News

The Biology department is pleased to introduce two new faculty members, Michael Bording-Jorgensen and Travis Craddock. With their expertise in health and diagnostics, both Bording-Jorgensen and Craddock are helping to build on our leadership and expertise as we work toward the future of healthcare. Take a moment to say hello if you see them on campus this fall.

The Faculty of Science is proud to announce the award of a Learning Innovation and Teaching Enhancement (LITE) Grant to Dr. Vivian Dayeh (Biology), Dr. Brenda Lee (Physics), and Savannah Sloat, Manager, Science Indigenous Initiatives. This grant will support their innovative project aimed at supporting STEM education through the implementation of Indigenous Learning Circles as a pedagogical approach to learning in large-scale STEM classes.

In early June, the Faculty of Science celebrated all our esteemed faculty members who earned awards or titles in the past year. Join us in congratulating our faculty members for their hard work and dedication to our students, their professions, and, most importantly, their students. 

Whether you’re a budding biologist, a physics enthusiast, or an aspiring chemist or geologist, this guide provides valuable resources available on campus, in the Waterloo Region and beyond!   

After an eight-year term that began in July 2015, Dean of Science, Dr. Bob Lemieux, will be stepping down on June 30. 

Throughout his tenure, Lemieux focused on the importance of fundamental science and its cardinal intersection with innovation and social impact. He committed more than $500,000 to establish the Dean’s Teaching Innovation Fund to support teaching and learning initiatives within the Faculty of Science. Lemieux hoped that this investment would transform the undergraduate educational experience in science at the University of Waterloo. 

Today, Savannah Sloat steps into the role of Manager, Indigenous Science Initiatives. The new position will identify systemic and systematic changes that move beyond Truth and the Reconciliation Calls to Action and develop a Faculty of Science-specific response and long-term vision for Science. 

Three years ago, history was made when the first image of a black hole inspired wonder and awe around the world as we glimpsed the shadow of light escaping from the supermassive black hole M87*. Today, history is being made again as the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) Collaboration releases the image of a second black hole — Sagittarius A* (Sgr A*) — the one at the centre of our own Milky Way galaxy.

Rachel Beaver first became interested in microbiology during her undergraduate degree at Waterloo, when taking Fundamentals of Microbiology, taught by Professor Josh Neufeld. She was inspired to continue along this path, completing three co-op terms, her undergraduate thesis, and master’s degree in the Neufeld lab.

We are pleased to announce that the winners of this year’s Faculty of Science Excellence in Science Teaching Awards are Professor Keith Delaney from the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences and Professor Stefan Idziak from the Department of Physics and Astronomy.

The world watched breathlessly as the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) launched on Christmas morning and travelled 1.5 million kilometres to its earth-trailing orbit. Now, we breathe a sigh of relief as the telescope has begun sending us the first images as it aligns and prepares for research, launching a new chapter in humanity’s endeavour to study the universe.