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Equity Office unveils inclusive washrooms
The University of Waterloo’s Equity Office has introduced more than 60 inclusive washrooms throughout campus beginning in fall 2016.
The new inclusive washrooms include two types of facilities:
- Fully inclusive washrooms are gender inclusive, single user facilities that are accessible and may include features like sharps containers and change tables;
- Gender inclusive washrooms are gender inclusive, single user facilities that may include additional features.
The new washrooms are available in 15 campus buildings so far including Health Services, Engineering 2 and 3, the Mike & Ophelia Lazaridis Quantum-Nano Centre and the Centre for Environmental and Information Technology. A full list of the locations is available on the Equity Office website. People can also find them using Waterloo’s online campus map.
Both fully inclusive washrooms and inclusive washrooms will be marked with a tactile and braille room sign that reads “washroom.”
The Equity Office is holding an event today to launch the initiative featuring Ayden Scheim, a PhD candidate and Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation Scholar in epidemiology and biostatistics at Western University, will deliver a talk entitled "From the washroom to the classroom and beyond: Transgender rights and social inclusion." Scheim has worked with transgender communities as an educator, health promoter, and support worker and conducts community-based research focused on social determinants of health and access to health care among sexual and gender minorities.
The launch event takes place in Needles Hall Room 3318 at 3:15 p.m.
More inclusive washrooms will be added in the next phase of this initiative.
For fully inclusive and inclusive washroom locations visit the Equity Office website or check the campus map.
New process to disclose Intellectual Property
A new Electronic IP Disclosure Form for researchers to disclose Intellectual Property (IP) is now available.
As of today, researchers will be able to submit IP/commercialization information using a short questionnaire that takes no more than 10 minutes to complete.
Although the University of Waterloo is known globally for its unique creator owned IP policy that helps attract world-class research talent and drives the university’s entrepreneurial culture, it isn’t systematically capturing campus-generated IP data. Not accurately cataloguing IP and commercialization success is compromising Waterloo’s ability to respond to increasing numbers of requests from government and ranking agencies for commercialization activity.
To expedite a collection of IP and commercialization information, the form will exclude some types of copyright IP such as books, musical compositions, artwork, etc. These other copyright protected forms of IP will be captured in a future version of the form.
The electronic form has been designed to facilitate annual collection of IP and commercialization information as per the requirements of Policy 73. It’s important that all researchers, even those without IP/research commercialization information, complete the form by November 30. If the form’s questions don’t apply, simply select “None of the Above” and submit the form to meet the IP disclosure requirement.
Get ready to go orange for Mental Health Wellness
by Sandra Gibson
Mental Health Wellness Day is Wednesday, October 26 and reminds students, staff and faculty that mental health is a priority on our campus. This unified awareness campaign enhances the mental health support that happens on our campus 365 days a year and aims to reduce the stigma associated with seeking mental health support.
The events associated with Mental Health Wellness Day 2016 include:
- the Sea of Orange t-shirt campaign worn by staff and faculty and student leaders. Order your t-shirts today!
- Share your individual photo or group photo on Oct 26th using the hashtag #uwmentalhealth
- Third annual Spin For Mental Health in the SLC. Sign up individually or as a team.
- The launch of the Mental Health Wellness video on October 26 featuring students, staff and faculty with the key messages “You are Not Alone” and “We’re Together”
- Post-a-secret displays around campus where students, staff and faculty can write and post an anonymous secret or message that they would like to share with others.
- Promoting the walk-in counselling option for students that have non–crisis related mental health concerns.
- Occupational Health promoting Healthy Workplace and Employee & Family Assistance Program (EFAP).
- Spread awareness in the classroom: Professors can support Mental Health Wellness Day by displaying the PowerPoint with the three key messages and showing the video during their classes on October 26.
Writing Centre's 40th is about students
by Clare Bermingham. Today the Writing Centre is celebrating 40 years with an all-day fair, an afternoon reception, and the launch of our Speaker Series. We invite the University community to join us at these free events.
An email I received recently from a graduating student is celebratory. The student has won an award of excellence for his master’s thesis, and he’s grateful to those instructors who worked with him “to overcome challenges […] and improve the quality of [his] work.” The other week, an undergraduate student stopped me after a workshop to say thanks for the support and the opportunity to workshop her report in class. “I feel like I have a really solid handle on this now,” she said.
It’s always a pleasure to read and hear testimonials such as these. As the Writing Centre celebrates forty years, such messages affirm for me how much students at Waterloo value writing and communication. They demonstrate what we see every day, that our students are excited about their work. They want to figure out how to best communicate their ideas, and they seek out ways to hone and craft their writing.
Today, the Writing Centre is hosting a celebration fair and reception in honour of our 40th anniversary. While we’re thrilled to mark the occasion, this event really belongs to the students. Waterloo students are innovative and creative thinkers, and they push themselves to articulate their ideas when they write and design communications. Every day at the Writing Centre, we watch students work hard to craft and revise their work. We see them labour to make the words fit their ideas, and we see their smiles when they succeed.
Today, let’s celebrate our students. Let’s celebrate the big awards and the milestones that they work hard to achieve. And let’s celebrate the smaller moments – the clicking of an idea, the completion of a paragraph, and the successful revision of a tough paper.
Forty years is made up of moments like these.
Remembering Chris Hughes and other notes
Chris Hughes, for many years the University of Waterloo's official photographer, died October 14.
Hughes joined the University in August 1983 in the Dean's Office in the Faculty of Environmental Studies as an EMIC Assistant, and moved over to Graphic Services, Central Photos as Assistant Photographer and Darkroom Technician in 1988.
“Chris Hughes' contribution to the history of the University is inestimable,” writes Martin van Nierop, who served as Director of Communications and Public Affairs at the University of Waterloo for 25 years. “He not only chronicled practically every official news event that happened at Waterloo for more than two decades, he also took fantastic portraits and award-winning feature photos that enlivened hundreds of journal and magazine stories telling the world about Waterloo.”
Hughes' snaps of campus life were repeatedly recognized by the University Photographers' Association of America. Hughes left the University in May 2010, but continued to cover events at Waterloo as a freelance photographer.
“What I recall most was that Chris was a valued colleague and friend,” Van Nierop continues. “He was a kind, soft-spoken and conscientious guy who, no matter how busy he was, would always accommodate us and come to record the events that showcased Waterloo to the world. It was a pleasure working with him and I will miss him."
"Many of his photos are still used today," says a statement from Creative Services, the successor department to UW Graphics. "Chris touched many lives at the University, from faculty to graduates, from behind the lens of his camera."
Here's today's Invisible Disabilities Week "myth vs. fact":
Myth: Learning disabilities are an excuse for people who are irresponsible, lazy or unmotivated.
Fact: LDs come in many forms and vary from person to person. People with Learning Disabilities often have to work harder, but the results may not show their efforts. Some may become discouraged because they have struggled so hard, and they may appear unmotivated or lazy. Learn more about LD myths/facts.
Your medical information is private and should be protected. Today's clip explains your rights and responsibilities as they relate to medical documentation pertaining to an invisible disability.