The "south gateway" to the main campus will look like this some day, according to the Campus Master Plan that's scheduled for approval by the board of governors today. With South Campus Hall torn down and new student service buildings flanking the entrance road, the view of public space is opened up dramatically. The plan also calls for improving other open areas on the main campus but reducing the amount of surface parking.

Board meets today, will set fees

UW’s board of governors will be asked to approve 2009-10 tuition fees today, with a complicated grid of rates for new and continuing, graduate and undergraduate, Canadian and international, students in both “regulated” and “deregulated” programs.

Most of the changes are to be effective with the beginning of the spring term on May 1, although fee hikes for the Master of Business, Entrepreneurship and Technology and Master of Accounting programs don’t take effect until next fall and next winter, respectively.

For Canadian undergraduate students who are already in UW programs, fees are to go up 4.0 per cent. Newly admitted students in “regulated” programs, such as arts and science, will pay 4.5 per cent more this year than a year ago; new students in “deregulated” programs, such as engineering and computer science, will pay 8.0 per cent more than in 2008.

Graduate students and most international students will see rates go up by 3.0 per cent. An exception is the fee for the financial analysis and risk management program, which will rise by 1.3 per cent to align with the fee charged in engineering, according to documents presented to the board for today’s meeting.

The result is a one-term fee for Canadian undergraduate students that may be as low as $2,466 or as high as $6,998. International student fees range between $8,791 and $16,068 for a term.

The co-op fee, paid by undergraduate students in co-op programs, will rise by 5 per cent, to $587 a term.

Tuition fees make up almost half of the income for UW’s operating budget, so the rates approved today will be a big factor as officials prepare the 2009-10 budget, which is expected to come to the board for approval at its next meeting in April.

Among other agenda items for today’s meeting:

• A report on “trends in employment rates and quality rankings” for UW co-op students, as well as an update on how the economic situation is affecting co-op.

• Approval of 2009-10 residence fees (up 3.0 per cent in most residences, just 1.8 per cent for two-bedroom houses in the Columbia Lake complex).

• An update on the planned United Arab Emirates campus, and an “environmental scan” from UW’s president, including details on how the recent federal budget might affect the university.

• A “mid-year report” from the vice-president (external relations).

The meeting will also be asked to approve the revised Campus Master Plan, which has been being put together by consultants with the supervision of the board’s building and properties committee.

Today’s meeting starts at 2:30 p.m. in Needles Hall room 3001.

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Student and alumni job fair tomorrow

a news release prepared by Conestoga College

In a time of economic uncertainty, students and graduates of local post-secondary institutions can find employment opportunities by meeting with employers who seek their skills. It happens at the annual University/College Job Fair — the largest event of its kind in Canada.

The Job Fair is for students and alumni of Conestoga College and the three local universities — Guelph, Wilfrid Laurier and Waterloo — who by participating have an exclusive opportunity to present themselves as outstanding candidates for employment to representatives of firms who now have or soon will have job openings. This year’s event, the 16th annual, is on Wednesday at RIM Park in Waterloo. Job Fair hours are 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

This success of the Job Fair is the result of the co-operation among the four higher education institutions and their commitment to providing a high level of service to students and alumni. Expected attendance will be in the thousands. The timing of the event is especially meaningful for students now in their final semester of studies, or those seeking summer employment.

More than 180 employers are registered for the event. Their participation indicates that they will have employment opportunities available within the next six months.

Admission to the event is open to anyone with a valid, current student or alumni ID from any of the four participating post-secondary institutions. For those eligible to attend, full details, including employer profiles, can be found at the event website.

Among the many employers represented will be COM DEV, Research In Motion, Open Text, Winners Merchants International, ING Canada, Agfa Healthcare, Scotiabank, Toronto Hydro Corporation, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Teksystems, Xerox Canada, Staples Canada, Region of Waterloo Public Health, the St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation, and Abercrombie and Fitch.

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'We've been living FASS for a month so you can Live FASS, Die Tomorrow,' writes Diana Chisholm, president of the FASS Theatre Company, whose annual home-grown musical comedy is now in its 47th year. For 2009, the script reaches into top-secret territory with revelations about UW's new Bachelor of Spy program. The music includes an improbable "Goldfinger" and a new take on Katy Perry. Tickets are $10 (Thursday night $7) at the Humanities box office.

