1. Art and Diseño

January 29, 2015 / Vol. 51 No. 4
PM 41195534
westernnews.ca
‘Accidental
philosopher’
STAN BEHAL // SPECIAL TO WESTERN NEWS
Joseph L. Rotman, Western
chancellor and Canadian
philanthropist, dies at 80
BY JASON WINDERS
WHEN JOSEPH ROTMAN turned 60, he faced
a decision on how to define his life’s second act.
Starting in his father’s heating business,
located on Toronto’s Spadina Avenue, Rotman
grew a fortune over three decades as an oil
trader, merchant banker and investor. When it
came time to step away from the business world,
he focused on advice from his earliest days:
“My father taught me that the most powerful way to inspire others to give is for them
to see people giving in their community. He
taught his children, and lived his life, on the
belief that writing the cheque was the easy
part. It is the giving of one’s time and ability
that is more difficult.”
At that moment, he committed himself fully to
public service - philanthropy, volunteerism, even
public policy. He clustered his new life’s work
around key passions. Within health research, he
fueled discovery and pioneered public policy.
Within innovation, he created and shaped
national and provincial agendas through collaborations across the country. Within postsecondary education and the arts, he cemented
a legacy from which generations after him will
benefit.
To each passion, he dedicated – quite strategically – all his resources.
“What I found is, when I turned 60, and
had the opportunity to make a decision
of how to spend the rest of my life, what
became important for me was I wanted
to see my role in a way that was going to
have a positive and enduring impact on
society. Fortunately, I had the freedom to
make that choice. My only regret is what
happens to most people – you don’t start
thinking about your legacy until you’re
close to the end.
My advice for each of you is to consider
‘venture philanthropy’ as a vehicle, as a
means, as path and as a way to think, as
early as possible, so that your desired legacy becomes a catalyst for action, not later,
but today.”
Born Jan. 6, 1935 in Toronto, Rotman was
destined to become ‘an accidental philosopher.’
When he graduated from Forest Hill Collegiate in 1954, his highest mark was a C+.
Nevertheless, he applied to the University of
Toronto’s Commerce and Finance program. He
was not accepted.
“You might not be aware,” he often mentioned when relating this story, “but this group
at U of T is now called the Rotman Commerce
Program.”
Undeterred from continuing his education,
Western’s newspaper of record since 1972
Rotman, BA’57, LLD’09, chose Western.
“Instead of Western being a second choice,”
he told Memorial University graduates in 2013,
“it turned out to be the best thing to happen
to me, and has remained a most powerful influence on my career and whatever success I have
enjoyed.”
Once on campus, Rotman registered for a
Philosophy course. Admittedly, it was a matter
of strategy, not personal interest at the time. He
had not taken the subject in high school, and,
therefore, did not have a C- or a D as a past
record.
In the classroom, Alistair Johnson, the head
of the department, was his professor in the firstyear course, and he took a personal interest in
the young Rotman. By the end of the first year,
Rotman was enraptured by philosophy. In that
discipline, he learned to think and ask questions.
JOSEPH ROTMAN // CONTINUED ON PAGE 9
2
Western News
| January 29, 2015
upload your photos
Coming Events
JAN 29-FEB 4
#
29 // THURSDAY
MCINTOSH GALLERY
EXHIBITION
Ron Benner: Three Questions. Curated by Julian Haladyn. mcintoshgallery.
ca.
Exhibition continues to Feb. 28.
PHYSICS & ASTRONOMY
COLLOQUIUM
Audrey Bouvier, Earth Sciences, Western. Meteorites: Time capsules of the
origin of the Solar System and terrestrial planets.
1:30 p.m. P&A 100.
CLASSICAL STUDIES
DEPARTMENT
Daryn Lehoux, Queen’s University.
Creatures Born of Mud and Slime:
Spontaneous Generation in Antiquity.
4:30 p.m. SSC 3014.
CHINESE PROGRAM AT HURON
Chinese Film Forum 1 at Huron. War,
Trauma, Memory: John Rabe (multilingual with English subtitle). After the
screening, there will be a discussion
session. Free admission and refreshment served. Contact Dr. Laura Wu at
[email protected].
5:30 p.m. Huron University College.
MEN’S HOCKEY
Windsor at Western.
7 p.m.
MEN’S VOLLEYBALL
Ryerson at Western.
2 p.m.
DON WRIGHT
FACULTY OF MUSIC
Flute masterclass: Lisa Cella, University of Maryland, Baltimore County.
7:30 p.m. von Kuster Hall.
MEN’S HOCKEY
Waterloo at Western.
4 p.m.
30 // FRIDAY
DON WRIGHT
FACULTY OF MUSIC
Based in London, the Light of East Ensemble brings their passion for music
of the near and Middle East.
12:30 p.m. von Kuster Hall.
DON WRIGHT
FACULTY OF MUSIC
Ripples with flutist Lisa Cella. Solo
works for flute, alto flute and bass flute.
6 p.m. von Kuster Hall.
WOMEN’S HOCKEY
Toronto at Western.
7 p.m.
BASKETBALL
York at Western.
Women’s 6 p.m. Men’s 8 p.m.
DON WRIGHT
FACULTY OF MUSIC
UWOpera presents Puccini’s beloved
opera, La Bohéme. Tickets $30/$20,
available through Grand Theatre, 519672-8800 or tickets.grandtheatre.com.
music.uwo.ca.
8 p.m. Jan. 30, 31, Feb. 6, 7; 2 p.m.
Feb 1, 8 Paul Davenport Theatre.
31 // SATURDAY
WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL
Lakehead at Western.
12 p.m.
tag with #westernu
@westernuniversity
reduced cost and improved safety.
9:30 a.m. UCC, McKellar Room.
4 // WEDNESDAY
WOMEN’S HOCKEY
Ryerson at Western.
7 p.m.
BASKETBALL
Queen’s at Western.
Women’s 6 p.m. Men’s 8 p.m.
1 // SUNDAY
WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL
Brock at Western.
1 p.m.
MEN’S VOLLEYBALL
RMC at Western.
3 p.m.
