New & Evolving Academic Leaders Program

Theme Lead, New & Evolving Academic Leaders Program, Centre for Faculty Development
Breast Surgical Oncologist & General Surgeon, Scarborough Health Network
Executive Board Member, Black Physicians of Ontario

Dr. Mojola Omole is a breast surgical oncologist and general surgeon at Scarborough Health Network in Toronto. She is an executive board member of the Black Physicians of Ontario and a consultant for anti-Black racism and anti oppression training. She is the chief medical officer and device consultant for the Stage Zero Collection, the first educational bra garment designed to teach people about breast cancer symptoms in darker skin tone. Her fellowship in global surgery was the catalyst for her work as a global surgical oncologist. She has worked in Nigeria, Rwanda and Nicaragua. Her fellowship in global journalism at the Munk School at University of Toronto has lead her to work as a freelance journalist and currently she is the co-host of the CMAJ podcast.

Assistant Professor, Teaching Stream, Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy 
Education Investigator, The Institute for Education Research (TIER) at UHN 
Pharmacotherapy Specialist, University Health Network

Dr Naomi Steenhof is a pharmacist, an assistant professor in the teaching stream at the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy, and a centre researcher at The Wilson Centre. Naomi holds a Masters degree from Maastricht University, and a PhD in health professions education research from the University of Toronto. Naomi’s research in education explores the crucial role of failure in learning and understanding how conceptual knowledge development supports novice health professional students in clinical problem-solving.

New & Evolving Academic Leaders Program

Senior Director, Philanthropy, Women's College Hospital

Navaz Mistry has worked in executive education and not-for-profit management for seventeen years.

At the Rotman School of Management, she worked with faculty to design and deliver leadership programs, focusing on innovation, collaboration, and leading through change. She worked with corporate and public sector clients in Toronto, across Canada, Australia, UAE, the UK, and the US.

Inspired by the leaders she met through this work, she transitioned to leadership roles in the not-for-profit sector. She currently leads a fundraising team at Women’s College Hospital and continues to facilitate sessions on leadership development, focusing on productive conversations. She believes all great work – strategy, innovation, culture – comes from productive conversations. 

Director Technology Enabled Education, Unity Health Toronto

Nazanin Khodadoust is Manager of the Allan Waters Family Simulation Program and responsible for providing comprehensive strategic and operational oversight in support of all simulation activities at St. Michael’s Hospital and our integrated network. Nazanin is a Registered Nurse, education leader and simulation expert with over 20 years of experience in variety of settings. She has received simulation training at Harvard Medical School and has extensive experience in development, implementation and management of simulation programs globally. She holds a Master of Science in Healthcare Management, Bachelor of Science in Nursing, and multiple postgraduate certificates in Simulation Education.

CFD Program Faculty: Stepping Stones

Nicole Bajcar is a Research Fellow at the Wilson Centre and a PhD student specializing in Health Professions Education Research (HPER) at the Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation (IHPME), Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto. Her doctoral studies are conducted in collaboration with the Wilson Centre. Nicole is a Registered Behaviour Analyst and holds a Master of Arts in Applied Disability Studies with a specialization in Applied Behaviour Analysis from Brock University and a Bachelor of Social Work from Toronto Metropolitan University. Her academic journey reflects a strong commitment to advancing the field of health professions education.

Under the mentorship of Dr. Nikki Woods, Nicole's research is centered on identifying and implementing best practices for developing adaptive experts through fostering cognitive integration. Her work aims to enhance the effectiveness of educational programs and contribute to the improvement of health professions education.

Coming Soon!

New & Evolving Academic Leaders Program

Assistant Professor in the Department of Health and Society, University of Toronto Scarborough Campus (UTSC)
Founder & Director, The Black Health Equity Lab (The BHEL)

