Friday, December 9, 2022

Singing the praises of Dennis Huber, Waterloo's 'unsung hero'

Senior leaders past and present gathered in the Student Life Centre's Black and Gold Room on Wednesday evening to give outgoing Vice-President, Administration and Finance Dennis Huber a send-off befitting his 36-year career at the University. They were joined by the guest of honour and members of the Huber family.

Vice-President, Academic & Provost James Rush served as emcee at the farewell event. He noted that Dennis Huber began his career as a director in Plant Operations in 1986 and was named Associate Provost, General Services and Finance in 1996, and in 2001 his role was expanded to that of Vice-President, Administration and Finance. "Thus begins the story of the University of Waterloo in the 21^st Century – the house that, in many ways, Dennis built." He highlighted the Dennis's prudent stewardship and his commitment to taking responsibility in the face of challenges.

Dr. Rush said that Dennis had the opportunity to work with five University presidents over the course of his career, and that he "was a constant and consistent leadership force during this time."

Dean Emeritus Jean Andrey spoke next. "As is the case for many new faculty members, I knew of Dennis before I met Dennis," Dr. Andrey recalled of her early days at the University. "I learned of his honesty, integrity, and commitment to hard work." Dr Andrey spoke of Dennis's ability to remember the most minute of details. "The amount of information in his head and in his office was astounding," she said. "He was the best of the best when it comes to institutional memory."

Allan Shapira, the University's Consulting Actuary on Pension Funds shared some thoughts on his time working with Dennis, noting that as the Pension & Benefits Committee membership changed over the years, Dennis remained its constant. "In his role, Dennis has been the common thread and institutional memory and preserver of the principles of the pension plan," Shapira said. He jokingly noted that as a senior administrator Huber was a great asset to the University, but as he moved to the retiree side of the ledger, he was becoming a great liability, and concluded his remarks with some actuarial sentimentality. "We wish you above-average longevity." 

President Emeritus the Right Honourable David Johnston gave remarks via video. "Dennis is the unsung hero of the University," Johnston said. "Dennis had tenacity, but he was also cautious," Johnston recalled. "He would provide us with the look-around-the corner view, but with Dennis, once it was decided, it was full-bore ahead...Dennis, I salute you and wish you much joy."

President and Vice-Chancellor Vivek Goel was the final speaker of the night. "Events like today’s are bittersweet as they recognize incredible contributions while also acknowledging an end of an era," President Goel said. "[Dennis] is an invaluable source of institutional memory and administrative continuity that has served Waterloo so well for nearly 40-years. I thank Dennis for his years of service supporting the University’s ambitious visions and providing a much-needed voice of reason when making those plans a reality."

President Goel revealed that in honour of Dennis's unwavering commitment to provide students with space to study and relax, a section of the Grad House Green would be designated as Huber Lane, a peaceful retreat in the heart of campus that will complement the updates to the Arts Quad and South Commons. The green space next to the Grad House will be lined with Japanese flowering cherry trees. Benches, rocks and plantings will help to transform the space into a flourishing destination where students will gather. The University commissioned Waterloo alumnus Bianca Weeko Martin (BAS ’19, MArch ’22) to create a painting of the future Huber Lane, which President Goel presented to Dennis, inviting him and his family back for a ribbon-cutting in the spring.

Provost Jim Rush, President Vivek Goel and VPAF Dennis Huber stand with the artist's depiction of the forthcoming Huber Lane.

Finally, Dennis Huber gave a few words as the event drew to a close. "The people you work with are the most important thing," Huber said. "Thank you for the opportunity."

He then shared three insights. "Waterloo is a great place to work. Waterloo is a great place to raise a family. And it's a great place to retire from."

Units reporting to the VPAF have held drop-in farewell events this week as well with the final one taking place tonight for Plant Operations on-shift and evening staff from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m., in Needles Hall 3407. Pizza, coffee and cake will be served.

Huber retires December 31, 2022.

WatSPEED hosts senior leader roundtable

This article was originally published on the WatSPEED website.

Recently, WatSPEED at the University of Waterloo convened senior leaders from the Canadian business community to discuss how new technologies are transforming industries and economies at an increasingly rapid pace, and how to accelerate skills development to capture the benefits of rapid technological change within organizations.   

During the session, Waterloo experts provided insights on technological disruption, the resulting transformations in workplaces and society, and the significant challenges and opportunities to harness new technologies to meet business needs.  

"Right now, we are at an inflection point,” said Dr. Joël Blit, “where the confluence of several disruptive technologies is set to transform our economy and society. If businesses are not to be left behind, they must embrace change by automating tasks, rethinking processes and structures, and building technology radar capabilities that scan the horizon.”  

Dr. Michele Mosca echoed the need for action when discussing the exponential power of quantum computing. “There is a critical need for organizations to be quantum ready,” he said. “Companies can not only take advantage of its vast potential, but also mitigate serious risks that new cyber threats pose.” 

With leaders joining the virtual discussion from across Canada and around the globe – as far as Sydney, Australia – the conversation illuminated three key themes: 

First, the critical need for reskilling and upskilling to help individuals and organizations build the next generation of skills required to navigate disruption. 

Second, the necessity for industry, government, and academia to work together to ensure Canada continues to develop, attract, and retain the talent and capital required to keep our nation competitive amidst economic, environmental, and geo-political uncertainties.  

