Canadian Engineering Memorial Foundation

What Canadian Engineering Memorial Foundation does

The Canadian Engineering Memorial Foundation (CEMF) is a registered Canadian charitable foundation founded in 1990 by Claudette MacKay-Lassonde, P.Eng., in the aftermath of the December 6, 1989 L'École Polytechnique tragedy. Operating from Renfrew, Ontario, the foundation's sole purpose was to administer scholarship programs supporting women pursuing engineering education at Canadian accredited universities, with the explicit goal of increasing female representation in the engineering profession. Since 2002, over 600 women applied for CEMF scholarships and more than 200 awards were granted.

CEMF operated a portfolio of approximately 14 named scholarship products spanning graduate awards (the $15,000 Claudette MacKay-Lassonde Graduate Award for PhD/Masters students), regional undergraduate ambassador awards of $5,000 each across five Canadian regions, and corporate-sponsored awards from partners including Vale, Enbridge, Hatch, Pomerleau, Dillon Consulting, Frontier Field Engineering, and Zayo Group. Award amounts ranged from $5,000 to $15,000 and several included potential internship pathways with sponsoring employers. Recipients were required to serve as ambassadors for the engineering profession and mentors to subsequent cohorts, creating a self-reinforcing pipeline of female engineering leaders.

The foundation was funded entirely through donations from individual engineers, corporations, engineering faculties, engineering societies, and Canadian regulatory organizations. Key revenue channels included the Professional Engineers Ontario (PEO) annual licence renewal donation option (contributing nearly $1.4M since 1991), corporate sponsorship of named awards, tiered Faculty Partner contributions from university engineering faculties, and individual donations processed via the foundation website. Day-to-day operations were managed by Megram, an association management company, with Edward Jones managing the financial portfolio. The Board of Directors announced in 2023 that the foundation would cease operations; 2023 scholarship recipients received their full awards, but the foundation is no longer accepting donations.

Name

Canadian Engineering Memorial Foundation

Legal name

Canadian Engineering Memorial Foundation

Website

https://cemf.ca

Company type

Private

Founded year

1990

Operating status

Closed

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Canadian Engineering Memorial Foundation is a registered Canadian charitable foundation that operated from 1990 to 2023, providing named scholarships to women engineering students at Canadian universities in memory of the 14 victims of the 1989 École Polytechnique tragedy. The foundation ceased operations in 2023.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Engineering Education Scholarships

NAICS

Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321), Other Grantmaking and Giving Services (813219)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Field-of-Study & Discipline-Specific Funding (EDAIAOAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Degree-Level Scholarships (Undergrad/Masters/PhD/Postdoc) (EDAIAOAE), Scholarship & Fellowship Foundations and Trusts (EDADAHAC)

Keywords

• Women engineering scholarships
• Engineering education funding
• Charitable foundation grants
• Engineering ambassador awards
• Women STEM scholarships

Headquarters

HQ city

Brighton

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

The Canadian Engineering Memorial Foundation (CEMF) is a registered Canadian charitable foundation that provides scholarships and ambassador awards to women studying engineering at accredited Canadian universities. The foundation offers multiple named scholarship programs ranging from $5,000 to $15,000 each at the undergraduate, Masters, and PhD levels, supported by corporate sponsors, engineering professional organizations, and university faculty partners. Recipients are required to serve as ambassadors and mentors for the engineering profession.

Product overview

Canadian Engineering Memorial Foundation (CEMF) is a Registered Canadian Charitable Foundation that provides scholarship programs to support women in engineering. The organization offers 14 monetary awards including graduate awards (Claudette MacKay-Lassonde Graduate Award at $15,000 for PhD and Masters), undergraduate ambassador awards (regional $5,000 awards across British Columbia, Prairies, Ontario, Quebec, and Atlantic), and corporate-sponsored scholarships (Enbridge at $10,000, Pomerleau at $5,000, Hatch at $10,000, Dillon at $5,000, Vale at $10,000, Zayo at $5,000). The scholarships are designed for women studying engineering at Canadian accredited programs who demonstrate leadership and volunteer in their communities. Over 600 women have applied and over 200 scholarships have been awarded since 2002.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Claudette MacKay-Lassonde Graduate Engineering Ambassador Award A $15,000 award granted to women studying engineering full-time at the PhD or Masters level, honoring CEMF founder Claudette MacKay-Lassonde.
• John Evans Engineering Entrance Award An entrance award for students entering their first year of an accredited engineering program at a Canadian university.
• Enbridge Ambassador Award Two $10,000 undergraduate awards sponsored by Enbridge for women in engineering, with potential internship available.
• Pomerleau Engineering Award A $5,000 undergraduate scholarship sponsored by Pomerleau for self-identifying female students studying engineering full-time in a Canadian accredited engineering undergraduate program.
• Hatch Engineering Ambassador Award A $10,000 undergraduate award sponsored by Hatch for women enrolled in an accredited engineering program in Quebec, with a potential summer internship opportunity.
• Dillon Undergraduate Engineering Ambassador Award A $5,000 undergraduate award sponsored by Dillon Consulting Limited, with potential summer job opportunity with Dillon as a condition of the scholarship.
• CEMF Engineering Ambassador Awards (Regional) Regional undergraduate awards of $5,000 each for women in engineering, based on university location in British Columbia, Prairies, Ontario, Quebec, or Atlantic regions.
• Rona Hatt Chemical Engineering Ambassador Award A $5,000 annual award for women enrolled in a chemical, bio-medical, or environmental engineering program.
• Marie Carter Memorial Undergraduate Engineering Ambassador Award A $5,000 undergraduate award in memory of Marie Carter, P.Eng., for Canadian women in engineering at the undergraduate level.
• Nellie Giffin Ambassador Award A $5,000 undergraduate award offered biannually, sponsored by Frontier Field Engineering in memory of the owner's grandmother Nellie Giffin.
• Zayo Group ICT Engineering Undergraduate Award A $5,000 undergraduate award for women interested in information and communications technology engineering.
• Vale Masters Award in Engineering A $10,000 Masters award for women in mining and metallurgical engineering or related disciplines.
• Vale Undergraduate Engineering Ambassador Award Up to three $10,000 undergraduate awards for women in mining or metallurgical engineering, with potential summer job opportunity with Vale.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 600 applications received and over 200 scholarships awarded since 2002

