Canada's Largest Engineering School

Work by researchers at Waterloo Engineering demonstrates how advanced algebra can help reveal the deep patterns and symmetry at the heart of music.

Dr. Olga Ibragimova, a former PhD student in computational mechanics, and Dr. Chrystopher Nehaniv, a professor of systems design engineering, used group theory - a branch of mathematics that studies symmetry and transformations - to examine melody.

Dr. Mary Wells received an appointment to the Order of Ontario, the province’s highest civilian honour, in recognition of leadership that advanced education, research and access to engineering across the province.

Wells, dean of the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Waterloo since 2020, was named among 30 appointees for 2025 by the Honourable Edith Dumont, lieutenant-governor of Ontario and chancellor of the Order of Ontario.

The Faculty of Engineering is mourning the loss of Dr. Brian Le Lievre, a professor emeritus in civil and environmental engineering. Le Lievre died on Jan. 2, 2026, at the age of 98.

Le Lievre was part of the University of Waterloo’s earliest generation of scholars in soil mechanics and geotechnical engineering, helping shape the department in its founding years. Across more than 25 years at Waterloo, he taught, mentored and led with a steady focus on students and the discipline.