With Waterloo Engineering set to celebrate its 60th anniversary on July 1, 2017, we’d like to hear and see your memories
It was great news that chemical engineering professor Bob Hudgins wanted to share in writing with a top student in the early 1970s.
Back then, there wasn’t an electronic means of tracking down a home address so Hudgins needed to rely on the one listed in Waterloo Engineering’s student handbook to let the individual know on two separate occasions that he’d been awarded an academic scholarship.
“The undergraduate officer pored through the student handbook for his address,” recalls Hudgins, now a professor emeritus. “Each time it was listed as Parking Lot C, which in those days was unpaved and without charge. The student then confirmed it: in the spring and fall terms, until mid-November, he slept in his station wagon in Parking Lot C.”
Hudgins says at that time Waterloo Engineering’s renowned co-op program was the only way a number of students could survive financially, although he adds the occasional individual needed to be resourceful during academic terms.
“Co-op still attracts students who would like to graduate without a substantial debt. However, to our knowledge, no one has recently opted for Parking Lot C as a dormitory,” Hudgins adds with a laugh.
The enterprising student story is just one of the many amusing tidbits in the memoir of chemical engineering compiled by Hudgins and Pete Silveston, also a retired professor.
The long-time faculty members decided to tackle the project after hearing from a number of people who thought it would be a good idea to officially document the unique history of the department that pioneered co-op education for Canadian chemical engineering undergraduates.
They reached out to former chairs, faculty members and alumni to provide background information and anecdotes. Chock-full of historical facts and entertaining stories from both inside and outside the classroom, the manuscript is currently being edited within the department for online publication.
With Waterloo Engineering set to celebrate its 60th anniversary on July 1, 2017, we’d like to hear and see your memories.
It could be anything from an entertaining story in or out of school like the ones found in Hudgins and Silveston’s book, a photo of a memorable co-op experience, a video of how you created your ingenious senior year project or even a blog post about your first day on campus – and why you decided to return for a second.
And we’re making it worth your while. Email us your stories, videos or scanned photos before midnight May 31, 2017. Submissions will be considered for engineering publications and other types of communications. As well, all entries will go into a draw for three Waterloo Engineering 60th anniversary prize packages.
So dust off old photo albums, take a selfie, jot down stories or perfect your YouTube video skills. We’re looking forward to seeing what you come up with to mark the Faculty’s 60th anniversary.
