Kyla Reid

I believe that I would be an excellent candidate to be considered as an Administrative Staff Governor because:

I would be thrilled to serve as an Administrative Staff Governor on the Board. I have worked at Carleton University in research services in the Faculty of Public Affairs since 2012. Through this experience, I have gained a wide perspective on the full range of activities happening at Carleton University, including both my interactions with my professional colleagues in the academic departments and academic Faculties, but also with colleagues in central offices like Financial Services, Human Resources, and Facilities Management and Planning to name just a few. I have gotten additional experience in the wide range of activities on the student services side of the university through my experience representing Administrative Staff on the Sexual Violence Prevention and Education Committee organized by Equity and Inclusive Communities, where I have served since 2018. I also served as the administrative staff representative on the search committee for a new Dean for the Faculty of Public Affairs in 2019-2020.

In my role, I also regularly interact with external stakeholders – primarily through engaging with community and industry representatives who are partnering with us on our research projects. This has also broadened my perspective to include knowledge of how those beyond our campus see us! I think this wide perspective on the full range of roles and responsibilities undertaken across our university campus – as well as how those beyond our campus see us – will help me in the role as an Administrative Staff Governor.

Additionally, I have demonstrated a strong reputation for collegiality and service excellence that I would bring to service as a Governor. I am fully supportive of the Board’s commitments to transparency and communication and would be a strong advocate to continue these commitments to ensure the Board is communicating effectively to the administrative staff during my term as a Governor. In recognition for my commitment to service excellence, I was awarded the 2019 Betty Weiss Memorial Award for Service Excellence by an Individual.

I have the following skills and experiences which would be beneficial in my role as Administrative Staff Governor:

In addition to what I’ve already highlighted above, I have the following skills and experiences that would be beneficial to my role as Administrative Staff Governor:

1) Existing knowledge of the role and responsibilities of a member of a Board: I am well placed to sit as a Governor on the Board as I already have some experience with the roles and responsibilities of a Board member. I have served as the Chair of the Board of a local charitable organization – the Sexual Assault Support Centre (SASC) of Ottawa – since 2019. I have experience in preparing for and actively participating in board meetings. In this capacity I have gained experience in reviewing and interpreting budgets and financial statements. I understand some of the core principles of governance, including the importance of participating actively on board committees to best impact the business of the Board in a productive way.

2) Leadership and Communication Skills: I have an open and collaborative leadership style. I have continued in developing my leadership style through professional development including completing Carleton Leader Stream 2, the Supervisory Development Series, and the Fierce Conversations Workshop.

I look forward to further honing these skills as an Administrative Staff Governor.

If elected to the Board, what would you like to gain from the experience and/or what skills would you like to further develop?

I would look forward to combining my experience as member of the administrative staff of Carleton University with my community experience working on the board of a small charity to impact the governance of Carleton University. I am also excited to get to know and learn from other 31 Governors as I anticipate I will learn a lot from their diverse experiences and perspectives. I would hope to further my communication skills as well as learn more about the operations of Carleton University from a strategic perspective.