Thursday, February 16, 2017

IST to begin deployment of Windows 10 and Office 2016

Information Systems & Technology (IST) is preparing to begin deployment of Windows 10 and Office 2016 to academic support unit departments, beginning Monday, February 27.

Departments will determine with their IST account representatives where they will appear in the scheduling process.

Users should keep in mind that when the deployment takes place, everything on their workstation will be erased and a new clean image will be installed.

This is a good time to remind users that their data should be stored on network drives and not on workstations: N-drives for personal files and R-drives for departmental shares.

No rebuild will occur if an academic support computer is already running the IST Windows 10 image.

The IST account representative and computer support representative will work together to ensure applications and settings are set up properly. All currently installed managed applications will be automatically reinstalled (if they were originally packaged and delivered by IST).

Application and operating system settings that do and do not migrate forward from Windows 7 to 10 can be viewed in the migration notes document.

Users can help choose a week after February 27 that will have the least impact on their department and submit a request via an RT. They can also request a virtual (VDI) Windows 10 workstation now via RT, if desired, to acquire a level of comfort before your department is converted.

Users can also submit a request as soon as possible to have one or more computers upgraded to Windows 10 and Office 2016 in advance (to test software and to become familiar and comfortable working in Windows 10/Office 2016).

“We strongly encourage all computer reps to have their own computers upgraded in advance of the general deployment,” says a statement from IST.

Anyone with questions and concerns can contact the IST Service Desk by sending an email to helpdesk@uwaterloo.ca or by calling ext. 44357.

Call for Nominations

Faculty Representatives to Senate

Nominations are requested for the following seats on Senate:

Faculty Representatives - Nomination Form (PDF)

• One faculty member to be elected by/from the members of faculty of each Faculty of the University, terms May 1, 2017 to April 30, 2020 (six total).

Faculty-at-Large Representatives - Nomination Form (PDF)

• Seven faculty members to be elected by/from the members of faculty of the University, terms May 1, 2017 to April 30, 2020.

Faculty senators whose terms expire as of April 30, 2017: Lutz-Alexander Busch (economics), Tara Collington* (French studies), Michael Drescher (planning), Samir Elhedhli* (management sciences), John Garcia* (public health & health systems), Michael Hudson* (physics & astronomy), Shoufa Lin* (earth and environmental sciences), Michele Mosca (combinatorics & optimization), Paul Murphy* (optometry and vision science), Diana Parry* (recreation & leisure studies), Mark Seasons* (planning), Neil Thomson* (civil & environmental engineering), and Hamid Tizhoosh* (systems design engineering).

*Eligible for re-election. A former senator becomes eligible for re-election following the expiration of one year following the completion of two consecutive terms on Senate.

Graduate Students to Senate

Nominations are requested for the following seats on Senate:

Graduate Student Representatives - Nomination Form (PDF)

• Two graduate students of the University to be elected by/from the full- and part-time graduate students of the University, terms 1 May 2017 to 30 April 2019.

Graduate students whose terms expire as of April 30, 2017: Jessica Brake* (recreation & leisure studies), Robin Mazumder* (psychology).

*Eligible for re-election.

Completed Nomination Forms

Completed nomination forms (at least five nominators are required in each case) should be submitted to Emily Schroeder in the Secretariat, Needles Hall, Room 3060, no later than 3:00 p.m. on Tuesday, March 7, 2017. Elections will follow if necessary. Please send a brief candidate statement (100 words maximum) to appear with the ballot to Emily Schroeder, eschroeder@uwaterloo.ca.

Staff Member to Board of Governors

Nomination Form (PDF)

As of April 30, 2017, Kate Windsor* will complete her term as staff representative on the Board of Governors. Nominations are now open for one member of the full-time staff to be elected by the full-time staff members of the University, term May 1, 2017 to April 30, 2020. The call for nominations will close at 3:00 p.m. on Wednesday March 1, 2017.

Completed nomination forms (at least five nominators are required for each nominee) should be submitted to Emily Schroeder in the Secretariat, Needles Hall, Room 3060. Elections will follow if necessary. Please email a brief candidate statement (100 words maximum) to appear with the ballot to Emily Schroeder, eschroeder@uwaterloo.ca. For more information, see the Board of Governors - Staff Election Guidelines.

