Daily Bulletin

Johnston plans a visit soon

He had served as principal of McGill University from 1979 to 1994, and "I certainly didn't expect I would become a university president again," he said in a telephone interview. At the same time, "if something exciting came along," he was willing to entertain it.

Waterloo looked exciting. After all, says Johnston, "it's accomplished more in forty years than many universities that have been around ten times that long." So he met for some five hours with the presidential nominating committee, a group he described yesterday as "remarkably civilized and remarkably penetrating", and when the committee made the offer, he said yes. His appointment was approved Tuesday night by the UW senate and board of governors, and he'll take office July 1.

Johnston now has nine months to finish his work at McGill's Centre for Medicine, Law and Ethics, where he's currently teaching two courses: one in science, technology and law, the other in securities regulation. "I have worked harder in the last four years than I have ever worked in my life," he said yesterday. "It's a big challenge to come back to your discipline after fifteen years in administration."

His work chiefly has to do with "the public policy and economic consequences of the information revolution", he said. Yesterday he was in Ottawa speaking to the Global Internet Liberty Conference. His thoughts are also on display in an essay published in this week's issue of Maclean's magazine.

Johnston said he would be visiting UW "soon", but no date has been set. "We didn't presume to set up a calendar," he said, until the appointment was official.

When he becomes president, of course, he'll want to spend time "coming to understand the institution", and he described much of the president's job as "to help and encourage the institution consistently to articulate its own aspirations". What about some ideas of his own? "I'm bringing lots of ideas," he said. "We really are a part of the world we've travelled," and so his ideas come not just from McGill but from the places he was before that -- starting with Sault Ste. Marie, where he went to school, and especially including Harvard University, where he was an undergraduate. Harvard seemed to come up almost as much in his conversation yesterday as did his wife, Sharon; he described their work as "a joint contribution".

At the end of the interview I asked Johnston whether he had any message for the UW campus today. His response: "How thrilled my wife and I are to be coming to Waterloo -- and to thank the community for giving us this job."

What McGill is being told

A little bird told me . . . I had a chat yesterday with one of the martlets who adorn McGill University's coat of arms (and no, I don't mean Daniel McCabe of the Reporter, who's quoted elsewhere in this Bulletin). I asked for a few personal notes about David Johnston, who headed McGill as principal from 1979 to 1994. "Firm handshake, looks you in the eye," the Martlet said instantly. "Tells the little anecdote, brisk and brief and cheerful and cooperative. Always firing off notes to say congratulations, well done, thank you. The alumni loved him!" It follows that he'll be in his element representing the university to government and in the wider world, the Martlet said -- adding that since Johnston is an Ontario boy (born in Sudbury) he'll be "more at home in Ontario than he ever was here in the labyrinth of Québec politics". Philosophy of management? "A person of integrity. He believes very much in the collegial approach," the Martlet told me, "maybe even to a fault. He's not autocratic at all, he's not overbearing -- a good consensus creator." After all, I was reminded, it was under his leadership that McGill went through a planning exercise that ended up setting no fewer than 88 priorities for the institution. One other thing: "High energy. Wiry. He will run people into the ground who are ten years younger." Don't forget, he's a marathon runner.

"Johnston says he's received feelers from other universities in the U.S. and Canada about presidencies. 'My wife and I made the decision that we wouldn't leave Canada,' Johnston says of his decision to politely refuse all inquiries from south of the border. As for Canadian jobs, Johnston says, 'When I left [the principalship] I said I wanted to be an ordinary professor and I did.' After four-and-a-half years, though, Johnston began missing aspects of his old job. When Waterloo came calling, a university he regarded as unique, Johnston was clearly interested.

"Professor Phyllis Forsyth is the chair of the University of Waterloo's Department of Anthropology and Classical Studies and served on Waterloo's presidential nominating committee.

"'I was impressed by his sense of the University of Waterloo as a whole,' says Forsyth. 'He seemed to understand the dynamics of the place. This is a strange university in some respects and we don't always do things in the same way as older, more traditional universities. I came away with the sense that he was looking to do something different at this point of his career and that he would really enjoy the challenge of working in a young and innovative university like Waterloo.'

