Daily Bulletin

University of Waterloo -- Waterloo, Ontario, Canada

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Monday, February 12, 1996

Students elect Federation leaders

Voting is tomorrow and Wednesday in the election of a new president and three vice-presidents for the Federation of Students, which represents full-time undergraduates at UW.

Its will be the first time for the expanded executive; until now the Feds have had two VPs working with the president, one for "university affairs" and one for "finance and operations". The new structure provides for VPs with the portfolios of "education", "internal", and "administration and finance".

The five candidates for president are all fourth-year students. In a nutshell:

Mario Bellabarba, engineering, currently a student representative on the UW board of governors, says, "UW has been hit hard by early retirements, and students must be involved in the rebuilding. As President, it would be my role to see that students are well represented in all aspects of decision making. There is no such thing as a decision made on this campus that does not affect students."
Carla Chalmers, arts, says, "As a students' councilor I am familiar with governance issues on campus, and as a service director I am used to dealing with sensitive issues and looking for solutions to financial problems. When working with the Administration, I would highlight the fact that students are paying a larger and larger share for their education, and as such should have more of a voice concerning the education and the services provided."
Brad Kelly, arts, says, "Increased pressures on finances, academics and career potentials have put substantial stress on students. As President of your Federation of Students, I plan to do my utmost to alleviate this stress by representing you to the best of my ability. By working closely with the administration, media, and politicians, I will make sure that your best interests are at the forefront of all possible considerations."
Brad Miller, applied health sciences, currently the Federation's commissioner for internal liaison, says, "Currently there is a lack of consistency within the Feds from year to year. Therefore a long range plan must be introduced to ensure a stable forecast for the next five years. Restructuring the financial budget, and reorganizing current businesses and services will help optimize your Fed fees, eliminating the ongoing deficit."
Josh Windsor, arts, president of the Arts Student Union, says, "Next year promises to be a period of great transition at this University. Reduction in funding and increasing tuition assure many changes. Times of change are difficult without competent administration. My experience with social services has provided a background that stresses communication, accountability and commitment."

There are fuller statements from candidates -- as well as information about polling -- on the Federation of Students Web pages, accessible through UWinfo under "Organizations". And there was extensive coverage in Friday's issue of Imprint, also available on the Web (look on UWinfo under "News").

Visitors here from Ukraine

Visiting UW for the next couple of days are two top executives of a university in Ukraine with which UW's engineering faculty has an exchange program. Visiting John Wynnyckyj of the chemical engineering department are V. I. Bolschakov, president of the Dnieprovska State Academy for Construction and Architecture, and the institution's vice-president (external). They'll be meeting with UW president James Downey this morning.

Dean of arts speaks today

Brian Hendley, dean of the arts faculty, has called a "special information meeting" for staff and faculty members in arts this afternoon at 3 in the Theatre of the Arts. "I have been working with department chairs," he writes, "to develop a budget which will accommodate a 7% ongoing cut in 1996-97, with the possibility of a further 4% cut in 1997-98. I will attempt to respond to your questions and suggestions at the meeting."

Teleconference on student health

At universities across Ontario, "professionals concerned with student health, well-being and achievement" will spend much of tomorrow afternoon taking part in a teleconference. The speaker is Richard Keeling of the University of Wisconsin at Madison; the teleconference is based at the University of Guelph. Peter Hopkins, UW's associate provost (student affairs), has more information.

Notes on a sunny Monday

It's the birthday of Abraham Lincoln and Charles Darwin -- both, extraordinarily, born February 12, 1809. It's also the birthday of James Horne of UW's philosophy department, born somewhat more recently than 1809.

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

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