Monday, May 15, 2017

Alan Binns named Director of Police Services

Sergeant Alan Binns has been appointed to the position of Director, Police Services.

The appointment follows from a rigorous internal and external search.

A familiar face on the Waterloo campus for more than 25 years, Alan began working at the University in 1991 as a patrol officer after a career in the military and law enforcement in the United Kingdom.

Prior to his appointment as Director, Alan was Investigations Co-ordinator and Administrative Sergeant, responsible for investigating a wide range of cases, and overseeing VIP security and special event security on campus.

As Director, key responsibilities include delivering police and security services for the University community, maintaining an effective relationship with Waterloo Regional Police Services, developing the department’s strategic plan, and ensuring the campus is a safe and welcoming environment.

“As the Director of the University of Waterloo Police Services, Alan and his team will continue to work with and strengthen the relationships of all individuals and groups within the University of Waterloo and outside agencies in a collaborative and cohesive partnership in order to ensure the goals and objectives of both the individual and the community are attained,” says an official statement.

Alan succeeds Dave Gerencser, who retired in January 2017, and Ken Jessop, who has been serving in an interim capacity.

Special advisor delivers HeForShe update

by Diana Parry. This is an excerpt of an article posted on the Office of the President's website.

Since the University of Waterloo announced its involvement in the United Nations HeForShe IMPACT 10x10x10 campaign, we have provided regular updates on our progress towards the commitments the University made.  This update will focus on a range of initiatives that we have launched in the past few months and some of the projects we are working to advance.

Beyond these regular updates, you can always find out about the scale and scope of all of the amazing work our campus is doing to support HeForShe initiatives on our website: https://uwaterloo.ca/heforshe/  For example, you can read about the wider HeForShe IMPACT 10x10x10 initiative and Waterloo’s commitments, as well as find out how to support HeForShe in your faculty, and more. We’ll continue to update the site with information for people across campus and how you can be involved with Waterloo’s efforts to achieve sustainable, long-term gender equity.

Parity Report Release: On September 20, 2016 President Hamdullahpur joined with nine  university IMPACT champions in New York city during the UN General Assembly to release the parity report outlining their collective progress against their commitments. Collectively, the Presidents committed to addressing gendered violence on their university campuses. The Presidents were joined by international leaders willing to take a stand for gender equity including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau who was announced as a HeForShe Youth Thematic Champion. – As part of the celebration of the release of the parity report, one of Waterloo’s scholarship winners, Anya Forestell, had the opportunity to highlight the impact of the award on her academic career at a gala evening at the museum of modern art.

Leadership and Mentorship Roundtables: During winter term, Diana Parry and Marilyn Thompson (Associate Provost, Human Resources) hosted a series of roundtable discussions with faculty on a draft leadership framework. One-hundred and seventy-two faculty registered for one of four roundtables. The goal was to solicit input on the development of a campus-wide leadership development and mentoring program, which is currently underway. Those who attended the roundtables will receive collective feedback by the end of May 2017 and asked for further input. The aim is to start the new leadership program in 2018.

Faculty Advocates: Each Dean was asked to identify a HeForShe Faculty Advocate to engage students, staff, faculty, and alumni regarding faculty specific gender equity issues to foster a more gender equitable faculty and campus. The faculty advocates are pressing ahead with plans within their faculties including many exciting events and initiatives. You can find out more about your own Faculty Advocate in their HeForShe People Profiles, as well as how to contact them to find out how you can be involved.

Campus Advocates: The Faculty Advocates have been such a huge success that we also implemented Campus Advocates who act in similar capacity, but represent various groups and centres on campus including the Library, Athletics and Recreation, Velocity, Feds, and the Graduate Student Association. You can find out more about the Campus Advocates in their HeForShe People Profiles, as well as how to contact them to find out how you can be involved.

Ideathons: Following up on the commitment by the IMPACT champions, Waterloo hosted an ideathon on gendered violence. Specifically, the ideathon explored the question: how would you create a culture of transparency and transformation on university campuses to end gender-based violence? Waterloo’s top three solutions were shared along with the other IMPACT universities with the UN Women. Next, a student group made up from representatives from all IMPACT universities are exploring how best to move the ideas forward.

On January 28-29, 2017 Waterloo hosted Waterloo Women: Ideas, Makers and Innovators. The two-day event inspired and connected those who self-identify as women as they collaborated in developing ideas, whether small or large, that could lead to potential products, businesses, and a shift in mindsets on pressing social issues. The event built skills, showcased innovative ideas and talents, fostered mentorship opportunities and cross collaboration, and promoted connections on campus.

Read the rest of the article on the HeForshe website.

St. Paul's accepting on-campus housing applications

A message from St. Paul's University College

The Graduate Apartments at St. Paul’s offer convenient on-campus apartments, private rooms, and suite-style accommodations that cater to visiting academics, grad students, and researchers with flexible lease arrangements designed to serve their unique needs. The accommodations are private and quiet, and families are welcome.

Internet and utilities are included, with on-site laundry and parking available. Units are available furnished and unfurnished.

These accommodations are perfect for mature individuals who wish to be on campus but want an independent living situation.

For more information, or to apply for Spring or Fall terms, check out the St. Paul's website.

For shorter-term accommodations, we also offer year-round hotel-style guest rooms, check out the St. Paul's guest rooms page.