MODERN LANGUAGE &
LITERATURE COLLOQUIA
Joyce Bruhn de Garavito, Object drop
and knowledge of articles in L2 Spanish.
11:30 a.m. UC 205.
TOASTMASTER’S CAMPUS
COMMUNICATORS
Build your confidence in public speaking. Meets every Wednesday. 9119.
toastmastersclubs.org/. Contact Donna Moore, [email protected] or 85159.
12-1 p.m. UCC 147B.
THE CHINESE PROGRAM AT
HURON UNIVERSITY COLLEGE
Lunch and conversation. Anyone wishing to speak Chinese and meet people
who study Chinese at Huron is wel-
2 // MONDAY
PHYSIOLOGY AND
PHARMACOLOGY SEMINAR
Stephen Pasternak, Western. Where
does Amyloid come from? Live cell
imaging, Lysosomes and Neurodegenerative disease.
4 p.m. MSB 282.
3 // TUESDAY
SENIOR ALUMNI PROGRAM
Terry Peters, Robarts Research Institute and Departments of Medical Imaging; Medical Biophysics; Biomedical Engineering, Western, on virtual
reality to guide surgical procedures
minimally invasive procedures that
provide the same patient outcome as
conventional surgery with less trauma,
POSTGRADUATE
CERTIFICATE
FROM MEDIA PLANNING AND
MANAGEMENT TO ACCOUNT
COORDINATION AND SALES, THIS
PROGRAM OFFERS THE UNIQUE
SKILLS YOU WILL NEED TO LAUNCH
YOUR CAREER AS ACCOUNT
COORDINATOR, MEDIA SALES
REPRESENTATIVE, MEDIA BUYER,
MEDIA PLANNER, AND MANY
OTHER EXCITING CAREER OPTIONS.
business.humber.ca/postgrad
51
44
65
17
07-Fred Negus_Ad_PENSION_v9.indd 1
2015-01-27 3:33 PM
flickr.com/groups/western/
come. Bring your own lunch and join
the conversation. [email protected].
12:30-1:30 p.m. Huron A18.
THE DEPARTMENT OF MODERN
LANGUAGES AND LITERATURES
La Tertulia. Anyone wishing to speak
Spanish and meet people from different Spanish-speaking countries is
welcome. [email protected].
4:30 p.m. UC 205.
KING’S - 12TH ANNUAL
CULTURAL FESTIVAL
Featuring 12 performances, booths
and food. kings.uwo.ca/cultural-festival. Email [email protected].
ca.
6-10 p.m. Joanne and Peter Kenny
Theatre, Darryl J. King Student Life
Centre.
GERMAN FILM SERIES
Die Blechtrommel (Tin Drum). German with English subtitles.
6:30 p.m. UC 207.
Western News
| January 29, 2015
3
Western Reads
Alice doesn’t live here
Lynn Coady explains how hell isn’t what you expect
Set to re-launch next month after
a six-year absence, Western Reads
2015 focuses on three short-story
collections written by Canadian
women. Western News reporter
Adela Talbot sat down with Lynn
Coady, author of the February
selection, Hellgoing, to discuss
inspirations, misconceptions and
the fact she ‘is nothing like Alice
Munro.’
•••
What set you on the path of writing?
From when I was young, I always liked stories
and was always writing stories. It was this thing
I did, that I found I got affirmation for. Teachers would single me out as someone who was
good at writing. People seemed to respond to
my stories.
It seemed to be the thing that gave me affirmation from the universe and told me I was
on the right track, in what I should be doing. It
provided escape, and fun, and a kind of comfort
in being able to create my own world.
Where did those early stories come from?
I don’t really know. I was growing up in smalltown Nova Scotia; I wasn’t really reading stories
that resembled my experience at all. I was reading stories about people in England, the States,
and it kind of conditions you to believe, at that
age, that nobody writes stories about the kind
of life that I live. So, you start off trying to write
those stories.
But then, when I started to get older, 18-19-20,
I started to actively seek out Canadian writers
and writers from my area. And I started to realize
people from my part of the world could write
their stories as well. And it was kind of a turning point for me. That’s when I started focusing
on my own world and mining my own life for
material.
Who were you reading, then, when you
started to discover your own experience in
text?
I was reading Alistair MacLeod, David Adams
Richards, Alden Nowlan. Dave Richards’ work,
SPECIAL TO WESTERN NEWS
Lynn Coady is the author of Hellgoing, a collection of short stories and the first installment in this year’s session of Western Reads. If you
pick up the book, she said, expecting to read something like Alice Munro, you won’t find what you’re looking for.
(laughs) it was sad – but had a lot of humour,
too. I really appreciated that and responded to
that, because Maritime literature, for whatever
reason, can be grim sometimes. And that’s not
really what I wanted to do. I think maybe my
books have certain depressing elements, but
they have humour, too.
Where does inspiration come from, for you?
Characters are what inspire me most – people,
thinking about their contradictions, yearnings
and failings. I’m really interested in character and
fundamental human dilemmas. For whatever
reason, a certain situation or some little idea
about a character will get stuck in my head, and
I won’t know why, and I’ll just start obsessing
about that character, and they will grow in my
mind until there’s a story to be born.
Tell me about something difficult you’ve
encountered in writing. Is there a work that
you struggled through? Why?
I guess the last story in Hellgoing – that story
came from a deep, subconscious place, I think.
As I was writing it, I was feeling my way in the
dark because I didn’t really know – I was really
interested in these characters and their relationships, but I didn’t really know why. It was through
writing this story that I was going to figure this
out. And it took a long time; it took about a year
of writing and rewriting before I started to understand what the contours of the relationship were,
and what it was that was so compelling about
these two characters.
What kind of misconceptions have you run
into about your work?
Oftentimes, I see reviews and stuff where
people find my point of view grim or cold, or
just sort of overly pessimistic, about people. And
I find that kind of baffling. I think it’s got to be a
taste issue. These are people who tend to read
more overtly optimistic stories, I think.
The other thing that was a little bit frustrating
was when I won the Giller – the year Alice Munro
won the Nobel Prize – I found myself being kind
of held up alongside Alice Munro a lot. And my
work was.