Finally, the crucial role that Waterloo can play to help Canadian business leaders foresee emerging opportunities and threats on the Technology Horizon. 

Going forward, Waterloo will continue to support industry and government partners to navigate the profound transformational changes taking place globally. WatSPEED’s approach to lifelong learning is designed to enable current and future leaders to thrive through change. 

Remembering Professor Ed Moskal

Retiree Dr. Edward Moskal passed away on November 17, 2022.

Born in Timmins in 1938, Moskal received a B.Sc. in mathematics and physics from the University of Toronto in 1961 and a PhD in mathematics from the University of Illinois−Urbana in 1966.

He joined the University of Waterloo in September 1966 as an assistant professor in the then-Department of Mathematics, and was named associate professor in 1978. When the department became a full-fledged Faculty, Moskal became a member of the Pure Math department. His areas of research focus included differential and Riemannian geometry.

He was an active member of the Faculty Association of the University of Waterloo (FAUW), serving as its president for two terms after being chosen as its vice-president for 1980-81 and moving into the presidency when no nominee could be found.

Among his awards and honours was a Woodrow Wilson Fellowship.

In 1974, Moskal was elected as the first president of the Waterloo New Democratic Party Constituency Association, and he was active in the NDP for more than 30 years as well as in local municipal politics.

In the early 1980s he served as a member of the executive committee for the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations (OCUFA), as its treasurer and public and media relations leader.

Dr. Moskal took early retirement as part of the SERP program in 1996.

Copyright term changes to life plus 70 years

A message from Copyright at Waterloo.

As of December 30, 2022, the copyright term in Canada will be changing from author's life plus 50 years to the author's life plus 70 years. This change was made as part of Bill C-19, the Budget Implementation Act, and is required by Canada's obligations under the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA).

What does this mean for me?

Fortunately, this does not change the body of work that is currently in the public domain. All works that were in the public domain as of January 1, 2022 are still in the public domain. The public domain is the body of works that are not protected by copyright and can therefore be used freely, without permission, licence, or fees. 

This means the change should have limited impact on your instruction in the short term. However, lengthening the term of copyright protection means that for the next 20 years no new items will be added to the public domain. This means the number of works in the public domain will be frozen in place.

Note that life plus 70 will be the new general term of copyright protection and that certain kinds of works have different terms of protection, such as unpublished works and government documents. See section six of the Copyright Act and/or consult the public domain flowchart provided by the University of Alberta. Note that it may take time for this flowchart to be updated to reflect the recent change to the Act.

In addition, remember that while the original work may be in the public domain, any changes or additions such as translations, abridgements, forwards, and re-recordings may still be under copyright protection. Regardless of whether a work is in the public domain, university policy requires attribution. See Do I have to cite my sources? What does the citation have to include?

Over the next month the Copyright Advisory Committee Working Group will be updating language on the our website to reflect this change.

Examples

Old system (Life plus 50)

Author's life + remainder of that calendar year + 50 years = term of copyright protection. Creators who died in 1971 are the last group of creators whose works will enter the public domain for the next 20 years.

Two examples:

Ogden Nash died May 19, 1971. On January 1, 2022 his work came into the public domain. It will remain in the public domain going forward.

Lucy Maud Montgomery died April 24, 1942. On January 1, 1993 her work entered the public domain. It will remain in the public domain going forward.

New system (Life plus 70)

Author's life + remainder of that calendar year + 70 years = term of copyright protection. Creators who died in 1972 will be the first group of creators to have an extra 20 years of copyright protection.

Two examples:

Cecil Day-Lewis died May 22, 1972. His work will enter the public domain on January 1, 2043.

John le Carré died December 12, 2020. His work will enter the public domain on January 1, 2091.

Have questions?

If you are unsure if what you are using is in the public domain or have any other questions about this change, please reach out to copyright@uwaterloo.ca.

Waterloo authors get listed and other notes

A number of Waterloo-affiliated authors have had their works featured on some year-end "best of 2022" lists, including:

• Professor Sarah Tolmie, whose book All the Horses of Iceland made it onto the New York Times' Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of 2022;
• Lecturer Carrie Snyder’s book Francie's Got a Gun is on a best-of list from the Globe & Mail;
• Alumnus Jesse Thistle's Scars and Stars made it onto a Chapters/Indigo Best Books of the Year list.

The Centre for Bioengineering and Biotechnology and Health Initiatives is hosting a talk by Dr. Alan J. Forster on ‘Innovation at the Ottawa Hospital’. Learn about the motivations for change in healthcare and how the Ottawa Hospital is supporting transformation.

Dr. Forster is the Executive Vice President, Chief Innovation and Quality Officer at the Ottawa Hospital, Canada’s largest Academic Health Sciences Centre. His focus is enabling teams to create higher value health care – in which patient centered health outcomes are realized and health system costs are lowered.

Dr. Forster will describe the motivations for change in healthcare and describe how the Ottawa Hospital is supporting transformation using three related concepts: learning systems, data democratization, and open innovation. At the foundation of these concepts is a need for strong leadership and trust to support the meaningful collaborations required to achieve meaningful impacts.

The talk is on Friday, December 16 from 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon in DC 1302. Register for the event.