Five outstanding alumni and one Dal professor have been honoured on myHalifaxExperience magazine’s list of Top 25 Immigrants in the Maritimes. Read their bios below, compiled by myHalifaxExperience, to learn more about Oluronke Taiwo (BSW’06, MSW’08), Ghada Gabr (MHI’04), Chinweotito Atansi (BEng’14), Faten Alshazly (BSc(CS)’99), Ashwin Kutty (BSc(CS)’99) and Professor David Divine.

Taiwo, who is Dalhousie’s Black Student Advisor, is also featured in Dal News’ Pride and Achievement: Black Student Advisor Celebrated.

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The Top 25 Immigrants in the Maritimes initiative is our way of identifying and honoring those Maritimers who stand out in their towns and cities; the trail blazers and leaders who have made a difference in their communities.

Oluronke Taiwo (BSW’06, MSW’08), originally from Nigeria, was a technologist for 17 years during which time she attained a Bachelor’s degree in biology and a Master’s degree in medical microbiology from University of Lagos, Nigeria. She later became a professor and researcher at the College of Medicine in Lagos. She moved to Canada in 1998 as a Research Scholar at Dalhousie University. She then earned her Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in social work from Dalhousie and became a Registered Social Worker. Ronke was a contributor to the book Fighting for Change: Black Social Workers in Nova Scotia.

She is also Dalhousie’s Black Student Advisor. “I am able to use my life experience both as an alum[na] at Dalhousie and former professor in Nigeria to encourage students on how to navigate the university and be successful even when they face several odds in life,” she says. Learn more about her impact on campus through this Dal News feature.

Ghada Gabr (MHI’04) came to Canada in 2000 as a visitor. She fell in love with the country and applied for immigration and in 2004 became a Canadian citizen. She graduated with a Master of Health Informatics degree from Dalhousie University, then attained her License from the Nova Scotia College of Pharmacy. Ghada is the proud owner of a Shoppers Drug Mart in Clayton Park, employing more than 70 staff members and serving more than 30,000 people in that area.

Chinweotito Atansi (BEng’14) is an Engineer-in-Training working with Saint John Energy. He is originally from Nigeria, raised in Cameroon and graduated from Dalhousie University with a Bachelor in Electrical Engineering. In his spare time, he is an entrepreneur building and running businesses. One of the businesses he co-founded is Sankara Cuisine in Saint John, which is an online food vending platform that allows traditional food vendors like immigrants to sell their food to their community.

Faten Alshazly (BSc(CS)’99) is the principal and chief creative officer of WeUsThem, an ad agency with a client roster that boasts the likes of Telus, Kaplan International, The Kempinski Group, Xerox, Equifax, Stanfields and Pratt & Whitney to name a few. Her leadership has brought home a Webby, a Gold Davey, a CANNES Lions and an Advertising Age nod for WeUsThem, all firsts for the east coast.

Ashwin Kutty (BSc(CS)’99) is the president and CEO of WeUsThem, an ad agency and management consultancy firm. With a client roster like ESPN, ABC, the Kempinski Group, Dalhousie University, the IWK Health Centre, Equifax, Xerox, as well as the Governments of Canada, Egypt, Guyana and Saudi Arabia, WeUsThem services clients far and wide.

Professor David Divine has managed his own consultancy company in social work, housing and community health from 1994 to 2004, was the James Robinson Johnston Chair in Black Canadian Studies at Dalhousie University from 2004 to 2009, and is a fully tenured Professor of Social Work at Dalhousie University.

Read more in “The Top 25 Immigrants in the Maritimes” on myhalifaxexperience.com and “Pride and Achievement: Black Student Advisor Celebrated” on dal.ca.