People were saying, ‘You write short stories;
GET YOUR READ ON
Alice Munro writes short stories,’ and I think
people who weren’t familiar with my work picked
up Hellgoing thinking it was going to be like
reading Alice Munro, and they were sorely disappointed.
There are some cranky reviews on Amazon
about that saying, ‘This is nothing like Alice
Munro!’
What is success for you, at the end of the day?
Success for me is just being able to write
without starving to death, having that be my fulltime vocation. And that’s a really difficult thing to
achieve, and it means I’m not always writing fiction to achieve that. I’ve been writing television
a lot lately. It’s satisfying in different ways than
writing fiction. But just being creative full-time
without being hungry is all I’ve wanted out of life.
What would you like to say to Western alumni
and community readers who pick up Hellgoing?
Enjoy the book. Some people take issue with
the ending; they find it weird, abrupt or unsatisfying. And I just ask that readers be open. The
thing that frustrates me sometimes is hearing
people say, ‘You did the ending wrong.’ But I
meant for it to be that way.
To participate in Western Reads, register online at alumni.westernu.ca/learn/western-reads/. The first 100 people to
register will receive a free copy of one of this session’s books. Follow Western Reads on Twitter @westernuReads, use
#purplereads and sign up for Facebook events.
4
Western News
| January 29, 2015
Yes, that’s with a ‘B’
Western News (ISSNO3168654), a publication of Western University’s Department
of Communications and
Public Affairs, is published
every Thursday throughout
the school year and operates
under a reduced schedule
during December, May, June,
July and August.
An award-winning weekly
newspaper and electronic
news service, Western News
serves as the university’s
newspaper of record. The
publication traces its roots
to The University of Western
Ontario Newsletter, a onepage leaflet-style publication
which debuted on Sept. 23,
1965. The first issue of the
Western News, under founding editor Alan Johnston, was
published on Nov. 16, 1972
replacing the UWO Times
and Western Times. Today,
Western News continues to
provide timely news, information and a forum for discussion of postsecondary issues
in the campus and broader
community.
WE STERN NEWS
WesternNews.ca
Westminster Hall, Suite 360
Western University
London, ON N6A 3K7
Telephone 519 661-2045
Fax 519 661-3921
Western’s annual economic impact pegged at $11.3 billion
BY JASON WINDERS
PETER WHITE THINKS the numbers speak for
themselves.
“This (report) reconfirms what everyone knows –
Western has a huge impact on the city,” said White,
the university’s executive director, government relations and strategic partnerships. “But being able
to put this feeling into the specific perspectives of
numbers and people, and where those things take
place, that’s important for people to see.”
Released Tuesday, the Western University: Economic Impact Study Final Report placed the university’s total annual economic impact at $11.3
billion – with $3.6 billion of that felt in London. The
study found 15,480 jobs in Canada are connected to
Western – 10,840 in London alone.
“Western is deeply embedded into London’s
social and economic fabric,” said Amit Chakma,
president and vice-chancellor. “As we grow and
play a larger role on the international stage, we are
confident our position as a key contributor to the
economy will continue to strengthen.”
From April to June 2014, KPMG LLP undertook
an economic impact study in order to determine
the university’s estimated economic impact taking
into account everything from enrolment, employment and innovation to commercialization of new
discoveries and company creation locally, regionally
and nationally. Western’s affiliate colleges are not
included in this study, which is based on data from
2012-2013.
The university had not conducted an economic
impact study since the late-1990s.
KPMG credited the university with contributing
$1.62 billion to Canada’s GDP through spending
on operations and $146 million to Canada’s GDP
– $120 million of that in London – due to capital
investments.
Locally, the university injected $293 million in
student living expenses to the economy, as well as
$46 million as a result of an estimated 190,000 visitornights to Western.
“Unfortunately, we sometimes end up with negative stories on universities and their students’ impact
in communities,” White said. “But I think the reality
is – and these numbers show this – there are a lot of
great things with regard to student impact in London.
“Postsecondary education is a real strong segment for London’s economy. What we do at Western, and with Fanshawe College’s impact on the
east side of the city, postsecondary education is
huge segment for the City of London in terms of
economy, GDP and employment.”
Research undertaken at Western, and its two
Research Parks, is estimated to have an annual
cumulative contribution of $2.06 billion to GDP in
Ontario – $720 million of that in London.
Western alumni living in Ontario improved their
earnings by $4.95 billion as a result of their education at Western ($1.15 billion among alumni living in
London). The estimated direct, indirect and induced
impacts of this additional income are $7.43 billion in
Ontario ($1.71 billion in London).
“The reality is, we are an extremely important part
of London’s economy,” White said.
INSIDE TODAY
Read highlights from the KPMG Western University: Economic
Impact Study Final Report, Western News special insert.
MUSTANG MEMORIES
PHOTOS PROVIDED BY THE
JOHN P. METRAS MUSEUM
Western’s first senior intercollegiate men’s
volleyball team was launched late, as the
first team was put together in 1965-66 with
Dutch Decker as coach. But it didn’t take
long for the university to make a name for
itself in the men’s volleyball world – the
team won its first championship in 1967-68.
They repeated in 1968-69 (pictured), winning the O-QAA title and fighting its way
to the CIAU final, losing a heartbreaker to
the undefeated University of Winnipeg
Wesmen.
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Jason Winders
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R E P O RT E R / P H O T O G R A P H E R
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isit John P. Metras Museum on InsV
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We hope you will read it and
contribute to it.”
– L.T. Moore,
University Relations
and Information director,
Nov. 16, 1972
COMMENTARY POLICY
• Western News applies a commentary label to any article
written in an author’s voice expressing an opinion.
• Western News accepts opinion pieces on research, conference topics, student life and/or international experiences from faculty and staff. Limit is 600 words.
• Western News accepts ‘In memoriam’ pieces about
recently deceased members of the Western community
penned by other members of the Western community.
• Western News accepts opinion pieces on current events
that showcase research or academic expertise of the
author.
