Thursday, September 24, 2026

Now we are six

Alumni share thoughts on the Arts reorganization

By now, many alumni and friends of the Faculty of Arts have heard about our reorganization into six schools – the largest change of its kind in Waterloo’s history.

After a two-year consultation process, Arts launched its new structure as six schools on July 1, 2026. We are now:

The new schools position the Faculty for renewal with even better opportunities for interdisciplinary programs and research partnerships. While all our programs are continuing, the reorganization enables more collaboration, agility and responsiveness to evolving educational, societal and economic priorities. In fact, collaboration is already growing across all six schools with some exciting new initiatives well underway – and we can’t wait to share details in the coming year and beyond.

Arts alumni on the reorg

From LinkedIn posts to messages shared with us, Arts alumni have thoughts on the developments in their Faculty – whose legacy they helped to shape and continue to support in many ways. We’re sharing a few alumni comments here.

Ren Kamal (BA ’14, Liberal Arts), Manager of Learning Design at Venture for Canada, and Founder, reni

"I’ve been thinking a lot about the University of Waterloo’s new academic restructuring, and as a Waterloo Arts alum, I couldn’t be more excited. When I was (a student) navigating the University of Waterloo Faculty of Arts, I naturally found myself collaborating across disciplines. Serving as Arts Student Union President in my fourth year reinforced something I’ve carried with me throughout my career: the biggest problems are rarely solved from a single perspective. Some of my favourite memories came from bringing students together around ideas that created social impact. I was also fortunate to be part of the very first GreenHouse cohort, where collaboration, entrepreneurship, and community came together in ways that shaped how I think about innovation today.

"For years, Waterloo has been recognized globally for engineering and technology. That reputation is well deserved. But innovation doesn’t begin with technology. It begins with understanding people. The next generation of breakthrough products, AI, healthcare solutions, public policy, and businesses won’t just require exceptional engineers. They’ll require behavioural scientists, psychologists, communicators, designers, entrepreneurs, and artists working alongside them to understand how people actually live, think, and make decisions. That’s where Arts belongs, not on the sidelines, but at the table.

"I’m excited to see Waterloo continue evolving into a place where interdisciplinary thinking isn’t the exception, but the expectation. Proud to always be a Waterloo Warrior. Especially one from the Faculty of Arts. Here’s to the next generation of thinkers, builders, and collaborators."

Tony Gill (BA ’92, Economics), Senior Content Marketing Professional

“After reading more about the Faculty's reorganization, it struck me that Waterloo has already taken a bold structural step toward redefining what an Arts education can be. Growing interdisciplinary opportunities is key. The world's most important challenges increasingly require both technical expertise and deeply human insight.”
 

Karen Turkstra (BA ’86, Economics), Vice President, Turkstra Lumber

“The Arts reorg is a positive change that will support and improve student experience. The AI world is rapidly changing and one thing is for sure: education, governments and businesses need to be ready!”
 

Wayne C Fox (BA ’91, History), Chairman and Director, XFO Private Asset Solutions Inc.

“BRAVO KUDOS BRILLIANT- a “Brave New World”- there is nothing so constant as change!!!”
 

Helen Georgiou (BA ’89, Psychology), Retired

“What fantastic news! Congratulations to everyone involved.”