As the United Way campaign approached its end for this year, past and present campaign leaders joined in the United Way buffet lunch at the University Club last week. Left to right are Pat Cunningham of mathematics, Chandrika Anjaria of IST, Karen So of the United Way office, Sharon Lamont of the library and Winston Cherry of statistics and actuarial science. By late last week, a total of $126,544 had been received for the on-campus campaign, or 77 per cent of the $165,000 goal. Yesterday was the last official day of the campaign period, which seeks support for some 50 community agencies in Kitchener-Waterloo and the surrounding area.

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Staff award winners named today

Winners of the third annual Special Recognition Awards for UW staff members got the news a few days ago, and their names are being made public on the web today.

The Staff Recognition Program, which was introduced as part of the staff salary settlement for 2003-04, rewards staff members with a $1,000 one-time bonus (reduced in the case of part-time staff). Nominations were invited from last fall through until June, and could come from anyone on campus. They were then reviewed by the university's senior executives, who approved the winners. The award winners will be guests at a reception November 9 in South Campus Hall, hosted by Executive Council and the Provost's Advisory Committee on Staff Compensation, the committee that devised the program.

Trenny Canning of the university secretariat, who handled the administration of the program, says the Exec Council members who looked through the nominations were "looking for a sense that the staff member consistently goes above and beyond what would be expected of her/him (i.e., sustained contributions)."

She notes that the entire program is under review by the compensation committee "and, as such, acceptance of nominations for the 2007 award has been delayed until the review has been completed in the event the program changes." But it will continue in some form, she said; that was settled by a poll last spring in which staff voted about two to one in favour of keeping "a recognition program for staff that includes a monetary component".

Says Canning: "As with other years, there were many very detailed nominations that spoke to the criteria for the award and provided examples, and others that did not. Unfortunately, when there wasn't enough information on which to base a decision, the nomination was not successful.

"The Staff Compensation Committee is aware that staff want more information on the selection process and reasons why certain individuals were successful. This will form part of the review."

Because people are wondering what kind of nomination leads to an award, she provided a "sanitized version" of one successful nomination. Excerpts: "Xx is one of those outstanding individuals who does a superb job and goes about her work so professionally, discreetly and quietly that it is easy to miss the extent of what she does and just how well she carries out her job. Xx is the paragon of discretion and makes a point of never discussing individuals' circumstances or problems, but instead works to make whatever adjustments are needed to amend a less than ideal solution. I have seen her make appropriate redistribution of tasks among staff so that a potentially overwhelming situation was averted and what could have been a disruption of a project was entirely avoided. She does this sort of thing a lot more frequently than is realized; again, because she does her work so professionally and effectively, it is not always evident just how much she is doing to make things better for faculty, staff and students.

"She is consistently prepared and ready to assist people who come to her with what has to be a very, very wide range of issues. In addition, though, she works effectively to anticipate possible problems and takes steps to address whatever issues might be coming forward. This ability to be so well prepared and proactive is something that is easily missed. She does it all without a fanfare of trumpets. People clearly respect her and trust that she will get the job done. She knows who to call, where to go for answers, and presents them to you in a timely and thorough manner.

"Recently, during the organizing of a special event, she stepped in to assist with arrangements when it was clear that an extra pair of hands was going to make a big difference to the success of the event. The way in which she provides assistance too is quite special in that she does so quietly and without drawing attention to the fact that she has stepped in to assist. The end result is a good working relationship among several team members who recognize how well they work together and who take great pride in the quality of their work."

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Architecture library is celebrated

from the UW media relations office

UW will officially open the Musagetes Architecture Library, which contains one of Canada's top collections of rare books on architecture and design, with a special ceremony today. The event will also celebrate the $2.5 million gift to the architecture library (pictured above) by local philanthropists Louise MacCallum and Michael Barnstijn. Their donation assisted in the renovation and furnishing of the new library at the school. The event will run from 5 to 7 p.m. on the second floor of the Architecture building, 7 Melville Street South in Cambridge.

"In collaboration with the UW library, we have created one of the best collections of rare architectural books," said Rick Haldenby, director of the architecture school. "The library not only fulfils the information needs of our students and faculty, but also celebrates our love of books and the printed image and shares the resource with the community."

The architecture library takes its name from the Musagetes Foundation, founded by MacCallum and Barnstijn. In classical mythology, Musagetes (pronounced Muse-a-get-ease) is the title attached to the god Apollo in his role as protector and promoter of the muses and, as such, reflects the couple's activities as patrons of the arts.

The library's earliest dated book (1535) is a treatise, in Latin, by the Northern Renaissance artist, Albrecht Dürer. The rare books are preserved in a separate, environmentally controlled room.

