Kevin Garland has been executive director of the National Ballet since 2001. (Sian Richards/National Ballet of Canada )

National Ballet of Canada executive director Kevin Garland has announced she'll retire in June 2013, following 10 years with the Toronto-based dance company.

She has been praised for her solid financial leadership of the National Ballet, overseeing its move from the Hummingbird Centre to the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, as well as growing the company’s annual budget from $18 million to $29 million.

Garland joined the National Ballet in 2001. She worked with artistic director James Kudelka and then with Karen Kain, who took over as artistic director in 2005.

She oversaw the co-production of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland — created by the National Ballet and the U.K.'s Royal Ballet — and negotiated the terms of the Toronto troupe's return to international touring this year.

“I leave this company with the satisfaction of knowing that it is on a sound financial footing and with the joy of returning our extraordinary artists to touring again to major international centres,” Garland said in a statement Thursday announcing her retirement.

The company has an operating surplus and an endowment of $40 million, despite the economic downturn. National Ballet board chair David Binet praised Garland for her “astute business acumen” and “passion for the art form.”

Garland, who studied urban planning at University of Toronto, previously worked with A.J. Diamond Associates Architects and held the position of vice-president with BCE Development and CIBC. In 1998, she was appointed executive director for the Canadian Opera House corporation, a position that allowed her to combine her passion for the arts with her business and planning experience.

She has served on the boards of the United Way of Greater Toronto, Habitat for Humanity and Ryerson University and is currently a provincial appointee to the Board of Waterfront Toronto.