Each year, millions of Canadians retire and face the big adjustment of life on a fixed income. The transition from wage earning years to retirement is never easy; and with 15% of Canada’s population 65 years of age or older, working professionals who interact with elders are in a unique position to meet the needs of this growing demographic.
The Elder Planning Counselor (EPC) course is a series of informational workshop-styled seminars offered at Ashton College in partnership with the Canadian Initiative for Elder Planning Studies (CIEPS) and is the first elder-focused educational course of its kind. It is designed by Canadians and for Canadians.
OverviewAdmission RequirementsCourse Formats and DurationUpcoming DatesTopicsFees
The comprehensive classroom modules that make up the EPC curriculum are designed to enrich the knowledge and understanding of those working with the 50+ age group by educating them on the evolving and specialized needs of Canada’s elders. Delivered by industry experts, Ashton’s EPC course will enable you to assist the elderly in financial planning and care, using the terms they will accept and appreciate.
The EPC is recommended for:
Insurance and Financial Planners;
Realtors;
Lawyers;
Accountants;
Caregivers;
Medical Personnel;
Anyone working with or caring for individuals over 50.
Presenters
Rhona Konnelly
Rhona Konnelly has over three decades of diverse insurance, financial and estate planning experience. She has served for many years in senior Specialist and Director roles with some of Canada’s leading financial services organizations. Rhona earned her Chartered Life Underwriter’s Degree (CLU) in financial services and estate planning in 1998. In 2005 she received the Elder Planning Counselor (EPC) designation and Certified Professional Consultant on Aging (CPCA) designation; both of these credentials build on her in-depth experience and assist her in advising elders and their families on the financial, social and health aspects of retirement.
Becky Wong
Becky Wong holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Honours) from the University of Manitoba and has a wide variety of accreditations, including the Certified Financial Planner (CFP), Financial Management Advisor (FMA) and Elder Planning Council (EPC). Becky owns a financial planning practice and is also a contributing editor for Canadian MoneySaver Magazine.
Dan Levitt
Dan Levitt shepherds the enhancement of social, spiritual and care needs for more than 300 seniors, inspiring a team of over 400 employees and volunteers with a commitment to continuously improving the quality of life. Dan is an Adjunct Professor in Gerontology teaching Long-Term Care Administration at Simon Fraser University. He has appeared on television and radio as well as authoring many articles in newspapers and professional journals. His insights on seniors care leadership are sought after at events across Canada, the United States, Europe, Asia, Australia and New Zealand.
Applicants must meet the following criteria:
A minimum of a high school diploma, 19 years or older at the start of the applicant’s program or course; and
English Language Proficiency Requirements (please see Policy 1002).
For more details, please see our Admissions Policy (Policy 1001).
Format
This course is delivered in-class from our Vancouver campus.
Kazem has 20 years working experience in various Financial and Accounting fields with Public, private and governmental companies; he is in charge of numerous positions, from accountant to board member and consulting positions.
Apart from Master’s Degree in Industrial Management, Kazem obtained professional designations and qualifications as a:
Member of Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada, CPA
Member of Association of Chartered Certified Accountants of UK, ACCA, world’s most widely respected qualification and accountancy body
Member of Iranian Institute of Certified Accountants
On a regular basis, Kazem holds various educational seminars for bankers and financial institutions; he gives presentations on finance, accounting and insurance topics both in Iran and Canada. Since 2014, Kazem has been working with H&R BLOCK, the largest tax service providers in Canada, holding various positions such as Tax Instructor and Tax Professional.
Meegan Scott is a strategic management consultant; she founded and owns the Toronto-based consulting practice, Magate Wildhorse. Meegan is trained in the fields of international relations, international trade law, international trade finance law, finance, international finance, marketing, sales, insurance, investments, corporate strategy, performance management, and evaluation.
For almost two decades Meegan has served in the fields of international development, corporate strategy and business planning, project management, marketing, training and education. She offers significant training and experience in sales, business incubation, as well as in conducting business and marketing across international borders. In addition to helping start-ups, established entities, and government departments to successfully conduct international business and projects, she has initiated and led the development of corporate social responsibility programs in different organizations.
