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A look behind the Convocation curtain
The University of Waterloo's 117th Convocation ceremonies took place Friday and Saturday. More than 2,400 students received degrees, including 1,308 undergraduate and 1,164 graduate degrees.
Many milestones were celebrated at the four ceremonies, including the first convocations presided over by newly-installed Chancellor Dominic Barton, senior partner and former global managing partner of McKinsey & Company, as well as the first ceremonies with Jim Rush participating in his role as Vice-President, Academic & Provost.
Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau sent a congratulatory message on the occasion via video:
The ceremonies, organized by Community Relations and Events, were well served by an army of 60 volunteers from across campus and bolstered by the participation of over 250 faculty members.
During the ceremonies, 30 different awards were presented. Special thanks to all faculty partners who assisted with the coordination of awards and honours.
And let's not forget about the Convocation cupcakes: 3,420 of them served up during the receptions following each ceremony.
The collaboration behind the scenes to deliver a professional, seamless experience for convocation cannot be understated. Some of the many partners who each play a critical role in the convocation experience include:
- The Registrar and the team in the Registrar’s office;
- Graduate Studies;
- Advancement;
- Plant Operations;
- Central Stores;
- Staff from the PAC and the Student Life Centre;
- Parking Services;
- Police Services;
- Retail Services;
- Secretariat and the Honorary Doctorate committee;
- Catering and Event Services;
- Health Services;
- ITMS; and
- AccessAbility Services.
It is important to note that convocation is not just about the ceremonies. Convocation is also a time of deepening relationships with our newest alumni. If you have ever visited the Student Life Centre after a ceremony, you can appreciate the commitment of the Alumni team to hosting four receptions, selling frames and making sure that families enjoy their time on campus with their graduates. Social media also plays a key role for Alumni, as new alumni are welcomed to “the club."
For more information on convocation, including access to recordings of the ceremonies later this week, please visit www.uwaterloo.ca/convocation; and visit our social media channels to revisit the smiles and celebrations at #UWaterlooGrad.
If you participated in convocation and have feedback to share, we would love to hear from you. Please contact Kelly McManus, senior director, Community Relations and Events at kmcmanus@uwaterloo.ca.
Grand opening celebration for Engineering 7 today
Join the Faculty of Engineering today for the Official Opening of E7 and celebrate the successful completion of the Educating the Engineer of the Future campaign. The open house starts at 1:00 p.m.
E7 is home to RoboHub, a state-of-the-art robotics research and test facility that will allow co-ordinated robotics teams to simulate complex, real-world environments for a wide range of potential applications including monitoring oil pipelines, tracking forest fires, mapping minefields, surveying agricultural land, and unobtrusively studying wildlife behaviour.
The two-storey facility will host a fleet of distinctive robots, including TALOS, a full-sized humanoid robot. Robohub has an advanced indoor positioning system that will include movable environment features like stairs, doors and other obstacles.
E7 offers unique teaching and research spaces such as the Engineering Ideas Clinic. In a space designed to be flexible, the Ideas Clinic can be reconfigured for activities using both light and heavy mechanical components. Located in close proximity to the new and hotly anticipated Student Machine Shop space, we are expanding on our strength of integrating experiential and classroom teaching.
A fifth floor bridge connecting E7 to E5 provides students with a unique hands-on learning experience. Working with industry partner Enable Education, we equipped the bridge with instrumental sensors, or load cells, which measure the forces generated on them. The sensors will enable students to compare modeling design assumptions with what happens in the real world. Meanwhile, accelerometers measure vibration and strain gauges measure the stress in the beams of the bridge.
E7 creates a permanent – and expanded - home for Engineering Outreach activities. Every year, Engineering Outreach connects with thousands of potential engineers in a range of STEM introduction and support programming, including Engineering Science Quest and Go Code Girl. More outreach means more opportunities for our youth to cultivate their curiosity and expand their imaginations in STEM fields.
Come by and check out Engineering 7 at 1:00 p.m. to see what's new.
We're close to meeting our United Way goal
A message from the United Way campaign.
The University of Waterloo’s United Way campaign is at 77 percent of our $270,000 goal for 2018 as we come to the end of campaign month.
We need your help to reach our goal and there’s still time to give.
- Follow our step-by-step instructions on how to donate and make your 2018 donation on the United Way’s e-Pledge site.
Our campus has been energized this month for many reasons, including United Way events. Your participation generates a spirit of generosity on campus and raises awareness for our United Way campaign. But did you know that event funds traditionally only contribute 10 percent of our goal? Giving through payroll is a great way to set up an ongoing gift and keep that spirit going all year.
Some of you have experienced some pain points with the e-Pledge system this year. Please know that the United Way and Waterloo teams are resolving these challenges. If you’ve experienced a challenge with the system, please get in touch (united.way@uwaterloo.ca) so we can help. We also continue to offer a printable paper donation form as an option. Thanks for your patience as we fix these issues.
Whether you’ve already made a donation, or are thinking of making one, we sincerely thank you.
Remembering Chris "Greek" Triantafilou
This article was originally published on the Athletics website.
The Department of Athletics and Recreation at the University of Waterloo and Wilfrid Laurier University are deeply saddened by the loss of Chris Triantafilou. Triantafilou passed away on the morning of October 25 after a brief battle with cancer.
Triantafilou, better known around the University as 'Greek' was an extremely caring, passionate and genuine person and made everyone around him feel important. His willingness to get to know people while making personal connections is what made Triantafilou such a well-liked person.
Triantafilou was a coach with the Warriors football program for 19 years and a member of the Waterloo Warriors Department of Athletics and Recreation for 31 years. Prior to his coaching role at Waterloo, Triantafilou was a hard-nosed defensive back who played for the Laurier Golden Hawks under head coach Tuffy Knight in the late 70's and early 80's.
He was an assistant coach from 1987-90 and then in 1991 took over as the Defensive Coordinator where he led an outstanding defensive unit and earned a reputation as one of the best Defensive Coordinator's in the country. In his role, Triantafilou played a big part in Waterloo's first Yates Cup in 1997.
In 1998, Coach Triantafilou took over as the head until 2006, and won his second Yates Cup in 1999.
In 2006, Triantafilou took over as the Facilities Manager in Warriors Athletics and worked in that capacity until 2018. He also served on an number of OUA committees to help advance interuniversity sport across the province.
In addition, Triantafilou was an active member of the local sport community, volunteering his time with many sport organizations, including helping to launch the Waterloo Region Predators.
Friends are invited to share their memories of Chris with his family during visitation at the Erb & Good Family Funeral Home, 171 King St. S., Waterloo on Sunday October 28, and Monday October 29 from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. and 6:00 to 8:00 p.m.
Condolences for the family and donations to 'Coach Tri's Scholarship for Athletic Success' will be accepted online at www.laurieralumni.ca/triantafilou, or in person through the Erb & Good Family Funeral Home at www.erbgood.com or 519-745-8445.