Wednesday, December 11, 2019


Jean Becker named Senior Director, Indigenous Initiatives

Jean Becker.Jean Becker will join the University of Waterloo on January 13, 2020 in the newly-created Senior Director, Indigenous Initiatives position reporting to the President, and Associate Vice-President, Human Rights, Equity and Inclusion.

President Feridun Hamdullahpur and Diana Parry, associate vice-president, human rights, equity and inclusion announced the hiring in a memo circulated to the campus community today.

In her role, Becker will provide strategic leadership to articulate a University of Waterloo-specific response to the Truth and Reconciliation Calls to Action, and identify systemic and systematic changes that move beyond the Calls to Action by creating a long-term vision for the University.

Becker, known for her work locally, provincially, and nationally, was most recently Senior Advisor for Indigenous Initiatives at Wilfrid Laurier University. Jean is Inuk and a member of the Nunatsiavut Territory of Labrador, and has a Master’s degree in Sociology and Anthropology from the University of Guelph.

"The foundations of Jean’s career are rooted in the Waterloo region, where she has been living and working with diverse Indigenous communities for over forty years," says the president and associate vice-president's memo. "During that time she has a long track-record of building reciprocal, respectful, long term, and continuous relationships between post-secondary institutions and First Nations, Métis, and Inuit communities. Jean will be a vital partner in continuing our work to respond effectively to the calls of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission."

"We are thrilled to have Jean join us. Her wealth of experience and success working collaboratively and strengthening relationships within a post-secondary environment and beyond is second to none. The Office of Human Rights, Equity and Inclusion, and the University more broadly, will benefit from Jean’s leadership to further advance our campus community’s commitments to Indigenous Initiatives. We can think of no one better to take on this inaugural role."

Looking for more? Meet Omni - more than a library catalogue

A woman uses a laptop while seated in a chair.

A message from the Library.

The Library is excited to announce the arrival of Omni, a game-changing academic search tool to support your research and coursework.

Launching December 12, Omni is a collaboration between 14 Ontario university libraries, coming together in one catalogue that allows you to easily access high-quality, scholarly materials from your campus, computer or phone.

Moving to a new consortial library system means other changes, including longer borrowing periods, the elimination of most overdue fines, and the ability to sign in with your WatIAM account.

Learn more about what Omni means for you.

2020 Advisor Conference issues call for presenters

An advisor's conference at Federation Hall.

A message from the Student Success Office.

Do you have valuable info to share with advisors? Are you an advisor doing something innovative on campus?

The Professional Development Working Group is inviting presentation proposals for the Sixth Annual Advisor Conference that is taking place on April 28, 2020.

The theme for 2020 is: Updating your advising toolbox. Proposals should be a stimulating and/or interactive learning experience focusing on advising best practices, information sharing, or new initiatives you want to share.

The deadline for submissions is Friday, January 10, 2020.

New systems move to support single sign-on

A message from Information Systems and Technology (IST).

Since enabling single sign-on for campus systems and applications in May, new systems have made the move support this great feature, including Quest and Workday (enabled December 11). Single sign-on provides a secure method of accessing multiple web-based systems and applications without being required to log in to each one. Users can enter their credentials once and move seamlessly and securely between supported applications.

Visit the Single Sign-on website to learn more about this service, discover which applications are supporting single sign-on, and explore help resources.

A presidential holiday video preview

Videographer Matt Regehr positions a President Hamdullahpur puppet during an animation sequence.

A message from Creative Services' Instagram account.

With the holidays right around the corner the anticipation around this year's greeting from President Feridun Hamdullahpur is palpable. You might suspect topping last year's video would be a tall order, but this year's video brings even more holiday cheer and creativity – a bold statement given last year's video earned a best-in-class “animated president” video nod from Eduvation. ⁣⁣Here's a little #BTS preview into the magic that went into creating last year’s stop-motion award-winner. Be sure to keep a lookout for this year's greeting when it drops December 12. #madebycs

Upcoming office closures

University Relations will be closed today from 10:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

Link of the day

The evergreen appeal of ceramic Christmas trees

When and Where

University Club Holiday Lunch Buffet, Thursday, November 28 to Monday, December 23, 11:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., University Club.

2019 President’s Town Hall survey, open until Friday, December 20.

Free Exam Fitness, Monday, December 2 to Friday, December 20.

Research Ethics drop-in session for faculty and students, Wednesday, December 11, 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., Dana Porter Library (study booth on the main floor).

Webinar: Copyright for Teaching, Wednesday, December 11, 2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Deadline to get "Fees Arranged," Tuesday, December 12.

Brown Bag Lunch: Let's chat about Healthy Relationships, Thursday, December 12, 12:00 p.m., HH 373.

Alleviating Anxiety Seminar, Thursday, December 12, 5:00 p.m., HS 2302 – Register on LEADS. Please note the correct day.

Life Drawing Session, Tuesday, December 12, 6:30 p.m., ECH 1224A.

Entrepreneurship Information Session for Undergraduate Advisors, Thursday, December 12, 10:30-12 p.m., Conrad School, E7, 2nd Floor

President's Holiday Luncheon, Friday, December 13, 12:00 p.m., Federation Hall.

NEW - Statistics and Actuarial Science Department seminar by Yixin Wang, Columbia University, "The Blessings of Multiple Causes," Monday, December 16, 10:00 a.m., M3 3127.

Workday Support, Tuesday, December 17, 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m., EC1 1021. No registration required.

Pension plan information session, Tuesday, December 17, 10:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., RCH 301.

Pension plan information session, Tuesday, December 17, 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m., RCH 301.

NEW - Portfolio & Project Management Community of Practice (PPM CoP) session, "Small 'p' Project Management" Wednesday, December 18, 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m., East Campus 5 (EC5), 1111. 

Research Ethics drop-in session for faculty and students, Wednesday, December 18, 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., Dana Porter Library (study booth on the main floor).

Retirement celebration for Phil Knipe, Wednesday, December 18, 3:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m., Graduate House green room. RSVP to edoede@uwaterloo.ca.

NEW - Statistics and Actuarial Science Department seminar by Yuqi Gu, University of Michigan, "Uncover Hidden Fine-Grained Scientific Information: Structured Latent Attribute Models," Thursday, December 19, 10:00 a.m., M3 3127.

Co-operative work term ends, Friday, December 20.

On-campus examinations end, Saturday, December 21.

University closed for the holidays, Tuesday, December 24 to Wednesday, January 1, 2020. The University re-opens on Thursday, January 2, 2020.

Changes to Centre for Career Action December hours

This month, the Centre for Career Action drop-in schedule is modified to accommodate professional development for staff. If you are planning on attending a drop-in, check the hours first to avoid disappointment.

Positions available

On this week's list from the human resources department, viewable on the UWaterloo Talent Acquisition System (iCIMS):

  • Job ID# 2019-4954 - Student Financial Services Front Office Associate – Finance, USG 6
  • Job ID# 2019-4800 - Director, Marketing & Business Development - Mechanical & Mechatronics Engineering, USG 12
  • Job ID# 2019-4976 - Graduate Admissions Coordinator - Course Based Programs - Electrical & Computer Engineering, USG 6

Internal secondment opportunities:

  • Job ID# 2019-4993 - Faculty Relations Manager - Cooperative Education, USG 12
  • Job ID# 2019-4982 - Corporate Research Partnerships Manager - Office of Research, USG 14
  • Job ID# 2019-4994 - Manager, Living-Learning - Housing & Residence, USG 9