Dear faculty, staff and graduate students,
The announcement on July 22 of the University of Waterloo as the chosen site for Waterloo's new state-of-the-art regional hospital is celebrated news. The CEOs of Grand River Hospital and St. Mary’s General Hospital, the Minister of Health, Premier, and University of Waterloo President Vivek Goel spoke about the relevance of investing in the future of care in the fastest growing region of Ontario.
Our Knowledge Keeper, Myeengun Henry, assumed a pivotal role in the announcement. Elder Henry shared his long-standing engagement with the two hospitals and the University of Waterloo. A month ago, he had walked the land with leaders of these organizations and President Goel and conducted a pipe ceremony. Elder Henry spoke of the land as a place that has been integral for healing of all kinds.
He noted that together, we can create a new vision of health for all people, remembering that the land gives birth and can help people transition across cultures. He expressed his optimism that as partners, we will maintain health as a significant part of our being and that innovation and discovery stand side by side with health.
The proximity of the new hospital to the Toby Jenkins Building on Hagey Blvd. and the Faculty of Health’s three buildings on Ring Road will present numerous opportunities for our students, faculty and staff to engage with innovations and programs targeted at members of the entire Waterloo region. Indeed, our plan to create a Healthy Waterloo Campus and Waterloo Region can only be enhanced with the addition of this new facility in the coming years.
Best,
Lili Liu
News I Events I Did you know?
NEWS
Funding spotlight: Dr. David Hammond
The Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), Heart and Stroke and the Canadian Lung Association have awarded School of Public Health Sciences Professor Dr. David Hammond and his team $2 million to examine the health impact of vaping among more than 1,000 young people who will be followed over a two-year period. The study will collect detailed measures of vaping behaviour and will examine chemicals in the aerosol inhaled from e-cigarettes, as well as toxic chemicals and early indicators of damage in the blood, saliva and urine of young people who vape.
Funding spotlight: NSERC RTI grants
Drs. Nikolas Knowles and Andrew Laing of Kinesiology and Health Sciences received Research Tools and Instruments (RTI) grants from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC). The grants will help to purchase an electromechanical testing frame and an UltraMSK high-speed ultrasound system, respectively.
Funding spotlight: Five-year Discovery Grants
The following Kinesiology and Health Sciences researchers have each received a five-year Discovery Grant from NSERC in support of long-term research: Drs. Monica Maly (Moving slowly: A vicious cycle of escalating biomechanical demands and penalties), Steve Fischer (Advancing tools and techniques to optimize human performance at work), Bill McIlroy (Neural control of balance in humans) and Ken Stark (Untargeted lipidomic methods for the study of diet on oxidized phospholipids in human blood).
Funding spotlight: PhD candidate Allison Legg
Kinesiology and Health Sciences PhD student Allison Legg has received an operating grant from the Canadian Chiropractic Research Foundation for her project titled Virtual Intervention after Vertebral frActures (VIVA). Legg works in Dr. Lora Giangregorio's Bone Health and Exercise Science Lab with Dr. Heather Keller as co-investigator.
New administrator in Recreation and Leisure Studies
Fiona McAlister rejoined the Faculty of Health in July as the Administrative Officer for the Department of Recreation and Leisure Studies, taking over from Anton Trinh, who accepted a position at McMaster University. McAlister was the executive assistant to the Dean for several years, and brings a wealth of experience across many departments, including that of Combinatorics and Optimization, Religious Studies and Psychology.
Health Ready Day welcomed incoming students
On July 8, Health Ready Day welcomed 215 incoming students and their guests in person and hosted 86 guests virtually. They learned information about their programs, explored campus and met other Health students, staff and faculty. Thank you to everyone who made this day possible!
Blood donations still being accepted
The Dean's Advisory Committee on Health and Well-being is pleased to report a successful blood drive was initiated during international blood donor week in June, and you can continue to donate anytime. A total of 15 students, staff and faculty from Health donated on June 12, with another five donations on separate dates, for a total of 20 donations so far. The committee plans to continue this drive bi-annually, once in November and again in June. To donate outside of these times, go to blood.ca and sign in or create an account. Once logged in, select ‘partners’ from the menu, then ‘join an existing team’ and search for University of Waterloo – Faculty of Health.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Staff and faculty rock climbing: July 31
It's not too late to join the group climb at the Waterloo Warriors Rock Climbing Wall in the Physical Activities Complex from 3 to 4:30 p.m. today. Faculty of Health staff and faculty members of all skill levels are welcome. Please bring or wear athletic clothing and socks. For more information or to register for the event, please contact Health and Well-being Project Assistant Graham Bradley.
Digital Pedagogy Institute Conference: August 13-15
The 10th annual Digital Pedagogy Institute (DPI) conference will take place virtually on August 13, 14 and 15, featuring keynote addresses, presentations, workshops and digital tool training in support of undergraduate and graduate teaching. All are welcome to participate in this free event with registration open until August 5. For additional details, visit the University of Waterloo's DPI webpage.
Getting to know assistive technologies: August 15
The Centre for Teaching Excellence (CTE) invites those in teaching roles to attend a workshop to learn more about assistive technologies and how students use them to suit their learning needs. Please register to attend the workshop, taking place at MC 2036 on August 15 from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m., through the CTE Getting To Know Assistive Technologies Students Use To Enable Learning webpage.
New Faculty Teaching Days: August 19-23
New Faculty Teachings Days allow instructors to complete all the workshops that form the core of our new faculty offerings at a timely point before the start of the fall term, so they may be of particular value to those teaching in the fall and/or new to teaching at Waterloo. For full session descriptions and registration, visit the CTE's New Faculty Teaching Days Spring 2024 webpage.
DID YOU KNOW?
New emergency notification system
The University of Waterloo is changing its emergency notification system, retiring the WatSAFE app and replacing it with the Regroup Mobile app. Making campus safer is a duty we all share, so please download the Regroup Mobile app to your phone now and ensure you also keep WatSAFE until September 30. WatSAFE will continue to run concurrently with Regroup until October 1, when it will be retired.
Change to territorial acknowledgements
If you use a territorial acknowledgment in your signature or elsewhere, please note that the word 'granted' is more appropriate than the word 'promised.' That sentence in UWaterloo's territorial acknowledgement now reads: "Our main campus is situated on the Haldimand Tract, the land granted to the Six Nations that includes six miles on each side of the Grand River." Also, 'Territorial Acknowledgment' is more appropriate than 'Land Acknowledgment' because land encompasses more than territory in Indigenous practice.
Creator+ pilot for fall term instructors
The Teaching Innovation Incubator is inviting instructors — particularly those teaching in the fall 2024 term — to join the Creator+ pilot. Creator+ is D2L's next iteration of its engagement features on LEARN. If you want to participate, please complete the Expression of Interest form. If you want to learn more about Creator+, please register for the upcoming Introduction to Creator+ in LEARN workshop. You do not need to join the pilot to attend the workshop.
Do you have a news item to share? Please email it to Jenna Braun.