Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity Appoints Santee Smith and Françoise E. Lyon to Board of Governors
By
Banff Centre Communications
Posted on
June 11, 2025
BANFF, AB, June 11, 2025 – Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity is pleased to welcome internationally renowned dance artist, educator, and community leader Santee Smith as well as finance, governance, and tech start-up leader and arts supporter Françoise E. Lyon to the Board of Governors.
Santee Smith, Tekaronhiáhkhwa (Picking Up the Sky), is a renowned multidisciplinary artist and cultural leader from the Kahnyen’kehàka (Mohawk) Nation in Ohswé:ken/Six Nations of the Grand River. Internationally recognized for her visionary contributions to dance and Indigenous performance, by weaving ancestral knowledge systems with contemporary practice to create transformative works rooted in identity, land, humanity, and our shared responsibility to the natural world. She trained at Canada’s National Ballet School and holds degrees in Physical Education, Psychology from McMaster University and a Master’s in Dance from York University. A Member of the Order of Canada, she serves as the 19th Chancellor of McMaster University.
As the founder and Artistic Director of Kaha:wi Dance Theatre, Smith creates, produces and tours numerous works and advances Indigenous methodologies through land-based and creativity research, international collaborations, cultural exchange and vitalization. A sought-after collaborator, speaker, teacher and mentor. Santee continues to inspire as an artist, leader, and cultural visionary.
Since 1996, Smith has been a foundational artist at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity through Indigenous Arts, Dance, and Theatre departments.
“Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity has been a powerful place of artistic growth and cultural affirmation. It’s where my creative voice as an artist has been deeply nurtured. I’m honoured to continue this relationship from being a creator, faculty, and now as a member of the Board of Governors. I look forward to helping support and shape a future where the arts, creativity and Indigenous perspectives thrive.”
Santee Smith
Lyon’s career has spanned senior executive roles in Canada’s investment and wealth management sectors including leadership roles on numerous boards. She is currently an advisor to California-based VC fund Starshot Capital and serves on the boards of Innovobot (Montréal), Crown Aviation (Toronto) and Investment Committee of Financières des professionnelles (Montréal). She also supports a leading Canadian human capital consulting firm as a senior strategic advisor.
Lyon recently completed her term as Chair of the Board of Trustees of the National Gallery of Canada (2017–2024) and previously served on the Montréal Museum of Fine Arts Foundation Board (2013–2017)—experiences that deepened her belief in the transformative power of art. Her contributions to women’s financial literacy have earned her national recognition, including the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal in 2013. She’s been named one of Québec’s Top 8 Women in Finance (Premières en Affaires Magazine) and one of the Top 100 Women Leaders to Watch (Entreprendre Magazine).
“Banff Centre is one of our vital arts and leadership organizations in Canada. I’m honoured to be part of its next chapter supporting the power of creativity in so many forms, from the studio to the concert hall to the boardroom. This team of Board Governors and executive leadership is building towards an inspiring future.”
Françoise E. Lyon
Smith and Lyon join six public Governors appointed by the Government of Alberta, announced in April 2024: Board Chair Paul Baay, Brinna Brinkerhoff, Lori Paine, Naomi Schmold, Pinder Sandhu, and Myron Tétreault. In June 2024,it was announced that Ron Hallman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Parks Canada, was returning to Banff Centre as a governor nominated by the federal minister responsible for the National Parks Act. Hallman joins President & CEO Chris Lorway inrounding out the current Board of Governors.
“It is my pleasure to welcome Santee and Françoise to the Board of Governors. They both bring a wealth of invaluable expertise and perspectives to the Board, from art, to governance, to community building, to innovation."
Paul Baay, Chair of the Banff Centre Board of Governors
“Santee and Françoise are two exciting additions to our Board of Governors. Santee is a perfect example of someone who knows and understands Banff Centre’s past as a participant and its present as faculty and a close community member. And Françoise’s previous arts board experience coupled with her knack for fostering a new generation of business leaders ensures she will not only govern responsibly, but deeply understand what we do here at Banff Centre. I can’t wait to see how they add to our future as we march toward our 100th anniversary in 2033.”
President and CEO Chris Lorway
Quick Facts:
Banff Centre is a public, board-governed post-secondary institution specializing in arts and culture. The Board of Governors of The Banff Centre consists of:
• a board chair appointed by government
• the president of Banff Centre
• five public members appointed by government
• nine members appointed by the board, including one board-appointed member nominated to the board by the federal minister responsible for the National Parks Act
For more information on Banff Centre’s Board of Governors, visit banffcentre.ca/banff-centre- board-governors.
For photos, information, or interview requests, please contact:
Carly Maga
Director, Communications
Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity
tel: +1.403.763.6210
cell: +1.403.431.3423
carly_maga@banffcentre.ca
About Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity
Founded in 1933, Banff Centre is a post-secondary institution built upon an extraordinary legacy of excellence in artistic and leadership development. What started as a single course in drama has grown to become a global organization leading in arts, culture, and creative decision-making across dozens of disciplines, from the fine arts to Indigenous Wise Practices. From our home in the stunning Canadian Rocky Mountains, Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity aims to move everyone who attends our campus - artists, leaders, thinkers, and audiences - to unleash their creative potential and realize their unique contribution to build an innovative, inspiring future through education, performances, convenings, and public outreach. banffcentre.ca
Image Credit:
Santee Smith. Photo by Make Emarthle.
Françoise E. Lyon.