Thursday, July 13, 2017

Keystone Picnic prizewinners dine with the president

President Feridun Hamdullahpur treated Centre for Extended Learning staff members Emma Dost, Rachael Verbruggen, and Stephen Tosh to a meal at the University Club as part of the Keystone Picnic prize draw.

The chance to break bread with President Feridun Hamdullahpur is quite the prize. For one lucky staff member and her guests, all it took was attending the annual Keystone Picnic held on June 2 and presenting her food voucher/prize ticket.

Emma Dost, Instructional Digital Media Developer – STEM at the Centre for Extended Learning, won the prize—lunch for 3 with the President—and brought her colleagues Rachael Verbruggen, Lead Instructional Digital Media Developer (Math) and Stephen Tosh, Instructional Digital Media Developer to the University Club on Wednesday, July 12.

The 'President's Lunch' was one of 59 prizes drawn at this year's Keystone Picnic, donated from internal sponsors, local vendors and business owners.

This year, more than 1,000 donors—faculty, staff and retirees—raised $1.12 million dollars toward improving the student experience at Waterloo. 

The complete list of prize winners and sponsors is available on the Keystone website.

New director for Waterloo Centre for German Studies

James "Skid" Skidmore has been appointed the new Director of the Waterloo Centre for German Studies, replacing Mathias Schulze, who is leaving the University of Waterloo to take up a position at San Diego State University. 

Skid is known to many on campus. He has worked at Waterloo since 2000, serving a term as Chair of the Department of Germanic and Slavic Studies. He is currently a member of Senate as well as the co-chair of the University’s United Way Campaign.

The Waterloo Centre for German Studies, a privately endowed research institute at the University of Waterloo, was established in 2004 to facilitate and disseminate interdisciplinary research on the language, culture, and society of the German-speaking world. The Centre administers scholarships for student travel overseas, sponsors speakers and cultural events in the community, and provides financial support to researchers.

Student Services Centre update

A message from the Student Services Transformation Needles Hall (SSTNH) Project Team

Chris Read delivers this month’s video update on the Student Service Transformation project and reveals the vendor we have chosen to provide appointment booking and queuing solutions for the Student Service Centre! Check out the vendors’ website for an overview video of their appointment scheduling and student queue management software solutions. Our video updates will be taking a break again in August, but as always project news will continue to be shared here on the Daily Bulletin and on the project website.

Thursday's notes

The University of Waterloo Art Gallery (UWAG) is getting ready for its latest exhibition, PASSAGE + OBSTACLE, featuring work by artists Patrick Cull, Laura De Decker, Paul Dignan, Soheila Esfahani, and Andrew James Smith.

The show runs from July 27 to 30 and is presented in cooperation with Bridges Waterloo 2017.

PASSAGE + OBSTACLE features a selection of work by multidisciplinary area artists. Sharing a rigorous approach to materials and subject matter, their artworks parallel Bridges' stated goal to explore "mathematical connections in art, music, architecture, education and culture”. The exhibition sets out to complement and expand on the theme by contrasting subtle and overt links between the use of geometry, pattern, and optical effects across mediums ranging from painting and installation to digital media. Using the bridge as a metaphor, the artworks can be appreciated as a means of getting from A to B by overcoming obstructions, whether perceptual or otherwise.

The exhibition reception is on Friday, July 28 from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the art gallery in East Campus Hall. The exhibition is free and open to both conference visitors and the public.

The Recreation and Leisure Studies Department is celebrating its 50^th anniversary this year, and in honour of the milestone they are hosting an outdoor popup movie night featuring the celluloid classic Ferris Bueller's Day Off. 

This 1986 film starring Matthew Broderick is an iconic celebration of 'leisure rules'.

The film will start at 9:00 p.m., and the suggested arrival time is 8:30 to make time for parking, set up and refreshments. As this is an outdoor event, the location is subject to change due to weather.

Anyone with questions is invited to contact Amanda Vos. Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?