Leadership & Governance

Dr. Terri Hewitt – Chief Executive Officer 

Terri is a highly recognized leader in the developmental services and health sector with extensive experience in clinical program leadership. As Chief Executive Officer, Terri has been instrumental in bringing together collaborative partnerships in new ways to support clinical programs and service gaps. She has worked at Surrey Place for more than 25 years, starting in the Adult Program as a Psychologist and moving to more senior clinical management roles including Vice President of Clinical Services. Prior to joining Surrey Place, Terri held psychology roles at various school boards, the Autism Clinic at CAMH. Terri is extremely passionate about the organization she leads, and the clients and families that Surrey Place supports.

Terri is a registered Clinical-Developmental Psychologist with a specialization in developmental disabilities. She received her Bachelor of Arts and Master’s in Developmental Psychology at the University of Manitoba and her Ph.D. in Clinical Developmental Psychology at York University. She completed her Executive Leadership certificate with the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto. She has volunteered as a board member at a development services residential agency and a community health service agency.

Bruce Wilson– Vice President, People Services  

Bruce is accountable for Surrey Place’s Human Resources and Communications strategies. Previously, Bruce has held HR roles with LifeLabs (formerly MDS Diagnostic Services), Bridgepoint Health, LOFT Community Services and The Canadian Hearing Society. Bruce holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Studies from the University of Guelph, a Post Graduate Certificate in Human Resource Management from Humber College and has recently completed an Executive Certificate in Conflict Management through the University of Windsor Law School. Bruce is a Certified Human Resources Leader (CHRL) with the Human Resources Professionals Association. Bruce has over 20 years of experience in human resources in both the public and private sectors and with both union and non-union workforces. 

Lisa Binns – Vice President, Children Services 

Lisa Binns has over 25 years of experience working in Autism Services and prevously served as a Director of Children’s Intake and Wellness Services at Surrey Place. In her two years as a Director, Lisa launched both Wellness Services and Coordinated Service Planning. She also oversaw the integration of Intake Services and led the establishment of the Transitions Team. Before joining Surrey Place, Lisa worked at Kerry’s Place, holding senior positions such as Autism Consultant in the School Support Program, Director of Service and Supports for residential and community services and later, Regional Executive Director. Her educational background includes completion of the Public Sector Leadership with the Rotman Executive Program (University of Toronto), Leadership and Union Negotiations (Executive Management, Queen’s University) and a B.A. (Hons.) from York University. 

Jeanny Scantlebury – Vice President, Adult Services 

Jeanny has spent her 30+ year career at Surrey Place, building strong relationships with outside agencies and forging new relationships with non-traditional partners.  She began as a Senior Behavior Therapist, working her way to becoming an ASD Consultant, then Manager of School Support Program, Director of Adult Services and most recently, Senior Director of Adult Services. For many years, Jeanny has volunteered as a Board Member with a community mental health association and helped develop a Saturday respite program for a Korean community youth with ASD and their caregivers.  

She holds an undergraduate degree from the University of Toronto and has experience as a sessional lecturer at George Brown College. Continuing education is important to Jeanny, and she has taken numerous communication and conflict resolution courses. She recently completed the prosocial Facilitator certificate and currently, she is completing the Public Sector Executive Leadership program at the Rotman School of Business.

Felix Camposano – Vice President, Quality & Strategy 

Felix has been with Surrey Place for 30+ years and is responsible for the overall management, direction and leadership that strengthens quality, strategy, continuous improvement, and performance outcomes across the organization.

Felix is a result-oriented leader with a deep commitment to continuous quality improvement and team development. Prior to joining Surrey Place, he held roles in various health care settings including Sinai Health Systems, North York General Hospital, Ontario Shores, CAMH and SickKids. His past roles encompass health records, admitting/patient registration, accreditation lead and quality improvement.    

Felix holds a Master’s in Business Administration Health Leaders from Athabasca University and a Bachelor of Science from Brock University. He also has a post-graduate degree from Osgoode Hall Law School in Health Law and Privacy/Security and a UHN Advanced Health Care Leadership certificate through the University of Toronto Rotman School of Management.

Felix is board certified by the National Association for Health Care Quality in Professional Health Care Quality, is a certified Risk Manager from the American Society of Health Care Risk Management and has completed Health Information Management certification from the Canadian College Health Information Management.  

Fern Gonzales, Fern Goncalves, M.Ed., CHRL – President 

As a Human Resources executive with almost 30 years of experience, Fern Goncalves has extensive experience in providing human resources and training services within healthcare and a regulatory association She has been actively involved in numerous board and committees, including the United Way of York Region and the Catholic Community Services of York Region. She is an active member with the Canadian Society of Association Executives and Human Resources Professionals Association (HRPA), She has also served on various HRPA committees and participated in mentorship programs.  Fern holds a Masters of Adult Education (M.Ed.) from the University of Toronto – OISE as well as the designation of Certified Human Resources Leader (CHRL) from the Human Resources Professionals Association. Currently, Fern is currently the Director of People Development at Professional Engineers Ontario. Fern joined the Board of Directors in March 2016. 

Carolyn Acker, C.M., R.N., M.A., D.Sc. h.c. – Vice President 

Carolyn Acker began her professional nursing career in the health sector, working her way up the ranks of executive leadership through a combination of education, practical experience and, above all, a desire to give back. She has over 40 years of experience in the health care sector. Carolyn was the founding CEO of Pathways to Education Canada, a public foundation dedicated to helping youth from low-income communities to graduate from high school and successfully transition into post-secondary education.

