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Wednesday, July 4, 2001

  • Shad Valley kicks off this week
  • Staff retirements are noted
  • Events for today and beyond

[Toppled sculpture]
Photo by Barbara Elve
Did she jump or was she pushed? That's the question facing investigators following the discovery of Walking Girl face down in the courtyard pool on the south side of Modern Languages Tuesday morning. A large area of rust on one leg of the figure, sculpted by Almuth Lutkenhaus in 1974, suggests she may have toppled of natural causes. A rescue effort is underway.

Shad Valley kicks off this week
-- by Barbara Elve

It's that time of year again when the campus is divided into two camps -- the Shads and the Shad-nots.

As the 48 participants in the Shad Valley Waterloo 2001 settle into residence at Conrad Grebel College this week and begin their month-long enrichment program, the rest of us can only wish we had a chance to sample the same delicious smorgasbord of subjects.

Shad organizers describe the program as "a unique motivational experience" designed to expose high-achieving grade 11 and 12 students to "a multitude of ideas and career possibilities" through hands-on workshops and group projects. "Your mind will be stretched, your skills honed, friendships made, and for some, real-life work experience will be gained," prospective Shads are told.

With sessions running at eight universities across the country, the program in engineering and entrepreneurship focuses on design projects around a common theme which allow Shads to "develop new inventions, build working prototypes and prepare business plans."

Perhaps even more exciting is the opportunity for high school students to explore the labs and attend lectures at UW -- including ones on digital design, the creative process, "the alleged brain drain," biotelemetry, signal processing, LEGO robotics, anatomical drawing, linguistics, and water quality sampling.

In addition to the faculty members and graduate students who assist the program, guest speakers will include Mark Chamberlain of Wescam (the 1999 recipient of an Engineering Alumni Achievement Medal); Sally Melville, an innovative knitting designer who will speak on "creativity and sleep deprivation;" UW benefactor Rod Coutts, recently retired chair of Teklogix International, Inc.; and Research in Motion executive Elizabeth Roe-Pfeifer.

Shad Valley helps participants place technology in a social context through the Society, Technology and Values program, which this year features a workshop with representatives of the Waterloo chapter of Engineers Without Borders, as well as a session on "enlightened skepticism" where Shads learn to "surf wisely, use statistics responsibly and unravel urban legends." The STV program culminates in an evening of morality plays in which Shads act out the ethical and social implications of technological developments.

Lest their brains begin to drain from the exertion, a full schedule of recreational activities is planned for the Shads, ranging from a camping trip to Cyprus Lake to Latin dancing, Tai Chi, speed skating, a ceilidh, and barbecues.

Those with Shad envy will have a chance to participate vicariously through an open house highlighting the accomplishments of this year's Shads on Thursday, July 26, from 1:30 to 4 p.m. at Conrad Grebel College, and at a variety night the same evening from 8 to 10:30.

Staff retirements are noted

The following are among staff members who retired recently, according to UW's human resources department.

April 1: David Todd, bindery assistant in graphic services, who started work at UW in September 1997.

May 1:

June 1: July 1:

Events for today and beyond

The Bookstore is hosting a barbecue today in support of Breakfast for Learning, a national non-profit organization that provides breakfast programs in schools across Canada. Burgers, hot dogs, and ice-cold canned pop will be available starting at 11 a.m. Burgers and hot dogs: $2 each, $2.50 with a drink.

Also today, a central stores surplus sale is scheduled for 11:30 to 1:30 at East Campus Hall, and career services offers a two-hour career development workshop in NH 1020 beginning at 1:30 p.m. called "Work Finding Package."

Positions available this week:

More extensive descriptions for each job can be seen on the HR web site.

A reminder from the human resources department that on July 10, guest speaker and lecturer Patsy Marshall will be doing a workshop on "Achieving Work and Personal Life Balance". The workshop will last for a full day, from 8:30 to 4:30, and is presented by the committee for Staff Training and Development. Interested staff members should contact Carolyn Vincent in the HR department, ext. 2078, e-mail carolynv@uwaterloo.ca. "Places are limited, so enrollment is first come, first served -- sign up today!"

Looking ahead to the end of the week, the Waterloo Engineers in Toronto (WET) alumni chapter will host family night this Friday, July 6, at the David Dunlop Observatory in Richmond Hill. For more information, or to register, email eng_alumni@engmail.uwaterloo.ca or call Sabine at ext. 6838.

And even further ahead: an all day symposium on "Health Care of the Elderly" in DC 1304 on Monday July 9th is being organized by John Hirdes of health studies & gerontology. The event is part of a study tour attended by 24 Japanese students from Tokyo's Keio University. For more information on the symposium or to register, email Rehana Merali.

Correction: yesterday's bulletin listed George Francis, new independent studies director, as a geography professor. He is actually Distinguished Professor Emeritus of the department of environment and resource studies (ERS).

Avvey Peters


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