She is committed to facilitating learning that is relevant to students, employers, economies, and societies. Meegan strives to make learning simple, fun, entertaining and deep. She is an advocate for inductive and interactive learning methods and techniques.
Meegan holds a BSc (Honours) in International Relations from the University of the West Indies, Mona Campus; an MBA in Marketing and Finance from the University of New Orleans; a Diploma in International Environmental Trade Law from UNITAR. In addition, she has completed various certificates and courses in Intellectual Property Law, International Trade Law, International Trade Finance Law, Carriage of Goods by Sea, and International Sales Contracts. She also holds the designation PMP and a Postgraduate Diploma in Business Analysis for Project and Service Managers, and is a Licensed Financial Security Advisor and Investment Representative.
Robert Hurdman, CFP, has worked as a financial advisor in Calgary, AB for eight years. Robert gives professional advice to families on financial planning and investment management. Besides the Certified Financial Planner designation, Robert also earned a BA in International Studies from Laval University and a Master of Education from the University of Calgary. He also volunteers in his community with Junior Achievement, Scouts Canada, YMCA, and in his church.
David Dalton has been a wealth management professional since 1997, as both an institutional advisor and an independent financial planner. He holds the CFP, CLU, CHS, and CPCA designations. Besides instructing for Ashton College since 2006, he has presented at dozens of community engagements fornon-profit groups, government agencies, trade shows, and consumer groups on topics from socially responsible investing, all the way to taxation and estate planning. Financial literacy is near and dear to him and educating and training those who advise others is particularly fulfilling.
Sonny Sahi has been in the financial services industry for over ten years, the bulk of which has been spent on providing financial planning advice to his clients. Sonny draws on his investment expertise and years of financial planning experience to help his clients realize their financial goals. Sonny has attained his Certified Financial Planner designation (CFP) as well as a Bachelor of Business Administration degree (BBA).
Derrick Mo started his financial advisory career in 2008 in Vancouver, Canada. Derrick used to work in Canada’s top brokerage firms as a financial advisor, a mortgage broker and a private equity market specialist, and in HSBC Canada’s Wealth Management division as an account manager and a mutual fund representative. Derrick is now working for a mutual fund company that specializes in emerging market investment.
Derrick received a Bachelors degree, major in Business Administration and Management, with honours from Harvard University. Derrick has also gained Business Analysis and Project Management certificates from Duke University. Derrick has completed many professional courses such as Life Licence Qualification Program (LLQP), Canadian Mortgage Brokerage Course, Investment Funds in Canada (IFIC), Canadian Securities Course (CSC), Exempt Market Product (EMP), Financial Planning I&II, and CFP Capstone course. Derrick is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) charterholder and a Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA) charterholder.
Jason Wong has extensive knowledge in the wealth management industry, and has been practising financial planning since 2001. Jason started his career through the financial advisory channel in one of the major banks. He then moved on to the independent channel to assist his individual and business clients to achieve their financial goals through comprehensive financial planning. Jason is also a consultant supporting financial advisers providing wealth management solutions to their clients.
Jason holds several industry accreditations: Certified Financial Planner (CFP), Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA), Financial Management Advisor (FMA) and Derivative Market Specialist (DMS). He holds a Master of Business Administration from the University of Manchester, which is consistently ranked as one of the top global business schools under the Financial Times Global MBA rankings.
Robert Mawhinney has over 20 years of experience in the financial sector as a gold research analyst, gold trader, foreign exchange market maker/interbank dealer, corporate foreign exchange advisor and investment advisor. Robert holds an Economics degree from Glendon College of York University and is currently an Investment Advisor with Global Securities.
Bryan Dar Santos is a financial educator and investment specialist with nearly two decades of industry experience. Bryan has spent years training and supporting hundreds of financial advisors across Canada and is the founder of FDI Financial Diagnostics Inc., an independent investment analysis firm for advisors and retail clients.
