New Canadians Centre Peterborough hires new Executive Director
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 7, 2019
The Board of Directors of the New Canadians Centre Peterborough is very pleased to announce the appointment of Andy Cragg as the new Executive Director of the organization. Andy competed with highly qualified applicants from the Peterborough and broader region to be awarded the position.
The New Canadians Centre strives to empower immigrants and refugees to become full and equal members of Canadian society, and to provide community leadership to ensure cultural integration in a welcoming community.
As a passionate advocate for immigration and settlement, Andy has been very involved with the NCC for several years. He served as Chair of the Peterborough Immigration Partnership (PIP) from 2014 to 2017. The Peterborough Immigration Partnership was formed in 2009 to advance a targeted community strategy for immigrant integration with the NCC as the lead agency. The work of the PIP is organised around a five-year plan and the goal of meaningful economic, social and cultural integration of newcomers and a prosperous and inclusive community for all. It is supported by over 80 community partners. Andy was instrumental in the development of the second five-year PIP strategic plan; PIP was one of the first Local Immigration Partnerships in Canada to reach this milestone.
During his tenure with the PIP, Andy was also the chair of the Resettlement Task Force, a working group of community agencies and stakeholders that met weekly to coordinate service delivery when Peterborough first started welcoming government-assisted refugees from Syria.
Andy has served on the NCC Finance Committee for the past 3 years, and is also a volunteer support group member for government-assisted refugees.
He holds a Master of Arts degree in Canadian Studies and Indigenous Studies from Trent University, where he focused on Canadian immigration policy, and has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy and Political Science from Dalhousie University.
Andy brings a strong background in staff and volunteer management, finance, governance, policy development, communication, fundraising and results-based decision-making to the team. He is a certified Project Manager (PMP®), is a member of the Institute of Corporate Directors and serves on the Board of Alterna Savings Credit Union.
“This year the NCC is celebrating 40 years of inspiring and encouraging newcomers and this would not be possible without the dedication of staff, volunteers, community members and partners. I am looking forward to being part of the team that builds on this impressive legacy to further the goal of a welcoming community,” says Andy.
Andy comes to the NCC from the Canadian Partnership for Women and Children’s Health (CanWaCH), a national network of organizations working together to achieve greater impact in improving women and children’s health around the world, where he served as Director of Knowledge Exchange.
“We are confident that Andy will continue to champion the goals of equity, diversity and inclusivity for our community and to support the staff to maintain our highest quality service to our clients and volunteers,” says Steve Kirton, Chair of the NCC Board.
Andy will take on his new role at the end of October 2019.
Andy Cragg
Media Contact: Yvonne Lai, Director of Community Development, 743-0882, [email protected]