Anna Robak, PEng, CPEng (NZ) (2001)
Ph.D. Candidate, University of Australia

After graduating from UNB’s Civil Engineering programme, Anna moved to Bangkok, Thailand to complete her MSc in Infrastructure Engineering, funded by a multitude of scholarships including a Celanese Canada Internationalist Fellowship, Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) and an Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) entrance scholarship.

Anna joined Opus in Auckland, New Zealand, in 2003, to undertake the company’s five-year graduate development programme, which involved placements in a variety of civil and environmental engineering disciplines. Anna was the 2008 Opus Young Achiever of the Year, and in 2010 she was a New Zealand Young Engineer of the Year Finalist.

Through her involvement with Civil Defence light rescue teams, Anna responded to the recent Christchurch earthquakes. Since moving to New Zealand Anna has completed Ironman New Zealand and Coast to Coast. Anna was also an ambassador for Future in Tech, encouraging young people to consider careers in science and engineering.

Through the Centre of Regulation and Market Analysis at the University of Australia, Anna is now working on her PhD on valuing the unintended impacts of investment in potable water supply systems.

Sherry Sparks, P.Eng., CET, SC (1983)
Environmental Impact Assessment Manager
NB Dept. of Supply & Services

As past president of the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of New Brunswick (APEGNB), Sherry Sparks. P.Eng., has come a long way since earning her Civil Engineering degree from UNB in 1983 and receiving her diploma in civil engineering technology in 1980.


She started her professional career as a design engineer for Marine Atlantic—a position she held for seven years. During that time, Ms. Sparks worked on a variety of large-scale projects including dock and wharf upgrading, steam plants and the North Sydney, NS, terminal building construction.
In 1991, Ms. Sparks decided to leave Marine Atlantic so she could spend more time working in New Brunswick's construction industry. Although she encountered some skepticism regarding female construction engineers, Ms. Sparks' impressive educational and career achievements helped land her the job of regional engineer with the New Brunswick Department of Supply and Services (DSS). As regional engineer, Ms. Sparks managed a staff of four and supervised hundreds of multi-million dollar construction projects that included schools, dams, hospitals and the recently opened Cape Jourimain Nature Centre.


In 2002, Ms. Sparks was named DSS environmental impact assessment (EIA) manager. She is responsible for the EIA study and the consultant team managing the EIA study for the proposed modifications to the Petitcodiac River Causeway and the proposed removal of the Eel River Dam. Ms. Sparks is also an award-winning speaker having competed across North America as a member of International Training in Communication (ITC) and earning her Skilled Communicator (SC) from ITC based in Anaheim, California.

Ms. Sparks recently received the 2003 Muriel Fergusson Award which recognizes women in the Moncton area who "assume high levels of responsibility and leadership, and …serve as excellent role models for other women".
As an accomplished engineer, communicator and community volunteer, Ms. Sparks is seen as an inspiration to the next generation of women who want a rewarding career that helps improve the lives of their fellow citizens.

Rose Collicott (1983)
Senior Environmental Engineer
Environment Canada, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia

After graduating from the University of New Brunswick, Rose Collicott began her career at Imperial Oil Limited's refinery in Edmonton, Alberta. Her position there involved working in the areas of waste water treatment, air pollution control and management of maintenance projects.

Since 1992, Ms. Collicott has been the Senior Environmental Engineer with the Base Construction Engineering Division of the Department of National Defense in Halifax, N.S. In this capacity she works on various construction, renovation, and demolition projects, e.g. construction of waste water treatment plants and new jetties.

Currently, Ms. Collicott is on secondment at Environment Canada as the Senior Environmental Engineer on the Sydney Tar Ponds project. The Sydney Tar Ponds, located in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, is one of the largest contaminated sites in Canada. Currently, suitable remedial options are being developed in anticipation of full scale remediation in 2004.

Hollis B. Cole, P.Eng. (1972)
President & CEO, ADI Group Inc.

Hollis Cole is President and CEO of ADI Group Inc. [Fredericton], a multi-disciplinary firm that offers professional engineering, project management, environmental management, architectural, design build and research services. He is also President and CEO of ADI Capital Inc., an affiliate of the four principal operating companies that make up ADI Group Inc. He has also been elected President of the Canadian Council of Professional Engineers (CCPE) for 2002-2003. (APEGNB online).

Mr. Cole has extensive experience in civil, municipal/environmental and other projects. He has been directly involved with design build projects, and solid waste management and other environmental projects since 1988.

Eloi Duguay (1970)
President, Jim Pattison Sign Group

Eloi Duguay was vice president and general manager of Enseignes Imperial Signs of Edmundston, N.B. until recently being named president of Pattison Sign Group. The Jim Pattison Group is Canada's third largest private company and The Sign Group is one of the largest electronic sign companies in the world. Their products include a full range of illuminated, non-illuminated, neon, aluminum, vinyl and plastic signs as well as billboards, awnings and electronic message centres for such business giants as: Pepsi-Cola, McDonald's, Starbucks, Wal-Mart and Ultramar.

Mr. Duguay has also served as the president of the Economic Council of New Brunswick.

Richard Tingley (1967)
Owner, Tingley's Limited

Richard Tingley graduated from the Department of Civil Engineering at UNB in 1967. Over his career, Mr. Tingley has benefited from the technical training he received at UNB and has become a successful businessman in the Fredericton community.

In 1971, he left his engineering career and returned to Fredericton to take control of a family grocery business. In the face of fierce competition from larger national chains, he built his second store in 1977. His stores were expanded three times over their twenty-five years and they provided employment for many Frederictonians and students over their life. Along the way, his stores were recipients of six National Gold Awards.

Mr. Tingley has been named a life member of the Canadian Federation of Independent Grocers (CFIG), the highest honour the organization can bestow on one of its members. His supermarkets were sold in 1996 and he has transformed his Dundonald Street location into a neighbourhood plaza, leasing the space to a variety of small businesses and professionals.

Mr. Tingley was the winner of the 2001 Distinguished Citizen Award from the Chamber of Commerce. He received Citizenship Awards from APEGNB, and the Paul Harris Citizenship Award from the Fredericton Rotary Club, and in 1999 was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Science Degree from U.N.B.

M. Patrick Gillin (1949)
President & CEO, Gillin Engineering and Construction Ltd.

Mark Patrick Gillin, P.Eng. was born in Ottawa in 1925. He attended the University of New Brunswick in Fredericton and graduated from Civil Engineering in 1949. After a short employment with the Federal Government as an engineer, he commenced his own construction firm, Gillin Engineering and Construction Ltd. in 1950, and over 50 years later, at age 77, is still very active in the Company as President and C.E.O. He has been continuously involved in Ottawa’s construction industry since that time, firstly as a general contractor, and more recently in the construction and managing of commercial office buildings and hotels primarily in downtown Ottawa, for his company’s own account. He was the founding President of the Building Owners and Managers Association in Ottawa in 1976, and served as B.O.M.A. Canada President in the early 1980's.
Over the years Mr. Gillin has been actively involved in the Ottawa community, having served on several boards of various committees, some of which include: The Boys and Girls Club, Ashbury College, and The Rideau Club.
In 1993, The Engineering Institute of Canada granted him "Fellow of the Engineering Institute of Canada" (F.E.I.C.) for his community and professional interests.