Search to begin for next president

The machinery is being set in motion to find UW’s next president, as David Johnston’s term in office is scheduled to expire June 30, 2009.

But the process won’t look much like the Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire primaries. Waterloo presidents are chosen through committee work and largely in private, under a procedure that’s almost unchanged since it was created in 1973, based on the experience of choosing the second president, Burt Matthews, three years earlier.

The procedure, set out in UW Policy 50, has since been used in the reappointment of Matthews; the appointment and later reappointment of Douglas Wright; the appointment of James Downey; and Johnston’s appointment in 1997 and reappointment in 2003.

Central to the process is a 19-member nominating committee that includes representatives of faculty, students, staff, alumni, the colleges, and the board of governors. In the past the committee has been chaired each time by the university’s chancellor, but as a result of a change made to the rules last winter, it will now be headed by the chair of the board of governors. That position is currently held by Bob Harding, the Toronto-based chairman of Brookfield Asset Management Inc. (formerly Brascan).

The committee, once it’s formed, asks for advice from the campus about the qualifications a new president should have, then advertises the position nationwide as well as inviting suggestions. Eventually, it recommends a name to the UW senate and board of governors, which make the decision to appoint a president.

UW’s leaders have come from a variety of backgrounds. Founding president Gerry Hagey was a business executive, Matthews a soil scientist, Wright a civil engineer and civil servant, Downey a professor of English and Johnston a law professor. Their styles have also varied, with observers generally classing Hagey, Wright and Johnston as innovators, Matthews and Downey more as consolidators.

Policy 50 declares that “The President should be a person of academic stature with a proven record of leadership and administrative experience. The President has responsibility for administering the affairs of the University, and shall act on behalf of the Board of Governors with respect to the operational management and control of the University. The President is responsible for overseeing and upholding policies and for maintaining the intellectual independence and integrity of the University by exercising academic leadership in both internal and external matters. In particular, the President should foster an environment which promotes excellence in teaching and research.”

Presidents are usually named for six-year terms, although Johnston’s second term, which began in 2004, was for just five years.

As the first step in the process, the university secretariat is issuing this invitation today: “Nominations are requested for the following seats on the Nominating Committee:

• “A senator of professorial rank from each Faculty, elected by a vote within the Faculty. The names of individuals who are eligible to stand for nomination are printed on the nomination form.

• “Two regular faculty members, elected from and by the faculty-at-large of the University.

• “One staff member, elected by and from the regular ongoing staff of the University.

“Nomination forms are available from the Secretariat (ext. 36125) and from the Secretariat webpage. At least three nominators are required in each case. Nominations should be sent to the Chief Returning Officer, Secretariat, Needles Hall 3060, no later than 3:00 p.m., Wednesday, January 30, 2008. Elections will follow if necessary.”

Back to top

'There have been talks' about law school

A school of law could possibly be in UW’s future, but it’s all very “exploratory” at this point. That’s the official word following a front-page story in Friday’s Record (left) under the headline: “Law school for Seagram site? Proposal being floated among RIM co-CEO, Laurier, UW.”

“Yes, there have been talks about a possible law school involving WLU and UW, but it’s very much in the early consideration stage here,” says Martin van Nierop, director of communications and public affairs.

News regarding UW’s involvement in a possible law school jointly operated by the two local universities first surfaced in the Record story. Jim Balsillie, co-CEO of Research In Motion and founder of the Centre for International Governance Innovation, was prominently mentioned as being a backer of a plan to put a law school on the Seagram site beside CIGI in uptown Waterloo.

John English was a notable source in the Record story. English is a UW history professor and executive director of CIGI, which is housed in a former Seagram building at the corner of Erb and Caroline Streets. The neighbouring property is already tabbed to be the location for the planned Balsillie School for International Affairs, in which UW and Laurier both play roles.

It’s thought, English says according to the newspaper, that the law school would be a fine match for the Balsillie School and that there would be a number of possible areas of cooperation in programs and areas of study.

UW has never had a law school or publicly stated any plans for one — in fact Waterloo stands out among major Canadian universities for not teaching either law or medicine, although the university is now about to host a branch of McMaster University’s medical school at the health sciences campus in Kitchener.

By contrast, WLU is already publicly committed to trying for a law school. WLU put its application in to the Law Society of Upper Canada — the governing body of the legal profession in Ontario — and the provincial government last summer, but has had no decision.

“Some initial talks took place last fall involving UW, but it’s still very much exploratory in nature,” Van Nierop reiterated on Friday.

Back to top

Jobs at lunchtime, and other notes

“Do you know anyone who is looking for part-time employment?” asks Allison Armstrong, who is manager of staff and customer relations for UW’s food services. Why she’s asking: “UW Food Services has available shifts during the midday (10:00 a.m. to 4 p.m.) in many of our outlets. We are looking for dependable casual part-time food service personnel needed to work in our high volume food operations. There are breakfast, lunch, dinner and night shifts available from early morning to midnight. We are looking for flexible people who can work weekdays and weekends. We will train suitable candidates. Our starting rate is $9.25 an hour and we have a departmental meal plan. If you know anyone who is interested in working part-time, please ask them to forward their resume to allisona@uwaterloo.ca, mail a copy to UW Food Services, fax it into 519-746-5506 or apply on-line on our website.” Another option is to drop by a three-session job fair that food services has just announced: Tuesday or Thursday from 4:30 to 6:30 at Mudies cafeteria in Village I, or Wednesday from 11:00 to 2:00 at Brubakers in the Student Life Centre.

Thomas F. Freddo, director of the UW school of optometry, is the new president of the International Society for Eye Research, as of January 1. He was elected in 2006 and has served the past two years as president-elect. Freddo becomes the first optometrist to lead this international organization, founded in 1968. The mission of the ISER is to support, sustain and propagate excellent eye research throughout the world. Its biennial meeting will be held in Beijing this fall — September 24-29 — with the 2010 meeting set for Montréal in 2010. ISER also sponsors the journal Experimental Eye Research, and Freddo currently serves as an executive editor for this journal. He came to UW in 2006 after serving as professor and vice-chairman for research in the department of ophthalmology at Boston University School of Medicine. He has served on the Board of Directors of the American Academy of Optometry and other professional bodies, and is a recipient of the Glenn A. Fry Award from the American Optometric Foundation.

The e-newsletter of UW's Graduate Student Association announces that "The GSA is participating in the development of policy for lobbying the federal government on immigration issues. However, we need feedback about your experiences with immigration issues in order to get a better appreciation for what grad students are having problems with. If you are an international student, please send your answer to the question 'What would you change about Canadian immigration rules?' to gsa-pres@uwaterloo.ca by Friday, January 18."

Xianguo Li of the mechanical and mechatronics engineering department has been named a Fellow of the Engineering Institute of Canada. • Sally Kemp, who coached Warrior teams and was coordinator of the campus recreation program from 1968 to 1996, has been named to the sports hall of fame at Concordia University, recognizing her contributions at predecessor institution Sir George Williams University. • Stanley Klucznyk, who worked as a laboratory technician in civil engineering from 1967 to his retirement in September 1988, died January 7.

Mohab Anis of the electrical and computer engineering department has been appointed associate editor of IEEE Transactions on Circuits and Systems-II (TCAS-II), a journal for the circuits and systems research community. • Here's a reminder that work reports are due today for most co-op students who were on work term in the fall. • "Frost Week" starts today, bringing five days' worth of special events sponsored by the Engineering Society.

CAR

Back to top