get involved. We value a diversity of voices and experiences and are committed to creating spaces where people feel respected, heard, and supported.

Committee work is a great way to get involved with YWCA Edmonton if you’re curious about governance but not ready for a full Board commitment. Serving on a committee allows you to contribute your skills, learn how our organization works, and build relationships with staff, board members, and fellow volunteers.

It’s also a meaningful pathway for people who want to support our mission in a more focused way, bring their expertise to specific areas, and explore future leadership opportunities with YWCA Edmonton. This year, we are looking for community members for the following Board committees:

Finance and Audit Committee
Provides oversight of YWCA Edmonton’s financial health, budgeting, risk management, and audit processes.
Programs and Standards Committee
Supports quality, accountability, and continuous improvement across YWCA Edmonton’s programs and services.

Truth and Reconciliation Committee
Guides the organization’s commitments to truth, reconciliation, and respectful engagement with Indigenous communities.

If you are interested in contributing to work that builds safer, stronger communities, we encourage you to apply and be part of the ongoing leadership of YWCA Edmonton.

We welcome all applications. We especially encourage individuals from diverse backgrounds, including racialized communities, immigrant communities, LGBTQ2S+ communities, and those aged 30 or under to apply.

Please note that some Safari users are unable to access the application form. We suggest trying the link in an alternate browser; you can copy and paste here: https://forms.gle/kZ51Aoow4FakBurN9

This year, we are seeking the following candidate profiles:

Finance & Audit

YWCA Edmonton is seeking a board member with strong financial expertise to help guide the stability and future direction of our organization. This role plays an important part in supporting the programs and advocacy work that so many in our community rely on. You’ll be a good fit if you:

Hold a CPA or CFA
Bring experience in financial planning, audits, reporting and internal controls
Understand risk management and the financial needs of a nonprofit
Are interested in leading or supporting our Finance and Audit Committee
Care about strengthening services that support women, girls and gender-diverse individuals

This position is well suited to someone who can offer steady, thoughtful oversight and who wants to help move a long-standing community organization forward.

Governance Expertise

We are also looking for leaders who bring governance experience connected to the heart of our mission. YWCA Edmonton offers essential supports ranging from counselling to disability services to outdoor education at Camp Yowochas. We need board members who can strategically advise this work and want to help guide its growth. You’ll be a good fit if you:

Have been a Board Director for an organization of similar scale to the YWCA Edmonton
Are a strategic leader who has experience guiding strategic plans
Care about building safer, stronger communities for women, girls and gender-diverse individuals
Have non-profit experience and understand community-based service delivery and the needs of diverse groups
Bring knowledge of trauma-informed practice, youth work or inclusive program design
Are committed to truth and reconciliation and comfortable engaging with Indigenous partners
It would be an asset if you have experience in outdoor education, mental health supports, youth programming and/or disability services

This role is ideal for someone who wants to lend their insight and community experience to help shape our organization on our governance board.

Thank you for your interest in YWCA Edmonton. We look forward to reviewing your application.

Applications will be accepted until January 23, 2026.

Board of Directors

President: Kelsea Zalaski

Kelsea holds a Master of Business Administration with a focus on Entrepreneurship and Innovation and a Bachelor of Commerce with a focus on Human Resources from the University of Alberta. Throughout her career, she has concentrated her efforts on working with the public sector, consulting with all three levels of government in Canada. Notably, Kelsea led AltaML’s GovLab which was a public sector machine learning innovation lab that tackled problems such as wildfire and flood prediction, detecting road distress, and predicting utilization for new school builds. Most recently, she has taken on a role with the City of Edmonton as part of their business readiness team for their technology transformation.

Outside of her work at the City, Kelsea is the owner of Sweet Escape Dance, an Edmonton-based dance studio that provides dance classes and performance training to Edmonton adults of all abilities.

Vice President: Rachel Foley

Rachel Foley serves as an Executive Director within the Government of Alberta, specializing in strategy and social policy. With experience in social housing, education, and health, Rachel has actively supported meaningful change for communities. Outside of work, Rachel is further committed to supporting women and girls in her community, as evidenced through her long-standing volunteer work with organizations like Girls Guides of Canada. In her spare time, Rachel enjoys hiking and running and can often be found enjoying the trails in Edmonton’s beautiful river valley.

Vice President: Doris Paquette

Doris Paquette, BA, PMP, MBA Candidate, is the Director of Strategic Implementation with the Ministry of Education and Childcare. With deep expertise in capital and strategic planning, Doris is committed to advancing women’s leadership and empowering women across generations. She serves as President of the Board of Directors for Change for Children Association, Chair of the Edmonton Chapter of Women in Leadership, and is an active member of CREW Edmonton.

Her leadership has been recognized through several prestigious awards, including Edify Magazine’s Top 40 Under 40 (2022), the Healthy Community Award for Most Significant Change (2022), and Women of Influence (2023) by The Planner’s Magazine.

