About Us
About The Government Relations Office
The Government Relations Office at the University of Toronto works to promote the adoption of public policy measures by governments to support the U of T community, advance the core teaching and research mission of the University and leverage the University’s resources to deliver social and economic prosperity to the broader region.
Our office is a resource to the University community in support of U of T’s engagement with government, and a partner to community and industry associations that share the University’s public policy interests. We collaborate with key private and non-profit sector organizations including the Toronto Region Board of Trade, the Ontario Chamber of Commerce, the Public Policy Forum and the C.D.Howe Institute.
We work with the above groups, and government officials and agencies, to bring the knowledge and expertise of our faculty and students to government to support public policy development.
In addition, the Government Relations Office works on the University’s three campuses to build relationships with political representatives across the GTA.
Meet The Team
Andrew Thomson
Chief of Government Relations
Andrew Thomson is the University’s Chief of Government Relations and serves on the President’s senior leadership team. As chief advocate to federal, provincial, and municipal governments, he helps drive the University’s public policy agenda. This includes a focus on community and economic development; strengthening public funding for comprehensive and globally recognized, research-intensive programs; and knowledge transfer strategies to support entrepreneurship and job creation.
Andrew’s executive experience, in both public and private sectors, has focused extensively on issues of economic and human capital development. With more than a decade in elected office, and experience serving in senior Cabinet roles — including as Saskatchewan’s Minister of Finance and Minister of Learning — he has a deep understanding of government policy. As an executive with Cisco Systems, based in Toronto and subsequently the Asia Pacific region, he led public sector initiatives focused on creating new partnership and business models within the higher education sector across OECD and emerging markets.
Andrew holds a Bachelor of Arts (1990) from the University of Saskatchewan and is a recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal (2002) for his service to the community.
To get in touch with Andrew, please contact Dulce Santos, Administrative Coordinator and EA, Government Relations Office, through the U of T directory: https://directory.utoronto.ca/
Dulce Santos
Administrative Coordinator and Executive Assistant
Dulce previously served as the Manager of Constituency Affairs for the Member of Parliament for Mississauga-Lakeshore.
She previously worked as a case manager for two Provincial Members of Provincial Parliament.
She has also worked in the education sector and has spent time studying and teaching in Portugal and Poland.
Catrina Kronfli
Senior Policy Advisor, Institutional Strategic Initiatives
Catrina is responsible for supporting the University of Toronto’s (UofT) Institutional Strategic Initiatives and the university’s ability to conduct high-impact interdisciplinary research. Prior to joining GRO, she led a range of policy files at the Ontario Chamber of Commerce, managed the policy and government relations activities at the Ontario Society of Professional Engineers, and spearheaded the research for a provincial strategy at the Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration. Catrina holds a BA and MA from the UofT, as well as a MA from Ryerson University.
Forrest Parlee
Executive Director, Government Relations & Public Affairs
Forrest’s work focuses on advancing the public policy interests of the University with governments at the federal, provincial and municipal levels. Previously, Forrest was Vice President, National Partnerships at Mitacs, Director of Public Affairs at a global e-commerce organization, and served as a political advisor to Cabinet Ministers at the provincial and federal levels. Forrest holds a BA and MA from Simon Fraser University.
Jonathan Trentadue
Director, University Relations
Jonathan is responsible for providing direction and oversight across a number of areas, including university relations, sector-based organizations (COU, UC, U15), and GRO operations. He also liaises with senior University administration to ensure alignment of advocacy objectives, helping to coordinate responses to emerging issues. Prior to joining U of T, Jonathan served in various management roles within the Ontario Public Service and Cabinet Office, and is an alumnus of the Ontario Legislature Internship Programme. Jonathan holds an HBA from U of T and an MA in Political Science from McMaster University.
Mark Maloney
Municipal Affairs Advisor
Mark both monitors and advises on municipal relations issues involving the City of Toronto and its elected officials and staff, as well as City agencies, boards, and commissions. Mark has worked as a senior staff member with two Mayors of Toronto: Barbara Hall and Mel Lastman, where he served as the Coordinator of Research, Community Outreach & Special Projects. He has worked as a public affairs professional with two leading government relations firms, Urban Consulting and prior to that, with Urban Intelligence Ltd. where he coordinated in-depth municipal research projects across Canada. Mark’s prior career also included serving as a municipal affairs reporter with the CHUM Radio network, and on the assignment desk of CTV News in Ottawa, where he had also chaired the Regional government’s Board of Health and served as a City and Regional councillor.
Munira Tayabali
Special Projects Officer
Munira supports a variety of strategic initiatives in the Government Relations Office including providing strategic support to the University’s membership in and engagement with post-secondary institutions. She supports U of T’s collaboration with the Council of Ontario Universities, U15, and Universities Canada. Munira is a double-graduate of U of T.
Rupinder Bagha
Senior Policy Advisor, Health and Life Sciences
Rupinder’s work focuses on advancing the University’s health and life sciences interests at all levels of government. She brings more than 5 years of experience as a policy professional in the health care sector. Previously, she held positions at the Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health and the Ministry of Long-Term Care where she provided in-depth research and policy analysis on a variety of health policy matters. Rupinder holds a Master’s Degree in Public Policy and an Honors Bachelor of Arts from the University of Toronto.
Simona Chiose
Divisional Lead, Public Affairs
Simona leads development and execution of communication and marketing strategies and content, and collaborates with a strong and growing network of external stakeholders in the private sector to advance the university’s priorities. Simona has a PhD in political science from the University of Toronto and she teaches comparative politics as an adjunct instructor. Simona has more than two decades of experience as a senior reporter and editor and was the post-secondary reporter and education editor for The Globe and Mail prior to her role in government relations.