Tuesday, June 9, 2015

110th Convocation hot at 5,600 degrees

A total of 5,596 students—4,615 undergraduate and 981 graduate —will receive their degrees this week at Waterloo's 110^th convocation, taking place June 9 through June 13. Over the next five days, the graduating classes across all six faculties will cross the stage.

A number of honorary doctorates will be handed out this week as well, as well as distinguished teaching awards, awards for excellence in graduate supervision, University Professor and Honorary Member of the University designations, and alumni medals.

All of the convocation ceremonies take place in the Physical Activities Complex (PAC) on the Waterloo campus. Receptions will follow in the Great Hall of the Student Life Centre after each ceremony.

For the list of all honorary doctorate recipients and ceremony times, please consult the news release. 

The Convocation ceremonies will be livestreamed.

Ceremonies today for AHS, Environment

Convocation kicks off at 10:00 a.m. this morning with a ceremony for Applied Health Sciences. University Secretary & General Counsel Logan Atkinson will bear the ceremonial mace into the PAC. Maggie Wang will sing the national anthem.

A key part of this morning's ceremony is the installation of Tom Jenkins as Chancellor. President and Vice-Chancellor Feridun Hamdullahpur will deliver opening remarks and will present Tom Jenkins to the assembled audience, and Logan Atkinson will administer the oath of office on behalf of the Senate of the University.

President Hamdullahpur will install Chancellor-Elect Jenkins on the authority of the Senate, invest him with the authority and charge him with the responsibilities of his office. Registrar Ray Darling will help Chancellor Jenkins don his official robes and escort him to the Chancellor's chair. Vice-President, Academic & Provost Ian Orchard will introduce the chancellors of other institutions who are on hand to witness the occasion as well as government representatives for the presentation of greetings.

Chancellor Jenkins will then address Convocation.

Following the new chancellor's remarks, President Hamdullahpur will request that the Chancellor invest Prem Watsa with the title Chancellor Emeritus. Watsa will then address Convocation.

The business will turn to the matter at hand - the granting of 342 undergraduate students, 30 master's students and 11 PhD students their degrees.

Brandon Lew will deliver the valedictory address.

Laurie Hoffman-Goetz of the School of Public Health and Health Systems will receive the Award of Excellence in Graduate Supervision. Professor Hoffman-Goetz's citation reads as follows:

"Dr. Laurie Hoffman-Goetz’s research spans the basic (immunology) and applied sciences (health communication). Her trans-disciplinary expertise is reflected by her success in receiving grant funding from all three Tri-Agencies. Equally exemplary are her service contributions, in both community and academic settings, including serving as Associate Chair of Graduate Studies and Associate Dean of Graduate Studies." 

"Dr. Hoffman-Goetz has supervised more than 30 graduate students. Her extensive publication list includes more than 100 journal articles co-authored by graduate students, with the majority first-authored by them. Students note that her efforts to involve them in research, teaching and service opportunities allow them to “hit the ground running” after graduation and give them a competitive advantage in the job market. Her commitment continues after graduation: former students refer to her as a life-long mentor and praise the lasting impact she has had on their careers, including their own supervision of graduate students." 

"Students praise her “personal warmth and kindness”, “commitment to student welfare, her willingness to provide guidance on both academic and non-academic matters, and her commitment to go above and beyond the call of duty to inspire and motivate others to achieve their career goals.” They note that she is “deeply committed to her students’ research, life-long learning, and well-being.” 

"Dr. Hoffman-Goetz’s dedication to her graduate students demonstrates the qualities recognized in the Award of Excellence in Graduate Supervision. Her students themselves have hopes of “guiding graduate students with the same professionalism, passion and dedication that Dr. Hoffman-Goetz has demonstrated.” 

Christina Marchand will receive the AHS Young Alumni Achievement Award. Dan Latendre will be given the AHS Alumni Achievement Award. Schuyler Schmidt will receive the Alumni Gold Medal.

Jason Elzinga will receive the Governor General's Silver Medal. 