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Professional Engineers Ontario (PEO)coreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 1991PEO has supported the Foundation consistently every year since 1991 by including a personal donation option on their annual member invoices renewing professional registration. PEO licence holders have contributed nearly $1.4 million since 1991. Claudette MacKay-Lassonde, P.Eng., former PEO President, founded CEMF in 1990.
• Engineers CanadacoreGTM or Marketing PartnerEngineers Canada generously hosts the Foundation's Award presentations during their Annual General Meeting. They provide a major grant to help defray expenses. Staff at Engineers Canada voluntarily donate to CEMF through a staff project established in 2008.
• EnbridgecoreGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnering with CEMF, Enbridge offers two $10,000 undergraduate awards each year. There is a potential internship available with the award.
• PomerleaucoreGTM or Marketing PartnerPomerleau is excited to offer a $5,000 undergraduate award each year to a self-identifying female studying engineering full-time in a Canadian accredited engineering undergraduate program.
• HatchcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnering with CEMF, Hatch offers a $10,000 undergraduate Award. The award comes with a potential summer internship opportunity.
• Dillon Consulting LimitedcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerIn partnership with CEMF, Dillon Consulting Limited offers one $5,000 undergraduate award each year. Applicants may be offered a summer job opportunity with Dillon as a condition of the scholarship.
• Frontier Field Engineering (Nellie Giffin Award)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnering with CEMF, Frontier Field Engineering offers one $5,000 undergraduate award biannually, in memory of the owner's grandmother Nellie Giffin.
• ValecoreGTM or Marketing PartnerVale has supported CEMF for over 20 years, offering up to three $10,000 Vale Undergraduate Engineering Ambassador Awards annually. Winners may also receive a summer job opportunity with Vale.
• Zayo Group (formerly Allstream)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerIn 2014, Zayo Group joined with CEMF to offer a new $5,000 award for women in the information and communications technology field of study. Allstream was acquired by Zayo in January 2016.
• Canadian Academy of EngineeringminorOthersThe Canadian Academy of Engineering is an independent, self-governing and non-profit organization. Fellows of the Academy are nominated and elected by their peers.
• Faculty Partners (Canadian Universities)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerDeans and Engineering Faculties support CEMF so that more women will enroll in engineering programs. Partners are categorized as Gold ($3,000), Silver ($2,000), and Bronze ($1,000) tiers.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights2 records

Emerging players

• Indspire: Canadian Indigenous-led charity providing scholarships and bursaries to Indigenous students including those in engineering; comparable as a Canadian scholarship-focused non-profit with corporate sponsor relationships, but serving a different beneficiary population.
• WEPAN (Women in Engineering ProActive Network): US-based non-profit network focused on advancing women in engineering through K-PhD pipeline programs; comparable in advocacy and pipeline-building mission though operating at a network rather than direct-scholarship level.
• Canadian Coalition of Women in Engineering, Science, Trades and Technology (CCWESTT): Canadian coalition promoting women in engineering and STEM disciplines; comparable mission focused on the Canadian context and analogous stakeholder network, though operates as an advocacy body rather than direct scholarship administrator.

Broad incumbents

• Engineers Canada: National umbrella organization of Canada's provincial and territorial engineering regulators that hosted CEMF's awards and provides grants; comparable as a sectoral incumbent supporting women-in-engineering programming nationally.
• Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC): Federal funding agency administering scholarships (e.g., Canada Graduate Scholarships) targeting the same Canadian engineering student population CEMF served; functionally comparable as a major scholarship dispenser.

Direct peers

• Professional Engineers Ontario (PEO): Provincial engineering regulator and CEMF's longest-tenured funding partner; operates its own foundation and scholarship programs and shares the same donor-pool and women-in-engineering mission.
• Society of Women Engineers (SWE): Largest US-based non-profit advancing women in engineering through scholarships, awards, and professional development. Closest functional analog to CEMF in mission, scholarship portfolio, and Ambassador-style career pipeline programs.

Market position

Strengths3 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/canadian-engineering-memorial-foundation

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Canadian Engineering Memorial Foundation