An investment for generations to come

Dianne Lougheed

“My first memories of the University of Alberta are wandering around the campus with my grandfather, Norman Bradley,” recalls Dianne Lougheed, ’84 MBA.

At the time, her grandfather, Norman Bradley, ’25 BSc(CivE), ’59 BA and ’60 LLB, was at the U of A completing his arts and law degrees. And “I remember going there with him and visiting the Tuck Shop that served these amazing cinnamon buns.” 

In 1984, Dianne completed her MBA while on maternity leave with her first daughter. She was working with KPMG at the time and decided to pursue her MBA as she believed she needed more education to be successful as a management consultant. She went on to have senior management positions at ATCO/ Canadian Utilities. Followed by her own consulting company for 25 years. 

Dianne says that her education “was important in terms of my career” and that it was “a wonderful experience.”

She is passionate about investing in education, particularly business degrees. “I think education is one of the key strategies for improving collective well-being and enhancing productivity,” she says. 

Her accountant helped her to create an endowment at the U of A, with a gift of securities. Dianne’s scholarship benefits graduate students with a background in economics, focusing on strategy in the business master’s program. 

“I was able to meet with one of the students who got the scholarship, which was inspiring,” says Dianne. She was thrilled to learn how the student was already applying what they learned to their existing job. 

Dianne’s parents, Donald Lougheed, ’48 BSc(MinE), and Doreen Lougheed, ’49 BCom, were also U of A graduates. They had previously established endowments at the U of A in their names to benefit engineering students and women students in the MBA program. 

We are grateful that Dianne followed in her parents’ footsteps. The Lougheed family legacy will continue to have a tremendous impact on future engineers and business leaders in Canada.