Dr. Notisha Massaquoi is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Health and Society at the University of Toronto, Scarborough, with a graduate appointment in the Factor Inwentash Faculty of Social Work. She is also the founder and director of the Black Health Equity Lab (The BHEL) which conducts rigorous community based health research and works with Black communities to develop advocacy tools, strategies and programs to improve health outcomes, wellbeing and success in Canadian systems.  She holds a BA in Psychology from Western University, an MSW, and a PhD in Social Justice Education from the University of Toronto. Her early career established several health service organizations which serve Black communities in Canada, including Africans in Partnership Against AIDS, and TAIBU Community Health Centre. She developed and served for two decades as the Executive Director of Women's Health in Women's Hands Community Health Centre in Toronto – the only Community Health Centre in North America which provides specialized primary healthcare for Black and racialized women. She has consulted globally with the United Nations Social Development Forum on racism and its impact on workforces and with UNAIDS on organizational responses to HIV and migration. She is considered one of Canada's leading experts in developing equity responsive organizations and her research and advocacy have pushed Canadian institutions to address anti-Black racism and the collection of race-based data.  

New & Evolving Academic Leaders Program

Associate Professor, Teaching Stream, Organizational Behaviour and Human Resource Management, Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto

Nouman Ashraf is an Associate Professor, Teaching Stream within the Organizational Behavior area at the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management.

He possesses a broad range of professional, academic and research interests, with a specialized focus on enabling inclusive and innovative practices within teams, organizations and boards. 

For the last decade and a half, he has held progressively senior roles at the University of Toronto, including most recently as the Director of Equity, Diversity & Inclusion the Rotman School of Management. 

He is a recognized thought leader in governance and has taught thousands of directors in the national Rotman program on Not-for-Profit Governance in partnership with the Institute for Corporate Directors since its inception in 2007.  

Nouman serves as Teaching Fellow at the Institute for Gender + the Economy. He is also an Associate at Trinity College within the University of Toronto and an Affiliated Faculty Member at the University of Toronto School of Cities, where he is the founder and Academic Director of the Leading Social Justice Collective. 

In his free time, Nouman mentors exceptional post-graduate students in his capacity as Senior Fellow Emeritus at Massey College within the University of Toronto. Most recently, he developed an online course on inclusive leadership in partnership with GetSmarter which launches in Fall 2023.

Stepping Stones Program, New & Evolving Academic Leaders Program

Staff Psychiatrist, Hospital for Sick Children
Associate Dean, Clinical Affairs & Professional Values
Temerty Faculty of Medicine
Associate Professor, University of Toronto

Dr. Pier Bryden has been a staff psychiatrist at the Hospital for Sick Children since 2001 and has subspecialty certification in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry with the Royal College of Physicians & Surgeons of Canada. 

She is an Associate Professor and Associate Dean, Clinical Affairs & Professional Values, for the Temerty Faculty of Medicine at the University of Toronto.

Dr. Bryden is a graduate of the University of Toronto, University of Oxford, and McMaster University.

Her academic publications include papers on medical education, medical professionalism, and ethical and legal aspects of child psychiatry. She is the co-author, with Dr. David Goldbloom, of a popular book on psychiatry titled, “How Can I Help: A Week in my Life as a Psychiatrist,” and with Dr. Peter Szatmari of “Start Here: A Parent’s Guide to Helping Children and Teens Through Mental Health Challenges.”

Dr. Bryden was the 2018 Recipient of the University’s prestigious President’s Teaching Award, the 2020 Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons Region 3 Mentor of the Year Award, and the 2021 Sarita Verma Award for Advocacy and Mentorship in Postgraduate Medicine at the University of Toronto.

New & Evolving Academic Leaders Program

Theme Lead, New & Evolving Academic Leaders Program, Centre for Faculty Development
Family Physician, Women's College Hospital Crossroads Refuge Clinic
Assistant Professor, Department of Family and Community Medicine, Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto

Dr. Praseedha Janakiram is a family physician at Women’s College Hospital Crossroads Refugee Clinic, with additional practice interests in HIV primary care and women’s health. She is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Family and Community Medicine (DFCM) at the University of Toronto. Praseedha is the current Faculty Lead for the Toronto Addis Ababa Academic Collaboration in Family Medicine - a partnership supporting the launch and development of the first family medicine training program in Ethiopia over the past ten years. Praseedha has former clinical experience in Malawi, Pakistan, Nunavut, Yellowknife and Ethiopia and served as Acting Vice Chair Global Health and Social Accountability at the DFCM in 2019.  Praseedha has been recognized for her excellence in leadership, education and global health through numerous awards.