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words maximum, and accepted only from members of
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rewrite or reject any submission, and will outright reject
those based on personal attacks or covering subjects too
removed from the university community.
• Western News will offer rebuttal space on any topic,
and may actively pursue a counterpoint to arguments
the editor feels would benefit from a dissenting opinion
published simultaneously.
• All submissions become property of Western News for
print and online use in perpetuity.
Opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of or receive endorsement from Western News or Western University.
Western News
Lecture
Black sells new
methods for old system
ERIC GREEN // SPECIAL TO WESTERN NEWS
Author, entrepreneur and media tycoon Conrad Black visited Western last weekend as part of the Social
Science Students’ Council’s academic conference, ‘Capitalism in Today’s Society.’ Black spoke about capitalism
and listed a number of strategies that Canada could implement in order to strengthen its economic position.
BY ERIC GREEN
CONTROVERSIAL AUTHOR, ENTREPRENEUR and
media magnate, ex-Canadian Conrad Black appeared at
Western this past Sunday to discuss the current state and
importance of capitalism in the modern world.
The Social Science Students’ Council (SSSC) held its
academic conference, ‘Capitalism in Today’s Society,’ which
brought together all 11 departments within the faculty.
While Saturday’s talks by professors Maude Barlow,
Anton Allahar and Jean-Philipe Vergne, focused on the
negative impacts of capitalism in society, Black’s keynote
address touched on downsides but also affirmed his belief
that capitalism is still the ideal economic system for any
society.
“[Capitalism] is indeed, I suggest to you, the best economic system because it is the only one that conforms to
the practically universal human desire for more,” Black said.
He went on to say not recognizing this notion is the ultimate failing of left wing thinkers, who want to ‘share,’ in as
much as it means confiscating the property and wealth of
others. People, Black said, are largely opposed to having
what is theirs taken away and, because of that, it is necessary for us, as a society, to implement new policies and
strategies to give the wealthy a legitimate reason to work
towards the abolishment of poverty.
Black listed a number of strategies that Canada could
implement in order to strengthen its economic position.
One of his main points was with the establishment of a
wealth tax that would be self-eliminating as the percentage
of people living in poverty decreased.
Essentially, he suggested, those worth more than $5
million would be required to pay a 1 per cent tax towards
alleviating poverty, but not to the government. The money
would go to social assistance systems designed by those
paying the tax themselves. In this way, Black said, we
provide an incentive for the wealthy to help those less
fortunate.
He suggested Canada should establish private sector
health care in order to alleviate pressure on the public
sector, and to provide incentives for doctors to stay and
work in Canada, reducing taxes on essential spending, like
groceries and clothing, while increasing taxes on elective
spending on luxury items.
While Black’s presentation received resounding
applause, the event was not without controversy.
One panellist dropped out of the conference in protest
of Black’s position as keynote speaker, due to his criminal
convictions, while a small number of protestors stood
outside the event.
Black said he had not intended to discuss his legal
issues, as they had no real bearing on the subject he had
been asked to address. In light of the situation, however,
he took a moment to defend himself.
“I gather that I’m being boycotted by a couple of people
on grounds of my alleged moral turpitude, as demonstrated by the workings of the American legal system,
Black said.
“No sane person acquainted with the case could possibly imagine that I broke any laws, and I didn’t – I wouldn’t
dream of such a thing. There wouldn’t have been any
charges … in any civilized nation outside the U.S. So the
people who boycotted me, for that reason, have made a
mistake.”
| January 29, 2015
5
6
Western News
| January 29, 2015
Academics
Among a number of examples
on campus, Doerksen mentioned
Commercial Aviation Management
professor Susanne Kearns and her
use of ‘snap courses,’ short, contentfocused presentations that can be
delivered even by way of mobile
applications.
Tom Haffie, a lecturer in Biology,
also got a nod for being among the
first to use clickers in a Western classroom as a way to engage students
and drive active learning.
“Kem Rogers in Schulich is looking
at how students learn in a face-to-face
environment versus an online learning environment. He’s doing the same
course and doing some research on
what’s the impact on learning from
these different learning modalities,”
Doerksen added.
“I think we’re going to see evidence-based practice and best
practice for continued learning and
growth at Western.”
The provost’s office is investing in
a teaching fellows program with a
focus on e-learning. It is also exploring options to develop clusters of
courses online, enabling students to
do an entire module online. Teaching
terms of reference and a teaching
award to recognize contribution in
technology-enabled learning is also
coming down the pipeline, Doerksen
added.
“There’s no question that lectures
well delivered are a critical part of
pedagogy, but if we look at other
ways of engaging our students, we
can find ways to engage them as partners in learning through technology.”
The new website includes an introductory video and features professors
from all faculties sharing their experiences teaching with technology, as
well as an eLearning toolkit with links
to teaching strategies and software
resources.
B Y A D E L A TA L B O T
BY NOW, YOU’VE likely read the
email. But what can, and what should,
you do now that you’ve read it?
A note from Vice-Provost (Academic Programs) John Doerksen
landed in faculty inboxes earlier this
week, spreading the word about the
state of e-learning and new technology-enhanced teaching initiatives
taking place at Western.
The note is tied to the recent
launch of the new eLearning at Western website, hosted by the Teaching
Support Centre (TSC) and meant to
be an informative and supportive
hub for faculty and staff interested in
technology-enhanced learning.
“We’re in a great place with
e-learning now at Western. The overarching goal, at least in my mind,
or, what we’ve heard from the task
force, is that (e-learning) is driven by
academic priorities,” Doerksen said.
Nearly two years have passed since
an e-learning task force was asked to
produce a report to the provost, outlining priorities and goals in technology-enhanced learning on campus.
Since then, Doerksen noted, progress
has been made and every year, more
and more students are showing a
demand for fully online courses. This
year, there are 13,000 online enrolments alone.
But online courses are not what
define e-learning, Doerksen continued.
“At Western, we are interested in
the whole spectrum. What’s the principle driving e-learning at Western? It
really is academic engagement. It’s an
academic priority we are working to
address,” he said.