Prior to joining the Government of Alberta, Doris spent over a decade in the education sector, where she led a range of innovative projects—most notably the creation of safe, accessible, and inclusive play spaces for children, a personal passion of hers.

Treasurer: May Han

May Han is a Finance Director with a Canadian institutional investor. She has responsibility for finance, reporting, regulatory and compliance, strategy, risk management, and internal controls. Previously, she held Director of Finance roles with provincial pension plans administrators,pension fund manager, and invested time in public accounting practice. She holds a Bachelor of Management, Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA) designation, and Certified Internal Auditor (CIA) designation.

May also serves on other non-profit governance boards supporting their important causes.

May is passionate about YWCA’s vision and mission. YWCA continues to make important contributions in advocating and advancing the needs and interests of the women and families they serve, and with meaningful impacts in the community. She is proud to serve and represent YWCA.

Secretary: Kirsty Vogelesang

Kirsty Vogelesang is a lawyer at Emery Jamieson LLP in Edmonton, practicing primarily in the areas of civil litigation and administrative law. Kirsty received her undergraduate degree in Neuroscience with Honors from the University of Alberta and her Juris Doctor with Distinction from the University of Saskatchewan.

Born and raised in Edmonton, Kirsty is passionate about serving the local community and building safe and inclusive space for women. She hopes to use her skills and experience in the legal field to benefit YWCA Edmonton and the communities it serves.

When she isn’t working, Kirsty is an avid traveler and outdoor enthusiast, and can be found hiking a new mountain, visiting a new country, or training for a new race.

Past President: Francesca Ghossein

Francesca Ghossein is a lawyer at Field Law in Edmonton, practicing in the areas of professional regulation, and labour and employment law. She obtained her bilingual common law degree from the University of Ottawa where she sought opportunities to work on women’s issues and interned with the National Association for Women and the Law and the Department of Justice. She also holds a Bachelor of Science (Biology) from the University of Alberta. She enjoys figure skating, staying active, and learning new languages. She is passionate about supporting women and girls, and is honoured to contribute to an organization that provides such essential services to our community. Francesca has previously served as the President of the Board for two years, and she also served as Chair of the Board’s HR & Nominating committee for two years.

Tanya Adams

Tanya serves as the Director of Public Relations for the Mikisew Cree First Nation and contributes to the YWCA Truth & Reconciliation Committee. Proud of her Dene/Cree heritage and a member of the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation (ACFN), she maintains deep connections to her community. Tanya has earned a bachelor’s degree in communications and ongoing studies toward a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Simon Fraser University.

Over the span of 15 years, Tanya has gained diverse professional experience across multiple sectors, including marketing, communications, events, management, administration, indigenous relations, and community engagement. As an Indigenous woman, she brings a range of perspectives to her work and proudly advocates for diversity and inclusion within the YWCA and beyond

Ogechi Anyanwu

Ogechi Anyanwu, CPA, CGA, FCCA, MBA, is a seasoned Corporate Finance executive and strategic leader with 18 years of experience financial management/leadership, risk management/compliance, operational excellence and financial sustainability in mission-driven organizations and diverse industries.

Currently serving as Corporate Controller at Patterson Animal Health (Div of Patterson Companies Inc. US). she specializes in financial leadership, risk & treasury management, and driving long-term financial transparency.

Beyond her professional commitments, Ogechi is a passionate community builder, promoting health and wellness, particularly advocating for physical activity among women from diverse background through her involvement with Sistawalk Association. She has also served on YWCA Edmonton’s Finance and Audit Committee.

Vicki Campbell

Vicki Campbell, P.Eng. is a registered professional engineer in both Saskatchewan and Alberta with over 28 years of experience in the water and wastewater industry. Her current role is Director of Water Treatment Plants for EPCOR in Edmonton.She joined EPCOR in 2010 and in previous roles for EPCOR, Vicki was responsible for leading operations across Western Canada. She also has a wide range of experience from various roles prior to joining EPCOR including time in municipal utilities, engineering consulting, and technical sales.

Vicki has a passion and a long history of volunteering with industry organizations. She has dedicated her time to be an active member of many industry committees and has a passion for mentoring and making a difference for the next generation. She has served two terms on the Board of Directors for both the Canadian Water Wastewater Association and the Western Canada Water Wastewater Association. She was president of the Canadian Water Wastewater Association in 2023 and was Past President in 2024.

Katie Clackson

Katie Clackson is a criminal defence lawyer with Legal Aid Alberta’s Criminal Trial Group. She is passionate about advocating for marginalized individuals within the criminal justice system and the broader community. In November 2024, she was honoured to receive the King Charles III Coronation Medal in recognition of her work fostering social justice.

Katie enjoys mentoring law students through the U of A Faculty of Law’s “Low-Income Individuals and the Law” seminar, and volunteering with the Law Society of Alberta as a mentor to other lawyers, and as a member of the Practice Review Committee.

