Friday, February 25, 2022

Renison professors to join Knowledge Development and Exchange Hub

Two of Renison University College's School of Social Work faculty members are joining the Knowledge Development and Exchange (KDE) Hub as Scientific Co-Directors starting April 1.

"The Renison-hosted Knowledge Development and Exchange (KDE) Hub for Mental Health Promotion will welcome two Renison faculty members as Scientific Co-Directors this Spring, Dr. Colleen McMillan and Dr. Alice Schmidt Hanbidge," says an announcement from the KDE Hub. "Both professors within Renison’s School of Social Work, Drs. McMillan and Hanbidge will continue to advance the goals of the KDE Hub to create new knowledge, build community and capacity, and strengthen systemic supports for helping mental health promotion flourish across Canada."

“Renison delights in continuing its work with the KDE Hub,” said Renison President Dr. Wendy L. Fletcher. “The twinning of hearts and minds between us in this work has opened up new pathways for supporting and empowering the health and well-being of Canada’s youth. We are privileged to have collaborated with Dr. Barb Riley as she created the foundational work which we now know as the KDE Hub. Her vision and tenacity in moving this work forward has been an inspiration to all of us. As Barb begins a new chapter through retirement, we are delighted to welcome our new Scientific Co-Directors Dr. Alice Schmidt Hanbidge and Dr. Colleen McMillan into this role. We are confident that their leadership will well sustain the work which Barb began and continue to nurture its growth and evolution into the next chapter of the KDE Hub story.”

Dr. Alice Schmidt Hanbidge teaches in both the Bachelor of Social Work (BSW) and Master of Social Work (MSW) programs. Her extensive social work practice experience intersects with her established research record dedicated to enhancing child and youth mental health resilience, furthering interprofessional experiential learning opportunities, SOTL (Scholarship of Teaching and Learning), and strengthening leadership capacity within nonprofit organizations.

“The pandemic has had adverse impacts on the mental health of Canadian children, youth and families. The KDE Hub’s significant focus on mental health promotion is timely and will be enduring,” said Hanbidge. “In the position of Scientific Co-Director, I envision contributing my experience in clinical practice, educational training, and in research to further the Hub’s innovative knowledge mobilization activities that support promising practices in mental health promotion for families.”

Dr. Colleen McMillan has worked in the mental health field for over three decades in community, primary, and tertiary settings. She combines her clinical, teaching and research methods in the areas of mental health for children and youth, arts-based methodologies, student centered pedagogy interprofessional collaboration and participatory action research with marginalized groups including children and their families. She also teaches in the Bachelor of Social Work (BSW) and Master of Social Work (MSW) programs as well in the School of Pharmacy.

“I am thrilled to take a leadership role at the KDE Hub and work with the Secretariat to expand the innovative knowledge mobilization activities in the field of mental health,” said McMillan. “The position of Scientific Co-Director represents a career milestone for me, culminating decades of clinical and community practice and interdisciplinary research devoted to improving the wellbeing of children, youth and families.”

"Collectively, Drs. McMillan and Hanbidge bring their expertise, vision, and collaborative skills needed to further the growth of the KDE Hub for national and international excellence, with an emphasis on increasing health equity," says the KDE Hub announcement. "They recently developed a Canadian baseline on student trauma, mental health and online learning funded by a Desire To Learn (D2L)Innovation Grant."

More details about the work of the KDE Hub can be found on its website at https://kdehub.ca.

Mathematics alumnus celebrates 40 years with co-op employer

This article was originally published on the Faculty of Mathematics website.

Don Phillips (BMath '82) accepted a co-op placement during his undergraduate degree in the Faculty of Mathematics and has stayed with the same employer for his 40-year career.

This remarkable story has seen Phillips progress from an intern position to the chief product strategist at XAP Corporation.

“I’m a work-based learning success story,” said Phillips. “I often tell people about my experience at the University of Waterloo’s co-op education and how successful that was, setting me up for my career.”

XAP is an educational technology pioneer in the United States, providing school districts and individual schools with online tools for students to explore careers.

Read more about Phillips and his career trajectory from a math co-op to the corporate boardroom in the feature article on the Hire Waterloo webpage. 