“E-learning won’t be the right thing
for every course or discipline, but we
are talking about the full spectrum,
where on one end, you have the fully
online course, and on the other end,
you could have a course with minimal
engagement with e-learning, and just
using Sakai.”
In the middle, there are plenty of
options available to faculty, lecturers
and teaching assistants who wish to
enrich students’ learning experience,
Doerksen added. Varied classroom
technologies and tools are available
with support at the ready from the
TSC. Online resources are out there,
and even publishers of class books
and materials are getting on board
and providing online tools to accompany traditional texts. Blended learning is a formal structure now, too,
Doerksen explained, with components of classes available online in
addition to occasional face-to-face
interaction.
All of these options are currently
being explored by professors and
instructors in just about every program and faculty. For those wishing
to incorporate more technology and
web-based tools in their teaching,
or for those who want to design a
course online, help is always available
through the TSC and the Instructional
Technology Research Centre on campus.
Some faculty members might be
hesitant to move towards technology-enhanced learning initiatives but,
Doerksen said, an open mind is all
“We’re in a great
place with e-learning
now at Western. The
overarching goal, at
ILLUSTRATION BY FRANK NEUFELD
that’s needed.
“I would say if we take the opportunity to look for the possibilities, we
might surprise ourselves. I encourage
faculty colleagues to go to the new
Western Active Learning Space. When
you walk into that space, you realize
there’s lots of technology, students
can work together in pods, linked by
technology. It’s really designed for
student active learning, and when you
walk in and play around with the technology, try to imagine how you could
convey core disciplinary knowledge
and see how can that technology can
help,” he said.
“We also have to keep in mind
students’ own expectations. Students
are coming to us as digital natives.
They’re vary familiar with technology
and this is a way for us, in the context
of our teaching mission, to actually be
able to use the tools they’re familiar
with to reach our students,” Doerksen
said.
“I think we have a lot of great champions (of e-learning) across campus.
One of the things that’s been great is
seeing these colleagues get together
and form a community of practice.”
least in my mind, or,
what we’ve heard
from the task force,
is that (e-learning) is
driven by academic
priorities.”
- John Doerksen
Vice-Provost (Academic Programs)
Western News
| January 29, 2015
7
Professors, instructors and teaching assistants across all faculties are using
technology to help them teach and engage students. Here are just two
examples of how technology is enhancing both the traditional classroom
experience and the online learning experience at Western.
om Haffie was among those who
pioneered the use of clickers in
the classroom roughly a decade
ago.
Technology has come a long
way since then, but his classroom
has kept up, using clickers and so
much more to enhance the student
learning environment, to make lessons engaging, and himself available
to a class that might have an enrollment of 700 students.
“I started with overheads, writing
out my overheads the night before
and revealing them as we go. But I
got frustrated with that really quickly
and I started carrying a Mac SE on
my back to the classroom. There was
a projection plate that went on the
overhead so I made little animations
to make things move in class,” Haffie
said of his first foray into technologyenhanced learning.
“I’m mostly using a tool to do
something I would have done anyway. Before clickers, I used cards –
people would fold up cards of different colours and hold them. My
interest in technology comes from
just a frustration of not being able to
communicate with students and keep
them engaged.”
In his class, Haffie runs two computers, various software, he records
the class, uses clickers, a tablet and
launches out of PowerPoint to use the
web as well. It can be hard to keep
up, but it’s a valuable and accessible
learning experience for his students.
Recording his class allows his students to access materials after the
lecture and helps with efficiency, he
said. It’s about accessibility, too, and
students being able to help themselves. He also holds office hours
online through OWL and, at any time,
120 people might be online for a discussion.
“And 120 people would never
come to my office,” Haffie said.
With clickers, which he still uses,
he is able to have a conversation with
a large class, garnering audience
response in real-time.
“With clickers, I could discover what
they already knew as a group. I could
adapt and change, and not show the
next slide because (they) already know
that,” Haffie said.
“Technology shrinks the room –
students at the back of my classroom
are reading questions on their iPhone
and clicking in their answers – they’re
engaged in ways people who sit in
back rows typically aren’t,” he went
on.
“(Students) live in a technological
world, and I don’t think they want to
feel like they’re going back in time
when they come into a classroom.
There are certainly times we close the
laptops and put phones away, and
interact differently, but in general,
technology is part of the world and it
seems like it’s an obvious tool for the
classroom.”
documents collectively.
“We are also getting into students
being able to write code. The United
Kingdom is introducing coding for all
grades in the curriculum, so we are
exploring that there,” he continued.
A dozen years ago, we might have
been wondering if online courses and
technology-enhanced learning is the
way to go, Gadanidis said, but it’s valuable in all programs and classrooms.
“Most of my teaching online is
asynchronous partly because some of
the students I have aren’t in same time
zone. But we also use synchronous
groups as well, and I would create
different times when I would invite
students to join to have a face-to-face
discussion online,” he explained.
“I don’t start with technology; I start
with what I want to accomplish – what
is it and how do I structure this learning so it would be meaningful, and
then I look for technological tools that
would help me do that.”
ADELA TALBOT // WESTERN NEWS
ADELA TALBOT // WESTERN NEWS
or George Gadanidis, e-learning
is an integral part of his approach
to teaching – which you could say
is good, because he’s teaching
future teachers.
“Even if I teach face-to-face
classes, we have online components
where students can go to follow up
on discussion and access resources.
In the Bachelor of Education program,
if they are in a practicum, they can
share ideas online, even if they aren’t
together,” Gadanidis said.
Funding over the years has allowed
him to make documentaries of
research he has done in classrooms,
which are available online for his students to learn from.
With colleagues and other students, Gadanidis also designs interactive content for students, allowing
them to play with mathematical concepts and ideas online. He uses wikis,
as part of his lesson plans, asking
students to write and to contribute to
8
Western News
| January 29, 2015
‘Tabla for one’
POSTGRADUATE
CERTIFICATE
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PAUL MAYNE // WESTERN NEWS
Highly sought-after tabla performer and educator Shawn Mativetsky shared his love of north Indian classical
music – with a blend Western contemporary – last week at the Don Wright Faculty of Music’s Friday Concert
Series. Based in Montreal, Mativetsky teaches tabla and percussion at McGill University. For more information
on upcoming concerts and performances in Music, visit music.uwo.ca.
