Words of welcome

Message from the Editors

Welcome to the latest issue of our Community Notes newsletter.

We are excited to share some news since we last checked in with the Spring issue in June.

Perhaps the biggest news is the transition in leadership which happened when our new Principal, Dr. Richard Myers, took office on July 1. You will find a lovely note from Rick introducing himself below.

The past few months have been very busy and exciting for all of us at St. Paul's; we've seen great progress with the $500,000 Shape the World fundraising campaign. The new building is well under way, and as of this writing, the tradesmen are working on the fourth of eight floors. Rick has been getting to know students, staff, faculty, and alumni at various events like the ninth annual St. Paul's Masters golf tournament, the 13th Annual Traditional Pow Wow, and during Reunion weekend, when we hosted 90 alumni who lived here in the '80s. 

This issue of Community Notes will keep you up to date on all of those happenings and many more! Please enjoy, and as always, if you have story ideas or updates you would like to share with us and your fellow alumni, please send them by e-mail to stp.alumni@uwaterloo.ca 

Stephen Loo & Eugenia Xenos Anderson

Message from the Principal

Dear St. Paul's alumni and friends,

The most important thing a new leader of any organization will wonder about is its people. Are they dedicated? Are they talented? Are they fun to work with? Do they support the mission? Are they happy to be part of the team? Questions of this sort are arguably more important in educational institutions than in most other organizations. 

In my first four months as your Principal, I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know our alumni, students, board members, faculty and staff. What I’ve learned makes me very optimistic about our future. I’ve seen great talent, deep loyalty, energetic idealism, and exceptional dedication. And every day on campus is interesting, inspiring, and fun. We’re all lucky to be part of such a community!

I feel particularly fortunate that my predecessor, Graham Brown, remains actively involved in the work of the College. Graham’s contributions to St. Paul’s have been enormous. Initiatives like the Graduate Residence, St. Paul's GreenHouse, and our programming in International Development have been critical to the success of the College and will provide a solid foundation for its future prosperity. Graham continues to serve St. Paul’s by overseeing the new campus expansion project, and he has been very generous in terms of sharing his insight, advice, and experience with me.

As I look forward, I find my attention drawn to three broad areas of activity. The first is academic. St. Paul’s has a relatively small academic footprint, even when compared to other colleges. Our faculty are keen to deepen and broaden St. Paul’s academic portfolio. I’m confident that under the leadership of our Academic Dean, Dr. Peter Frick, we’ll succeed in this endeavour. 

A second area of interest is the promotion of stronger bonds between the key groups that make up the broader College. I see a deep sense of community among the undergraduate students, the staff, the graduate students, the alumni, and the faculty. But I also see opportunities to do more to connect those groups with each other and build a stronger overall College community. 

Finally, in this post-Truth-and-Reconciliation era, St. Paul’s has both an obligation and an opportunity to provide greater leadership on Indigenous issues. Universities Canada has committed all Canadian universities to “indigenize” themselves and to promote the broader causes of understanding and reconciliation. As the University of Waterloo’s lead in this area, St. Paul’s will have a major role to play in the coming years. 

Thank you for your continued interest in, and support of, St. Paul's. Please feel free to share your thoughts or impressions with me at stp.principal@uwaterloo.ca.

Rick Myers, Principal