*Eligible for re-election.

For more information on any of the above, please contact Emily Schroeder, ext. 32749.

Lieutenant Governor seeks visionary ideas

There is still time to submit a proposal for the Lieutenant Governor's Visionaries Prize, an opportunity for innovative and creative thinkers from across the province to identify and present their solutions to the great challenges facing Ontarians and Canadians over the next 50 years.

The Lieutenant Governor’s Visionaries Prize aims to identify, challenge and recognize young, innovative and creative thinkers in Ontario.

In the fall of 2016, the Honourable Elizabeth Dowdeswell, Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, announced the competition in partnership with the Walrus Foundation.

The prize challenges Ontarians aged 18 and over to present their ideas in a short essay and/or a brief video. Submissions close in March 2017, and 36 finalists will be identified in 6 categories. Finalists will have a chance to publicly showcase and defence their proposed policy solutions before a live audience during moderated, intensive sessions held across Ontario in the fall of 2017. The 6 winners will receive their awards in October 27.

The University of Waterloo will be hosting a presentation session in the Environmental Stewardship category on September 26, 2017.

Athletics wants you to share your Warrior Story

If you’ve ever been involved in the Department of Athletics and Recreation, they want to hear your story.

“Whether you were a participant, staff member, student-athlete or have simply worked out in one of our facilities, we want to hear how Warrior Athletics & Recreation has impacted your well-being!” says an article on the Athletics website.

People are being invited to share their experiences and let Athletics know how getting involved changed your campus experience and overall life. 

Anyone, including undergraduate and graduate students, staff, volunteers, and alumni, who has used their facilities to work out, dropped in for open rec, came in for a swim, taken a class, registered for a program, competed on a team, been part of a club, played squash on the courts, played intramurals or been involved in any way is invited to submit their story in 500 words or less through the online form on the Athletics site before February 28, 2017.

“We want to use your story to improve the experience of others,” says Athletics. “Selected submissions will be used in department marketing & communications.”

Prizes will also be offered: $5 added to your WatCard OR a $5 Tim Horton's gift card. Participants will also be entered into a draw for a 32GB iPad Mini 4.

UWAG goes over yonder and other notes

The University of Waterloo Art Gallery and the Department of Fine Arts are presenting artists Esmond Lee, Julius Poncelet Manapul and Diana Yoo discussing their participation in the current exhibition YONDER. The evening will feature frank conversations around the ideas, motivations and processes informing their work. Exhibition co-curator Mona Filip will also be on hand to provide an overview of the project. 

YONDER explores themes of intercultural translation, displacement and identity construction, bringing together a group of Canadian artists from diverse cultural backgrounds whose works examine the immigrant condition. Comprising recent and new works in a variety of media, including site-specific installations, the exhibition approaches the notion of immigration through a process of “personal sociology,” moving from an investigation of subjective inquiries to larger questions and shared experiences. 

The event takes place tonight from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. in East Campus Hall Room 1239. Admission is free and open to the public. Yonder continues until Saturday, March 4.

University of Waterloo faculty and staff will be participating in the second annual Equal Are We conference, which will be held on February 17 at the Cambridge Centre for the Arts.

Among the speakers are:

Megan Lambe of Housing and Residences is the Equal Are We committee chair and will be acting as emcee for the event.

Lexi Salt, GreenHouse Program Coordinator at St. Paul’s University College, will be delivering a “5 Minute Spark” presentation on the St. Paul’s GreenHouse program.

Professor Diana Parry of Recreation & Leisure Studies and special advisor to the president on women’s and gender issues will be participating in a panel discussion entitled “Post-Secondary Response to Gendered Violence.”

The day-long event includes interviews, “5 Minute Spark” presentations, panel discussions, workshops, and presentations.

“Equal Are We is a half day conference aimed to involve the whole community in a conversation to create more equal, tolerant and safer spaces from work to home and everywhere in between,” says a statement on the conference website.

A full conference program with speaker bios is available online. Tickets are available.