"'My very first book dealt with computers and the law and my most recent book was titled Cyberlaw,' says Johnston. 'I'm interested in technological change and in the social and cultural aspects to that. Waterloo is a leading university in technological change and I look forward to seeing how that strength is marshalled in an entire university.'

"'The experience he brings to the job is so immense, we can't help but benefit from it,' Forsyth says. Referring to Johnston's tenure at McGill during a period of often heated debate in Quebec about language policies and budget cuts, Forsyth says, 'He knows what it's like to be in the pressure cooker. Given the highly charged political atmosphere in Ontario these days, where the government doesn't seem to understand the value of the liberal arts, that will helpful.' . . .

"'These are magnificent jobs,' says Johnston. 'As professors we're paid reasonable salaries to teach very talented young people and to pursue our own intellectual curiosity. As a president, you get to play a coordinating role in all that. You're lucky to be in a position where you get to have one job like that, never mind two.'"

Rand ballots mailed to profs

A letter sent to professors last week by Fred McCourt, the faculty association president, and UW provost Jim Kalbfleisch simplified the question a little, speaking just of "dues". But McCourt pointed out yesterday that the wording of the ballot

carefully spells out that the University is to deduct an amount equivalent to FAUW dues from each person who is represented by FAUW with regard to terms and conditions of employment at UW. Thus, these funds do not constitute "dues" to FAUW in the sense that their payment would automatically make the individual paying a member of FAUW. Indeed, only those who specifically choose to join the Association will become members of FAUW. The MofA also carefully makes this distinction between those faculty members whom FAUW represents officially through the agreement, and those who choose voluntarily to join the FAUW (including some people whom we do not represent officially through the MofA).

Not making this distinction in our memorandum was unintentional, and I, in particular, should have caught the possibly confusing wording, especially as those of us representing the FAUW have generally been rather careful to make this distinction clear.

She's off to Japan to run

For Neglia, who is administrative assistant in UW's civil engineering department, a real day's work means running 100 kilometres, and she's off to Japan this week to do just that. At age 48, she's one of six women on the 12-member Canadian National 100-kilometer Run Team competing October 18 in the 5th River Shimanto Ultra Marathon in rugged terrain outside Nakamura City.

While she's been pounding the pavement for some 20 years, a time of nine hours, 53 minutes and 55 seconds in the Niagara 100K in June clinched her spot on the Canadian team for participation in the 1998 International Association of Ultrarunners (IAU) 100K Challenge on what has been described as "the most beautiful 100 km course in the world". In addition to placing first in the Niagara 100K women's division, she took second among women in the Buffalo Marathon in March.

Neglia trains with the Blue North runners, logging about 160 km per week. Despite an ongoing battle with chronic achilles tendonitis, "I love long-distance running, and I'm committed to this race," she insists. Having the interest and support of her friends and colleagues at UW "means a lot," she adds. "I need all the good wishes I can get."

Just a few other things

Frank Jakobsh The flags at the University Avenue entrance to campus are at half-staff today in memory of Frank Jakobsh, professor of Germanic and Slavic languages and literatures, who died Saturday.

The "Chew on This" noontime series for co-op employers begins today. Rick Roach and Dave Thomas of the co-operative education and career services staff will be talking about "online recruiting at UW", which means the long-awaited new computer system for the department. A demonstration of the planned system (from the employer's point of view) is included.

The Centre for Advanced Studies in Finance presents a seminar today on "Credit Derivatives: Pricing, Hedging and Risk Management". The speaker is Geoff Chaplin of Nomura, who will appear at 4:00 in Math and Computer room 5136.

The architecture school's Arriscraft Lecture series continues tonight with "Westward Ho", a talk by Vancouver architect Bill Pechet. Place: the "green room" in Environmental Studies II. Time: 7 p.m.

A public meeting will be held tomorrow "to discuss and comment on" the proposed new policy statement on Use of UW Computing and Network Resources. The meeting will start at 12:15 tomorrow in Needles Hall room 3001.

Bill Clinton speaks on higher education

With the Thanksgiving weekend approaching, the University Club has a special luncheon coming tomorrow: maple and almond crusted baked ham, orange glazed cold poached salmon, roast turkey with wild rice and pinenut stuffing, and a few other things, priced at $11.95 plus tax. Reservations: 888-4088.

CAR

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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