Coffee with Nancy

After nearly 35 years, Nancy Walker (BMgt ’82), Vice-President of Finance & Administration, will step away from her desk on Oct. 1 as she helps Deborah Lucas transition into the role. Her departure from the VP position represents a sea change, although Walker technically will remain an employee. 

“I will be doing some special projects for the University, including the south-campus development,” she says. 

It might not be much to look at right now; the south campus is bald prairie, much like the area where Walker grew up. 

Roaming the range 

While Walker completed her schooling in Lethbridge, she spent her preschool years in Onefour, a research substation of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada that focuses on forage and cattle research. Located about 50 kilometres south of Manyberries, the site was named after its original land location — SW15 Township 1 Range 4. Her father managed the animals, which included sheep and a sheepdog named Jeannie. 

“My parents are immigrants from Holland,” Walker says. “Dad, who was 20 when he came, was sponsored. So, he worked for a farm in Winnipeg and then lived in Calgary for a while before moving to Onefour. My mom came four years later. So, she got off the boat from Holland and ended up in Onefour. I’m not quite sure how she stayed — you go from lush greenery and water and go to Onefour. She didn’t speak the language very well, so Dad spoke, I think, two weeks to her in Dutch and then said ‘OK, we’re Canadian and so we speak English and that’s it.’” 

When Walker and her brother reached school age, the family moved to Lethbridge. After graduating from Lethbridge Collegiate Institute, she came to ULethbridge, thinking of studying education or economics. In her second year, she took an accounting course, and that experience set her direction. 

She changed her major to accounting and set her sights on becoming a chartered accountant. Working at an accounting firm in Taber between her third and fourth year of university cemented her plans. After completing her degree, Walker got a position with YPM (Young, Parkyn & McNab) and began working on the chartered accountant program. It consisted of three audit, two tax and two finance courses, with the uniform final exam taking place over four days with a four-hour exam each day. Walker achieved the chartered accountant designation in 1985. 

“It’s pretty rigorous,” Walker says. “By the time you got to the end, only about 25 per cent of the students who started were still in the program.” 

She stayed at YPM for about six years before she became the controller for three local radio stations owned by one corporation. While Walker enjoyed her colleagues and working there, the position didn’t require much management or independent thinking as decisions were made by Head Office. 

Around this time her son Matthew was born, and with her husband Paul being a full-time musician, he stayed at home while Nancy returned to work after four weeks. 

“Looking back on that, even though Matthew was in good hands with a parent, Paul got to experience more than I did when Matthew was little,” she says. “And so, I wouldn’t recommend it. If any parent can have more time off with their kids, I would say do it.” 

When the Internal Auditor position opened at ULethbridge, Walker applied and got the job, beginning her career in January 1990. After four or five months, Eric Hillman, the Vice-President Administration at the time, asked her if she wanted to become the Controller. She served as Interim Controller for a couple of years before it became a permanent continuing position. Walker gradually took on more responsibility and was Associate Vice-President before becoming Vice-President (Finance & Administration) in July 1999. She also obtained her MBA in November 1999 while working and was awarded a Fellow of the Chartered Accountant designation in February 2010. 

Walker has served under four presidents, including Dr. Howard Tennant (LLD ’05), Dr. Bill Cade (LLD ’12), Dr. Mike Mahon and now Dr. Digvir Jayas. 

“Each one was very, very different,” she says. “The presidents we had in each of the times were the right presidents. Howard was — I don’t think it’s any secret for those who were around — a demanding man to work for. He would admit it himself. He was one of the smartest men I ever knew, and I learned a lot from him. He knew exactly where he wanted to go, and the University benefited from that. We became financially stable because of that. Presidents have visions, and so they guide the ship, and you need to either believe in that or leave if you don’t. I have enjoyed working with all of them.” 

Clouds on the horizon 

In the 1990s, when Ralph Klein was premier, the University faced a 21-per-cent cut in grant funding over three years. The then Vice-President of Finance had retired and wasn’t replaced. As a result, Walker shared the portfolio with Karen Clearwater for several years. Clearwater handled the budget side while Walker focused more on the accounting, finance, audit, year-end and operations. 

“I have to admit the 21-per-cent cut in the early ‘90s was very difficult,” she says. “We did lay people off, but we also had more options to deal with the budget than we do today. We made a lot of our budget cuts by increasing our enrolment and we didn’t have the kind of constraints on tuition fees that we do today. So, there was much less government regulation. It was difficult; people did lose their jobs but not anywhere near the extent of the recent layoffs.” 

Student recruitment was easier then because there were fewer post-secondary institutions in the province. The Klein era also came with a five-per-cent salary cut across the board. Over the past few years, the province has further significantly cut grant funding to post-secondaries. 

“I think I’m the longest-standing VP of Finance across the country,” says Walker. “I would say the last four or five years probably have been the most challenging. We have had numerous budget cuts — again 24 per cent — we had COVID and all the competition in enrolment. It’s a tougher job than it used to be.” 

Walker says the University’s operations can still become more efficient by being creative, staying open-minded and working together. 

“We have to all pull together as an institution,” says Walker. “Everyone has to, including the students, because they are part of this, too. It’s not an industry that is doomed for failure; I don’t believe that at all. I still believe very much in post-secondary and it’s an honourable profession.” 

Building the University 

The highlights for Walker include building new facilities, which she says are game changers for a university. The last 35 years have seen the addition of student residences, the library, the Community Centre for Wellbeing, Markin Hall, the Alberta Water and Environmental Science Building, the daycare, the Community Stadium, Anderson Hall, the Centre for Sport and Wellness, and Science Commons. She also oversaw the installation of Banner, a software system that supports the management of business processes, for the finance department in 1994. The process was complex and detailed — the kind of thing at which Walker excels. 

“The thing I like about the University is that it isn’t just a job,” she says. “You’re changing the lives of students and you’re trying to build something and make the world and society a better place.” 

From the beginning of her career at ULethbridge, Walker has been involved in various provincial and national post-secondary associations, including the Canadian Association of University Business Officers (CAUBO) and the Canadian Universities Reciprocal Insurance Exchange (CURIE), serving on their boards, including terms as president for both associations. She encourages everyone to participate in their professional associations where possible, attend the relevant conferences and build a network of colleagues. 

Outside of work 

Walker is also a musician who plays the clarinet and saxophone. She started playing the clarinet when she was nine years old. 

“I’ve been playing ever since,” she says. “I took up the saxophone a few years after that. Currently, I play in the Lethbridge Big Band and the Lethbridge Community Band. I have played in many types of bands, all through school and my working life, with the Kiwanis band being the first.” 

She played in the ensembles, the wind orchestra and the jazz band, while she was a student at ULethbridge. Walker also regularly plays in the Dixieland band that performs at the horse races. 

“When you’re playing music, you can’t think about anything else. You’re in the moment, which is great.” 

Looking ahead 

With more free time in her future, Walker says she hopes to play more music and maybe even practice more. 

“I like to keep busy,” she says. “I have lots of things around the house I like to putter with. I sew. I have a lot of things I do in the community, and I am part of Rotary. I may volunteer more, like at the Soup Kitchen or the animal shelter. Maybe I can do more dragon boating. I don’t think I’ll have trouble filling my day.” 

She also plans to travel more often to Toronto where her son Matthew, daughter-in-law Lian and grandson Sebastian, who’s almost three, live. 

“It’s been a privilege to work at the University. It’s a wonderful job and I have worked with wonderful people.”