Western News
| January 29, 2015
9
s
ew t
N er
rn ns
te l I
es cia
W e
Sp
ECONOMIC
IMPACT
Western University’s
Economic Impact
Highlights
201 5
10
Western News
| January 29, 2015
Western News
| January 29, 2015
Making Significant
Economic Contributions
Partnering for
Success
Research, Innovation
& Entrepreneurship
Western University welcomed its first students in 1878, and
is deeply embedded in the social and economic fabric of
London, and is a key contributor to the economic success of
the province and nation as a whole.
Western and the City of London have enjoyed a long, proud
history of collaborating to strengthen the University and the
City. Thousands of faculty, staff, students and alumni call
the Forest City home. It is here, they have built their lives
and communities.
In 2012-13, Western attracted more than $245 million in
research funding from government, industry, donors and
internal sources.
To explore the depths of these contributions, Western recently commissioned KPMG Management Consulting
to conduct a study to estimate the economic impact of the University’s activities from enrolment, employment,
innovation, commercialization of new discoveries and company creation within a local, regional and national context. It
concluded that Western is clearly making an impact.
The following information comes from the KPMG Economic Impact Study 2015, and counts the years 2012-13, unless
otherwise noted.
Study Highlights
With outstanding academic programming and robust research, Western is an economic engine that helps ensure
London continues to grow and flourish. It is also one of Canada’s Top 100 Employers.
WORLDiscoveries® is the business development arm of London’s research institutions, providing a bridge from local
innovation and invention to global industry. Since 2008, it has facilitated the creation
of 12 spin-off companies.
10,840 jobs
$120 million
Western generated nearly $23 million in royalty and licensing income, and holds 198 patents and more than
100 active licenses.
added to London GDP in 2012-13
through capital investments
$1.62 billion
estimated impact of improved annual
earnings by Western alumni living in
Ontario in 2013
contributed to Canada’s GDP on an
ongoing basis due to expenditures
related to Western
$293 million
$46 million
in living expenses of students
originating from outside of London
and the surrounding areas
added to the local economy as a
result of an estimated 190,000
visitor-nights to Western
estimated annual cumulative
contribution to GDP in Ontario due to
productivity gains from research
million
contributed to Canada’s GDP in 2012-13
due to capital investments
Western is becoming an increasingly attractive environment for research, witnessing an 11 per cent increase in research
funding since 2009. This aligns with the view held by stakeholders that Western’s most valuable and attractive economic
asset is its multidisciplinary research capabilities.
Study Highlights
$7.43 billion
$2.06 billion
Research
Commercialization
connected to Western in London
ECONOMIC
IMPACT
$146
3
.
1
1
$billion
11
Western had the third highest gross licensing income among Canada’s research-intensive universities in 2013.
6
.
3
$billion
t al
’s To ct
n
r
e
t
Wes
Impa
m ic
o
n
o
Ec
n don
in Lo
ECONOMIC
IMPACT
Impacting Businesses and Organizations
Western supports existing businesses through access to:
• Leading researchers and students
• Business development guidance for start-ups and small- and medium-sized enterprise
• Physical facilities that may otherwise be out of reach for companies
Leading-edge facilities, researchers and guidance are found in Western’s two London Research Parks, which are
considered to be among the region’s most attractive features for SMEs currently operating in London or considering
relocating to the city. In a recent survey, UBI Index ranked Western’s Research Parks 22nd in the Global Top 25 University
Business Incubators of 2014.
t al
’s To ct
n
r
e
t
Wes
Impa
m ic
o
n
o
Ec
2
Western University | Economic Impact 2015
Western University | Economic Impact 2015
3
12
Western News
| January 29, 2015
Additional Social &
Economic Impacts
Growing the Local
& National Economy
Human Capital
In 2013 Western alumni living in Ontario improved their earnings by almost $5
billion as a result of their education at Western. Of this total, approximately 23 per
cent accrues to those living in the City of London. The estimated total direct, indirect
and induced impacts of this additional income is $7.43 billion in Ontario and $1.71
billion in London.
More than 16,000 Western graduates have taken their talents to international
markets and communities, allowing for the creation of an extensive global network
of alumni. This influence may be best represented by graduates of the Ivey Business
School who currently occupy leadership roles in 102 countries.
Supporting the Needs of the Community
Western is home to many public and community-based partnerships, providing
community-accessible services including health, legal and educational supports.
Western also undertakes many community-based research activities. Ranging
from obesity to dementia, built environment to homelessness, food security to
Indigenous knowledge, Western’s inclusive community-based research activities are
shaping public policy through collaboration.
Western promotes quality of life in London and the surrounding communities by
making its resources and space available to outside groups and individuals. Drawing
thousands to campus annually, Western’s programs, events and activities provide
vital services, promote life-long learning, provide specialized expertise, enhance
physical well-being as
well as build professional and social networks.
Key Facts
Western spends approximately $1 billion
annually as a result of its ongoing
operations. Other organizations and
individuals also make expenditures on
goods and services and job creation that
would not have been made in Western’s
absence, contributing to the economy
locally, provincially and nationally.
Highlights
15,480 jobs
$1.62 billion
connected to Western nationally
value-added by Western to the
Canadian economy annually
ECONOMIC
$960
IMPACT
million
Western’s operating expenditures
and those of related entities
Increased earnings
Impact of increased earnings
$4.95 billion
$7.43 billion
improved earnings of alumni living in
Ontario as a result of their education
at Western
estimated total direct, indirect and
induced economic impacts of this
additional income in Ontario
$1.14 billion
$1.71 billion
improved earnings of alumni living
in London as a result of their education
at Western
estimated total direct, indirect and
induced economic impacts of this
additional income in London
Western makes a significant investment in various types of capital
including new construction, major building renovations, housing renovations,
as well as utilities and infrastructure projects. In 2012-13, Western invested
$137 million in capital expenditures and created about 1,560 person-years of
employment and contributed an additional $146 million to GDP in Canada.
the
by
Western University | Economic Impact 2015
impact of Western research on
London’s GDP
Capital Investment
ni
m
s
Alurning ers
ea numb
4
$720 million
t
c
a
Imp
d
lly an
locaionally
nat
Western News
| January 29, 2015
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“My father taught me that the most powerful
way to inspire others to give is for them to
see people giving in their community. He
taught his children, and lived his life, on
the belief that writing the cheque was the
easy part. It is the giving of one’s time and
ability that is more difficult.”
