Friday, April 29, 2016

As the fiscal year ends, benefit changes will begin

it's that time of year again: April 30 marks the end of the University's fiscal year, and with Monday, May 1 on the horizon, Human Resources is sending a note to all employees about benefits changes.

The group benefits contracts that cover the University of Waterloo’s life insurance, extended health, dental, and long term disability benefits are renewed each May 1. Rates are based on the claims experience and expenses charged by the benefit providers.

Basic Life Insurance Premium Rates

The premium is 100 percent University-paid for employees with coverage of 1 times earnings and 66.7 percent University-paid for employees with coverage of 2 or 3 times earnings.

Optional Life Insurance Premium Rates

These rates vary based on age and gender and whether or not the individual is a smoker or non-smoker, and in all cases the premiums are 100 percent University-paid. There are no changes to the rates from 2015.

Extended Health Care and Dental Monthly Rates

These rates are 100 percent University-paid and pro-rated if part-time.

Long term Disability Premium Rate

This premium is 100 percent employee-paid, with the maximum insured salary effective May 1, 2016 capped at $170,288.

Anyone with questions is encouraged to contact Human Resources at hrhelp@uwaterloo.ca.

Sullivan to return as Dean of Engineering

"I am pleased to report that Pearl Sullivan will be returning part-time to the Faculty of Engineering effective May 1^st, 2016," says a memo by Vice-President, Academic & Provost Ian Orchard distributed to Executive Council on Thursday. "Over the coming months she will gradually increase her decanal duties focusing on on-going and new strategic initiatives in the Faculty including planning, advancement, external relations, and special research and teaching projects."

"To support Pearl and the Faculty during the Spring and Fall terms, Rick Culham has agreed to serve as Acting Dean from May 1^st to Dec 31^st 2016. At the same time, Rick will retain his current role as Associate Dean, International."

"I would like to express my deep gratitude to Wayne Parker for his excellent leadership as the Acting Dean during the past six months," writes the provost. "Wayne interrupted his sabbatical to serve the Faculty and the University, and his contribution is greatly appreciated."

#PowerShiftWR ignites energy access discussion

This is the latest in a series of #UWCommunity stories that feature Waterloo in the community.

From April 17 to 23, the Waterloo Global Science Initiative (WGSI) partnered with an outstanding group of community partners to host #PowerShiftWR: a weeklong series of events that sparked discussions about the Waterloo Region’s relationship with energy.

Founded in 2009, WGSI is a non-profit partnership between the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics and the University of Waterloo that strives to encourage dialogue around complex global issues to help advance ideas, opportunities, and strategies for a secure and sustainable future. #PowerShiftWR was designed to further this work on a regional level, drawing collaboration from 13 community partners including Wilfrid Laurier University, THEMUSEUM, Sustainable Waterloo Region, Waterloo Public Library, and IdeaExchange.

Welcoming community members of all ages to participate, the energy focused events featured a range of activities from art exhibitions and film screenings, to engaging public lectures, workshops for youth, community clean-ups, and even earth-themed crafts. Innovative family programming, such as TREC Education’s Wind Design Workshop, engaged youth in learning about sustainable energy in new ways. Children ages 10 to 12 had the chance to explore the science behind wind turbines and how they turn wind energy into both mechanical and electrical energy. By working together in groups, participants learned how to design and build their own working wind turbines, providing them with hands-on knowledge about a viable sustainable energy source.

WGSI hosted internationally recognized speakers who presented public lectures at Perimeter Institute, speaking to members of our community on energy and sustainability. Søren Hermansen, Director of the Samsø Energy Academy in Denmark and winner of the Gothenburg Prize, engaged and educated attendees about community driven sustainable energy projects. It is his goal to prove that it is possible for communities to use only 100% renewable energy such as solar panels and wind turbines. Self-educated author and TED sensation, William Kamkwamba, inspired audiences by telling his personal experiences with the transformative power of energy. Hailing from Malawi, at age 14 William a built windmill for his family out of scrap yard parts to power their home during a severe famine.

By inviting others to share their personal stories, accomplishments, workshop skills and knowledge, WGSI and partners helped our community grow their knowledge and understanding about energy and sustainability. Through interactive workshops, informative lectures, and engaging events, #PowerShiftWR captivated community members of all ages about new ways of accessing sustainable and renewable energy, which will benefit future generations in the Waterloo Region for years to come.

MFA candidates show their work at UWAG

The University of Waterloo Art Gallery will be exhibiting the work of several MFA students from Thursday, May 5 to Friday, May 21.

Gallery One featrues a video installation by Aislinn Thomas entitled Dup-boug-a-dad. The installation explores different ways of being in the world.

"My friend David loves cheerleading. Living in rural Nova Scotia, as he does, his main access to the sport is through YouTube," says the artist's description. "The footage in Dup-boug-a-dad was taken when he visited Kitchener-Waterloo in 2015 and practiced with the University of Waterloo cheerleading teams."

"David also loves to sing. Being deaf, as he is, he sings in his own language. The song in Dup-boug-a-dad is, at least in part, about lifting a cheerleader up with one arm. He sang it while standing on a platform that vibrated in response to his voice, translating his words into felt, tactile sensations that allowed him to ‘hear’ his voice for the first time that we know of.""

Aislinn Thomas is a multidisciplinary artist whose practice includes video, performance, installation and text-based work. She is an MFA candidate at Waterloo and earned a BA in Studio Art from the University of Guelph. She has exhibited her work nationally and internationally and is the recipient of several grants and awards including a C.D. Howe Scholarship for Arts and Design, a Social Science and Humanities Research Council of Canada Masters Scholarship, an Ontario Graduate Fellowship, and grants from the Ontario Arts Council and the Canada Council for the Arts.

In Gallery Two is You Can Never Go Home by Jennifer Akkermans.

In the summer of 2014, Akkermans packed everything she owned into her car and moved from Calgary to Waterloo. Since then, she has been attempting to build a home for herself in Ontario. You Can Never Go Home is a physical manifestation of this process.

Prior to pursuing her MFA at Waterloo, Akkermans was the Founder and Chief Researcher of the Institute of Morphoid Research. She has exhibited at the Art Gallery of Calgary, the Esker Foundation and Visual Arts Alberta, participated in residencies at the Banff Centre and Gushul Studio in the Crowsnest Pass, and produced a short documentary as part of EMMEDIA’s Production Access program. 

In the Airstream trailer parked outside the gallery is Anna van Milligen's dollhouse.

"dollhouse comes from two places—on one hand, an intense sensitivity to the continued existence of sexism and sexist oppression; and on the other, an affinity for pink, pretty, plastic things," says the artist's statement. "The result is a hyperfeminine fantasy space, an intimate domestic interior blanketed in peach, pink, and baby blue. Constructed within the gutted shell of a vintage Airstream trailer, a series of compartments and alcoves display a peculiar collection of found, altered, and hand-made objects laid out in shrine-like arrangements, as if for worship—or perhaps illicit consumption. Torn between a desire to touch and a fear of spoiling the virginal purity of their surroundings, visitors are simultaneously invited in and made to feel like intruders in this strangely beautiful, perversely fascinating space."

Milligen is a Canadian-American installation artist whose interests include feminism, fake hair, faux fur, and peach. She is currently an MFA candidate at Waterloo, and received her BFA from Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

The opening reception takes place on Thursday, May 5 from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. in East Campus Hall.