The Queen’s community is remembering Roxy Denniston-Stewart, Student and Enrolment Services Manager at the Bader International Study Centre (BISC), Herstmonceux Castle, Sussex, England, who died Friday, Aug. 2.

“Roxy’s kind and generous character, combined with a deep commitment to serve the students she so loved, made her a cherished and invaluable member of the Queen’s family,” says Patrick Deane, Principal and Vice-Chancellor of Queen’s. “She will be sorely missed. On behalf of the university, I extend my sincere condolences to her family and friends.”

Denniston-Stewart joined Queen’s in 2000 and served as Associate Dean, Student Services and Community Relations, helping to ensure students felt supported and encouraged, and she did much to foster an engaging, vibrant, and inclusive campus community.

In 2017, she joined the BISC where she and her team worked to provide seamless academic, student life, and enrolment services. During her time at the Castle, she quickly made a great difference in the lives of students and staff with her particular warmth and ability to connect with people.

“Thousands of students have benefitted from Roxy’s commitment to their success and well-being,” says Ann Tierney, Vice-Provost and Dean of Student Affairs. “She was a calm and respected leader at Queen’s and across the student affairs field. Colleagues would often turn to her for advice and guidance. We will miss her terribly.”

Denniston-Stewart made many contributions to the student experience at Queen’s, including developing initiatives to advance experiential learning and work-integrated support structures, non-academic misconduct processes, health and wellness services, and residence life programming. Under her  leadership, Queen’s developed and launched the award-winning SeQure safety app for students, an example of her dedication to bringing real and practical solutions to tangibly improve their lives. She was also a great advocate for strong town-gown relations.

Before coming to Queen’s, Denniston-Stewart held positions at the University of Windsor, University of Guelph, and University of Waterloo.