- Joseph L. Rotman
JOSEPH ROTMAN // CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
Until his final days, Rotman credited Johnson for changing his life.
“Today, I can honestly say I would not have had the
success I have had without that philosophy training.
Because of that, I have made it my personal mission
– be it through where I donate my time and money
or how I live my life – to promote the virtues of the
discipline. For me, philosophy is more than a passion;
I have an unshakeable belief in its value as I do in the
value of a university education, no matter your pursuit.
But I am not so blind as to think my opinion is shared
by all.
You read the papers. University educations, particularly ones in the humanities, are under attack. They
question our ‘value’ in the world. They view us as
weathered volumes stored on dusty shelves, pulled
down only during our time on campus when they
pack us away to make room for other items in their
post-graduation lives. They see what we have to offer
as stagnant, stuck in a time of tunics. To many, we are
quaint.
But we know that isn’t true. The questions we ask, the
answers we explore are as relevant, as modern and
as necessary today as at any other time in our history.
In fact, the ‘value’ earned through the intellectual
heavy-lifting necessary for a university degree bears
the hopes of a better future.
Our problem is simple; we’re not very good at sharing
that message.
I am proud of my training as a philosopher. I want
to share the insight I gained at Western, the orderly
thinking I was trained to employ there, at every
opportunity.”
SPECIAL TO WESTERN NEWS
Following graduation, Rotman stayed connected to
Western for the remainder of his life.
In 1999, he established the Rotman Canada Research
Chair in Philosophy of Science, to enhance the research
and training capacities in the origins and nature of scientific
theory and the impact of scientific theories on society.
In 2008, his $4 million donation established the Rotman Institute of Philosophy, an internationally recognized
forum in which philosophers and other humanists engage
scientists on problems of global relevance, and to address
issues faced by society.
In 2009, he was presented an honorary degree from
Western.
In 2012, he was named the university’s 21st chancellor.
“My goal as chancellor is to try and help the university
achieve excellence – the very basis of what makes any
university great – the ability of its students and scholars to think creatively, independently and usefully.
Western has been one of Canada’s great academic
powerhouses for many years. I see all kinds of potential to expand its strengths and reputation across the
country and well beyond.”
Joseph L. Rotman died Tuesday, Jan. 27. He was 80.
He is survived by Sandra Frieberg, his wife since 1959,
and their two children, Janis and Kenneth.
Funeral service will be held Friday, Jan. 30 at 1:30 p.m. at
the Holy Blossom Temple (Toronto). Shiva visits Friday after
burial; Saturday 7- 9 p.m.; Sunday and Monday 2-4 p.m.
and 7-9 p.m. Evening services at 8 p.m. Shiva will conclude
Monday evening, Feb. 2.
w estern news
9
10
Western News
| January 29, 2015
Research
Initiative puts five disorders on notice
B Y PA U L M AY N E
“If we can identify markers
of a disease, whether
it be imaging, genetic
or cognitive – or some
combination of those – it
will allow us to possibly
predict five or 10 years
before somebody goes
on to get symptoms of a
neurodegenerative, disease
and potentially, intervene.”
- Robert Bartha
Medical Biophysics professor
Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry
ROBERT BARTHA HOPES his latest research
will allow him to travel back in time when it
comes to aggressively attacking neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s, ALS and
Parkinson’s.
“Our ultimate goal is to try to find ways of early
diagnosis. Understanding what’s changing in the
brain allows us to start looking back in time,”
said Bartha, a Medical Biophysics professor in
the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry. “If
we can identify markers of a disease, whether
it be imaging, genetic or cognitive – or some
combination of those – it will allow us to possibly
predict five or 10 years before somebody goes
on to get symptoms of a neurodegenerative
disease, and potentially, intervene.”
Bartha will lead the imaging platform of the
Ontario Neurodegenerative Disease Research
Initiative (ONDRI) Integrated Discovery Program,
which aims to understand the commonalities
and distinguishing characteristics of five neurodegenerative disorders: Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s,
ALS, frontotemporal lobar dementia and vascular cognitive impairment.
Along with the Robarts Research Institute,
more than 20 participating clinical, academic
and research centres in Hamilton, Kingston,
Ottawa and Toronto are taking part in the study,
the first of its kind in the world to collect large
amounts of data on a spectrum of neurodegenerative disorders.
“It’s the most complex long-term observational study in the world,” said Schulich Dean
Michael Strong, who is heading up the provincial
program. “It brings together a large group of
more than 50 investigators from across the province of Ontario, four patient advocacy groups
and the industrial sector. No one else is putting
this all together – the commonality of these
neurodegenerative diseases – which makes this
tremendously unique.”
ONDRI aims to enrol 600 participants across
the province in 2015 who will participate in
an array of assessments. These include magnetic resonance imaging and positron emission
tomography brain scans, eye tracking, blood
and gait analysis and cognitive testing.
All of the collected data is being entered into
a central database expected to answer a variety
of different research questions related to diagnosis and treatment of these disorders.
“Being able to correlate these structural and
functional brain changes, with these other mea-
HONORARY DEGREE NOMINATIONS
The Senate Honorary Degrees Committee will meet in April
to select candidates for honorary degrees to be awarded at
Western’s Autumn convocation scheduled in October. To ensure
that consideration is given to as many worthy candidates as
possible, the Committee invites the submission of nominations
from any member of the university community.
