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Waterloo introduces new Gender Equity Research Grants
The University of Waterloo is part of the United Nations Women’s HeForShe campaign, a global effort that invites men and boys to work with women and girls, as equal partners, in advancing gender equity.
As part of the campaign, the UN Women launched the 10x10x10 IMPACT framework, which involves 10 corporations, 10 governments, and 10 universities. As part of Waterloo’s involvement in HeForShe’s 10x10x10 IMPACT framework, we have made three specific commitments to address gender equity on campus:
- Commitment 1: Boost girls’ participation in STEM experiences to build future female leaders;
- Commitment 2: Enhance female faculty representation to drive towards parity in the future; and
- Commitment 3: Advance women into positions that lead the University
Continuing to work towards these commitments and gender equity on campus, we are proud to establish the University of Waterloo Gender Equity Research Grants. This is a new initiative that offers eight grants of up to $10,000 each to support research investigating or addressing gender equity, with preference given to projects that advance Waterloo's three IMPACT 10x10x10 commitments or of demonstrated relevance to the University of Waterloo.
If you’re interested in applying, or would like to submit an application, visit our HeForShe webpage to view the Gender Equity Research Grant guidelines. If you would like more information about how you can be involved, please contact Diana Parry (Chair of the University of Waterloo Gender Equity Research Grant Committee) by phone at 519-888-4567 ext. 33468, or e-mail at dcparry@uwaterloo.ca.
English Language learners make LEGO come to life
By Ryan Connell. This is an excerpt of an article originally published on the Bridge to Academic Success in English (BASE) website.
Who would have thought that LEGO could help students build their English language skills? A course on campus is hoping to do just that.
Engineering students in the Bridge to Academic Success in English (BASE) program are participating in experiential learning exercises by building LEGO robots in their Academic Skills course. The students compete against each other in multiple tournament rounds using robots they have assembled, programmed, and tested together in teams.
BASE is one of UWaterloo’s English language foundation program offered through Renison’s English Language Institute. Students complete one or two terms of the program to meet the requirements of their conditional acceptance into their respective Faculty at UWaterloo. This term, there are 24 students in the Engineering section of the program.
Students in BASE take one or two credit courses that will count towards their degree, in addition to language courses to develop their oral, academic, and writing skills. The robotics initiative was integrated into the curriculum for the Engineering students’ Academic Skills course, using robotic challenges created by the FIRST LEGO League, or FLL, an organization that aims to introduce science and technology to youth. For the students’ first tournament, their robot had to open a small door on a LEGO tournament board.
BASE instructor Raveet Jacob says the LEGO robot exercises provide a hands-on perspective to the way students gain valuable academic skill experience with presentations, time management, and especially group work.
“Often during group work, people delegate tasks to each other, they do it, and then come back and somehow try to merge everything together,” says Jacob. “In this exercise, we explain that they have to work together throughout the whole process. They have to know what each other is doing, and work to truly develop the final product – their robot – as a team.”
Read the rest of the article on the BASE web site.
Juggling, hockey, and other feats of note
The University of Waterloo's Juggling Club is holding their annual juggling festival in the Student Life Centre on February 26 starting at 7:00 p.m., and on Saturday, February 27 from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. There will be juggling workshops, games, competitions, and more. Beginners and experts are welcome. For more information, visit the Juggling Club website or send an e-mail to uwjugglingclub@uwaterloo.ca.
There will also be a gala show Saturday from 7:30 to 9:00 p.m. in Hagey Hall. Tickets are $15 for adults and $7 for children under 13.
The Warriors Women's Hockey Team kicks off their playoff run against the Western Mustangs tonight with a game at Western University at 7:00 p.m. Waterloo will host Game 2 at the Columbia Icefield Arena on Saturday, February 27 at 2:30 p.m.
Check the Athletics site for ticket information.
The Declutter Your Life: The Physical & Visible session scheduled for Thursday, February 25 at 12:00 p.m. has been relocated to DC 1302.
The English Language & Literature department is presenting a talk by Sharon Morgan Beckford-Foster of the Rochester Institute of Technology entitled "From Nomad to Modern Citizen: New Literary Reflections of Blackness in Richard Wright's Philosophy of History." The event takes place on Friday, February 26 at 3:30 p.m. in PAS 2438.
Professor Beckford-Foster is Associate Professor and Chair of English at RIT and the author of Naturally Woman: The Search for Self in Black Canadian Women’s Literature (2011). Her current book project, from which this talk is drawn, is titled Richard Wright and His Modeling of ‘West Indians’ as Modern Citizens.
The talk is open to the public.
Please join the Institutional Analysis & Planning department as it celebrates Mary Soulis’ 35 years of service at the University of Waterloo on Wednesday, March 9, 3:30-6:00 p.m. at the University Club.
Special presentations will begin at 4:30 p.m. Please RSVP to Carrie MacKinnon by sending an e-mail to cmackinnon@uwaterloo.ca by Wednesday, March 2.