Mary is the president and vice president of Mount Saint Vincent University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Mary has an extensive background in applied health research and education, and came to Grenfell from the University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT) in Oshawa. Her last post was Dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences at UOIT. Mary served as director of the School of Human Kinetics and Recreation at Memorial University, and has held positions as national director for coach development at Special Olympics Canada and as a professor at the University of Regina in Saskatchewan in both the faculties of Kinesiology and Health Studies, and Education, among other professional activities.
Mary has received numerous awards for her impact on health, physical activity and sports, and was named as one of the most influential women in sports and physical activity in 2008. Mary was a member of the Sport for Life Long-Term Development Expert Group for six years, serving as the lead on the inclusion of athletes with intellectual disabilities in the development of various sports’ Long-Term Development plans. In addition, she was very influential in the development of the Special Olympics Canada Long-Term Development framework.