Monday, January 8, 2018

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• Freezing greetings, Winter Welcome Week is here
• Construction continues on north campus Field House

Freezing greetings, Winter Welcome Week is here

The Federation of Students' annual Winter Welcome Week is happening from January 8 to 12.

Things got started this morning with Warrior Breakfast, a food free-for-all running from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. while supplies last in the Great Hall of the Student Life Centre.

Tonight is Sex Toy Bingo at the Bombshelter Pub from 7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.

Strap on your skates at the Columbia Icefield on Tuesday, January 9 for Warriors on Ice, which takes place from 7:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m.

On Wednesday, January 10, the Campus Life Fair will take place in the Student Life Centre Great Hall from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

If you're interested in putting up your toques, there's a Learn to Knit event taking place in the SLC's multipurpose room on Wednesday, January 10 from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Your thumbs will get a workout at the We Got Game free video arcade in the SLC's lower level on Thursday, January 11 from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. A variety of video game systems, including VR, will be set up for your electronic enjoyment, and best of all you can leave your quarters at home - they're free to play. 

Winter Welcome Week wraps with a Cider & Sweets event at two locations on campus - the Peter Russell Rock Garden and outside POETS - where Feds volunteers will be handing out free apple cider and sweet treats, while supplies last.

Welcome Weeks take place every term and are full of fun and free events for undergraduate students as campus welcomes them back to the University.

Check out the Federation of Students website for more details.

Photo courtesy of the Feds Twitter account.

Construction continues on north campus Field House

by Dan Ackerman. A version of this article was originally published in the Alumni e-newsletter.

The north campus of the University of Waterloo will look a little bit different come next fall.

With a $41-million expansion to connect the Student Life Centre (SLC) and Physical Activities Complex (PAC) well underway, ground has been broken on a new 70,654 square foot field house.

The field house will be constructed just north of Warrior Field and will connect to the west side of the existing Columbia Icefield (CIF) building. 

The $16.5 million project with funding commitment from the university will create a multi-activity field-turf building.

“Our priority in the Department of Athletics and Recreation is to enhance the student experience and through the addition of recreational space, we hope to be meeting that goal,” said director of athletics and recreation Roly Webster.

“Our students have a large need for more space to take a break from academics and the construction of the field house will provide a means for more recreational opportunities.” 

The focus of the field house will be for programmatic and drop-in recreation use but will also be a space for the Warriors varsity field teams to train and practice. 

Head coach of men’s hockey and associate director Brian Bourque realizes the potential and impact it will have, not only on the success of the varsity programs but the overall benefit of the student body at UWaterloo.

“It’s a great addition for our varsity programs across the department, giving our teams a realistic playing surface to train on year-round,” mentioned Bourque.

“It’s also encompassing of the entire student population giving them another great space to participate in intramurals or a variety of other Warrior Recreation programming we offer.”

Manager of intramurals and sport clubs Adam Steeves is also highly anticipating the field house and benefits it will provide those programs. 

“This facility will greatly enhance our ability to provide diverse recreational opportunities for the University of Waterloo community all year around,” said Steeves. “The field house gives us the capacity to expand on our intramural and club program offerings while impacting the overall user experience.”    

The field house is just one of multiple phases in the works to continue to expand and build recreational space. It can be described as a Lego project, with the hope of many more pieces to come in the future.    

Those other pieces include a new bleacher building surrounding Warrior Field as well as a new arena and pool.

All of course are conceptual at the time, but Webster mentions that working with community partners and organizations, and the overall support from the university, will be key driving forces.

“We’ve had incredible leadership from our senior administration and student associations across campus.  Without their support, none of this would be possible and we look forward to future expansion plans coming to fruition.

The wellbeing of our students is at the forefront at our university and delivering this necessity requires additional recreational space. These spaces and student engagement opportunities ultimately create a campus community, contributing to a positive and successful student experience,” concludes Webster.

Check the Athletics website for construction updates