The collection has been built up over the last 30 years with the support of UW's library and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. Two private donations have also been key. A gift from Spencer Clark created the Rosa Breithaupt Clark Collection of rare books in architecture. And Canadian architectural historian William Dendy donated his entire personal collection to UW.

As a result, the Musagetes Library holds landmark titles in the history and theory of architecture, treatises from the 16th to the 20th century, as well as texts outlining architectural developments in Northern Europe and on the North American frontier, which have a profound effect on architectural theory and urban development in Canada.

The library contains more than 30,000 volumes and 75 current print and electronic journals. Most books are on some aspect of architecture, including architectural design, theory, history and criticism, as well as on historic preservation, building technology, industrial design, landscape architecture, interior design and urban design.

The collection also embraces reference resources, fifth-year and master's theses, a small product catalogue section, selected plans of local buildings, along with titles on art, interior design, industrial design and photography.

The space is open and luminous, giving the users comfortable places to browse, read and work. Wonderful views of the Grand River, the bridges and buildings of old Galt complement a collection dedicated to design. The furniture and light fixtures are simple and consistent with the building's industrial past.

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Governors talk about co-op and cash

The UW board of governors, which usually meets in Needles Hall, broadened its experience this week, holding Tuesday's meeting instead in the art gallery in East Campus Hall. Gallery curator Andrew Hunter greeted the group, commenting that while the gallery does still display art (the meeting room was hung with paintings by Frances Ferdinands and Robert Waldeck), "our emphasis is reaching out all over campus." Hunter has promised to write some words for the Daily Bulletin elaborating on the gallery's plans for the months ahead.

Board meetings typically make few momentous decisions, although this meeting did, as expected, give final approval to the Sixth Decade Report (the Daily Bulletin will have more on that topic too in the next few days). Mostly, the board hears reports from the president, the provost and other UW officials, with an opportunity to ask questions, make comments and raise suggestions.

This time, for example, the board was briefed about progress since last year's review of the co-operative education and career services activities at UW. Associate provost Bruce Mitchell commented on the introduction of PD courses in the faculties other than engineering, which has had them for some time now, and CECS director Peggy Jarvie noted that a report is expected soon from the two management sciences professors who have been studying the mechanics of job interviews, applications and matches. One member of the board, Arthur Church, president of Mancor Industries, said he's concerned that the co-op operation pays too little attention to the needs of employers; Jarvie responded that more than 100 employers were interviewed face to face, and 600 more were surveyed, as part of the recent study, and she expects their comments to be a big influence on the outcome.

Linda Kieswetter, director of Campaign Waterloo, told the board that the campaign has now brought in $316 million towards its upgraded goal of $350 million, and there are $176 million in "outstanding requests" to major donors. Bigger gifts have played a huge role in the campaign, she said, noting that more than half the total money has come from just 30 of the 41,000 listed donors since the campaign began. Staff and volunteers are now looking ahead to the scene once the campaign finishes, she said. The emphasis then will be on "complex multi-layer partnerships" involving various public agencies and private donors, many of them international, and on the need to bring in a steady stream of funding year after year. President David Johnston said his goal is $100 million a year, or roughly a quarter of the university's income.

In his own report, Johnston said he's recently conferred with the presidents of the University of Calgary and the University of Alberta, and is hoping for "partnering" in areas such as oilsands research, using the expertise UW has in earth sciences, engineering and environmental studies. He also noted that he'll be going to India in January as part of an international trade cavalcade headed by Ontario premier Dalton McGuinty, and is hoping to come back with additional links between UW and the top-ranking Indian Institutes of Technology.

Provost Amit Chakma told the board that by the latest calculation, UW's total spending this fiscal year will be $580 million, including $355 million in the operating budget. He's foreseeing a deficit of around $2 million, which will have to be covered in the 2007-08 year. There's continuing uncertainty about how much money will come from the Ontario government this year, he said, since while UW was close to its target for first-year students, some other universities were way over target, meaning the government's total funding may have to be spread further than expected. "I don't think we should panic," said Chakma, but the worry is in the millions of dollars — unless it turns out that there's leftover money in the government's allocation for graduate student places, which could then be used for those extra undergrads instead.

The board approved appointment of Ernst & Young as UW's auditors for another year (and when somebody asked how long that firm has had the contract, the best available answer was "twenty years at least"). . . . Johnston announced that a search committee has been formed to look for a new vice-president (external relations), a position that has been vacant for several months. . . . Associate vice-president Gail Cuthbert Brandt said UW has lately signed new Memorandums of Agreement with several overseas universities, including links with institutions in Korea and France. . . .

CAR

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