In 2010, she received an Honourary Doctorate of Science from the University of New Brunswick, on July 1, 2012 she was awarded Membership in The Order of Canada and in 2014 she received an Honourary Doctorate of Science from Queen’s University. Carolyn previously served as Board member from October 2010 to February 2017. She joined the Finance Committee in July 2019 and the Board in June 2020. 

Andrea Englert-Rygus, B.Comm., CSMP – Treasurer 

Andrea Englert-Rygus has extensive business experience from the chemical, retail, healthcare and public sectors. Her career has included roles in finance, sales, customer service, human resources, labour relations, operations and manufacturing. Previously, Andrea held leadership positions with Baxter Healthcare, PepsiCo and DuPont Canada. Andrea holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Toronto and has been actively involved in numerous Boards and associations. 

Andrea is currently Chief Procurement Officer and Vice President Customer Relationship Management at Plexxus, a Toronto based healthcare shared services organization with expertise in supply chain management, IT and business transformation. Andrea is also currently a member of the Conference Board of Canada Innovation Procurement Council. Andrea joined the board in October 2016 and was appointed as Treasurer in May 2020.

 Ashan Fernando – Director

Ashan Fernando has over 20 years of experience in a range of industries, including customer service, hospitality, office administration, telecommunications and retail. He is a former City of Toronto Councillor Candidate for Ward 25, Scarborough-Rouge Park Toronto Municipal Election 2022. He is the former Co-Chair of the Port Union Community Winterfest 2023. Ashan is actively involved in the Self-Advocacy Council at Surrey Place and is a strong and passionate advocate for individuals with intellectual, developmental and physical disabilities.

Ashan holds an Honours Diploma in Hotel Management from George Brown College and received the Culture Award and Customer Service Excellence Award from Rogers Communications and the MVP Awards from Fido Canada and Best Buy Canada.

 Ashan joined the Board of Directors in October 2022.

Baaba Forson, B.A.(Hons.), LL.B. – Director 

Baaba Forson is a lawyer and practices general civil litigation.  Baaba handles a wide variety of public law cases and has appeared before tribunals and at all levels of  court, including the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, Federal Court, Ontario Court of Appeal, Federal Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court of Canada. She is a member of the Board of Directors and Vice President of Equity for the Association of Law Officers of the Crown (“ALOC”), a collective bargaining association that represents civil lawyers and articling law students employed by the Ontario government.  

Baaba holds a Bachelor of Arts with Honours degree from York University and a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Windsor, Faculty of Law.  She is a recipient of the ALOC Michael Fleishman Crown Counsel Award and the University of Windsor, Faculty of Law, Honourable Julius Alexander Isaac Award and Scholarship.  

Baaba joined the Board of Directors in September 2021. 

Kemi Oduwole LL B, LL M, M. CIARB – Director 

Kemi is a law professional with over 20 years of experience. She is a managing partner of Topmarké Attorneys LLP in Toronto where she has successfully represented a long list of clients at different levels of courts in Ontario. Kemi specializes in Kemi has extensive proficiency in wide-ranging human rights issues, workplace Code and none-Code investigations, including anti-Black racism investigations, immigration and refugee protection law and appeals, and consent and capacity law practice. As a trained investigator, Kemi adopts a surgical approach to fact-finding and analyses while balancing the rights and freedoms of the parties and witnesses.  

Kemi is currently the managing partner of Topmarké Attorneys LLP in Toronto. In her practice, she has successfully represented a long list of clients at different levels of courts in Ontario. As a managing partner, she is also responsible for setting strategic goals, supervising daily activities, monitoring performance, driving business growth, and guiding business operations and employees to achieve organizational goals and objectives. 

Kemi holds multiple law degrees, including a Master of Laws degree from the University of Toronto and the University of Lagos. She is a chartered member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitration (UK) and the), Association of Workplace Investigators.  Kemi’s volunteer work includes etc. In addition, Kemi loves to share her thoughts and opinions on varying issues through speaking engagements. 

Kemi is also an academic. Her students have benefited from her practical and experiential approach to teaching. In addition, Kemi volunteers extensively with varied organizations, including representation at consent and capacity hearings, Pro Bono Ontario, and mentorship to youths and young lawyers. Kemi is dedicated to using her expertise, professional and personal experience to advance the interest of the vulnerable in society.   

Kemi joined the Board of Directors in September 2021.

Michael Richardson, HBA – Director 

Michael Richardson is a Partner and co-owner of Eclipsys Solutions, Yoppworks and GoSpaces, three Canadian-based Software and professional services organizations. Prior to founding these companies with his partner, Michael enjoyed an extensive career within the I/T industry working in executive and senior management roles at Oracle, Sun Microsystems and IBM. Michael also spent eight years as the Canadian President and CEO of Business Travel International (BTI), a leading global travel management company. He graduated from the University of Western Ontario. 

Michael is the father of an adult son severely affected by autism and is familiar with the challenges parents face as they navigate the various service models across the province. This personal experience inspired Michael to become a board member at Surrey Place.  

Michael joined the Board of Directors in September 2009, and he served for eight years. He rejoined the Board in June 2020.

Michael Rooke, BBA, CPA, CA, LPA – Director

Michael is a Chartered Professional Accountant and a Licensed Public Accountant. He provides professional services in areas of financial risk management, budget analysis, board governance and advancement, financial policy development and charity and government reporting and compliance.  

Currently, he is an Associate Partner with Tinkham LLP with extensive experience providing assurance, business advisory and tax and financial reporting advice to owner-managed businesses, not-for-profit organizations and registered charities. 

Michael holds a Bachelor of Business Administration, Honours from Wilfrid Laurier University. He joined the Board of Directors in 2020.