Thursday, August 31, 2017

Update on search for new provost

"I am pleased to inform you that we have officially begun the search for our next Vice-President, Academic & Provost," writes President Feridun Hamdullahpur in a memo distributed to campus today. 

The nominating committee, which oversees the search process, has held its first two meetings. Its membership is available on the Committees and Councils website. 

"Joining the committee in its work are Michael Naufal and Jessa Chupik of Boyden Canada, an international executive search consulting firm," writes the president, who chairs the nominating committee. "Both have extensive experience in university senior recruitment and are familiar with the University of Waterloo." 

"The committee is committed to undertaking broad consultation to identify the opportunities and challenges facing the University and the critical qualities of the individual who will provide the best leadership as Vice-President, Academic & Provost in dealing with these matters."

"To achieve this, the committee will consult directly with members of Executive Council; the presidents and other members of FAUW, the Staff Association, CUPE, the Federation of Students and the Graduate Student Association; the heads of the federated university and affiliated university colleges; members of the Board of Governors; and anyone else that the committee may deem appropriate."

"The committee encourages all academic department chairs and directors of schools and heads of academic support departments, as well as interested faculty, staff and students, to convey their views in writing on matters concerning the position and profile. All information received will be held in confidence. These submissions, along with suggestions for individuals who might be considered for the position, may be directed in confidence to Karen Jack, university secretary (c/o Secretariat, Needles Hall; kjjack@uwaterloo.ca), or to any member of the nominating committee."

"The committee especially invites you to consider the following questions:

1. What is your understanding of the role of the Vice-President, Academic & Provost at the University of Waterloo? What are the opportunities and challenges facing the University of Waterloo, and how do you think the Vice-President, Academic & Provost should approach and handle them? What would success look like?
2. What advice do you have for the search committee as to the background, credentials, qualifications and leadership style that should be sought in the next Vice-President, Academic & Provost?
3. Do you have any recommendations for individuals the committee should consider for this opportunity?

"Consultation will be completed by and submissions received up to end of day Tuesday 12 September 2017. On the basis of the information generated by this process, the committee will prepare a position profile describing the critical qualities of the individual who might best fit the role."

"Nominations, applications and expressions of interest will be held in strict confidence and can be sent via email to President Feridun Hamdullahpur, chair of the nominating committee, c/o Karen Jack, university secretary, Needles Hall, Room 3060, kjjack@uwaterloo.ca, or to Jessa Chupik, Boyden Canada at jchupik@boyden.com. Documentation should include a curriculum vitae and a brief statement of the qualifications and specific achievements on the basis of which the individual merits consideration for the position. Nominations, applications and expressions of interest will be treated in strict confidence."

Professor to chair federal climate adaptation panel

A Waterloo professor will chair a federal panel on climate change adaptation, the federal government announced yesterday.

Minister of Environment and Climate Change Catherine McKenna announced that Professor Blair Feltmate of the Faculty of Environment will chair the newly-launched Expert Panel on Climate Change Adaptation and Resilience Results.

The Expert Panel will advise the Government of Canada on measuring progress on adaptation and climate resilience to better understand how federal, provincial, and territorial adaptation efforts are building Canada's resilience to climate change, for instance, by providing up-to-date information, supporting climate-smart infrastructure, and updating building codes. The panel will also support the federal government in better communicating to Canadians how it is preparing for and adapting to the current and future impacts of climate change.

Professor Feltmate heads the Intact Centre on Climate Adaptation at the University of Waterloo and is a member of the the School of Environment, Enterprise and Development (SEED). The panel will also include academic, private sector, government, non-government, and Indigenous representation. The panel will engage with provinces and territories in its work.

"All regions of Canada are subject to the impacts of a changing climate," said Professor Feltmate. "In response to these impacts, the Expert Panel will serve a critical role in informing how we measure progress on advancing resilience and limiting extreme weather risk experienced by Canadians."

The panel will support the Pan-Canadian Framework on Clean Growth and Climate Change, which is Canada's plan to meet its greenhouse gas emissions reduction target, build resilience to the impacts of climate change, and create clean growth and jobs through investments in clean technology, innovation, and infrastructure.

As FedEx closes, New Media Services steps up

Mathematics Lecturer Fiona Dunbar shudders remembering how exams used to be marked only years ago. Think 14-hour days squirreled away in a room with teachers’ assistants and markers, barely taking the time to grab a sandwich.

But today that process has seen a complete turnaround. She marks exams at home, takes breaks, and even checks in on her TAs remotely. Dunbar, along with a growing number of other professors on campus, are now turning to Crowdmark’s external software and Waterloo’s New Media Services team to get the job done.

Within hours after an exam, the campus printing operation scans the individual papers and uploads them into the Crowdmark system. It’s fast, efficient and seamless, explains Dunbar.

“At this point, we couldn’t do it without New Media Services. It wouldn’t be possible,” she says.

And now with FedEx shuttering its 24 stores across Canada – including the one across from Ring Road in University Plaza – New Media Services, located on campus in the General Services Complex (GSC), aims to pick up the slack while still giving stellar customer service.

“Our customers are our co-workers and students,” says Randy Dauphin, operations administrator for the Retail Services department. “Printing, finishing and archiving – because we’re inside, our prices are really competitive. Our goal is first and foremost to provide great service to the university community.”

Over the past 18 months, New Media Services has ramped up services with updated technology and hardware. Need a large colour poster for a conference? No problem. A huge stack of printed and bound course materials? They’ll do that too. The new, modernized machines are faster, better and more efficient.

“I can say that within the last two years, literally every piece of equipment and software has been modernized to the point of being at the cutting edge of technology,” says Dauphin.

Another benefit? Because the operation is offered internally on campus, its services are tax free, a real savings for large jobs in particular, although New Media Services is set up to handle tiny print runs too.

Then there’s convenience. While many customers use the online submission tool or visit one of five Media.Doc locations, New Media Services offers an on-campus courier service as well. Jobs are picked up and dropped off directly to the customer.

You can’t get that kind of service from an off-campus provider, Dauphin jokes.

Convenience has been one of the driving factors for Crowdmark’s success, says Dunbar, who helped launch the service within the Faculty of Mathematics only three years ago. Today, other faculties have jumped on board, creating a huge task for New Media Services: 4.5 million scans so far – and counting.

But Dunbar isn’t actually too surprised by the service’s popularity, considering how New Media Services goes above and beyond, staying open late during exam time and even on weekends if necessary.

“Everyone is very happy with New Media Services,” she says. “They’ve been so receptive. If the business is there, they want to accommodate us. It’s been excellent.”