PumpUp gets a workout

Two years after setting up office at the University of Waterloo’s startup incubator Velocity, mobile software company PumpUp is successfully launching from the program and moving into their own offices in downtown Toronto.

The startup, founded by Garrett Gottlieb, a Waterloo student, and Phil Jacobson, a Wilfrid Laurier University graduate, have also upped their game with the launch of the PumpUp health and fitness social network this week as they surpass the major milestone of one million downloads of their PumpUp app for iOS and Android.

PumpUp won Velocity funding in the Fall of 2012 alongside notable Velocity successes Thalmic Labs and Kira Talent. They moved into Velocity Garage workspace that year, at a time when Vidyard was the largest startup in the space, and BufferBox was still at Silicon Valley’s Y Combinator.

“The Velocity startup community is infectious in a really positive way. It’s a huge part of what we've accomplished so far,” said Jacobson. “The mentorship, connections and funding helped us get off the ground. We’ve very thankful to the community for helping us get to where we are today.”

“PumpUp’s Phil Jacobson and Garrett Gottlieb have been true startup community builders, and exemplary role models for the next wave of companies now at Velocity,” said Velocity director Mike Kirkup. “Like Vidyard, BufferBox and others before them, they’ve achieved success from a strong work ethic, consistent drive through the ups and downs of startup life, and by taking advantage of all that the Velocity program has to offer.”

Just a year following their move into Velocity, Phil and Garrett proceeded to face the dragons on CBC’s Dragons’ Den, raised their first round of investment, and launched the beta version of their PumpUp app.

PumpUp is one of a number of startups that have helped propel the total funding raised by Velocity companies to over $100 million in the five years since the startup incubator was established.

 

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Science nominating committee seeks input

The Dean of Science Nominating Committee, constituted under the terms of Policy 45, is now in place and has begun the process of identifying Dean McMahon’s successor.

Over the next month, committee members intend to consult broadly. Members of the Science community are encouraged to convey their views on matters concerning the deanship in writing to Erin Windibank, associate university secretary & legal counsel (Secretariat & Office of General Counsel, Needles Hall; erin.windibank@uwaterloo.ca) or to Colleen Keenan, an executive search consultant supporting the committee (Odgers Berndtson, 200 Bay Street, Suite 3150, Royal Bank Plaza, South Tower, Toronto, Ontario, M5J 2J3; waterloosci@odgersberndtson.ca).

The committee especially invites respondents to consider the following questions:

• What are the issues, challenges and opportunities facing the Faculty of Science?
• What are your aspirations for the Faculty in the next five years?
• What advice do you have for the search committee as to the background, credentials, qualifications and leadership style that should be sought in the next dean?
• Do you have any suggestions as to individuals to whom the committee should speak about this opportunity?

If you prefer, you may also communicate directly with any member of the nominating committee (identified below).

Comments, which will be held in confidence within the committee, are due no later than Wednesday, June 18.

Dean of Science Nominating Committee Members:

Geoff McBoyle, vice-president academic & provost, x84766, provost@uwaterloo.ca

Jonathan Blay, faculty, pharmacy, x21375, jonathan.blay@uwaterloo.ca

Bill Bobier, faculty, optometry, x32090, wbobier@uwaterloo.ca

Monika Bothwell, staff, x37830, mbothwell@uwaterloo.ca

Jeff Chen, faculty, physics & astronomy, x35361, jeffchen@uwaterloo.ca

Brian Dixon, faculty, biology, x32665, bdixon@uwaterloo.ca

Stephen Evans, faculty, earth sciences, x33232, sgevans@uwaterloo.ca

Moira Glerum, faculty, biology, x31352, moira.glerum@uwaterloo.ca

Ian Goulden, dean of mathematics, x84480, ipgoulden@uwaterloo.ca

Robbie Henderson, graduate student, rdehenderson@uwaterloo.ca

Michael Palmer, faculty, chemistry, x35100, mpalmer@uwaterloo.ca

Rishi Sharma, undergraduate student, r66sharm@uwaterloo.ca

David Timms, staff, x33173, david.timms@uwaterloo.ca

Erin Windibank, secretary, x37549, erin.windibank@uwaterloo.ca

Colleen Keenan, consultant, waterloosci@odgersberndtson.ca

 

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Thank-you reception to honour Geoff McBoyle

After a 45-year career at the University of Waterloo, Geoff McBoyle will be celebrated with a thank-you reception on Wednesday, June 18.

McBoyle joined the Department of Geography and Environmental Management in 1969 as an assistant professor. McBoyle is a climatologist who specializes on the impact of climate change on tourism. In 1989 he received the Distinguished Teacher Award.

His distinguished academic career has been complemented by lengthy stints in a number of administrative positions. He served as chair of the geography department from 1975 to 1978, and was named Associate Dean (Undergraduate Studies) in the Faculty of Environmental Studies (now known as the Faculty of Environment) from 1985 to 1992 and again from 1994 to 1995. He served as Dean from 1997 to 2004.

In 2007 he was named the University's Associate Vice-President, Academic. He continued in that position through his official retirement date of July 1, 2008 to January 2013, when he was succeeded by Mario Coniglio.

Most recently, he took on the role of Vice-President, Academic and Provost, first in October 2010 to April 2012, and then from January 2013 to the present. He will remain in the position until June 30.

The thank-you reception will take place from 3:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday, June 18 in Village 1's Great Hall. Remarks will begin at 4:30 p.m. The RSVP deadline is June 10.

 

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Monday's notes

Third-year undergraduate students with an interest in quantum information, be it theoretical or experimental, will be attending the Undergraduate School on Experimental Quantum Information Processing (USEQIP), a summer school that runs from May 26 to June 6.

The program will feature lectures and experiments that are geared toward students in engineering, physics, chemistry, mathematics and computer science, though all interested students have been invited to apply. 20 students have been invited to join the program.

The Velocity Science Lab will celebrate its grand opening tomorrow from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. in its location in ESC 316A. Attendees will be able to tour the facility, where Velocity Science startups are doing their work, and grab a boxed lunch.

Velocity Science is "aimed at creating an entrepreneurship program focused on biology, chemistry, physics and earth & environmental sciences," according to a statement on the program's website. "This program will enable students by providing them with the right tools and resources to initiate and develop world-class start-ups in the life sciences industry."

 

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