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Friday, May 7, 1999

  • Staff association leaders acclaimed
  • Remember, convocation's in June
  • 'Electronic hiring hall' is open
  • First weekend of the spring term

Staff association leaders acclaimed

Staff vote on pay dates

Ballots are being sent out this morning for staff to vote on a proposed change in how often they're paid, from once a month to every two weeks. Monday's Bulletin will have more about the precise question that's being asked, and -- I trust -- an open meeting the staff association is organizing for discussion on the issue.
Charlene Schumm of the registrar's office will finish her term as president of the UW staff association this month, and will be succeeded by Paul McKone of engineering computing (pictured at left). McKone, elected by acclamation a year ago, moves from president-elect to president when the association holds its annual general meeting on May 31.

His successor is also being chosen by acclamation, the association announced this week. Walter McCutchan of information systems and technology will be president-elect in 1999-2000 and president in 2000-01.

"The University is more than the sum total of its constituents," McKone tells association members in the leaflet that went out this week. "We all benefit when we pursue diverse interests across the campus." He notes that his own interests are as diverse as the Keystone Fund, the Shad Valley teenagers' program, and the Warriors' Band, not to mention the staff relations committee and staff compensation committee during the year he's been president-elect of the association.

He may get to say a few words at the general meeting, but the big draw that day is expected to be David Johnston, who will be less than 24 hours away from taking office as the new president of the university. Johnston "is looking forward to meeting with us and sharing his views on the role staff have to play at any successful university", Schumm says.

The annual meeting will be held Monday, May 31, at 11:45 a.m. in Davis Centre room 1302.

Besides McKone and McCutchan (and Schumm as past president), the officers of the staff association for the coming year will include these people, all acclaimed to office: Paul Snyder (IST), vice-president; Wendy Rose (applied health sciences), treasurer; Ann Barrett (arts undergraduate office), secretary. Two of the 1998-99 directors continue in office: Elizabeth Harnum (biology) and Kelly Wilker (registrar's office).

There are two other directors' posts to be filled, and association members are being asked to choose among three candidates, with ballots due in by May 20. The candidates are Steve Breen (IST), Chris Henderson (purchasing services), and Brad Vogt (central stores).

Remember, Convocation's in June

For decades, UW's spring convocation has been held at the end of May, but this year is different. For various reasons, the date has been moved to mid-June, and I gather it's likely to stay that way from now on. Which takes us right back to where we started: the first UW convocation was held June 18, 1960.

Here's a reminder of the precise dates for UW's Seventh-Eighth Convocation:

Two faculties have so far announced the names of their valedictorians, the students who will speak to convocation on behalf of the graduating class. They are Erik Mogensen, receiving his degree in philosophy, for arts, and Loi Phuong Lam, chemistry, for science.

'Electronic hiring hall' is open
-- from UBC Reports at the University of British Columbia

Surfing the net for jobs and career information is now a whole lot easier thanks to a new Canada-wide electronic hiring hall developed by faculty and student volunteers at UBC and the universities of Alberta and Western Ontario. Called CareerOwl, the Web-based service allows post-secondary students and alumni to make a direct connection with employers.

"CareerOwl is off to a vigorous start and will help ease the job-finding problems students face today," says UBC President Martha Piper. "Also, when university students are able to bring their skills to the workplace, employers and taxpayers realize a benefit from the investment they have made in post-secondary education."

More than 4000 students at more than 73 Canadian universities, colleges and technical schools have signed up for the service. Almost 100 students join each day.

CareerOwl currently provides students and alumni with job postings and career information. Next year it will also offer statistical data on salaries, qualifications required within various job categories and trends in employment. "We want to make it easier for Canadians with post-secondary training to learn about job opportunities in this country," says Deanna McLeod, co-ordinator of the Western Research Network on Education and Training (WRNET). Hosted by UBC, WRNET provided research data that generated many CareerOwl features.

Once the student registers with CareerOwl, a virtual agent searches the Internet site for jobs that match the student's job preference criteria. The agent sends the student an e-mail message when a match is found. The student may then choose to release their resumé, covering letter, electronic transcript and employer-specific application forms directly to an employer.

Employers can target a certain audience by including criteria that match questions asked of the candidates. For example, an employer may specifically request a candidate from a particular university program or faculty.

"We aimed to create a system where both employers and students can state exactly what they are looking for," says Alice Nakamura, one of CareerOwl's creators, an executive member of WRNET and a professor of Business at the University of Alberta.


Photo from the Museum of the Canada Goose

Watch for chicks

I have a note from Louise Buhlman, in the co-op and career services department, asking me to remind everybody about "being extra careful when driving on the ring road to avoid the new additions to duck, geese and other fowl friends families. They take their entire brood across the road to munch on fresh grass and I shudder when I see them from my vantage point as cars approach them." Yes indeed.
Second-year UBC Faculty of Science student Merek Siu has been helping to promote CareerOwl on campus. "The system is really useful for me because I'm from Alberta and would have a hard time accessing career information from another province," says Siu. "And I'm not cut off from the system after graduation. It really uses the power of the Internet to keep everything current."

Services for job candidates are free and registered employers can search candidate information without charge. . . . From Jan. 1 to Aug. 31 regular job postings that appear for a two-month period will cost employers $25 each. There is no charge for posting volunteer, student part-time, co-op and internship positions.

First weekend of the spring term

The Centre for Family Business, based at Conrad Grebel College, is running a one-day conference at the Waterloo Inn: "Straight Talk about Money: Psychological Issues Between Generations Around Money". Things start at 8:30 this morning.

As the Grand River Conservation Authority marks the 25th anniversary of the 1974 floods in this area -- it was a rather wetter spring than 1999 is offering, despite last night's showers -- people from UW's Heritage Resources Centre and school of planning are involved. Presentations, exhibits and a tour are scheduled all day today at the GRCA headquarters, 400 Clyde Road, Cambridge.

The physics department presents a seminar at 11:00 this morning, in room 374 of the Physics building. A. Lemak of the Université de Montréal will speak on "Computer Simulation Study of Some Structural and Dynamical Properties of Protein Molecules and Polymers".

Coming into the Humanities Theatre for the weekend: the Canadian National Dance Competition. Other off-campus dancers will be using the place next week -- Carousel Dance with a performance on Wednesday, Ballet on the Grand on Saturday.

A large contingent of young people arrives in the Ron Eydt Village conference centre today, some 1,000 participants in a two-day youth ministries convention. Also arriving today and tomorrow: some 200 participants in a number of Ontario Hockey Association camps and workshops.

Career development seminars for this term get going on Monday, with sessions on "Resume Writing" at 1:30 and "Letter Writing" at 2:30. Both will be held in Needles Hall room 1020. "The seminars are open to all students," says a memo from the co-op and career services department, "and students can sign up for sessions on our bulletin board beside the elevator, Needles Hall, first floor. For more information students can visit the Career Resource Centre in NH 1115 or call the Centre at ext. 4047." Workshops will continue with such titles as "The Work Finding Package" (next Wednesday) and "Career Research" (May 18).

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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