Distinguished Alumnus/a Award
Saint Mary's presents this award to an alumnus/a for outstanding achievements in their chosen profession. The award reflects career achievements with particular focus on the Lasallian values of mentoring and making an impact on others.
2025 Awardee: Dr. Brian L. Desbiens B’67
Dr. Brian L. Desbiens B’67 has dedicated his life to education and service to his community. He worked at St. Clair College from 1968-2004, starting as a faculty/counselor, senior administrator and eventually as a campus principal in Chatham, Ontario. He then went on to serve as president of Sir Sandford Fleming College from May 1988 to August 2004. Since retirement, he has established Desbiens Services which provides executive leadership coaching to senior leaders in higher education (nongovernmental organizations, colleges, and universities) and health care, and is an associate partner with Promeus, an executive search firm. He has worked at or taught for St. Clair College, Sir Sandford Fleming College, Michigan State University, Central Michigan University, Contact North|Contact Nord, and OISE-University of Toronto.
Dr. Desbiens served on several national and provincial organizations. He served nationally on the Prime Minister’s National Advisory Board on Science and Technology, on the National Advisory Council on Energy Efficiency, was a founding member of the Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation, and served on the Canadian Merit Scholarship Foundation and the Loran Scholarship Foundation. In education, he served as a member and chair of the Canadian Network of College Presidents, as well as chaired the provincial Council of Presidents, the Ontario College Application Centre Management Board, and the Human Resource Development Task Force.
Provincially, he was a member of the founding Board for the Optical Regional Advanced Network of Ontario (ORANO), the Secondary School Reform Committee of Ontario, the Central Ontario Smart Growth Panel, the Educational Quality and Accountability Board (which he chaired for seven years), and is a member of the Advisory Committee for the Ph.D. program in Leadership at the University of Toronto, in which he is an adjunct professor.
Dr. Desbiens has been a research associate with Contact North/Contact Nord for the past decade. He was a founding member of the Canadian Digital Learning Research Association research team conducting an annual national study of online and digital learning. He has received several awards throughout his career including the Order of Ontario. Locally he has tirelessly served his community through many organizations like the United Way and benefitting many causes including healthcare, economic development, flood relief, poverty reduction, at-risk families, and literacy.
Dr. Desbiens enjoyed being a student-athlete. He was fortunate to be captain of many teams throughout his youth, including the Men's Hockey Team while he attended Saint Mary's, and is especially proud of that team winning the 1963-64 and 1964-65 MIAC Championships. He and his wife Ellen reside in Omemee, Ontario, Canada and enjoy their three children and five grandchildren.
Eligibility:
This award is presented to a degreed alumnus/a of SMUMN who has shown outstanding achievements in their chosen profession. The award reflects career achievements with particular focus on the Lasallian values of mentoring and making an impact on others. Nominate your Distinguished Alumnus/a Award nominee here.
The awardee must have achieved the following:
- Personified professional excellence.
- Played a role in community improvement.
- Made a significant impact or recognition in their field.
Past Recipients:
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Thomas J. Mulvaney B'59 – 1966
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Rev. Paul Halloran B'49 – 1967
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James Carroll B'53 – 1968
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Dr. John Kearney B'55 – 1970
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Dr. Hugo Keim B'56 – 1971
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Dr. William Rock B'49 – 1972
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Dr. John Sbarbaro B'58 – 1973
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Gen. John Hennessey '42 – 1974
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Judge C. Bernard Carey B'56 – 1975
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Dr. John Hoffman B'51 – 1976
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Dr. Robert Hoffman B'56 – 1976
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Most Rev. George Speltz, DD B'32 – 1977
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Judge Michael Bilandic B'47 – 1978
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Dr. Joseph Kraft '43 – 1979
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Br. Laurence Walther, FSC B'44 – 1981
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John Parmer B'50 – 1982
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Thomas Meagher B'53 – 1983
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Bernard Semler B'38 – 1984
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Dr. Lorin Nevling, Jr. B'52 – 1985
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Eugene Figliulo B'46 – 1986
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Thomas Barger '30 – 1987
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Kenneth Wakefield B'42 – 1987
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Thomas Johnston B'43 – 1988
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Anthony J. Adducci B'59 – 1989
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Edward M. Allen '50 – 1990
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Carl Calabrese B'41 – 1991
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Br. Leonard Courtney, FSC, Ph.D B'37 – 1992
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John M. "Jack” Sharkey B'53 – 1993
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Dr. Hugo C. Pribor B'49 – 1994
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David B. Collins B'70 – 1995
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George J. Murtaugh B'61 – 1996
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John H. Ehlert B'67 – 1997
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Dr. Jon J. Kabara B'48 – 1998
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Br. Andrew Gonzalez, FSC, B'59 – 1999
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Dr. Charles Giammona Jr. B'70 – 2000
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Robert K. Hentzen B'57 – 2001
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Robert H. Wheeler B'67 – 2002
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Dr. Randall W.A. Davidson B'53 – 2003
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Sen. Michael Johanns B'71 – 2004
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Patrick A. Salvi B'75 – 2005
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Phillip Corcoran B'76 – 2006
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Charles Wolande B'76 – 2006
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Joseph Ross B'67 – 2007
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Edward Zabrocki B'63 – 2008
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Justice Thomas Kilbride B'78 – 2009
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Dr. Jane (Weydert) Homeyer B'86 – 2010
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Dr. Donald Truhlar B'65 – 2011
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Dr. Roger Lucas B'65 – 2012
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Pablo Gaito M'06 – 2013
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Holly Hall M'11 – 2013
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Janeé Harteau B'03, M'06 – 2013
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Scott Thomas M'05 – 2013
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Kathy Wilde M'92 – 2013
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Paul Meyer, J.D. B'64 – 2014
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William G. Jungbauer B'75 – 2015
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Merle Wilberding B’66 – 2016
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Richard "Dick" Drogosz B'61 - 2017
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Dr. Bobbie (Smith) Gostout CST'78, '83 - 2018
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Jerome "Jerry" Colletti B'69 - 2019
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Michael "Mike" Morsberger M'97 - 2019
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Dr. Thomas "Tom" Clasen B'78 - 2021
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Robert “Bob” Skemp ’49 - 2022
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Hon. Judge George Stephenson B’80 - 2022
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Paul P. Magallanes B'63 - 2023
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Candace (Langan) Lynch B'83 - 2024
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Dr. Brian L. Desbiens B’67 - 2025
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