University of Winnipeg Notable Alumni

The University of Winnipeg which is ranked among the best Universities in Canada has been home to a lot of famous personalities who have graduated and have gone on to become big names in their respective fields. Some are working in arts and media, some have made a name in sports while some have given their contributions in different spheres of life but they all have one thing in common and that is they all are Alumni of the University of Winnipeg. Let’s have a look at some of these famous notable alumni of the University of Winnipeg.

About the University of Winnipeg

The University of Winnipeg in Canada is a public university that offers its students a wide variety of academic curricula. The university is well known for its academic excellence, growing environmental commitment, specialized compact class sizes, highly regarded and educated faculty, and diverse campus. It currently has about 1,250 international students studying on its campus.

The university offers various undergraduate degrees in the fields such as arts, business, economics, science, and kinesiology. Apart from the exceptional academic courses and services provided by the university, students are also benefitted from an extensive library facility, with numerous resources that include books, periodicals, microfiche, and also videos.

Notable alumni of the University of Winnipeg

Below are mentioned the notable alumni of the University of Winnipeg-

Lloyd Axworthy

Lloyd Norman Axworthy was born on December 21, 1939, he is a Canadian politician, elder statesman, and academic. He has served as the  Minister of Foreign Affairs in the Cabinet of Canada which was chaired by Prime Minister Jean Chrétien. Following his retirement from the parliament of Canada, Mr. Axworthy has served as the president and vice-chancellor of his own alma mater the University of Winnipeg from 2004 to 2014 and as the chancellor of St. Paul’s University College ( which is a constituent institution of the University of Waterloo). He is currently serving as the Chairperson of the World Refugee & Migration Council.

Don Newman

Donald Kenneth Newman was born on 28 October 1940. He is a retired senior parliamentary editor for CBC Television channel and he has also hosted CBC Newsworld’s daily politics program CBC News: Politics. Donald is well known for his signature introductory phrase to the viewers which was – “Welcome to the Broadcast”, in which he expresses the first syllable of the last word slower than the rest of his greeting phrase. This legendary phrase became the title of his memoir, which was published in 2013. On the eve of 14 September 2007, at a specially organized convocation in honour of the 40th Anniversary of his alma mater, he was conferred an Honorary Doctor of Laws degree by the University of Winnipeg.

John Paskievich

John Paskievich, who was born in 1948 is a half Ukrainian half Canadian documentary filmmaker and also a photographer from Winnipeg, Manitoba. Paskievich’s documentary Unspeakable released in 2006 by the National Film Board of Canada explores the topic of stuttering. Paskievich himself is someone who stutters he narrated the story and participated in the film, and the documentary won a special jury prize at the Whistler Film Festival in 2006. His other directorial works include “My Mother’s Village”, in which he delved into the experience of other fellow Ukrainian-Canadians, “The Gypsies of Svinia”, “If Only I Were an Indian” and an award-winning short film called “Ted Baryluk’s Grocery”. He was born in Austria and later emigrated to Canada at the age of five. He earned his degree at the University of Winnipeg. Paskeivich is also an accomplished stills photographer adding to his list of accomplishments he also happens to be a filmmaker, some of his photographs have been exhibited at various prestigious galleries and museums around Canada. Photographs captured by him have also been published in four different books. In October 2007, John Paskievich’s very first book, The North End: Photographs by John Paskievich, was published worldwide.

Erfan Nasajpour

Erfan Nasajpour was born on 21 March 1984 and he is an Iranian-Canadian retired professional basketball player. He dedicated his whole career to the Iranian Basketball Super League. Erfan Nasajpour was born in Iran and him along with his family immigrated to Winnipeg, Manitoba in 1991. He attended his high school at the Daniel McIntyre Collegiate Institute and became the captain for the University of Winnipeg in U Sports.

Ida Albo

Ida Albo is a popular Canadian businesswoman and also the owner and managing partner of the famous Fort Garry Hotel located in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Albo has worked for the position of co-president of the CentreVenture Development Corporation. She is currently on the board of directors of the University of Winnipeg Foundation, and she pursued her BA (Hons.) degree from the University of Winnipeg and was part of the Class of ’81. She is also the vice-chairperson of the board of directors at the Pan Am Clinic Foundation. Albo opened a 20,000 square foot yoga facility in February 2012 in Winnipeg which she named ‘Yoga Public”. She is also the chairperson of the Guardian Angel Benefit Committee for the Cancer Care Manitoba Foundation. She has served as a prime board member of the Tourism Association of Winnipeg, the Canadian Tourism Commission, the Health Sciences Centre Research Foundation, Citizens Against Impaired Driving, and the Pan Am Clinic Foundation. For her “unwavering commitment to the well-being of her community”, albo was named a Member of the Order of Canada in 2015.

Howard Pawley

Howard Russell Pawley was born on November 21, 1934, and passed away on December 30, 2015, he was an influential Canadian politician and professor who was also the 18th premier of Manitoba from 1981 to 1988. Before his premiership began, Pawley used to serve in various ministerial positions after his tenure in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba.  He was educated at Manitoba Teachers College, United College, and the Manitoba Law School.

There are a number of inspiring tales of students that are not covered in this blog as it contains a long list of names from the University of Winnipeg who have studied at the university and are still rising with flying colors in their respective fields. As we’ve told you about the inspiring stories of these notable alumni, getting inspired from this, Are you planning to study in Canada but are not sure where to start? Call our Leverage Edu experts at 1800 572 000 for end-to-end guidance from application to Visa process.