Bryan is passionate about helping Canadians understand the financial industry, specializing in explaining complex financial concepts in simple terms. From 2012 to 2014 he published “FinanceWorks.ca” a national consumer magazine that connected finance to our everyday lives and helped Canadians to earn, grow, save and protect their money.
Peter Labrie is a finance expert who has been practising for over 20 years. Peter has global experience in the financial services industry, having worked in countries such as France, China, the Netherlands, Singapore and the United States. Peter is educated in finance and industrial psychology and is knowledgeable in business development, process improvement, managing a corporate treasury, and negotiating large-scale business deals.
Rhona Konnelly is an accomplished Insurance and Estate Planning Consultant with over 28 years of diverse financial and estate planning experience. She has served for many years in senior specialist and directorship roles with many of Canada’s leading financial services organizations, including Investors Group, Nesbitt Burns Financial Services Inc., Berkshire Insurance Services Inc., Canada Life Assurance Company, and Foresters.
Rhona earned her Chartered Life Underwriter’s designation (CLU) in financial services and estate planning from the Canadian Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors (CAIFA) in 1998. In 2005, Rhona received the Elder Planning Counselor (EPC) designation through the Canadian Initiative for Elder Planning Studies and the Certified Professional Consultant on Aging (CPCA) designation through the Society of Certified Senior Advisors. Rhona is also the President of the North Shore Vancouver Chapter for CARP (Canada’s Association for the over-fifties).
Steve Fooks is currently a training manager at Freedom 55 in Vancouver. He has held several executive positions in the financial services industry over the past 15 years and graduated from Wilfred Laurier University in Waterloo, Ontario, with an Honours degree in Business Administration. He also holds the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) designation and is a Certified Executive Coach.
Steve, who has been a member of Ashton’s faculty for several years, is currently teaching Ashton College’s Life Licence Qualification Program (LLQP) and Certified Financial Planner (CFP) courses.
Ian Whiting obtained his Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU) designation in 1987 while completing his Investment Funds Institute of Canada (IFIC) qualification. He completed his Fellowship in the Life Management Institute with a specialty in Financial Services in 1988. In 1989, Ian completed qualifications for his Chartered Financial Consultant (CFC) designation. In 1992, he qualified as an Associate of the Academy of Life Underwriters and in 1993 he completed his Associate, Customer Service designation program through LOMA.
In 1997, Ian qualified as a Certified Financial Planner (CFP) and also completed his courses and exams to obtain the Associate, Insurance Agency Administration designation. In 1999, he completed the study and examinations to qualify as a Trading Officer, Partner and Director for Mutual Funds with the BC Securities Commission. As a result, he is also qualified as both a Branch Compliance Manager and Head Office/Provincial Compliance Officer.
Although Sam Sharma began his career in the sciences, earning himself a Bachelor of Science and a Masters in Materials Chemistry from the University of Jamia in New Delhi, India, he made the leap to the world of finance a few years later when he graduated with a Master of Business Administration (Finance) from the University of New England in Australia in 1996. Launching his career in the financial services industry, Sam has worked mostly for banks, earning himself awards and recognition for his achievements.
Sam teaches Ashton College students about mutual funds in the Canadian Investment Funds course.
Byron Boone has nearly three decades of financial sales and management experience. A believer in continuous learning, Byron holds a Bachelor of Arts (Economics) from the University of British Columbia, an Executive Master of Business Administration from Simon Fraser University, and a Certificate in Financial Management from British Columbia Institute of Technology. Byron also has more than a dozen finance-specific licences and designations, including the Life Licence Qualification Program (LLQP) and Certified Financial Planner (CFP).
Becky Wong holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Honours) degree from the University of Manitoba and has a wide variety of accreditations, including the Certified Financial Planner (CFP), Financial Management Advisor (FMA), and Elder Planning Council (EPC).
Becky owns a financial planning practice and is also a contributing editor for Canadian MoneySaver Magazine.
