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A look back at the 60th anniversary, Part Three
As Waterloo's 60th anniversary reached its midpoint, the temperature was definitely rising throughout the summer, with celebrations continuing across campus.
The 2017 Spring Convocation ceremonies featured a special 60th Convocation Lecture delivered by Roberta Jamieson, lawyer and First Nations activist, whose remarks were entitled “Education and Reconciliation, the Path to Canada’s Future”.
Things really began to warm up as the countdown to the annual Canada Day celebrations continued. How best to beat the heat? The University of Waterloo Staff Association had some thoughts on that as the UWSA brought the Heavenly Dreams Ice Cream Truck to campus, where it travelled around giving out smiles. And also ice cream.
On Friday, June 29, during the 2017 Canadian Association of Optometrists Congress, the School of Optometry and Vision Science announced the recipients of the 50th Anniversary Distinguished Alumni of Honour Awards in front of over 500 practitioners from across the country. Recipients were selected based on their outstanding leadership, advocacy, and contributions to their communities and to the profession.
Canada Day took on a special significance in 2017 as more than 65,000 people we celebrated a milestone year for country and community. As the nation celebrated the 150th anniversary of confederation, the University continued to celebrate its 60th anniversary, alongside the Federation of Students' 50 years.
Highlights of the day included the Canada Day salute, featuring a flyover of two vintage fighter jets, and a new Canada 150 Cultural stage in partnership with the City of Waterloo. Families enjoyed children’s performers Bobs & Lolo and as the crowds grew, Dwanye Gretzky and Canadian rock icon Tom Cochrane with Red Rider performed on the OpenText stage. The evening was capped off by the most spectacular fireworks display to date that lit up the sky over Columbia Lake.
July 2017 marked 60 years since the first cohort of 74 Engineering students filed into their stifling hot tin-roofed temporary buildings at the Waterloo College Associate Faculties to begin their studies. One of those pioneering students, Paul Koch, penned a recollection of those early days.
Also in July, the Library unveiled its UW@60 exhibit in the Doris Lewis Rare Book Room, showing off a collection of artifacts including President Gerry Hagey's academic robes, a school jacket from a 1965 graduate, and an early chemist’s bottle from the School of Pharmacy, as well as many photos taken over the past 60 years.
On July 25, the Department of Recreation and Leisure Studies celebrated its 50th anniversary with an outdoor pop-up movie night featuring a screening of the 1986 leisure-centred film Ferris Bueller's Day Off.
Summer quickly gave way to fall, with a number of events receiving a special anniversary twist.
Doors Open Waterloo Region held its 15th annual Free Talk on Saturday, September 16 and invited the whole community to join in to hear Ken McLaughlin, distinguished professor emeritus and the University of Waterloo’s official historian, tell the story of the development of the 1,000-acre campus, and its impact in Waterloo and beyond in a lecture entitled "60 Years at Waterloo: Perspectives of a University from a Corn Field to Architectural Traditions,". In addition, the Library's Special Collections & Archives opened up as part of Doors Open Waterloo Region for a behind-the-scenes tour of the facility and an overview of its more than 300 collections.
Later that month was also Reunion 2017, where 4,600 alumni had a unique opportunity to return to campus and celebrate the 60th on Friday, September 29 and Saturday, September 30, reliving their fondest memories while making new ones. A special 60th Anniversary Reunion Concert featured Indigenous sound crew A Tribe Called Red performing in the PAC.
Check out tomorrow's Daily Bulletin for a final look at the 60th anniversary as summer turned to fall.
University posts draft executive compensation program
The University of Waterloo has posted its draft Executive Compensation Program for a public consultation period, as required by provincial regulations. The program outlines the compensation arrangements for the designated executives of the University, specifically the President and Vice-Chancellor, as well as the five Vice-Presidents.
The Executive Compensation Program “has been designed to support our strategic goal of being recognized as one of the top innovation universities in the world,” according to a statement within the document. “In addition, the Executive Compensation Program has been designed to be compliant with the Broader Public Sector Executive Compensation Act, 2014 (BPSECA)”.
Some background: the BPSECA, introduced in 2014, authorizes the government to establish frameworks to manage executive compensation in what's known as the Broader Public Sector (BPS), and sets out principles that all designated employers must follow. After consultation with multiple stakeholders in the BPS, the provincial government tabled Regulation 304/16 in support of the BPSECA, effective September 6, 2016.
Initially, the Regulation required all BPS employers to have a compensation framework in place for designated executives by September 5, 2017; however, the timeline was amended on June 9, 2017 with the issuance of a directive from the Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS). The directive from the TBS included updated requirements and implemented a deadline of September 29, 2017 for submission of draft programs to the Ministry of Advanced Education and Skills Development (MAESD) for review and approval to proceed into a public consultation period. The government requires a 30-day public consultation period; however, the University has extended the period to account for the holiday break.