Receiving departmental awards for distinguished academic achievement will be:

• Alice Chen, School of Public Health and Health Systems
• Jason Elzinga, Kinesiology
• Zachary Stevens, Recreation and Leisure Studies

Jennifer Carson will receive an award for outstanding achievement in graduate studies at the doctoral level, and Leona Bruijns will receive an award at the master's level.

At 2:30 p.m., graduands of the Faculty of Environment will take the stage. 494 undergraduate students, 70 master's students and 11 PhD students will receive their degrees.

Jeff Casello, associate dean, undergraduate studies and educational liaison will bear the mace. Maggie Wang will sing O Canada.

Geoffrey Wall will be named Distinguished Professor Emeritus. Born in Wales and raised in Kent in the United Kingdom, Geoffrey Wall’s early interest in geography led to an education at Leeds University (BA 1966), Cambridge University (Cert. Ed 1967), University of Toronto (MA 1968) and Hull University (PhD 1970). Since arriving at the University of Waterloo in 1974, his pioneering research in tourism studies has resulted in more than 350 publications and recognition as one of the leading scholars in the world in tourism research. He retired in 2011.

For his contributions, he was awarded the Roy Wolfe Award in 1991 and the John Rooney Award in 2000, with both awards coming from the Association of American Geographers for his contributions to the understanding of tourism and recreation. He received the Award for Scholarly Distinction in Geography from the Canadian Association of Geographers in 2011. He has received honorary professorships from Nanjing University and Dalian University of Technology, and was given a Friendship Award by the Province of Hainan, China, and the Taishan Award by the Government of Xinjiang, China. He is a founding member and past president of the International Academy for the Study of Tourism.

Puninda Thind will deliver the valedictory address.

Mary-Louise McAllister of Environment and Resource Studies will receive the Distinguished Teacher Award. McAllister, who is also the Teaching Fellow for the Faculty of Environment joined Waterloo in September 1996. "McAllister transcends the expectations of an educator, dedicating innumerable hours to improving the student learning experience," her award citation reads. "Her compassion and “contagious enthusiasm” creates an encouraging classroom atmosphere that is conducive to student learning and engagement. McAllister is always searching for innovative, experiential learning techniques, and frequently employs alternative teaching methods to maximize student understanding and create an inclusive learning environment." 

Benjamin Carr will receive Environment's Alumni Gold Medal. 

Departmental awards for distinguished academic achievement will be granted to:

• Alexander Cimprich, Environment and Business
• Brian Lyn, Environment and Resource Studies
• Spencer Leckie, Geography and Aviation
• Owen Sutton, Geography and Environmental Management
• Jinwen Liu, Geomatics
• Moira Hennebury, International Development
• Benjamin Carr, Knowledge Integration
• Tinnik Wong, Planning.

Zhenzhong Si will receive an award for outstanding achievement in graduate studies at the doctoral level.                                                 

Tuesday's tales

The Spring 2015 final examination schedule is now available online. From the Registrar's Office: "In response to student concerns and in support of academic integrity initiatives, students are now prohibited from consuming food and drinks (with the exception of water in a clear bottle with no label) during their final examinations. Students can, however make arrangements for a short nutrition break with a Proctor outside the exam venue during the final exam."

"If a single, short break will not be sufficient because a student is medically required to consume food/drinks regularly during a final exam, he/she must register for special accommodations with AccessAbility Services and must submit appropriate documentation from a recognized professional at least two weeks prior to the start of the final examination period (July 20)."

Exam proctors and other volunteers are similarly prohibited from bringing in food to the exam room.

The University of Waterloo's School of Pharmacy, part of the Faculty of Science, will be delivering a curricular interprofessional education event that brings together pharmacy and medical students on Wednesday, June 10. The Healthcare Interprofessional Education Day (HIPED) is organized by a team of medical and pharmacy school staff, and will bring together 119 pharmacy and 27 medical students from 12:30 to 5:00 p.m. The medical and pharmacy students will be grouped together, then rotated through activities that require teamwork and the diverse skillsets of each profession. This is the first co-operative curricular event of this size that the School of Pharmacy has organized with its neighbour, the Waterloo Regional Campus of the Michael G. DeGroote School of Medicine.