Waiting until dark were the early arrivals at Friday night's stargazing party on the north campus, organized by the department of physics and astronomy. "Between 600 and 700 attended the event for some period of time," says Richard Vollans, marketing coordinator for the faculty of science. He reports that "a number" of family groups came early in the evening, with other viewers showing up as late as midnight to check out stars and the Perseid meteor showers. "The moon and the variable clouds may have impacted some people's viewing, but most seemed pleased," he adds.

Back to top

Residences prepare for September influx

As Labour Day approaches, the department of housing and residences is gearing up for the thousands of students who will be moving into residence this fall. According to Bronwyn Forbes , the department’s marketing coordinator, 4,878 undergraduate and 153 graduate students and families will soon call Waterloo residences home.

Move-in will happen over two days; Sunday, September 4, and Monday (Labour Day), September 5. Students have been advised to arrive on Sunday if they’re living in the North and South Quads of Village 1 or Ron Eydt Village, the East wing of Mackenzie King Village, and the odd numbered floors and north quads of UW Place. Arrival day is Monday for the other parts of REV, V1, UWP and MKV, and for Columbia Lake Village.

In a memo this week, university housing officer Chris Read invited faculty and senior staff members to “be involved in greeting and engaging students and their parents” during some part of the move-in. During the second annual Residence Move-In Engagement Project, they will make the move-in experience more welcoming by helping students move their belongings into their new room. “It’s a great opportunity for us to show the more personal side of Waterloo to both students and their parents,” says Read, “putting them at ease about what lies ahead. This day comes with the full spectrum of emotions for our incoming students. Most of them are worried, excited, curious and hesitant, and are accompanied by family who feel the same.

“We know many people see the residences as a big maze of tiny rooms, but this maze becomes a home for over 5,000 of our students. The more work we do on making this place welcoming, the more successful the students are at making the transition from home to university a smooth one.”

In addition to first-year students and some upper-year students, the residences will also be welcoming approximately 250 new student staff to the department, says Forbes, “as they take on new leadership roles such as Dons, Residence Computer Consultants, Residence Ambassadors and others.” Many of these students, she says, will be immersed in a week-long training program just before Labour Day, “to orient them to the department and prepare them for the term ahead.”

She also notes that on September 1, the Thursday right before the big weekend, the department will hold a staff event, “The Right FIT Around the World”, to thank housing staff members for “their endless work” in preparing for the term ahead. The event will also welcome new staff to the department.

“In other news,” Forbes goes on, “Waterloo Residences recently joined the latest video craze and filmed their very own 80s dance style video (right) featuring Housing staff and students. This video, produced by Creative Services, is intended to show students the side of residence that’s all about community, being involved, and having fun among those you live and work with. Check it out and look for some famous faces that you might recognize!”

Back to top

Summer notes, tending towards fall

The annual meeting of the university's staff association is now held in the fall — this year October 27 — and that's when new members of its leadership take office. As a result, the association has issued a call for nominations, with three positions on the board of directors open to be claimed this year. All three posts are for a two-year term. "You play a vital role in the University of Waterloo community," says a memo sent to members on Monday, "and you can help to define and shape that role by serving on the UWSA’s Executive Committee. uWaterloo is one of Canada’s leading universities, and you can help to make it better. With your enthusiasm and commitment, the UWSA can advocate on behalf of staff, address issues and concerns and improve our workplace. Please consider serving the uWaterloo community by becoming a candidate for one of these Executive positions or nominating a fellow staff member. As the University of Waterloo adapts and evolves in a changing world, we need a strong voice to ensure that our perspective is clearly presented." Details are on the association's web site.

The bookstore will be "offering students more course material choices and greater value for their money this fall," says Kathryn Fedy, marketing coordinator for the retail services department. Here's how: "This fall, the Book Store is rolling out a textbook rental program with almost 100 titles available for rent. Waterloo students will be able to choose between purchasing a new textbook or renting one at 60% of the list price. The textbook rental program is open to all University of Waterloo students who have a WatCard. A student will see if any of their textbooks are available for rent by accessing their custom booklist through My BookLook on the Book Store website. Renting can be done at the store or online." Rentals for the fall term open today.

This Saturday will bring an electrical power shutdown for most buildings inside the ring road — but not the Student Life Centre, the Physical Activities Complex, Matthews Hall, Math and Computer or the main wing of the Davis Centre. It'll run from 6 a.m. to midnight; cooling and ventilation will also be shut down. Since the Dana Porter Library is one of the buildings affected, Porter won't be open for library users on Saturday. (The Davis Centre library is on reduced hours these days, and will be open as usual, noon to 5 p.m.) The library's web servers are located in Porter and will be without power all day Saturday, which means users can't access the main web site, the Primo catalogue, and a number of other electronic resources and services. Details are online, but better memorize them before Saturday at 6 a.m.

Also from the library: "On Thursday, August 18, the term loan date changes from September 15, 2011, to January 15, 2012." Accordingly, borrowers with books on term loan might want to start renewing them for the new term.

And . . . the repeated announcement that the Physical Activities Complex is "closed" for the latter half of August is somewhat inaccurate. In fact, the pool is open for business as usual, and swimming lessons that have been running during the summer will continue for another week. "We have just started keeping the pool open during August," says Rebecca Boyd, aquatics coordinator in the department of athletics and recreational services. "I want to offer those on campus the option of swimming, particularly when it is hot!" In fact, Boyd says, her staff and their customers aren't going to be deterred even by this week's unavailability of hot water: "The PAC is still open during the week with free swims and lessons still taking place. During the hot water shutdown, there will be no towel service or hot showers available, but the facility can still be used."

CAR

Back to top