Just when you thought a goose nest was the worst of your troubles, along comes this snapping turtle, who is taking up residence, albeit very slowly, along the path near Health Services.

Glenn Anderson of IST snapped a pic of this hero on the half-shell on Friday. No word on its proficiency with a bo staff.

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Mennonite archives at Grebel get $150K boost

Conrad Grebel University College has received a $150,000 equipment grant from the Government of Canada to support the expansion of the Mennonite Archives of Ontario.

Local MP Peter Braid made the announcement of the support for the preservation and exhibition of the Mennonite Archives of Ontario Friday.

Pictured above are (l-r) Conrad Grebel President Susan Schultz Huxman, Peter Braid, Member of Parliament for Kitchener Waterloo, Conrad Grebel Archivist/Librarian Laureen Harder-Gissing, and Conrad Grebel Director of Development Fred W. Martin.

$150,000 was provided through the Canada Cultural Spaces Fund of the Department of Canadian Heritage. The investment will support upgrades to the college through the acquisition of specialized equipment to preserve and exhibit archival materials that reflect the Mennonite experience in Ontario.

“Archives collect the records of daily life — of people, families, churches, groups and communities,” explained Conrad Grebel’s Archivist/Librarian, Laureen Harder-Gissing. “When researchers come to the archives to look for historical clues, family stories, or artistic inspiration, they discover the past’s potential to enrich our lives and work.”

Archival space at Conrad Grebel will triple in size as part of the $8.7 million expansion project currently underway. The renovated facility will feature fully modernized archival storage, collection management, and public access spaces.

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Home-based rehab improves quality of life

a news release from the media relations team.

Seniors with musculoskeletal disorders, like arthritis or broken bones, who get rehabilitation at home are less likely to need admission to hospital or long-term care homes, say researchers from the University of Waterloo and University of Toronto.

The study, published in the Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, also found that older patients who receive physiotherapy and occupational therapy in their own home are more likely to be discharged from home care services altogether after treatment.

“Fewer hospital admissions and a decreased demand for home care services would represent a significant reduction in the government’s overall health costs,” said Professor Paul Stolee, of the Faculty of Applied Health Sciences at Waterloo.

“The aging of the population is often seen as the biggest cause of increasing health care costs, which is not true,” said Professor Stolee. “This study provides evidence that if older people get the right services at the right time, this can actually reduce their cost to the health system, while improving their quality of life.”

Study participants who received physiotherapy or occupational therapy were more likely to improve in their ability to look after themselves, to perform necessary household tasks, or to move around independently. Although access to rehabilitation services has been limited for many older adults, the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care recently announced efforts to improve access to physiotherapy, exercise and fall prevention classes for seniors.

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Monopole. Monopole. Monopole.

The university's Board of Governors approved a number of construction projects in various stages at their meeting on Tuesday, including finalizing the necessary arrangements to permit the installation of a "monopole" cell tower along the north side of the Health Services Road.

The call for a cell tower comes in response to complaints about wireless coverage on campus. According to the university's Building & Properties Committee, information provided by the major cell carriers indicates that an increasing number of subscribers and increasing volumes of data are contributing to service interruptions and that additional infrastructure is required close to the university's south campus. The major carriers, co-operating through an aggregator, will negotiate with the university's Vice-President, Administration & Finance to build the monopole tower on a portion of land near Health Services (the carriers' first choice, a cell tower atop the Dana Porter Library, was not well-received), which may require an easement. The utilities and construction costs of the tower would be borne by the carriers.

Among the other projects approved by the board:

• A $12 million project budget for the construction of an expansion building for the Faculty of Applied Health Sciences on a portion of parking lot M;
• a $5.2 million project budget for the renovation and 18,900 square foot expansion of Federation Hall; and
• the awarding of an $11,740,960 (plus HST) design-build contract to Melloul-Blamey Construction for an addition to Needles Hall (the addition itself was approved in June 2011).

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Monday's notes

Civil Engineering grad student Dina Saad has received a 2nd place award at the third annual Canadian Society for Civil Engineers (CSCE) conference held in Montreal.

The competition was judged by industry professionals based on 5-minute presentations and posters of students’ research. 38 graduate students participated in the competition from all over Canada and the winners were announced at the CSCE 2013 conference closing ceremony on Saturday, June 1.

Dina’s faculty supervisor Prof. Tarek Hegazy said “This is a remarkable achievement since my other students (Roozbeh Rashedi and Saied Yousefi) also received awards in the 1^st and 2^nd competitions of 2009 and 2011.”

The Registrar's Office has made some date changes to the Winter 2014 Course Selection Week available on the Quest website and the Calendar of Events and Academic Deadlines page in the Undergraduate Calendar.

Date changes for the winter 2014 Course Selection Week were made to the Important Dates page on the Quest website and the Calendar of Events and Academic Deadlines page in the Undergraduate Calendar.

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