Waterloo projects receive funding from Canada Foundation for Innovation

On Tuesday, February 22 the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) announced an investment of close to $45 million in research infrastructure. The funding will support 150 projects at 43 universities, colleges, cégeps and polytechnics across the country. Eight projects from the University of Waterloo have been approved for funding through the John R. Evans Leaders Fund (JELF).

“Our government is taking concrete action to attract and retain the best and brightest Canadian talent at institutions across the country,” said the Honourable Francois-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry. “Today’s investments will ensure that researchers at our colleges and universities have the equipment and spaces they need to flourish and tackle our most pressing challenges, like climate change, health care and economic security.”

Funding provided through JELF helps institutions attract and retain outstanding researchers. It also contributes to acquiring the tools that enable the innovative work of those researchers, and offers research infrastructure that, when combined with support from partner organizations, creates a highly competitive package for attracting talent.

Find out more about the projects

COMPASS receives large grant to study youth and COVID-19 effects over time

This article was originally published on the Faculty of Health website.

The COMPASS study, led by researcher Scott Leatherdale in the School of Public Health Sciences, has received more than $2.55 million over five years in renewal funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR).

The project, “Evaluating the ongoing impact of COVID-19 on youth substance use and mental health trajectories over time: renewal of the COMPASS prospective cohort,” will allow the researchers to continue evaluating the ongoing impact that COVID-19 restrictions have had on youth substance use and mental illness.

The longitudinal study collects annual data from more than 65,000 high-school students in 150 schools in Ontario, Alberta, British Columbia and Quebec on topics such as substance use, mental health and demographic characteristics for enabling equity-focused analyses. When the pandemic began in March 2020, COMPASS also began collecting data on the specific impacts of COVID-19 on youth health and well-being outcomes.

“COMPASS is currently the largest and most comprehensive youth cohort of its kind globally and this CIHR funding allows us to continue this work for another five years,” said Leatherdale. “The timing for this is critical as no other team in Canada has the breadth and quality of prospective data that started years before the pandemic for understanding how the COVID-19 pandemic is impacting, or will continue to impact, substance use and mental health trajectories and outcomes among youth over time.”

The project will also explore the effects of the pandemic as they relate to gender, racial discrimination and ethnicity, and affluence. COMPASS, which began in 2012, was designed to provide research to guide and promote youth health. The project was one of four awarded CIHR funding at the University of Waterloo.

In-person campus tours resuming for future undergraduate students

The Visitors Centre is excited to be resuming in-person tours for future undergraduate students.

Tours begin February 28 and are available only through advanced booking due to limited capacities and enhanced safety protocols. Vaccination certificates will continue to be required for all eligible visitors.

This is the first time since 2020 that we’ve been able to offer our full suite of tours including campus, faculty, college, and school tours. All tours can be booked through our tours and events website.

In addition to resuming campus tours, the Visitors Centre will continue its ongoing work connecting with future students through virtual tours, calls, emails, online chats, and fulfilling brochure requests.

UW Fitness programs begin March 7; other notes

"UW Fitness is offering both in-person and remote fitness programs starting March 7," says a note from UW Fitness. "Exercise under the supervision of our experienced and knowledgeable Certified Exercise Physiologists in either our private facility on campus or in the comfort of your own home! For more information and how to register, see our website at https://uwaterloo.ca/centre-community-clinical-applied-research-excellence/uw-fitness-services/staff-and-faculty-training.”

Pop up vaccine clinics are back at the Student Life Centre (located in the old W Store location) on Monday, February 28 1:30 p.m. to 3:45 p.m. and Wednesday, March 2 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. The booster clinics, operated by the Region of Waterloo Public Health and supported by Health Services, are available to anyone in the Waterloo community who meets the provincial eligibility requirements. No appointment is required.

Balsillie Lecture: “Multipolar or Multiplex: Rising Powers, the West and the Rest” featuring Amitav Acharya from American University in Washington DC, in conversation with Ann Fitz-Gerald, Director of the Balsillie School of International Affairs, with an introduction by the School’s Founder, Jim Balsillie, on Tuesday, March 1 from 11 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Register here: https://www.balsillieschool.ca/event/balsillie-lecture-multipolar-or-multiplex-rising-powers-the-west-and-the-rest/