Daily Bulletin

University of Waterloo -- Waterloo, Ontario, Canada

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Monday, May 26, 1997

AHS dean leaves early

Bob Norman, pictured at left, is resigning as dean of applied health sciences, effective August 1, to concentrate on research activities in industrial injury prevention. Mike Sharratt of the kinesiology department, pictured at right, will be interim dean from August 1 through June 30, 1998, while the search process for a new dean takes place. Norman's decision was announced Friday afternoon at a meeting of the AHS faculty council.

Norman serves as director of the Ergonomics and Safety Consulting Services, based in AHS, and last fall he took over as head of a major research project in "the ergonomics of occupational injury prevention" when the previous chairholder left UW on short notice.

Says UW's provost, Jim Kalbfleisch, in a memo that's going out today: "Bob has decided that he cannot continue in both positions, and that he can best contribute to AHS and the University by concentrating on the ergonomics research initiative. Although I understand and support Bob's decision, I am sorry to be losing him as Dean. He has provided outstanding leadership at both the Faculty and University levels through a difficult period."

He has been dean of AHS since 1991, and his present term would have continued through the summer of 1999.

New A-V director named

Dominik Gratzer is the new director of UW's audio-visual centre, "effective immediately", says an announcement issued Friday by the associate provost (academic and student affairs). "He replaces Scott Charles, who is returning to production services."

The associate provost, Gary Waller, introduced the new director in this paragraph:

Dominik has been the Supervisor of Technical Services in the Audio-Visual Centre. He is a graduate of the Electronic Engineering Program of the Radio College of Canada, and has nearly thirty years of experience in both industrial and educational settings. Prior to coming to Waterloo, he held positions of increasing responsibility at Northern Telecom, GT Sylvania, Rogers Cable and Humber College. At Humber he was Engineering Supervisor in the Electronic Engineering Service Department, which provided technical support for programs in Film, TV Production, Video Distribution, Radio, AV Multimedia and Journalism. He has taught, both in formal classroom and in informal situations, in a variety of technical areas.

The previous director, Scott Charles, a long-time staff member in A-V and an expert in new media technology, took that post last summer after the retirement of Ron Russell.

Conference on Alzheimer's begins

Planners, designers and practitioners in long-term residential care will gather at UW today and tomorrow to discuss the design of environments for Alzheimer's disease patients.

"Designing environments that support quality of life outcomes for residents who have Alzheimer's disease or a related dementia is challenging at a time when resources are shrinking while demand is increasing," said Olga Malott, director of the Alzheimer Research and Education Project of the Centre for Applied Health Research.

The AREP's second conference at Ron Eydt Village will explore questions such as: What are the environmental designs that support effective functional programs? How can programming and services take advantage of existing environments? Why does resident focused care require attention to environment and design?

Today Eric Haldenby, director of the school of architecture, will discuss designing spaces for living. Also speaking will be landscape architect Susan Reise, who will give an overview of supportive outdoor spaces for people with Alzheimer's. Other speakers will talk about new design criteria for long-term care facilities, environment as a caregiving partner, and matching interior design with functional plans.

Tomorrow, five care facilities associated with AREP will report on projects under way at their facilities. Later, conference participants will engage in a teamwork exercise to design solutions aimed at enhancing environments that support programs and activities for people with Alzheimer's.

As the US marks Memorial Day

The Interdisciplinary Forum has an event tonight: a talk by Paul Viminitz of the philosophy department, on "game theoretic approaches to ethics and politics", with discussion following. It starts at 5 p.m. in Humanities room 373. The Interdisciplinary Forum welcomes participants of all kinds -- students, faculty, anybody else -- it exists "to increase communication between individuals in different university departments. We see this as a first step towards creating a common intellectual culture." Colloquia like this evening's event are held once a month.,

The Centre for Advanced Studies in Finance sponsors a one-day conference today on "numerical methods in finance". It's being held at the King Edward Hotel in downtown Toronto. Topics are to include the use of simulation, partial differential equations and lattice methods to price complex derivative instruments such as barrier options.

Co-op students will see more job possibilities for the fall term, as posting #4 will be available starting at noon today. Also from the department of co-op education and career services: regular and co-op students are both advised that four-week workshops on the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator and the Strong Interest Inventory both start tonight. For information, see the reception desk at counselling services, on the second floor of Needles Hall.

Founders event is tomorrow

"The Unconventional Founding of an Unconventional University" -- that's Waterloo, if you hadn't guessed, and the unconventional founding took place 40 years ago this spring. A major event in UW's 40th anniversary celebrations will be tomorrow's Founders Lecture, to be given by Ken McLaughlin of St. Jerome's College, whose book on the history of UW is expected later this year. McLaughlin will speak at 3:30 tomorrow in the Theatre of the Arts, and everybody is welcome.

"This will be a unique opportunity for all of us of the UW community to learn -- and see -- more about the history of the institution at which we work," writes Murray Shepherd, chair of the 40th anniversary committee. "Please encourage the staff, faculty and students in your area to attend the lecture, and where possible, please arrange scheduling to permit their participation."

CAR

TODAY IN UW HISTORY May 25, 1996: With early retirements pending, today's convocation ceremonies are the last for registrar Trevor Boyes, mace-bearer Ron Eydt, and chief marshal Bruce Pinder.

May 26, 1962: Astronomer Helen Sawyer Hogg is among three honorary graduates at UW's third convocation.

Editor of the Daily Bulletin: Chris Redmond
Information and Public Affairs, University of Waterloo
credmond@watserv1.uwaterloo.ca -- (519) 888-4567 ext. 3004
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