Food trucks line up at tech park "streatery"

The University of Waterloo is no stranger to food trucks. Most of them, however, tend to be delivering food supplies to the Student Life Centre or servicing workers at construction sites.

The David Johnston Research + Technology Park is driving in a different direction: this week, a convoy of gourmet food trucks has been parked outside TechTown from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. daily, serving up a diverse menu of internal combustion engine-conveyed comestibles.

According to the R+T Park, the trucks will be in place on weekdays from May to October.

 

Patrons can grab and go, or enjoy their lunches on the patio (weather permitting) or in the TechTown atrium (also weather permitting), which has been fitted out with café furniture for this new service.

Each truck, which operates under the umbrella of United Food Trucks, has a variety of payment methods, but cash, debit and credit are the standard options.

The lineup of trucks is set to differ from day to day, but will include the Great British Bake, Luchador, FoCheezy, and West of Seoul.

Photograph by Darcy Casselman.

 

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Latest LITE grant winners announced

by Julie Timmermans.

"In collaboration with the Office of the Associate Vice President, Academic, the Centre for Teaching Excellence is pleased to announce that three new LITE Seed Grant projects were funded through the February 2014 competition," writes the Centre for Teaching Excellence's Julie Timmermans. "Congratulations to the recipients!"

The funded projects are:

• Blended Learning: Development and Evaluation of E-modules to Enhance Undergraduate Learning in Biomechanics, Andrew Laing, Kinesiology; Justin Yates, Kinesiology; Brett Beston, CTE; and Kelly Anthony, School of Public Health and Health Systems
• Experiential Learning via Longitudinal Design Cases in the Chemical Engineering Curriculum,  Marios Ioannidis, William A. Anderson, Ariel Chan, Jason Grove, and Christine Moresoli; Department of Chemical Engineering
• Intercultural Encounters, Grit Liebscher, Emma Betz, Michael Boehringer, and Christine Kampen Robinson; Department of Germanic & Slavic Studies

Projects are set to begin this May. 

The LITE Grants are intended to provide support for experimenting with and investigating innovative approaches to enhancing teaching that aim to foster deep student learning at the university.

Two kinds of grants are available: LITE Seed Grants for projects up to $5,000, and LITE Full Grants for projects up to $30,000. Both grant formats emphasize the contribution of the projects to Waterloo's learning community.  The next LITE Seed Grant deadline is June 1^st.  Full Grant proposals are due October 1^st.

For more information about the Grants and to browse descriptions of completed and current projects, please visit the newly redesigned LITE Grant website .

Anyone considering applying for a grant is invited to contact Dr. Julie Timmermans at the Centre for Teaching Excellence via email or by calling extension 32940.

 

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Long Weekend openings and closings

Monday, May 19 is Victoria Day, a statutory holiday in Canada and the unofficial start of the summer season. For those who don't know, Victoria Day honours Queen Victoria, who reigned 1837-1901, and there will be plenty of gardening, picnics, barbecues and fireworks if the weather holds.

No classes will be held Monday. The Columbia Icefield and the Physical Activities Complex will be open from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, May 17 and Sunday, May 18, and are both closed for the Monday holiday.

Retail Services outlets are closed Saturday, Sunday and Monday, reopening Tuesday. The Dana Porter and Davis Centre libraries, on the other hand, will be open from noon to 6:00 p.m.

Food Services locations Bon Appetit, Browser's Café, Brubaker's, the CEIT Café, Eye Opener, Liquid Assets, ML's Coffee Shop, Pastry Plus in Needles Hall, Subway, William's and all Tim Hortons locations are all closed Monday. The SLC Tim Hortons will be closed Saturday and Sunday as well. Mudie's will be open from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, and has menu offerings listed for lunch and dinner on Monday, May 19 (open 8:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m.).

The holiday closures do not affect Festival Fare, the PAS Lounge, Pastry Plus in BMH, and REVelation, which are all closed until September. A full breakdown of locations and hours can be found on the Food Services website.

As usual, UW Police will be available at 519-888-4911 (ext. 22222 on campus). The Turnkey Desk in the Student Life Centre will be open as always, and the maintenance emergencies folks will be around as well at ext. 33793.

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Friday's notes

"The Ontario government recently announced changes to the minimum wage rates effective June 1, 2014, including an increase for the general minimum wage rate from $10.25 to $11.00 per hour," says a notice from Human Resources. "Information is located on the Human Resources website including a link to the government’s website. The majority of our employees are not impacted by this change; however, there may be some employees where attention will be required by managers to ensure compliance. Please direct any questions to the Human Resources department."

"After more than 10 years of service with the University of Waterloo, Lori Gove, Director of Principal Gifts, is leaving on May 23, 2014," writes Sandi Rivers. "The Principal Gifts team is hosting a farewell reception and all are invited!"

The farewell event will take place Friday, May 23 from 2:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. in the Research Advancement Centre (RAC1), room 3004, in the R+T Park.

"Lori has a particular fondness for hats so in her honor, attendees are invited to wear a celebratory hat (sombrero, top hat, pirate hat, party hat, etc.)," Rivers continues. "Write a note of good wishes, inspiration or wisdom in the Wish Book or record a farewell message in the video booth." Anyone with questions can contact Sandi Rivers for more information via email or by calling extension 36059.

 

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