![[University of Waterloo]](/images/logobars/goldbar.gif)
| Yesterday |
Friday, February 24, 2006
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Editor: Chris Redmond credmond@uwaterloo.ca |
![[Sombrero, lei, snowshoes]](/images/2006/0225burroughs.jpg)
Peter Burroughs
has his last day of work today as UW's director of admissions, ending
a 28-year Waterloo career. To mark
his retirement, colleagues treated him yesterday to a festive lunch -- and
a few previews of the souvenirs he might pick up now that he's free to
travel the world. He'll make a return visit for a university-wide
retirement party some time in the spring.
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David Johnston, president of UW, is among the participants at "Competing for Tomorrow", a one-day event in Ottawa organized by Dalton McGuinty of Ontario and Jean Charest of Québec on behalf of the "Council of the Federation", the leaders of all the provinces and territories.
"Equipping Canadians with the education and skills they need to reach their full potential is imperative for all governments in Canada," said the letter of invitation from McGuinty and Charest. "That is why Premiers, as the Council of the Federation, have launched Competing for Tomorrow: A Postsecondary Education and Skills Summit."
The event involves "a broad cross-section of stakeholders, including student, college, university, business and labour representatives. Stakeholders will examine key issues and challenges they are facing in postsecondary education (PSE) and skills training. The summit will help shape a Canada-wide strategy on postsecondary education and skills -- a strategy that will help establish a path forward so that citizens have access to the quality education and training they need, and Canada needs, to thrive, in the 21st century."
In groups, they'll discuss seven central issues: Access to Postsecondary Education and Skills Training; Quality and Funding of Postsecondary Education and Skills Training; Participation in the Labour Force; Skills for the 21st Century Workplace; Research and Innovation Capacity; Lifelong Learning for All; and Needs of Rural and Northern Areas.
The context for the premiers' summit includes the rising political issue of how revenues and expenses are shared between the federal and provincial levels of government. Says the premiers' discussion paper: "The federal government is a crucial partner in postsecondary education and skills training. However, federal government support has not kept up with emerging needs. Federal transfers through the Canada Social Transfer in support of postsecondary education and social programs were $10.6 billion in 1994-95 and stand at $8.4 billion today. It would take $2.2 billion just to restore these transfers to 1994-95 levels and considerably more to ensure that Canadians will continue to benefit from the postsecondary education and skills training systems that they need in the 21st Century.
"Like other Canadians, premiers are aware that substantial new investments will be required in postsecondary education and skills training in order for Canada to compete and thrive in a global economy. Many provinces and territories have invested their resources in these areas, while recognizing that a new partnership with the federal government will be essential for Canada to pull ahead of its competitors.
"It is essential for all of us to work collectively and respond in a coordinated way to international competition and new technologies. The most important initiatives to bolster prosperity require close federal-provincial-territorial as well as stakeholder cooperation. The premiers have invited the federal government to meet with them in order to agree on a Canada-wide education and training strategy and an adequate level of federal funding through the Canada Social Transfer."
Robert Hiscott of the sociology department has a twelve-month leave to "continue secondary analysis of national longitudinal survey data sets (Surveys of Labour and Income Dynamics), initially investigated with support from a 2004-05 SSHRC research grant (through the Skills Research Initiative). This secondary analysis of survey data will lead to preparation of research papers during the sabbatical period, for submission for review and publication in academic journals."
David G. John of Germanic and Slavic studies is on sabbatical for six months: "I shall spend my sabbatical in Germany and Austria researching and writing a book on Fritz Bennewitz, an outstanding director in the former East Germany, and his seven productions of Goethe's classic stage work 'Faust'. My daily living in this German-speaking environment will also reinforce my cultural knowledge and linguistic skills as a Germanist."
Jonathan Price of geography has a six-month sabbatical: "I am interested in examining damage to South African peatlands caused by drainage, grazing and fire. Degradation of the peat substrate causes changes in the hydraulic properties and consequently the plant-water supply. The peatlands are an important ecological refuge and in places have local economic importance. I will be studying their hydrology with a view to restoration."
Robert B. Gibson of environment and resource studies is on sabbatical for six months: "I expect to be working on a large project on governance for sustainability, with three overlapping components: sustainability assessment applications (Canada and elsewhere), governance for sustainable development in Europe, and biosphere reserves as models of sustainability-centred governance (Ontario, Ontario-BC, and Canada-Europe). Relative emphasis will depend in part on success of funding applications now under consideration and collaborative opportunities now being explored."
