Our Team

Ryan Brown

Advisor
ryan.brown@ubc.ca

I have been with the UBC Community Engagement team since 2017, supporting the advancement of innovative and progressive community-university engagement programming, practices, and policies at the university. I collaborate with colleagues and partners across UBC and in the community to co-create infrastructure, programs, tools and other resources with the goal of building an environment where mutually beneficial and reciprocal community-university collaborations are able to take shape and to thrive.

Prior to joining Community Engagement I was with the Ministry of Children and Youth Services in Ontario helping to co-develop an Indigenous Children and Youth Strategy by working closely with Indigenous communities and organizations. I hold an MA in Sociology and Anthropology and a Post-Baccalaureate in Social Policy Analysis, from Simon Fraser University, and a BA in Political Science and Philosophy from Carleton University.

Ask me about:

Holly Kim

Operations and Program Manager
holly.kim@ubc.ca

I joined the Community Engagement team in 2017, and my role is to manage the day-to-day functioning of the unit and the administration of the funding programs (CUES and PRF). I support other areas of the operations including finance and budgeting, project management and human resources. When I am not in the Community Engagement office, I am a Registered Clinical Counsellor with my private practice. Before joining UBC, I worked for a large bank and managed branches.

I have a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from UBC and a Master of Arts in Counselling Psychology from Adler University.

Ask me about:

  • Payments related to our funding programs
  • Office operations

Elia Robles

Community University Engagement Support (CUES) Program Manager
elia.robles@ubc.ca

I joined the Community Engagement team in 2025 and manage UBC’s community engagement funding programs, including the Community University Engagement Support (CUES) fund and the Partnership Recognition & Engagement (PRE) fund. My role focuses on grant administration and supporting partnership‑based projects that advance reciprocal community‑university collaboration.

Before joining UBC, I spent over 20 years in the social sector, including roles at YWCA Metro Vancouver and LUSH Fresh Handmade Cosmetics. I hold a BA in Psychology from the University of Barcelona, along with training in fundraising management and cross‑cultural counselling.

Ask me about:

  • Funding for community-university partnerships
    • Community University Engagement Support (CUES) fund + Partnership Recognition & Engagement (PRE) fund
Portrait of Kat Cureton

Kat (Cureton) Tondvalkar – On Secondment until December 4th, 2026

Advisor
kat.cureton@ubc.ca


I joined the CE team in 2016. I am an advisor on community-university partnerships. My role is to help community partners navigate UBC and find helpful people, programs, and resources. I also co-lead the Community Engagement Network. Before joining the CE office, I was a sessional instructor in the School of Kinesiology where I taught a community-engaged learning course for three years. I spent a number of years working in non-profit organizations in Vancouver, like AMSSA, Red Fox Healthy Living Society, and Collingwood Neighbourhood House, which is where I built my knowledge of community engagement. I have a M.A. from UBC and a B.A. from Western University, both in kinesiology.

I’m currently filling in as a Global Engagement Advisor with the UBC Go Global team supporting global seminars and students studying aboard.


Ask me about: