Everyday Heroes for June 2025
Mohawk Everyday Hero awards are regularly given out to college faculty and staff who go above and beyond to make Mohawk an even better place to work. Know someone who works at Mohawk and makes a difference? Submit a Mohawk Everyday Hero nomination at www.mohawkcollege.ca/everydayhero.
Congratulations to the following recipients:
For going above and beyond to serve the community, Coordinator, Sustainability Programs and Services Ashley Packer, is a Mohawk College Everyday Hero.
Through her 9 years coordinating local food programs in the Sustainability Office, Ashley has made a positive impact. The programs Ashley coordinates are beloved by the college community and increase Mohawk’s profile as a sustainability-focused, inclusive college. In addition to supporting our students and employees on campus, Ashley regularly volunteers to act as an ambassador for the college, leading tours, participating in community events, appearing in publications and videos, and passionately sharing her knowledge with other colleges and community partners looking to establish similar programs.
Examples of programs where Ashley has played a key role include the 51-plot community garden, the local food farm stand, the City School Sprouts after-school program, and the campus bees. Ashley also actively collaborates with the Grounds team to implement native and pollinator-friendly planting, tree planting and other transformative greening initiatives around campus. Through the programs and events Ashley coordinates, participants gain hands-on experience growing their own food, experience its benefits, and support local farmers and essential pollinator habitats. In the community garden, Ashley supports more than 300 annual participants annually. Working with a summer student, Ashley maintains and manages the garden and its resources, coordinates volunteers, and helps participants develop new skills and a lifelong passion for growing food. Ashley is also an incredible mentor to student employees. Many of the students she has supported have gone on to lead sustainable food programs in the community.
Congratulations Ashley!
For keeping projects moving forward, Project Manager, Enterprise Project Management Office David Lambden is a Mohawk College Everyday Hero.
Dave's work on the Banner Business Transformation (BBT) project has been exemplary. He has consistently kept the project moving forward, engaging stakeholders, and looking for and anticipating future stakeholders, all to ensure the project leads to a successful outcome. His ability to keep a birds eye view on all components of the BBT project and adapting that knowledge to the individual streams has proven great. As one stakeholder noted, “His work has been critical to my particular stream. I'm juggling my departmental work alongside the BBT work, and Dave has kept me on track, working with my schedule and ensuring my capacity is not overburdened.”
Congratulations David!
For being especially helpful to colleagues, Instructional Designer & Part-Time Faculty Vishal Pathareddy Appanah, is a Mohawk College Everyday Hero.
Vishal is always a positive presence. He always goes above and beyond the call of duty to assist his colleagues. No request is too minor or too major for him. He will meet in person or virtually and will spend as much time as needed to resolve any issue. He is a fountain of knowledge when it comes to technology.
Congratulations Vishal!
For being a supportive team member, Professor – Curriculum and Program Quality Consultant Alison Dunn is a Mohawk College Everyday Hero.
Alison is a highly dedicated, effective and supportive team member who consistently steps up to support the team and fill gaps despite a full workload. Aligned with Mohawk College's commitment to student-focused excellence through innovation, and inclusive practices, Alison has recently led a collaborative development of an AI Workshop Series that strives to support faculty AI literacy, to provide resources, build awareness of challenges and ethics, to ultimately support students with AI literacy and future-ready skills.
Congratulations Alison!
For being a supportive team member, Professor – Curriculum and Program Quality Consultant Shantal Woolsey is a Mohawk College Everyday Hero.
Shantal rejoined the team in Centre for Teaching and Learning Innovation at a time of change. Not only did she rise to the challenge, but she exceeded it! She jumped into the work immediately, playing detective to fill gaps in processes. She went above and beyond to find the answers, which demonstrates her commitment to excellence. She is also positive and supportive as a team member and never says no to helping a colleague in need.
Congratulations Shantal!
For being a supportive team member, Professor – Curriculum and Program Quality Consultant Judith Orogun is a Mohawk College Everyday Hero.
Armed with an unfailingly positive attitude, Judith helped navigate the Centre for Teaching and Learning Innovation's Academic Quality team through a period of challenge. She went above and beyond to ensure work got done during a period of transition. She never says no to a challenge and makes sure the rest of her team believes in their own abilities. She volunteers with external organizations like the Curriculum Developers Affinity Group, to ensure her team stays on top of new challenges facing curriculum developers. She is the definition of someone who is committed to excellence!
Congratulations Judith!
For being a supportive team member, Professor – Curriculum and Program Quality Consultant Dawn Danko is a Mohawk College Everyday Hero.
Dawn doesn't just go above and beyond in her role—she takes it to a new level. She is a mentor to many in our department and works tirelessly to ensure we leave no stone unturned when it comes to program quality. She is
always there to support her colleagues, whether it's a friendly ear or to offer advice on improving program quality. She does all this while juggling an incredibly busy workload, but never fails to help those of us who need it. She is committed to excellence in everything she does, including diving into new Degree development and spearheading the process.
Congratulations Dawn!
For being committed to excellence, Report Writer Ridhima is a Mohawk College Everyday Hero.
Ridhima might be new to the role of Report Writer, but she has jumped right in! She came into the role at a time when circumstances had caused a delay in the Program Review process. She went above and beyond to not just learn the role, but also make Program Review reports better than ever. She started as a Mohawk student, but is now an employee who exemplifies the college's values with a commitment to excellence. She is eager to learn more about the process and is always responsive and helpful.
Congratulations Ridhima!