Michel Gingras of the physics department is on sabbatical for a full year: "I will visit the Physics Department at the University of Canterbury and the MacDiarmid Institute (Group of Nanoengineering Materials and Devices), both in Christchurch, New Zealand. Purpose is to perform optical spectroscopic of rare-earth doped exotic quantum magnetic materials and to develop new research interests in nanotechnology."
Jerry Lawless of statistics and actuarial science is on sabbatical for six months: "The leave will be spend conducting research on event history analysis and related topics, including the completion of a book on recurrent events and papers on several topics. Some joint projects with collaborators in London and Cambridge, UK, and in Barcelona, Spain, will be carried out during visits to those locations."
| WHEN AND WHERE |
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Warrior men' hockey vs. Laurier, OUA semifinal, tonight
and Sunday 7:30 at Waterloo Recreation Centre, also broadcast on
CKMS.
26th annual Hagey Bonspiel Saturday, Ayr Curling Club. UW ACM programming contest Saturday 1 to 4 p.m., details online. Residential Energy Efficiency Project workshop on insulating attic, walls, windows and doors, Saturday 1:30, Rona Home and Garden, Cambridge. 'Let's Dance Showcase' recital Sunday 1:30, Humanities Theatre. Pick Your Plan Week for undergraduate students, February 27 through March 3, opportunity select or change a major, or add a minor or option. Class enrolment appointments for spring term, March 20 to April 1; for fall term, June 12-24. Joint health and safety committee Monday 10 a.m., Commissary building room 112D. Senate long-range planning committee Monday 3:00, Needles Hall room 3004. UW Senate Monday 4:30, Needles Hall room 3001. |
Apparently lots of people have expressed interest in the "self-study" review being done by UW's human resources department, and said they'd like to be part of the focus groups that are being held. So an additional session is being scheduled, to start at 11:30 on Tuesday, March 7. Faculty and staff members who'd like to take part should call Ken Walton at ext. 7599.
"She's got pavement flying through her mind," says the headline on a small item in the latest issue of WEAL, the engineering alumni newsletter. It talks about Leanne Whiteley, a graduate student in civil engineering, who's doing thesis research on airport pavement methods. "She's comparing the results of state of the art airport pavement design programs to current Canadian practice," the newsletter explains. "Her research is funded by NSERC's Industrial Post Graduate Scholarship and the Greater Toronto Airport Authority and supervised by Professor Susan Tighe." It notes that she has an active life outside the lab as well, with involvement in Women in Engineering and other groups -- and she's a former president of the undergraduate Engineering Society.
Part of the heritage of the Waterloo community -- remembered in the name of Seagram Drive leading up to campus, for example -- is the Seagram distillery. An exhibition now open at the Canadian Clay and Glass Gallery, a few steps away from the original Seagram site, addresses an aspect of the story. "There is a mystery," a news release explains, "surrounding the origins and naming of Seagram's V.O, one of the most well-known whiskies produced at the former Waterloo distillery. Family tradition states that 'V.O.' stands for 'Very Own,' as this was a whisky blend created for Joseph E. Seagram's own family. Others claim that the initials stand for 'Very Old' in keeping with the distiller's assertion that it was a blend of very old Canadian whiskies. New evidence, recently uncovered, may finally put to rest the long debated topic. 'Initial Success: The Story of Seagram's V.O.' will trace the product's history, highlighting its production, packaging and marketing while trying to demystify the origins of the initials. Throughout the exhibition, the integral relationship of Seagram's V.O. with Waterloo will be highlighted. Of particular interest will be photographs and artifacts from the production and bottling stages at the former Seagram's Waterloo distillery. This exhibition is organized by the City of Waterloo Heritage Resources." It continues at the clay and glass gallery until April 2.
Larry Baker, a coordinator in the co-op education and career services department since 1996, officially retired on December 1, the human resources office reports. . . . UW's school of accountancy will host a reception Saturday (4 to 6 p.m.) at the Westin Harbour Castle in Toronto, during the annual Convocation of the Chartered Accountants of Ontario. . . . T-4 slips, the essential documents that sum up 2005 salaries in time for this spring's income tax returns, were mailed to staff and faculty members' homes on Wednesday. . . .
Sports this weekend: Besides the men's hockey playoffs tonight and Sunday, hosted by WLU, Warrior athletes are active in OUA tournaments over the weekend in women's curling (at St. Catharines) and track and field (at Windsor) and the national championships in swimming (at Laval in Québec City). And at home, the men's bsketball Warriors host Windsor in a quarter-final playoff game Saturday at 3:00 in the Physical Activities Complex. The game will be broadcast on CKMS.
CAR