ElevateHer: Celebrating, Growing, and Connecting 2024
March 7, 2024, 7:30—9 am. Smith School of Business, Toronto ON.
Celebrating the diverse journeys and limitless potential of women.
Thursday, March 7, 2024 kicked off our first-ever Women’s Day Elevate event, ElevateHer: Celebrating, Growing, and Connecting at the Smith School of Business’s Toronto location. The event brought together a diverse community of individuals, both women and allies, who came to honour and celebrate the growth, empowerment, and remarkable achievements of women at every stage of life. From thought-provoking discussions to inspiring personal stories, the event left a lasting impact on all attendees.
The event included breakfast, networking, speeches, and a Q&A session with panelists Dean Barbara Crow and Dr. Stephanie Zhou, BSC’14, moderated by current student Brynn Plaxton, who told their stories of breaking barriers and the importance of education on their journeys.
Speeches and Panelists
Missed the event?
Watch the full presentation online
Dr. Stephanie Zhou
Dr. Stephanie Zhou is an Assistant Professor at the University of Toronto where she teaches the financial literacy curriculum. She practices Addiction Medicine and is the EDI & Social Accountability Lead at Sunnybrook and practices Family Medicine at Don Mills Family Health Team. Dr. Zhou is on the Board of Directors for Toronto Public Health and chairs the Scientific Planning Committee for the Ontario College of Family Physicians.
Dr. Zhou immigrated to Canada and grew up in subsidized housing, which led to her investing in education and housing initiatives through philanthropy. She founded the annual Physicians Financial Wellness conference, a national, philanthropic conference for physicians on financial education and practice management. Last year, the ticket proceeds were used to establish The Equity Award, an endowment fund supporting students with financial need.
In 2022, Dr. Zhou received Canada's Top 100 Most Powerful Women award for her work in improving economic mobility through financial literacy. Outside of her clinical work, Dr. Zhou is a nationally invited speaker on personal finance and runs a popular financial education blog on Instagram and Youtube called Breaking Bad Debt.
Dean Barbara Crow
Dean, Faculty of Arts and Science.
Brynn Plaxton
Moderator
Brynn Plaxton is a future Queen’s alumnus of the class of 2024, graduating with a Bachelor of Economics and a focus on financial mathematics before moving to Toronto to begin her career in finance. Brynn is currently the president of both of the Queen’s Economics Department’s academic societies, the Queen’s Economics Society and the Queen’s Economics Case Conference club. She is incredibly passionate about empowering undergraduates to leverage their strengths and passions into crafting an authentic personal brand and professional ambitions. Brynn has worked closely with the Economics Department and over her time at Queen’s to host dozens of conferences, skills workshops, and networking opportunities that support students along their journey of self-discovery and pursuit of professional goals. She is proud to pass her legacy onto the next generation of QED leaders and continue to give back to the community as an alumni ambassador in Toronto.
Brynn interned at the Bank of Montreal as a Private Wealth Analyst and the following summer at the Royal Bank of Canada as a Business Analyst before accepting a full time offer as a Product Marketing Analyst at Global X ETFs. Working in both back-end data infrastructure and fund performance analytics as well as front facing stakeholder reports, she is building a well-rounded financial acumen in fund management and pursuing her CFA Level I along with a graduate certificate in corporate finance from Harvard University. Brynn is thrilled to be joining the Queen’s ElevateHer event in celebrating the growth and achievements within our female community, as she is the product of so many incredible female mentors that have supported her academic and early professional journey.
Empower and Elevate the Next Generation of Leaders
Many attendees of this event donated to the Dean of Arts and Science Trust Fund to support initiatives and education that nurture and empower the next generation of leaders in arts and sciences. Help us carry this momentum forward, and together, let's make a meaningful impact and elevate the opportunities available to aspiring students within our community.