Humber conferred five honorary degrees this week as part of the Spring 2024 Convocation ceremonies.

The recipients are inspiring Canadians who have made their mark in the fields of law, journalism, sport, business and education. Many of the recipients have also had a significant impact on equity, diversity, inclusion and belonging efforts, human rights, as well as humanitarian and community initiatives.

They include:

DEEPA MATTOO:
Deepa Mattoo is an award-winning lawyer and intersectional feminist whose work is rooted in equity and anti-oppressive and anti-racist practice. Mattoo is executive director of the Barbra Schlifer Commemorative Clinic and has appeared before the Supreme Court of Canada, Parliamentary committees and UN civil society meetings on a wide range of social justice and human rights issues. She’s an adjunct professor at Osgoode Hall Law School and has received multiple awards including the Spirit of Schlifer Award, the Ontario Bar Association Award for Excellence in the Promotion of Women's Equality as well as the Desi Achiever’s Award for her contributions to human rights and access to justice. The graduate of Humber’s Fundraising and Volunteer Management program was also a 2023 Premier’s Award nominee in the Community Services category.

DUNCAN MCCUE:  
Duncan McCue is an award-winning broadcaster, author and professor who spent 25 years with CBC News, which included hosting CBC Radio’s national phone-in program Cross Country Checkup and serving as a correspondent for CBC-TV’s flagship news show, The National. He’s a professor of Indigenous Journalism and (Story)telling at Carleton University’s School of Journalism and Communication and has trained journalists worldwide on how to build respectful relationships with Indigenous communities. In 2023, the Canadian Association of Journalists presented Duncan with its highest honour, the Charles Bury Award for his efforts to inspire change in how Canadian journalism covers Indigenous stories. He’s also the author of Shoe Boy: A Trapline Memoir based on his experiences as a 17-year-old boy from the city living with a James Bay Cree family in a one-room hunting cabin in northern Quebec. McCue is Anishinaabe, a member of the Chippewas of Georgina Island First Nation in southern Ontario.

JACQUELINE EDWARDS:
Jacqueline Edwards has spent nearly three decades as an employee with the Correctional Service of Canada and has risen through the organization as she assumed positions with increased responsibility at the institutional, regional, national and senior management levels. Edwards is known within her department for championing change in the areas of equity, inclusion and diversity as well as anti-racism. The 2022 Premier’s Awards nominee in the Community Services category made history as the first female president of the Association of Black Law Enforcers (ABLE) where she works with board members, allies and partners in the community to create a public safety system that reflects the principles of equity and justice for all. A graduate of Humber’s Law and Security Administration program, Edwards was the inaugural recipient of the ABLE Award, in recognition of academic excellence and service to the community. She’s also a 2021 recipient of the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police President’s Award of Merit.

KAETLYN OSMOND:
Kaetlyn Osmond is a gold-medal winning Canadian figure skater whose career spanned more than two decades. The Newfoundland native has three Olympic medals and two World Championship medals, including gold in 2018 at both the Olympic Games in PyeongChang, Korea, and the World Championships in Milan, Italy. In 2019, she was inducted into the Edmonton Sports Hall of Fame and named a recipient of the Order of Newfoundland. Since retiring, she has transitioned into sports broadcasting by serving as an analyst for CBC during the Beijing Winter Olympics and working with Skate Canada to livestream their national and international events. Osmond is a full-time student at the University of Alberta pursuing a degree in media studies and creative writing while also coaching students of all ages to achieve their figure skating goals.

TAREQ HADHAD:
Tareq Hadhad is the founder and CEO of Peace by Chocolate. After arriving in Canada in 2015 as a newcomer from Syria, Hadhad has been named the recipient of the EY Entrepreneur of The Year 2021 for the Atlantic Region and was named one of the Top 25 Immigrants in the Maritimes. He was awarded RBC’s top Immigrant Award and Entrepreneur of the Year in 2020 and Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee Medal. In 2012, the Hadhad’s home and factory that housed the family’s chocolate-making business were destroyed. Passionate about peace and entrepreneurship, his family relaunched the family business in Canada to recreate the chocolates they once exported across the Middle East. A feature film, Peace by Chocolate, based on the family’s story premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival. Hadhad and his family have a focus on job creation, utilizing a network of local community members and refugees from across Nova Scotia and Canada to help support the local economy. Hadhad has spoken at the Summit of the Americas, Amnesty International’s Human Rights Conference, TEDx events and Chambers of Commerce dinners. He was also recently awarded Atlantic Business Magazine’s 30 under 30 Innovators.

Find out more, along with a list of past recipients, by visiting the Convocation webpage.