Fairness is the guiding principle in Katie’s personal and professional life, and she looks forward to collaborating with YWCA Edmonton’s Board and Leadership to work toward achieving equity for women and girls. In her spare time, you will find her at the family cabin with her husband, kids, and bratty but charming dog.

Sumira Duggal

Sumira Duggal is a Senior Manager, HR Partnerships & Programs with Canadian Western Bank (CWB), a Certified Talent Management Practitioner, and working towards her Certified Leadership Coach designation. As a Human Resources professional she supports business leaders with succession planning, talent management, business reorganizations, and other strategic initiatives with a people first lens, in addition, being an advocate and champion for team members across business areas.

Her real passion lies around facilitating community investment. Sumira has centred her community investment and voluntary efforts around advocating and supporting newcomers to Canada, providing foreign trained professionals with the tools and mentorship to be successful by translating and leveraging their skills into the Canadian landscape. Within CWB, she is the Co-Lead for CWB Global, an Employee Resource Group committed to supporting newcomers to Canada at CWB by creating opportunities for education, knowledge and information sharing with the goal to highlight the intersectionality between racialized newcomers, protected groups, and the experience of being new to Canada.

Outside of CWB, Sumira is a business owner and Co-Founder of MNS, a philanthropic sock brand with the ethos to donate back to the community and support organizations and corporations to give back to those requiring social assistance and basic items, like socks. Through MNS, they have donated over 100,000 pairs of socks to local shelters and charitable organizations across North America.

Kemi Kufuor-Boakye

Kemi is currently an Executive Director of Budget Development and Systems for Treasury Board and Finance at the Government of Alberta. In this role, she provides strategic options, recommendations and advice to ministries in all areas of budgeting, forecasting, spending and business planning. Additionally, Kemi supports the development and implementation of ministry budgets, monitoring achievements through quarterly and annual reports. She leads and coaches a management team to enhance government budget and business planning processes through effective collaboration.

She is a graduate of the University of Alberta with a Bachelor of Commerce degree and holds the designation of Chartered Professional Accountant and Certified Internal Auditor. Kemi is passionate about community service and is a current Edmonton Police Commissioner

As a black woman, she brings diverse perspectives and lived experiences to the table, ensuring that the board reflects the diversity of the community it serves. This representation is essential for making inclusive and equitable decisions that consider the needs of all community members.

Siahra Raeyr

Siahra Raeyr is a seasoned public policy professional who specializes in policies and initiatives for community-serving programs. She currently serves as a Manager of Legislation and Strategic Communications in the Ministry of Health, where she leads the development of health service delivery strategies to promote and protect the health of Albertans. Prior to this, she worked with the Government of British Columbia developing provincial policy and programs to provide a coordinated, trauma-informed, culturally safe response to violence against women, children and youth.

Siahra is excited to make a meaningful impact within the YWCA Edmonton, contributing to its transformative services, programs, and advocacy efforts. With a deep commitment to fostering gender equity and social justice, she is eager to collaborate with the YWCA Edmonton in building a stronger, healthier, and more equitable community for all.

Amy Verhoeff

Amy Verhoeff is a corporate lawyer at Bennett Jones LLP, a national law firm, where she maintains a general corporate commercial practice with a focus on mergers and acquisitions, commercial transactions, private equity, and financial services.

Proud to be a born-and-raised Edmontonian, Amy holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree in accounting and Juris Doctor degree both from the University of Alberta.

Amy is an active member in her local communities and is passionate about both empowering women and girls. In addition to her involvement with YWCA, she is a member of the Advisory Committee of the Stollery Women’s Network, currently serves as a co-chair of Edmonton Women in Finance’s Professional Committee and is on the Advisory Committee of the Edmonton Chapter of Young ACG (Association for Corporate Growth). She has also been involved with other non-profit organizations such as Compassion House Foundation.

Amy is a self-proclaimed outdoor enthusiast. She is an avid golfer, backcountry skier, and hiker.

Laurie Wang

Laurie Wang, BA, MBA, is the Vice-President of People, Culture and Communications at Legal Aid Alberta. In addition to board governance and policy development, she oversees the Marketing & Communications and People & Culture teams. A member of Forbes Communications Council, Laurie has received several awards over her career, including a Gold Quill Award from the International Association of Business Communicators and Connector of the Year by the YEG Startup Community Awards. In 2022, she was named one of Edmonton’s Top 40 Under 40 by Edify Magazine.

Laurie was born in a refugee camp in Thailand and came to Alberta when she was three years old. Her family’s journey is what drives her to serve communities and help level the playing field: mentoring young women, supporting financial literacy through Junior Achievement, raising awareness for Legal Aid, and contributing towards the YWCA mission. A pragmatic optimist, she believes in leading by example—with sass and joy.