Edmonton, August 22, 2022 — Canadian Parents for French announced the election of Ms. Salma Al-Saquaf to the National Board of Directors and the re-election of Derrek Bentley and Kate Peters as President and Vice-President, respectively, during the 46th Annual General Meeting held on August 21 in Edmonton, Alberta.

Salma Al-Saquaf, of Calgary, Alberta, is a mother and a long-time CPF volunteer. Her experience includes work as a human resource professional, teacher assistant and as content creator. Al-Saquaf holds a Bachelor of Arts in Criminology and Women and Gender Studies, Human Resources Management Certificate and she is also certified as a Reggio Emilia Educator and a Waldorf Teacher. She is a passionate advocate of French as a second language education, bilingualism and childhood literacy. She currently homeschools her children.

Besides Al-Saquaf’s appointment to the Board of Directors, the 46th AGM saw the re-election of Derrek Bentley of Winnipeg, Manitoba, as President and of Kate Peters of Edmonton, AB, as Vice-President for the third consecutive year. They are joined by returning Directors, Dr. Wendy Carr (BC), Diane Tijman (BC) and Larry Vaters (NL).

Sincere thanks were extended to Dr. Richard Slevinsky (AB) and to Past President Nancy McKeraghan (ON) for their terms on the National Board of Directors, whose roles will now shift to serving as Chairs of a Standing Committee and an Ad Hoc Committee respectively: the Network Advocacy Advisory Table and Revenue Diversification Working Group.

Ms. McKeraghan was also recognized with the CPF Distinguished Lifetime Membership Award 2022 for her long-time personal commitment and contributions to the organization, from being a Chapter President, a Branch Director and for serving as the National President.

The 46th AGM took place as part of the CPF Leaders’ Networking Event, two intensive governance-oriented days filled with roundtable discussions that served as the midpoint check-in to review strategic priorities and identify opportunities to optimize collaboration as a pan-Canadian network.

“We are excited to welcome Salma to our Board at a time when the CPF Network is looking at ways to better support parents and improve our local advocacy efforts. This weekend saw the commitment of our volunteer leaders and our Network’s determination to increase our impact influencing issues of official languages bilingualism and French second language education for all. I am looking forward to seeing the results over the coming year,” said Derrek Bentley, National President, Canadian Parents for French.

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Canadian Parents for French is a nationwide, research-informed, volunteer organization that represents 36,000 members across Canada and champions the opportunity to learn and use French for all those who call Canada home.

 

For more information, please contact:

Marcos Salaiza, Communications Manager

Tel: 613.235.1481 x222 Email: msalaiza@cpf.ca