Third student refugee arrives tomorrow

by Bojana Savic

Looking back on the accomplishments of UW World University Services Canada (UW WUSC), we cannot help but feel excitement and fulfillment over what has been accomplished this year.

We are a student organization powered by volunteers such as (from far left) Shazeen Bandukwala, Kabil Rahaman, Nicola Weston, Dan Richards, and Tim Hudson, seen showing off some of our new "Student Refugee Program" T-shirts.

UW WUSC held a campus-wide referendum in support of the Student Refugee Program (SRP) in January 2008 and, after exhaustive campaigning, was very grateful to have obtained support for the SRP from the student body. Now approximately 24,000 students will donate $1.00 per term to the SRP!

WUSC is now being institutionalized as a FEDS service, just like GLOW or the UW Sustainability Project. The permanent source of income from the levy – something WUSC did not have before – and institutionalization into UW provides WUSC with long-term stability.

What difference will the student levy make to the students the SRP sponsors? Before, UW WUSC could sponsor one student for one year. We feel that one year is too short to ask a student refugee to come to Canada, adapt, initiate studies and become self-reliant. Now, with the income from the student levy, we will be able to sponsor three students every two years for a period of two years.

WUSC is now focusing on establishing longer-term commitments from its partners, the university colleges and UW senior administration. These partners have been making in-kind contributions of accommodation, meal plans, and two-year tuition waivers on a student-by-student basis. Now that the student refugee program is well established we anticipate arranging agreements to provide ongoing contributions in these areas.

We are also excited to see our first two sponsored students living successfully in Canada. Tariku Kebede is now a full-time engineering student starting this fall. Both Tariku and Samuel Banti, the second student, spent the summer working at Research In Motion (RIM). UW WUSC is very thankful to have support from RIM, allowing these individuals their first work opportunities in Canada.

Our third sponsored student, Yueu Majok, will be arriving from Kakuma Refugee Camp, Kenya, on August 20. He will be greeted by a group of UW student volunteers who will orient him to Canada and UW before he begins frosh week along with other excited students in September. Yueu has been accepted into the Faculty of Environment and will be upgrading his English language in the fall term before pursing his education full time at UW.

Yueu wrote to us earlier this week: “I am feeling sad because I am leaving my family members and friends behind. I am also happy about the fact that I am going to school in a foreign country. It is the greatest adventure I have ever had. It has given me the belief that the real developers of the world are those who help bring up people with development disabilities. Those who have participated in this program have the heart to feel others and to make the whole world equal in any way they can do it. I am ready now to come to Waterloo.”

WUSC is now looking forward to September to draw new students to the student refugee program, organize its attendance at the 62nd WUSC Annual General Assembly in Ottawa, and help Yueu transition into university life in Waterloo. For more information contact Bojana Savic: Bojana_s24@hotmail.com or Lisa ter Woort: terwoort@uwaterloo.ca

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Sabbaticals: Coulomb explosions, older drivers

Here’s a list of some more UW faculty members who will be starting sabbatical leaves as of September 1, with their plans for the sabbatical months as reported to UW’s board of governors.

Raafat Mansour, electrical and computer engineering (6 months): “I plan to spend my sabbatical as a Research Visiting Professor in the following institutions: Nanyang Technological University, Singapore; University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia; University of Magdeburg, Germany; and University of Bremen, Germany.”

Joseph Sanderson, physics and astronomy (12 months): “The sabbatical leave will take place at the University of London (UK). The project will be to study molecular alignment, using impulsive and adiabatic methods. A second collaboration with a group including professors from Swansea and Belfast will focus on Coulomb explosion of small molecules.”

Grace Yi, statistics and actuarial science (6 months): “I plan to visit Professor Lang Wu at the University of British Columbia and Professor Nancy Reid at the University of Toronto who have been collaborating with me on different projects. I also plan to visit Professor Bruce Lindsay at Penn State University with whom I newly started collaboration. I expect that my research will greatly benefit from these arrangements.”

