Themes emerging in mid-cycle review

President Feridun Hamdullahpur delivered an update on the Mid-Cycle Review to the campus community on Wednesday and spoke about the themes that had surfaced during the first consultation phase, held in the previous term.

Speaking in the Humanities Theatre, he began by outlining the foundational pillars on which the university’s success rests: academic excellence, research excellence and impact, co-operative education, graduate studies, internationalization, and entrepreneurship. He explained that undergraduate education was the base that each foundational pillar stood on, and that the existence, size, and importance of each pillar was non-negotiable as the university considered its goals and objectives in the context of the Sixth Decade Plan.

The president informed the audience about the process involved in the first phase of the review, including the questions that were asked at each consultation session. He said that there were more than 3,400 participants who gave feedback either at the sessions or online.

The feedback gathered from the online survey and consultations was categorized into 73 statements organized into clusters, which were rated for both importance and feasibility by a subset of 75 participants who had been chosen at random. The ideas and statements were further refined to the following seven major themes:

• Student Opportunities and Experience;
• Quality of education;
• Resources;
• Clear effective leadership;
• University of Waterloo Environment;
• Visibility and outreach; and
• Image and Philosophy.

“They are in close connection to our foundational pillars,” Hamdullahpur said of the seven themes. “They will guide us in how we can achieve our goals, and strengthen and enhance our pillars.”

On the issue of student opportunities and experience, Hamdullahpur spoke of the necessity of being focused on students. “That is the reason why we are here,” he said. “Everything we do, they have to be at the centre.”

The suggested objectives listed under that theme included ensuring students have a balanced life, ensuring students are prepared for their careers, increasing school spirit, and providing more co-op opportunities.

The emergence of quality of education as a theme was not surprising, Hamdullahpur said, but it was revealing. “It is connected to all the other themes,” he said.

Increasing the quality of teaching, including online learning opportunities, ensuring excellence in supervisors and mentors, and decreasing the ratio of students not only to faculty, but to all support staff including TAs, instructors, secretarial, registrar, and other staff, emerged as quality improvement objectives, along with increasing support for graduate students and support for inter and trans-disciplinary activity.

The resources theme called for a re-evaluation of resource allocation, and the provision of clear accountability and transparency in resource allocation.

On visibility and outreach, Hamdullahpur spoke of the need to better tell this university’s story to audiences both internal and external. “As much as we are proud in our position and stature in society,” he said, “nevertheless there are a lot of people in Canada and the world who don’t know the quality and level of our education and scholarship.”

Suggested objectives included a renewed focus on branding, participating in the local community, and building partnerships both locally and internationally with universities, businesses, and other organizations.

Building a university brand and marketing it abroad was only part of the story, however. Objectives under the University of Waterloo Environment theme include building a stronger sense of community on campus, both virtual and physical, and improving equity and environmental sustainability throughout campus.

In addition, improvements to internal communication and administrative processes were specific objectives of the Clear and Effective Leadership theme, along with decreasing “siloism” as a way of opening the lines of communications that can help make each member of the university proud of what the institution is doing.

For Image and Philosophy, Hamdullahpur spoke of addressing the teaching and research balance. “So many of our colleagues are tremendously successful in both categories,” he said. “This is the environment we want to have.” Encouraging innovation and entrepreneurship also emerged as objectives in this category.

The president also outlined the next steps that would be taken in the review, including the recruitment of expert teams and focus groups that would lead to the development of action plans and accountability frameworks with goals, objectives, actions, measurable outcomes, responsibilities and timelines – all by the Fall of 2012.

The president then took questions from the audience, and from webcast viewers who submitted queries via email, read out by Vice-President External Tim Jackson. He answered questions on subjects as diverse as gender equity, the north campus, athletics, and resource efficiency.

The president concluded by thanking the audience and asking them to continue the dialogue as the review continued. “I need input from all of you,” he said.

The president’s presentation is available on the Mid-Cycle Review site.

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Xerox chosen as copy service provider

By May Yan, Director, Retail Services

Retail Services is pleased to announce that Xerox Canada Ltd. was chosen to be the University’s service provider through a Request for Proposal (RFP) process for the campus Multi-functional copiers/printers.

The new service agreement replaces the previous agreement that was effective from April 1, 2008 to March 31, 2012.

In October 2011, a fleet copier satisfaction survey was conducted with stakeholders, prior to issuing the RFP. In November 2011, an evaluation committee was struck to begin the RFP process. The committee members included representatives from IST, Procurement, and Retail Services. The RFP was advertised on December 14, 2011 and closed on January 11, 2012.

Xerox was rated the highest scoring during the RFP evaluation and in the final assessment scores.

The current fleet of copiers will be replaced with brand new multi-function devices that are energy efficient, boast newer technology, and will increase efficiencies. Xerox Canada is committed to offer total satisfaction through the performance of their Xerox equipment and through the provision of excellent customer service for uWaterloo in partnership with Retail Services.

Plans are underway for swapping out the current fleet of copiers with the new fleet. Information about the new models and options for users will be communicated shortly to each department fleet copier contact.

For more information please contact John Jaray, Fleet Copier Manager (jjaray@ uwaterloo.ca) or May Yan, Director Retail Services (myan@ uwaterloo.ca).

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Registration open for girls math workshop

an advisory from the media relations department

Applications are now available for Think About Math, the annual workshop at the University of Waterloo, intended to boost Grade 9 girls’ interest in mathematics. Registration closes Monday, March 5 at 9:00 a.m.

The Centre for Education in Mathematics and Computing will host these three-day workshops at the Waterloo campus from May 2 to May 5, and from May 23 to May 26. There is space for 40 participants at each workshop.

This is the fourth year for event, which gives young girls in high school the opportunity to learn about the lifestyles and fulfilling careers of women who have graduated with a degree in mathematics. Girls will also participate in interactive labs and hands-on activities. They will learn how the field of mathematics relates to such fields as the environment, the stock market, and social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook. University of Waterloo faculty members and professional businesswomen and businessmen will lead all of the sessions.

Application forms and more information is available online.

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Notes on a Friday

March is National Engineering Month, and this Saturday and Sunday the Waterloo Engineering Society, the Consulting Engineers of Ontario, and the Professional Engineers of Ontario have organized events at The Museum on Saturday and Sunday to celebrate the occasion. Writes Michael Seliske, Vice President External of Engineering Society "A", "There will be professional Engineers, engineering students and demonstrations of Christie Digitals VeinViewer technology. There is also a very large collection of K'nex which are available for children to build bridges and other structures." The events begin at 10:00 a.m. and run until 5:00 p.m. both days. More details are available online.

Here's the second Nutrition Month "myth vs. truth" supplied by Health Services dietician Sandra Ace:

Myth: Avoid carbs if you want to lose weight.
Truth: Cutting carbohydrates might help you lose weight in the short term, but it’s mostly because you are eating less food and fewer calories. To lose weight and keep it off, exercise regularly and use Canada’s Food Guide to plan a balanced diet.

If you have any comments or questions about these nutrition submissions, please contact Sandra Ace.

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