Eleanor Clitheroe-Bell

Eleanor Clitheroe-Bell, MBA , LL.M , LL.B, M.Div (born January 29, 1954) is a Canadian cleric and former businesswoman.

Born in Montreal, Clitheroe earned her LL.B from the University of Western Ontario (UWO) in 1977. In 1978 she earned her LL.M from McGill University, and earned her MBA from UWO in 1980. In 2005, she obtained a Master of Divinity from Wycliffe College at the University of Toronto.

She then articled at the Tory, Tory law firm in Toronto, and worked for the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce. She was Ontario's deputy minister of finance from 1990 to 1993 under the NDP government of Bob Rae. She then became a vice-president of Ontario Hydro, and served as president and CEO when its name was changed to Hydro One. In 2000, she became chancellor of UWO.

In 2002 she was named Business Woman of the Year by the "National Post", but soon afterward she was fired as CEO of Hydro One after a public controversy arose regarding her substantial salary and benefits, including allegations that Hydro One paid $40,000 for renovations to Clitheroe’s Toronto home. [ [http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20020726/hydro_one_clitheroe_020726?s_name=&no_ads= "Former Hydro One CEO disputes allegations"] "CTV", 26 July 2002] She later commenced a multi-million dollar lawsuit against the utility for severance and pension compensation (the case is still pending).

From 2000 until 2004 she was Chancellor of the University of Western Ontario. In 2005, she was ordained a deacon in the Anglican Church of Canada, and later that year, was priested. She is Executive Director of Prison Fellowship Canada, and Assistant Curate at St. Cuthbert's, Oakville, Ontario. She is known to her parishioners as "Reverend Ellie".

References