Week for graduating students, and more

“Selected chair projects” by third-year students in UW’s School of Architecture are featured at the Come Up To My Room exhibition that opens this week at the Gladstone hotel and gallery in Toronto. The chairs were created in Arch 365: Structural Design/Build, taught by Elizabeth English. The course description promises that “Students will design, construct and test full size prototypes of chairs and other structures of limited scale. Performance will be predicted and analyzed in the wake of testing.” Somewhere along the way, matters turned into an art show, part of an event that takes over the entire second floor of the Gladstone, at 1214 Queen Street West in Toronto. “Come Up To My Room,” organizers say, “is an alternative design show focusing on the diverse practices that work outside the norms of traditional design: multidisciplinary, independent, emerging and self-taught, all within the backdrop of our historic 120 year old hotel. Each year Come Up To My Room generates excitement in the Canadian design community as an edgy showcase for Canadian contemporary art/design practice.” The show runs Thursday through Sunday, February 5-8.

The nominating committee to choose UW’s next provost is a step closer towards getting to work, as several committee seats were filled by elections that closed on January 28. The university secretariat sends this report of election results: “Applied Health Sciences faculty senator (47% voter turnout): Nancy Theberge 8 votes, Roger Mannell 20 votes, declined 0. Arts faculty senator (29% voter turnout): David DeVidi 41 votes, Geoffrey Hayes 18 votes, John North 10 votes, declined 1. Engineering faculty senator (29% voter turnout): Leo Rothenburg 30 votes, Metin Renksizbulut 46 votes, declined 1. Mathematics faculty senator (43% voter turnout): Steve Brown 38 votes, Wayne Oldford 48 votes, declined 1. Science faculty senator (38% voter turnout): Elizabeth Meiering 31 votes, George Dixon 19 votes, John Flanagan 14 votes, Declined 0. Faculty-at-large (64% voter turnout): David Taylor 75, votes John Burbidge 29 votes, John Thistle 58 votes, Katherine Acheson 52 votes, Manoj Sachdev 30 votes, Mark Season 34 votes, Omar Ramahi 14 votes, Roydon Fraser 129 votes, Scott Spidell 12 votes, Sheila Ager 74 votes, Stefan Idziak 29 votes, Steve Prentice 22 votes, William Power 81 votes, Declined 4. Staff-at-large (63% voter turnout): Charles Woods 85 votes, David Walsh 61 votes, Heather FitzGerald 71 votes, Jeff Henry 58 votes, Julie Hummel 44 votes, Karen Trevors 104 votes, Katrina Di Gravio 258 votes, Linda Kieswetter 112 votes, Mark Walker 169 votes, Sue Fraser 156 votes, Vic Neglia 82 votes, Declined 4.”

The current exhibition in UW's Museum and Archive of Games, on the main level of Matthews Hall, offers about 50 games and related items from Africa, Asia and the Middle East, including some that visitors can try out for themselves. • The Arts Student Union has spaces available on a bus trip to Ottawa scheduled for February 12-15, during reading week (tickets e-mail cvannell@ uwaterloo.ca). • Jody Berringer of UW's marketing and undergraduate recruitment office is in British Columbia this week to represent UW at career and education fairs in Vancouver, Kamloops and Kelowna.

Mark Lisetto-Smith of the office of Organizational and Human Development sends word that spaces are still available in OHD's workshops on “Giving & Receiving Feedback” (February 12) and “Defining Financial Futures” (March 19 and 20, two mornings), and in “Personality Dimensions” (April 15). "Further details are available in the electronic brochure. Hard copies of the brochure are available upon request."

And . . . it's Graduating Students’ Week, says a last-minute memo from UW's student life office. "Today is the Services Fair and Seminars, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. in the Student Life Centre. There will be seminars on international and sustainable travel, how Career Services can help students, education after graduation and how to make the most of the up-coming Job Fair. If you have questions about Convocation, finding a job, education after graduation, health care, athletics, or any other graduating issues, many of the University of Waterloo student services will be there to help. All those who attend the seminars receive a free gift, and refreshments will be served throughout the day. Other events during the week include the men’s and women’s basketball games on Wednesday and the final men’s and women’s volleyball game. For the games let us treat you to some free refreshments in the best seats in the house, reserved especially for graduating students. Look for discounts and specials during the week including the Bomber Graduating Students’ Week specials and half price FASS tickets."

CAR

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