No lifeguard on duty: Knowledge Integration student Geoff Evamy-Hill snapped this photo of a watermain break at Seagram and University last night. The muddy remains can be seen in daylight today. A hat tip to @uWaterloo for the caption.

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Think Pink campaign raises over $28,000

The University of Waterloo Department of Athletics has announced that their fifth annual Think Pink campaign has raised a total of $28,050.25 and counting for the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation (CBCF) – Ontario Chapter. That amount is expected to increase as online donations are accepted until December 31.

Over a span of five years the Warriors have donated over $88,362.24 to the CBCF Ontario chapter, with donations increasing from $4,137.39 in 2008 to $25,053.13 in 2011.

The Think Pink campaign was started by the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) women’s basketball coaches’ association and has expanded to a department-wide initiative that runs on an annual basis. Many schools across Canada have followed suit and provided CBCF with thousands of dollars in donations.

For the fifth year of the campaign, Waterloo set a goal of $20,000, which had already been exceeded as the final weekend of varsity and campus recreation Think Pink events rolled around. Throughout the past two weeks, the Warrior events crew put on a series of Think Pink events to attract students and sports fans to varsity games and campus recreation events, including seven different varsity games, pink hip-hop, spin-a-thon, pink Zumba, a dance show, and a 3-on-3 indoor soccer tournament.

13 different varsity teams were an integral part of the fundraising efforts, a news release from the athletics department says, with the women’s basketball team leading the charge with more than $6,000 raised. The cheerleading and field hockey teams, followed by the men’s and women’s hockey teams, rounded out the top five in terms of amount raised.

“There were many different hands on board to make the campaign such a success,” said marketing and events co-ordinator Jenny Mackay.  “Each year the campaign continues to grow and everyone across campus and the community was very receptive to the cause.  I’d like to also thank all of our sponsors and local businesses for making everything possible.”

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The Town Hall conversation continues

More than 240 people joined the president, provost, and senior university administrators for a town hall meeting in the Humanities Theatre on Tuesday.

In his remarks, which opened with the Ideas Start Here video created by Marketing & Undergraduate Recruitment, Hamdullahpur shared the university's signature (at right), which combines the shield with the current wordmark, and indicated that Communications & Public Affairs will be working on the identity refinements, looking to full implementation in the upcoming winter term.

The president also spoke about the impact of Waterloo's scholarship and research. "I'm very pleased with the performance of this university," he said as he highlighted the rapid pace of technological change and its effect on education, the increase in international student mobility, and the role of graduate studies in cementing the university's position as a research-intensive institution.

During the Q&A period, the president, provost, and other leaders answered 20 questions that came from the floor, from emails, and, for the first time, from Twitter during the town hall proceedings.

The questions from the audience, both in-person and virtual, had to do with everything from fundraising to online education to campus mental health and campus aesthetics (not that the two are connected). Among the issues raised:

• The university’s physical expansion – “We continue to grow our plant because we must,” Hamdullahpur said. “We are challenged to find appropriate classrooms and social spaces for students. We are hiring more faculty members than many other U15 universities. If you look at our growth, we’re behind that growth in terms of our physical capacity to operate.”

• Mental health on campus – “One of the big activities through the university community was Mental Health Wellness Day on campus,” said Associate Provost, Students Chris Read. “On the student side we took a large review that concluded in the summer, and are moving ahead with the recommendations in the report to improve our services to students on campus.” Read also mentioned the mental health component of the Health Services building expansion, which was built with student financial support.

• English-language support for international students – “We are looking at our choices for that,” said Sallie Ann Keller, who spoke of the support that currently exists through Renison’s English Language Institute and agreements with Conestoga College. “English preparedness is an important factor for student success and confidence and we take the pulse of the marketplace in Canada and beyond, and make sure Sallie and Feridun are aware of the needs of potential students,” Registrar Ken Lavigne added. “We need to build our capacity strategically to build bridging programs to bring high-quality students up to speed.”

• International co-operative education and travel advisories – “No, we will not be sending students to countries with DFAIT Level 3 and 4 advisories,” said the provost after a question was asked about the practice of international students relying on their home networks to find jobs if a JobMine search proves unsuccessful. “We have to work harder to place our students here. The risk from my perspective is too high…we want to keep our students safe.” A Level 3 travel advisory indicates people should avoid non-essential travel to the area, while a Level 4 designation warns to avoid all travel.

• Online education – “Our thinking is that online is not replacing classroom interaction, however, at one point we may use a combination of classroom plus an online approach to maximize benefits,” the president said.

The video recording of the town hall meeting will be posted online shortly.

Photograph by Jessica Bott, Light Imaging.

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Where is it? winner named and other notes

Waterloo International has released the results of their "Where is it?" history and geography quiz, and Faculty of Science student Dan Jose has been declared the winner with a perfect 20/20 score. The runner-up is Tom Graham of Plant Operations. Anyone who participated in the contest is invited to stop by Waterloo International's office on the first floor of Needles Hall this week to see how they did.

University of Oxford professor Paul Collier, a world expert in the causes and consequences of civil war and the effects of aid, delivers this year's Hagey Lecture tonight in the Humanities Theatre at 8:00 p.m. (free admission). His lecture is entitled "Will Africa's resource scramble lead to development or disaster?" Collier is a Professor of Economics and the Director for the Centre for the Study of African Economies at the University of Oxford. He has authored a number of critically acclaimed books, and writes for the Independent, the New York Times, the Financial Times, the Wall Street Journal, and the Washington Post.

An event called Waterloo West Neighbour Fest is being organized by the students of REC 220, Program Management, and is scheduled to take place on Saturday, November 24 from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. It will be held at the Stork Family Y and John M. Harper Library.

"Gathering in public spaces and participating in structured recreational activities together helps build a greater sense of community and collective well-being," says class professor Troy Glover.

This innovative service-learning experience allows Recreation and Leisure Studies students the opportunity to apply the skills they're learning in the classroom while also contributing to the local community. The event is free and open to the public. More details about the event can be found online.

And finally, a reminder that online voting for the University of Waterloo Staff Association (UWSA) president closes at 5:00 p.m. today. Members of the UWSA are eligible to vote in the election.

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