Friday, December 15, 2023

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• Thanks for participating in the Employee Engagement Survey
• International students enjoy holiday dinner, look forward to UWinterloo
• Celebrating the career of Dr. Mike Fich
• QS sustainability rankings; Prof puts out Christmas album; other notes

Thanks for participating in the Employee Engagement Survey

A message from Human Resources.

The 2023 University of Waterloo Employee Engagement Survey is now closed, and we are very pleased to announce that we achieved a higher response rate than in 2019! Our final participation rate was 55 per cent overall. Thank you for your participation and providing your thoughts on working at Waterloo. Your feedback is in invaluable tool for the success of our University.  

What's next? 

Korn Ferry, our survey partner, has collected the completed surveys and will begin compiling the results to share in early 2024. University leadership will receive a detailed survey review in mid-winter, highlighting areas of achievement and areas for growth. An overview of the key metrics and survey results will be placed on the Employee Engagement Survey website, and plans to share the results with the University community are currently underway.

Thank you all again for taking the time to participate and provide your feedback. Your comments are invaluable and will be used as the basis for ongoing discussions on employee engagement over the coming year.

If you have questions about the Employee Engagement Survey, please contact HRhelp@uwaterloo.ca.

International students enjoy holiday dinner, look forward to UWinterloo

A message from the Student Success Office.

An annual University of Waterloo tradition brought international students together to celebrate the season, and to give back to their fellow Warriors. 

On December 9, over 300 international students enjoyed a two-course festive dinner and crowded the dance floor of Fed Hall during the International Student Dinner. A modest $5 entry fee ensured access to the event ensured affordability for most students, with all proceeds directed to the Waterloo Undergraduate Student Association (WUSA) Food Support Service.

Held in partnership between the Student Success Office, WUSA and the Graduate Student Association (GSA) the dinner underscores the importance of building strong ties within the international student community.

"Events like these are designed to combat the loneliness and isolation some students experience during the winter,” said Candace Brown, international student experience manager with the SSO. “Many international students are unable to visit family or return to their home countries after the semester ends. With limited campus services available, it’s vital they can lean on one another for support and comradery during the winter break.” 

In addition to the Holiday Dinner, international students can opt-in to participate in UWinterloo. This SSO run program connects students to wider Region of Waterloo festivities, services and events. Students are introduced to online and in-person and receive a handwritten card from a UWaterloo staff or faculty member. 

“These types of events for international students who are away from their families are really enjoyable,” said a student attendee. “It was really great to have a space for other international students to connect at this time. I hope I can come again next year.”

Celebrating the career of Dr. Mike Fich

A message from Physics and Astronomy.

Mike Fich, Professor in Physics and Astronomy is retiring after 37 years as a professor at the University of Waterloo and 49 years since he first started as an undergraduate student here.

Mike is known for his research in astronomy in the areas of star formation and the intergalactic medium, and his work developing instrumentation for sub-millimetre telescopes operating both from the ground and in space. He has also been the director of the Gustav Bakos Observatory (the domes you see on the roof of the Physics building), an Associate Dean for Computing in the Faculty of Science, and an undergraduate advisor for the Physics and Astronomy Plan. 

Looking back on his career, he says "37+ years of fun! Enormously enjoyed both teaching and research!”

We will miss his wisdom, humour, canoe trip advice and coffee-time chats. 

Members of the University community are welcome to join a celebration of Mike’s career Friday, December 15 from 4:00 to 6:00 pm in the QNC 2101 boardroom. 

QS sustainability rankings; Prof puts out Christmas album; other notes

You want GPT on campus, you got it: Trevor Bain of the Faculty of Health snapped this pic of what we'll refer to for the time being as Goose Poop Trail yesterday morning. Watch your step and pray for snow to cover this up.

Last week QS released its 2024 Sustainability University Rankings. This is the first full edition of the QS Sustainability ranking after its initial pilot in 2022. The ranking includes more than 1,400 institutions, 31 of which are Canadian, and looks like several indicators including environmental impact (weighted at 45 per cent of the total), social impact (also at 45 per cent) and good governance (10 per cent).

Methodology and full results are available on the QS website.

Institutional Analysis and Planning is liaising with QS to better understand their methodology and provide feedback for potential improvements to the survey. Additionally, IAP is reviewing information from Waterloo’s U15 peers to better enable benchmarking on emissions-related performance indicators that form part of this ranking.

David Wang, a faculty member in Electrical and Computer Engineering, has long had a side gig in music, having won two Canadian Gospel Music Association Awards for Best Rock Album, been nominated for Video of the Year, and his group, Critical Mass, performed for a million attendees at World Youth Day 2002 in Toronto.

As he nears retirement, Dr. Wang has been more active on the music scene. His group has just released a Christmas album entitled "Christmas is Real" and have partnered with Chalice Canada to release a new music video for "Do They Know It's Christmas?".  

"Chalice is one of the top rated charities in Canada and is known for having one of the lowest administration costs of any similar organization, ensuring that almost all the money donated goes towards the needs of those less fortunate in other parts of the world", says Wang. "We are so happy to be able to collaborate, particularly during this holiday season".  

More information about the band as well as streaming information is available on the Critical Mass website.

Athletics has announced that registration is open for Waterloo Warriors Youth Camps. "Winter, March Break and PD Day camps are available for boys and girls ages 5 to 18," says a note from Athletics. "Baseball, basketball, football and multi-sport and games camps are available." Register today!