Monday, January 29, 2024

Students receive 2024 CRA Outstanding Undergraduate Researcher Awards

This is an excerpt of an article originally published on the Cheriton School of Computer Science website.

Four students at the Cheriton School of Computer Science are recipients of the Computing Research Association’s 2024 Outstanding Undergraduate Researcher Awards. The annual CRA awards program recognizes students from universities across North America who have distinguished themselves by conducting exceptional computer science research as undergrads.

This year, Matthew Yang was a finalist, and Ruidi Wei, Jiawen Zhu and Alex Zhuang each received honourable mentions for their research.

“Congratulations to Matthew, Ruidi, Jiawen and Alex on receiving these recognitions from the Computing Research Association,” said Raouf Boutaba, Professor and Director of the Cheriton School of Computer Science. “Through their publications, they have truly distinguished themselves as exceptional young researchers amongst a very competitive pool of research-oriented undergrads in universities across Canada and the United States.”

The Computing Research Association is supported by Microsoft Research and Mitsubishi Electric Research Labs, which sponsor the Outstanding Undergraduate Researcher Award program in alternate years. This year, Mitsubishi Electric Research Labs sponsored CRA’s Outstanding Undergraduate Researcher Awards.

Check out the list of winning students on the School of Computer Science website.

Provide your feedback to the Office of Research: survey closes Friday

A message from the Office of Research (OR).

The Office of Research (OR) is looking for feedback about your experiences with its various groups.

Complete the survey to provide your feedback.

In a memo from Charmaine B. Dean sent in early January, Waterloo faculty members were invited to complete a short survey to help identify strengths where the OR should escalate or maintain support and areas where there are opportunities to improve services. The survey will help guide how the work will be structured moving forward. faculty members are encouraged to share their feedback by completing the survey that will be open until 11:59 p.m. on Friday, February 2, 2024.

Plant Operations makes improvements to campus

On January 24, 2024, Plant Operations coordinated a major crane operation to deliver the new emergency generators as part of the electrical distribution renewal program on campus. These new generators replace expired equipment and will provide back-up power in future critical situations, meeting the needs of our growing campus. The crane was set-up in Parking Lot L lifting the units into the newly constructed enclosure connected to the Central Services Building.

GreenHouse and the Faculty of Environment invite students to apply for the Jack Rosen Memorial Award for Environmental Innovation!

Each year the Jack Rosen Memorial Award Pitch Competition invites Faculty of Environment students to submit an idea (device, process, or method) that could solve, mitigate, or avoid an environmental problem.

Applicants are asked to identify an environmental problem and succinctly explain their proposed solution. Finalists will create a pitch deck and present to a panel of judges for their chance to win a $3000 Grand Prize in early March.

Students may enter individually or in teams of up to five. Each team must include at least one full-time graduate or undergraduate student enrolled in the Faculty of Environment.

Applications are due by February 5! Learn more and apply here: https://uwaterloo.ca/environment/entrepreneurship/jack-rosen-memorial-award-and-pitch-competition

Diploma frames available at W Store

A message from W Store and Alumni Relations

Diploma frames, which have previously been available to order through Alumni Relations, are now available for purchase through W Store! Visit us in-store at South Campus Hall or place your order online. Choose from a selection of diploma frames, portrait frames and packages.

Thank you to Alumni Relations for providing this service throughout the years and being a great partner during this transition. For any questions regarding this change, please email wstore@uwaterloo.ca.

Senate meets today and other notes

The University's Senate has its first meeting of 2024 today at 3:30 p.m. in NH 3407. Among the agenda items:

• A motion to elect Nasser Abukhdeir to the Senate Long Range Planning Committee as the member from the Board of Directors of the Faculty Association of the University of Waterloo, term to 30 April 2024;
• A motion to dissolve the Survey Research Centre (SRC). The SRC was founded in 1999 to serve academic and institutional researchers by conducting rigorous surveys, and to conduct research on surveys as a means of creating valid and reliable datasets for research. In September 2023, the SRC was officially merged with the Statistical Consulting and Collaborative Research (SCCR) unit in SAS to form the Statistical Consulting and Survey Research (SCSR) unit;
• A motion to approve the creation of the Quantum Engineering Specialization in the Computer Engineering plan and inthe in the Electrical Engineering plan, effective 1 September 2024;
• A motion to approve the creation of a Nanoelectronics Specialization, Nanobiosystems Specialization, Nanofabrication Specialization, and Nanomaterials Specialization within the Nanotechnology Engineering plan, effective 1 September 2024;
• A motion to approve the following major modifications in Planning Honours: the creation of the Social Planning and Community Development Specialization; revisions to the Environmental Planning and Management Specialization, the Land Development Planning Specialization, and the Urban Design Specialization; and the inactivation of the Decision Support and Geographical Information Systems Specialization, effective 1 September 2024;
• A motion to approve the inactivation of the Global Experience Certificate, effective 1 September 2024;
• A motion to approve the revisions to the Institutional Quality Assurance Process (IQAP); and
• A motion to approve the proposed revised Policy 76 – Faculty Appointments and the proposed revised Policy 77 – Tenure and Promotion of Faculty Members effective 1 September 2024, in accordance with the agreed terms between the Faculty Association of the University of Waterloo (“FAUW”) and the University of Waterloo, and to recommend that the Board of Governors give final approval to the same proposed revisions withthe same effective date.

Additionally, the consent agenda has the following items of business:

• A motion to approve the proposed academic regulation revisions for the “University Policies, Guidelines and Academic Regulations, Assignments, Tests, and Final Exams, Accommodations” section of the Undergraduate Studies Academic Calendar, effective for the 2024-2025 Calendar;
• A motion to approve the proposed academic regulation revisions to the Invalid Credential Combinations section of the Undergraduate Studies Academic Calendar for the Diploma of Excellence in Geographic Information Systems, and the Diploma in Sustainability, and Sustainability and Financial Management, Honours, effective 1 September 2024;
• A motion to approve the proposed academic regulation revisions for the “Overview of Co-op Plan Requirements” of the Faculty of Environment, effective 1 September 2024; and
• a motion to approve the proposed academic regulation revisions for the Faculty of Environment’s Repeat Course Rule, effective 1 September 2024.

Providing the Faculty update will be Dr. Bruce Frayne, Dean of Environment.

The full agenda can be found on the Secretariat's website.

Food Services reports that the Special Olympics Donut is back at all Tim Horton’s locations across campus, priced at $2, and a special promotion will run from February 2 to 4 with 100 per cent of proceeds donated to Special Olympics Canada.