“What’s a plow boy from Niagara doing here?” Those were the words that Anthony Spiteri, now vice-president of marketing with Pinty’s Delicious Foods, has asked himself at multiple points along his journey to becoming a leader in Canada’s consumer packaged foods industry.
That journey began at Niagara College in 1989, when Spiteri graduated from the College’s Business Administration program. Spiteri was this year’s recipient of Niagara College’s Distinguished Alumni Award, and delivered the address at Thursday morning’s convocation ceremony. Nearly 290 students from the School of Business and Management Studies, the School of Academic and Liberal Studies, and the School of Media Studies crossed the platform to become NC graduates at the morning and afternoon ceremonies on June 21.
Spiteri was raised in Port Colborne and, throughout a career that has taken him across the country, has maintained strong ties both to Niagara, and to the College. He was the College’s first student to work a co-op position at Maple Leaf Foods in Toronto, where he eventually became director of marketing. He has also held executive positions with Thrifty Foods, Lilydale Inc., and others, and is chairman of Eataly Food and executive chairman at Erie Treat Motorsports. He now resides in Wainfleet, and continues to be involved in the development of the College’s Business Administration programs.
In his address, Spiteri shared four key words that helped him stay focused throughout his varied career: education, empowerment, execution and enlightenment. “Please remember these elements as you head out into the work world and in life. Do not be afraid to test yourself. You have already proven you understand these four tenets by being in this room.”
The morning ceremony also saw the award of the Governor General’s Academic Medal, awarded to the student graduating with the highest average from a high school, approved college or university program. This year’s recipient was Business Administration – Accounting graduate Jesse Reynders, who finished with a 98.23% grade-point average. Reynders is a native of Niagara, and chose to return to the region to reconnect with his family roots and to pursue a life in accounting following a 25-year career with the Canadian Armed Forces.
Reynders thanked his wife and two sons for their support, Niagara College faculty for their passion and genuine interest in student success, and his fellow graduates. “To you I wish all the best in your career and future aspirations.” Read the release on the 2018 Governor General’s Academic Medal winner.
During the afternoon ceremony, CKTB radio morning show host Tim Denis inspired the new graduates with a message about their important role as they prepare to enter their careers at this point in history. He spoke about how the media landscape has changed dramatically – with new technologies and new fields of study – since he was a Radio and Television student at NC during the late 1970s. When he left the College for the working world, Denis said he was part of a generation that wasn’t taken seriously, without a voice or real avenue for affecting change – not true of the young graduates he addressed on June 21.
“The world IS paying attention to you,” he said. “Never has a generation had the country’s ear quite like this, and never has a generation had the opportunity to change the world so significantly and, quite possibly save it,” he said.
He had a special message for the Journalism graduates. “Never have you been more important to the future of our country and our way of life,” he said. “You need to be the ones speaking louder than the voices of hate – and that is true of every student here regardless of where you are headed. Speak the truth and speak it loudly.”
Denis noted that the last generation was given the gift of computers, with access to the internet which connected the world. When the ‘box’ was opened however, along with all its benefits, it also brought out negative elements.
“But you know what’s still in there, what’s still inside all of us and every one of you as you get ready to take on and eventually take over the world? Hope,” he said. “And looking out here today, I see a lot of it.”
Denis received an honorary diploma in Broadcasting – Radio, Television and Film during the ceremony.
The afternoon also marked the first graduating class from the College’s Community Integration through Co-operative Education (CICE) program. The first of its kind in Niagara, the two-year CICE certificate program gives individuals with disabilities, who had no previous access to postsecondary education in the region, the opportunity to experience college life and enhance their vocational, academic and social skills.
Spring Convocation will conclude with a final ceremony the morning of Friday, June 22 at the Welland Campus. Grads from the College’s School of Environmental and Horticultural Studies, the School of Technology Studies and the School of Trades will hear a convocation address from Sarah Watts-Rynard, Executive Director of the Canadian Apprenticeship Forum, who will also receive an Honorary Diploma in Skilled Trades. A livestream of the ceremony can be viewed at www.niagaracollege.ca/convocationlive.
Friday’s ceremony will also mark a milestone for the College, as it will see the first cohort of graduates from the college’s Commercial Beekeeping program. The graduate certificate program is the first of its kind in Eastern Canada, and was launched in 2017 to meet a significant demand for qualified, professional beekeepers across the country.
