Future students

The daughter of two professional violinists, Danielle Grabke was exposed to thoughtfully designed environments from a very young age.

Her childhood memories recall many excursions to the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts in Toronto — she has seen over a dozen performances of the Nutcracker and still finds new ways to love it. What struck her most as a child, though, was how the building itself contributed to her enjoyment of what she was watching.

When Deema Awad started her undergraduate studies at Waterloo in 2017, she was following in the footsteps of family members as a Planning student. But she soon realized it was important to follow her own passion and build on her strengths. “I wanted to switch into a program that would not only help me excel but continue to spark the passion that I already had,” she reflects.

They may be graduating from different academic units, but these Faculty of Health grads show how getting a great university experience comes from following your interests, building your network and gathering skills both in and outside the classroom. Congrats to the Class of 2022!

Preet Momi, who is graduating with a Master’s in Recreation and Leisure Studies this fall, had the unique opportunity to study community reintegration for women leaving prison with Professor Heather Mair from the Department of Recreation and Leisure Studies.

Last week, I wrote to the University community to express my sadness and anger at the murder of Mahsa Amini at the hands of Tehran’s Guidance Patrol.  Since Ms. Amini’s death, protesters in Iran, across the world, and right here on our campus have been bravely demanding change. Those protesters have often been students, and a few days ago, they were specifically targeted by Iranian police at several institutions, including Sharif University.

Oluwakemi (Kemi) Amodu is dedicated to advancing the reproductive and sexual health of the Hausa women in displaced persons camps in northern Nigeria.

You’re probably familiar with the University of Waterloo’s world-renowned incubator, Velocity, but did you know that Velocity also leads student programming and resources on campus? Students exploring entrepreneurship can get support from Velocity at every step of their journey in turning an idea into an early-stage business.

We caught up with Iris Redinger (BAS ’21), a recent Waterloo grad from the Waterloo School of Architecture. This summer, she was competitively selected as one of five winners of the Mitacs Entrepreneur Award for her startup Material Futures that uses biotechnology to reduce the environmental impact of the fashion industry.