Grzegorz Glinka, mechanical and mechatronics engineering (6 months): “Writing a book on the fatigue of welded structures, writing delayed scientific papers from past research project, supervision of graduate students and supervision of experiments.”

Adam Kolkiewicz, statistics and actuarial science (12 months): “During the sabbatical leave I plan to focus on research. In particular, I would like to finish several research projects that I was not able to complete due to administrative positions that I had in the last three years.”

Anita Myers, health studies and gerontology (12 months): “I plan to continue and expand my research on older drivers in collaboration with CanDrive (Canadian Research Initiative for Vehicular Safety in the Elderly) through a $5 million, five-year grant proposal to CIHR. Other collaborative projects on older adult mobility include program/policy evaluation and research studies on special populations (persons with vision, neuromuscular or cognitive impairments, and ethno-cultural minorities).”

Daniel Davison, electrical and computer engineering (12 months): “This sabbatical will be based at the University of Waterloo. My main goal is to expand my research program in the dynamic control systems engineering area, motivated by applications in the social psychology field. In addition, I have been approached by a publisher to write an undergraduate textbook, and the timeline matches up with the proposed sabbatical.”

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UWRC plans events for autumn

Here's an update on activities from the UW Recreation Committee (UWRC). There's still time to enter the Contest of the Month. Email the date of UW’s Homecoming 2008 to UWRC@admmail.uwaterloo.ca no later than Thursday. Winners will receive passes to Marineland and/or theatre tickets.

The committee is offering UW employees discounts on a variety of events and attractions. Here they are, with contacts for more information:

• CN Tower and Ontario Science Centre. UWRC@admmail
• Ontario Place and Chinese Lantern Festival tickets available until mid September. mulbrick@uwaterloo.ca
• Enterprise Car Rental: http://www.adm.uwaterloo.ca/infopur/ri-travel-car.htm for UW arrangement. Quote account #NAC1010.
• Marineland discount tickets are now available. cpflug@uwaterloo.ca
• Galaxy Theatre tickets, $8.50 per ticket – valid until December 2009. UWRC@uwaterloo.ca
• Princess Cinema tickets, $7.00 per ticket – valid at both theatre locations until April 2009. UWRC@uwaterloo.ca
• Via Rail: http://www.viarail.ca/corpo/uwaterloo/ To receive the 10 per cent discount with VIA, one must form a profile and insert a discount code.

UWRC also has a long list of events organized for UW employees and retirees this fall, everything from "Laughter Yoga" and meditation instruction to restaurant dinners, movies, tours, talks, a feng shui discussion group, and more. Details online. Register for events by emailing UWRC@admmail.uwaterloo.ca.

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Thomas Seebohm passes

Thomas Seebohm (left), an associate professor of architecture, died suddenly on Tuesday, August 12, while cycling in Quebec. He was 67. Holder of a PhD in mechanical engineering as well as a master's degree in architecture, he came to UW in 1985 and taught while continuing his career as an architect and designer. Among other achievements, he founded and directed the Integrated Centre for Visualization, Design and Manufacturing.

The obituary in the Waterloo Region Record, August 16, says in part: "Tom was a devoted teacher, passionate researcher and hard worker as an architect and professor of architecture at the University of Waterloo, where he relished the exchange with stimulating colleagues. He was committed to his community, being involved in urban planning and environmental issues such as the Grand River Wetlands, Victoria Park and the Farmer's Market.

"A memorial gathering will be held in Kitchener, Ontario at a later date. Donations to fund a scholarship for architecture students specializing in green building would promote one of his major interests and be much appreciated: Thomas Seebohm Memorial Scholarship, c/o School of Architecture, University of Waterloo, 7 Melville St. South, Cambridge, ON, N1S 2H4, 519-888-4567 ext. 27661."

CPA staff

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