New members appointed to RDP's Board of Governors

Red Deer Polytechnic (RDP) is welcoming Dr. Tristin Brisbois and Ms. Melina Dharma-Wardene as the newest members of RDP's Board of Governors, appointed by the Government of Alberta.  

“I am excited to welcome Tristin and Melina to our Board,” said Guy Pelletier, Chair of RDP’s Board of Governors. “Their industry backgrounds will be a great asset for Red Deer Polytechnic, as our institution continues to strive to be an industry-centric polytechnic in service to our students and Alberta’s economic and social prosperity.”  

Brisbois is a PepsiCo Executive, currently their Senior Director of Life Sciences Living Lab and Advanced Personalization Ideation Center.   

She has worked in research and development for over 15 years in various roles in the USA and Canada and holds a Bachelor of Science (BSc) and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) from the University of Alberta and a Master of Business and Science (MBS) from Rutgers University.   

She recently relocated back to Red Deer where she began her studies at Red Deer College while playing soccer with the Queens. She is an active volunteer in the community and serves on several non-profit and academic boards across North America.     

Dharma-Wardene is the Executive Director of the South Calgary Primary Care Network, an organization serving patients in the southeast quadrant of Calgary in partnership with 285 physicians and 87 clinics.   

She has held executive positions at Sante Medical, Canada Diagnostic Centers, and Bethany Care Society.    

She is a cancer scientist, holding a Master of Policy and Management (MPH) from the University of Alberta, an Executive Master of Business Administration (EMBA) from the University of Calgary, and an Institute of Corporate Directors (ICD.D) certification from the University of Toronto.   

She has over ten years of experience as a director on several corporate and not-for-profit boards.  

RDP’s Board of Governors includes 16 members: the chair, nine public members, two students, two academic staff members, one non-academic staff member, and RDP’s President.   

Public board members are appointed by the Government of Alberta, for a three-year term, with the opportunity to serve an additional three-year term.   

Employee and student representatives are nominated by their constituency groups and appointed by the Minister of Advanced Education. 

**With information provided by Red Deer Polytechnic  

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