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A rising star
By Jon Parsons.
When Sarah Wilson graduated high school a year early and started in the Computer Science program at Waterloo, there were big expectations. As a high school student, Wilson was elected as a student trustee for the Waterloo Catholic District School Board, served as chair of the Ontario Student Voice Awards with the Ontario Student Trustee Association and volunteered in several community roles.
She won the prestigious Schulich Leader Scholarship as she began at Waterloo for her community involvement and potential for innovative research and entrepreneurship.
Now, having just completed her first term of studies, Wilson is already making waves.
She has recently been named a winner of the Leading Women, Leading Girls, Building Communities award for her work at breaking down barriers for women and promoting equality and diversity. The award is to be presented by Waterloo MPP Catherine Fife.
Wilson was part of a team that recently won first prize in the Scotiabank Data Science Discovery Days, which she describes as a hackathon with an AI twist. She and her team created a transaction fraud detection model with new insights on credit card fraud prevention methods.
She attended the NASA Space Apps Challenge, the largest space and science hackathon in the world where her team advanced to a run-off round of Global Nominees.
And there’s more. Wilson teamed up with fellow Schulich Leader Jason Amri and became VP for sales and marketing of the eco-startup 3cycle, a company tackling the urgent problem of global plastic waste. She became a first-year representative on MathSoc and a member of MathSoc’s board of directors. And she graduated from being a participant in hackathons to becoming an esteemed judge at the recent Deltahacks 9 hosted by McMaster University.
Sarah Wilson (centre) at Deltahacks 9 hackathon.
“I’ve come to realize that no matter how young you are, you can still make an impact on the world,” Wilson says. “Being at Waterloo, I’ve found so many ways to get involved. It’s been challenging, and it’s allowed me to try things that I’m not necessarily good at.”
But she also says that finding the balance between academics and other activities has been a key. Getting involved in clubs and societies, and making friends and socializing, is as much a part of the Waterloo experience as classes and assignments.
“I came to Waterloo thinking it would be all study and work,” Wilson says. “But once I got here, I realized there’s so much social life going on. There are tons of clubs and teams and events. And I think it’s a good balance.”
Sarah Wilson (fourth from right) and team members receiving the first-place award at Scotiabank Data Science Discovery Days.
As for what’s next, Wilson is keeping her options open. She says the recent foray into transaction fraud detection as part of the AI hackathon has fostered an interest in the field of financial technology, but that her interests are still wide and varied.
“I feel honoured and fortunate for all the opportunities I’ve had,” Wilson continues. “Everyone I’ve worked with at Waterloo has been so supportive and encouraging. I don’t know exactly where things will lead me, but I’m motivated to do work that helps make the world a better place, and I can’t wait to see what comes next.”
Universal Design for Learning and Wellbeing Community of Practice meeting on Monday
The Wellness Collaborative, Centre for Teaching Excellence, Centre for Extended Learning, Student Success Office, AccessAbility Services, Writing and Communication Centre, and fellow instructors have partnered up to critically look at how Universal Design for Learning (UDL) can (and cannot) support holistic wellbeing in the learning environment. We invite you, instructors and others who support the learning environment, to join us in a Community of Practice (CoP).
We are excited to announce that our next Community of Practice meeting, The Differences Between UDL & Accommodations takes place on Monday, February 13 from 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.
In this session we welcome facilitators Laura Williams from the Centre for Teaching Excellence and Laura Myers from AccessAbility Services to discuss the differences between accommodations and Universal Design for Learning. We will discuss how implementing aspects of UDL in course design can and cannot support students who require accommodations.
For more details about each session, see our website.
The CoP will be hosted virtually through Microsoft Teams and members can access resources and support asynchronously.
To get involved in the CoP and attend this upcoming session, please complete this brief Qualtrics survey.
Please note that you do not need to attend all the sessions to join the CoP, as our aim is to make this CoP accessible for all who are interested. We look forward to connecting with you!
Pink Shirts available at W Store
A message from Print + Retail Solutions
This year, Pink Shirt Day is on February 22. This is a day when we come together to stand up to bullying by celebrating diversity in all its forms; supporting workplaces, communities and schools to be safe, welcoming and inclusive of all people; and promoting kindness.
Pink ‘Choose Kind’ skirts are available for purchase to support this cause in both adult and youth sizes at W Store (SCH and MC) and online. $4 from every t-shirt sale goes directly to support the important work of MATES, RAISE and The Women’s Centre on campus.
WUSA election period begins next week and other notes
It's student election season, and that means it's time for Waterloo undergraduates to vote for the WUSA Board of Directors for 2023-2024. Voting begins Monday, February 13 and runs until Wednesday, February 15.
Direct students to vote.wusa.ca for candidate profiles and to vote for who they feel will best represent Waterloo undergraduates and advocate on student issues that are important to them.
There's still time to participate in the School of Optometry and Vision Science's CALM study that seeks to compare the reliability and accuracy of new devices that measure prescription and eye length with existing validated instruments for children aged 6 to 18.
This single visit study takes around 1 hour, and will involve repeated measurements of your child’s prescription and eye length with 4 different instruments, similar to those encountered at an optometrist’s office. All devices in this study are safe for use and conform with health and safety standards. We will be using anaesthetic and dilating eye drops. Children will receive $20 for their time and parking vouchers will be provided as needed.
If you are interested in participating, or would like to book your first appointment, please contact Dr. Amy Chow (amy.chow@uwaterloo.ca). Please provide the study ID “CALM” when you email. This study has been reviewed and received ethics clearance through the University of Waterloo Research Ethics Board.