Having received approval from the MAESD and TBS to proceed to the public consultation period, you are invited to view the draft Executive Compensation Program. Comments should be directed by email between today and January 22, 2018 to executive.compensation@uwaterloo.ca.
Engineering a new future through nanotech career paths
by Jacqueline Gergal.
The Quantum Nano-Centre was bustling with 200+ nanotechnology students who attended the third annual Waterloo Nanotechnology Conference last month.
Founded in 2015, a group of ambitious and determined students collaborated to launch a nanotechnology conference at the University of Waterloo. Leading the executive committee as conference chair is Jatin Patil, a 4A Nanotechnology Engineering co-op student.
“This conference addresses a relatively new field that represents cutting-edge advancements in several disciplines such as medicine and mechanical engineering,” says Patil. “This conference is a platform for students to form connections with peers, future employers, and future clients; we have seen outcomes such as co-op employment stemming from the conference in previous years.”
The conference welcomed distinguished guest speakers including Joanna Aizenberg, Ph.D., a professor at Harvard University and Dr. Rina Carlini, President, and CEO, Haltech Innovation.
During an industry panel, each speaker shared experiences and words of wisdom with the attendees. Dr. Rina Carlini touched on the value of the co-op program. “Co-op education, like all experiential learning, really reinforces all that learning you do in the classroom,” she said. “You see it in real action, and you are surrounded by professionals who become your mentors.”
Vismit Joshi, a conference volunteer and 4A Nanotechnology Engineering co-op student, worked for Defense Research and Development Canada during his last co-op term. “I performed applied research, which included developing a bio-mathematical model and experimentally evaluating the stability and feasibility of a bio-medicine.”
Joshi’s favourite part about being in the Nanotechnology Engineering co-op program is its multi-disciplinary program and opportunity for work experiences. “Through co-op, I have discovered my career interests by working in diverse industries including defense, pharmaceuticals, Information Technology, and media/telecommunications. Nanotechnology is a vibrant and fast-growing field with so much potential for innovation, and students can lead this growth.”
Follow the Waterloo Nanotechnology Conference website to learn about next year’s conference and how you can get involved.
Executive actions as the year draws to a close
It's Wednesday, December 13. Do you know where your president is?
From 60th anniversary events to meetings and dinners, here is a non-exhaustive list of President Feridun Hamdullahpur's recent activities on campus as the fall term comes to a rather wintry end.
On Saturday, December 2, President Hamdullahpur hosted the 60th Anniversary Gala, which celebrated the outstanding alumni, partners, students, faculty and staff who have invested in the University of Waterloo's past, present and future. Held in the Physical Activities Complex, the invite-only event honoured those who have made a significant contribution to the institution, including recipients of the 60th Anniversary Alumni Awards and the winners of the inaugural President’s Community Impact awards.
On Sunday, December 3, the president attended a Residence Life Management end-of-term dinner at Fed Hall that celebrated dons and community leaders and their accomplishments this past term.
On Wednesday, December 6, the president participated in the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women vigil in Engineering 5's Sedra Student Design Centre.
On Thursday, December 7, President Hamdullahpur joined the serving staff at the UW Grad House for the final Free Food Thursday event of the term. The president, along with Associate Vice President, Graduate Studies and Postdoctoral Affairs Jeff Casello and members of the Office of the President staff served free food to more than 120 students.
On December 8, Feridun hosted the President’s Holiday Luncheon from 12:00 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. in Federation Hall, commemorating a successful 60th anniversary year and celebrating the arrival of the festive season. Lunch and refreshments were provided for the 600+ attendees.
Also on December 8, the president met with Sir Jim McDonald, Principal and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Strathclyde and a small delegation as they toured the Waterloo campus and held a roundtable meeting with deans and other University officials.
So what's next for the president?
Today, Feridun will be visiting Professor Katherine White's Lab for Infant Development and Language in the PAS building along with Vice-President, Advancement Joanne Shoveller, Vice-President, University Relations Sandra Banks, and Vice-President, University Research Charmaine Dean.
And keep your eyes and ears open for some presidential holiday messaging on social media this week.
Games Institute Open House and other notes
This Thursday, December 14 from 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. the Games Institute will be hosting an Open House in the Collaboration Space of East Campus 1. This event is open to all University of Waterloo faculty, staff and graduate students with similar research interests, accompanied by their supervisors.
This event will be an interactive opportunity to learn more about what the Games Institute is, as well as the scope of games-related research that is happening within this research centre. If you have an interest in games and games-related technology, interactions and implications, then this event is for you.
Spend the afternoon talking with people from the gaming community, as well as our own Games Institute members. We'll be showcasing some of the GI research projects and playtesting some recently developed games.
This Open House will also be an opportunity for The Games Institute to thank the Faculty of Arts for all of its help and support over the years. You can RSVP to this event here.
The Library is reporting that the term loan date has changed from January 15, 2018 to May 15, 2018. Borrowers can begin renewing their books for the Spring term after this date. Renewal reminder notices will be sent to Library patrons beginning today.