Nomination forms may be downloaded from the following
website: uwo.ca/univsec/senate/convocation/honorary_
degrees.html and submitted electronically to [email protected]
prior to April 22, 2015, for consideration by the
Honorary Degrees Committee.
sures of disease progression, is completely new,
and we will be doing it across different diseases
in a standardized way, following patients over
time,” said Bartha, whose lab focuses on early
onset Alzheimer’s. “We will be able to pinpoint
the differences – and similarities – between the
neurodegenerative diseases. This vast amount
of data will become an important resource for
scientists to answer a variety of different research
questions, which will ultimately improve diagnosis and lead to better treatments.”
While not all centres are up and running yet,
Bartha added some early imaging results are
complete. And he likes what he sees.
“It’s looking really good,” he said. “I’ve never
been part of something this significant before,
something that has this much detailed information available. And with this study, there is going
to be so much data. That’s never a bad thing but,
at the same time, you have to start thinking carefully how you’ll manage that, who are the best
people to start looking at the data and what are
the important questions we want to be asking.”
The Ontario Brain Institute (OBI) will invest
$19 million in new funds during the next five
years to fund ONDRI. Partner institutions and
donations will contribute another $9.5 million to
the program, bringing the total investment to
$28.5 million.
Donald Stuss, OBI scientific director and University of Toronto psychology and medicine
professor, said there’s an ever-growing need for
high-quality research focused on neurodegenerative diseases and ONDRI takes traditional
research to the next level.
“Just think of it, breaking down silos, not just
between the institutions and researchers, but
between diseases. This is a unique group and
initiative,” Stuss said. “ It’s a new way to look at
the complexity of the diseases for each person
– a person-centered approach. It’s turning convention on its head. Instead of studying what’s
unique, you study what the common thread is.
“It’s important with neurodegenerative disorders to find if there might be more similarities
between these diseases than there are differences, and we need to know that. This is research
that will have an impact.”
Bartha added while you can search, and find,
mounds of research data on individual neurodegenerative diseases, what hasn’t been done
before is this type of standardized cross-sectional analysis.
“We’re going to make direct comparisons
between the different groups and really come
to understand what’s the same and what’s different,” he said. ”The benefit being is, if you start
to understand where the disease is happening,
what is the process, what is the timeline and how
they compare, you can act.”
The question, added Bartha, is right now, can
we intervene? The answer is not very well.
“In these cases, we don’t have the drugs.
But I think what’s important to understand is
once we know more about what the changes
are – and what they are over time – we can start
testing drugs affectively,” he said. “Using these
markers in clinical trials, with new drugs, is really
important. Right now, most of the drugs that
have been tried have been tried very late in the
disease, when there is a huge amount of neurodegeneration in the brain. Having any impact at
that point is very difficult.
“What we need to do is to start drugs earlier
on, when the disease process is just starting.
That’s when I think it will have a real effect. But
we need to know what to look for first.”
Bartha said he is thrilled to be playing a role
in such a large and intricate project which, while
still in its infancy, is already seeing collaborations
being made.
“This is kind of a new era of research, in a way,
where we’re doing these large scale studies and
pooling all the data for so many to use,” he said.
“The hardest part is starting it, but once it gets
rolling it will be an enormous resource. It will just
keep building and building.”
PAUL MAYNE // WESTERN NEWS
Medical Biophysics professor Robert Bartha
leads the imaging platform of the Ontario
Neurodegenerative
Disease
Research
Initiative Integrated Discovery Program,
which aims to understand the commonalities
and distinguishing characteristics of
neurodegenerative disorders such as
Alzheimer’s, ALS and Parkinson’s.
Western News
MA-Western-Ad-Aug-VF.pdf
1
12-08-15
| January 29, 2015
11:48 AM
Expect more
from
education.
Fully accredited
Montessori education
for children 18 months
to Grade 8, since 1968.
• Half and Full day
pre-school options
• Central & Westmount
locations
NOMINATIONS WANTED
for the UWOFA Board of Directors
The UWOFA Nominating Committee invites members of the Association to volunteer or to suggest
names of members for consideration by the committee.
The positions open for election are the following:
• Vice-President (who succeeds to the Presidency)
• Secretary (two-year term)
• Three members of the Board of Directors (two-year terms) who will represent the membership at
large. Of these three seats, one must be filled by a part-time member.
• Six members of the Board of Directors who will represent their Faculties
(two-year terms, elected by Association members in the relevant Faculty).
Faculty of Arts & Humanities
Faculty of Health Sciences
Faculty of Information & Media Studies
Librarians & Archivists
Faculty of Science
Faculty of Social Science
• Speaker for UWOFA (one-year term, renewable)
• Speaker for UWOFA-LA (Librarians & Archivists) (one-year term, renewable)
• Secretary for UWOFA-LA (Librarians & Archivists) (one-year term, renewable)
All full-time and part-time members of the Association are eligible. The term of office begins July 1, 2015.
Please send queries or nominations by Monday, February 23, 2015 to:
Jeff Tennant, Chair, Nominating Committee
University of Western Ontario Faculty Association
Phone 519-661-2111 x87885
e-mail: [email protected]
www.montessori.on.ca • 519-433-9121
11
12
Western News
| January 29, 2015
Who’s hungry?
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Western
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FRANK NEUFELD // WESTERN NEWS
There is definitely some fine dining going on in Western’s residences, and Hospitality Services is slicing through
the fat in search a few budding chefs with its first CHOPT Western - Student Culinary Competition. Each of
the six residence dining operations is hosting their own competition, including Ontario Hall, where Nathan
Li, pictured, took top honours. Other ‘top chefs’ include Michael Dal Cin (Perth) and William Spurr (Saugeen),
with future competitions set for Essex, Sydenham, Elgin residences.
Western News
| January 29, 2015
In the Community
Musical Theatre program
takes to the summer stage
President’s Medal for
Distinguished Service
Call for Nominations
ADELA TALBOT // WESTERN NEWS
Jackalyn Short, a Don Wright Faculty of Music professor is the co-artistic director of Musical Theatre on the
Thames, a community-based program that will provide a one-of-a-kind professional and artistic experience
in musical theatre.
BY ANDREW COSTY
CALLING ALL GLEE geeks and
Fame fanatics, musical theatre takes
to the Western stage this summer.
Presented in collaboration with Western, Musical Theatre on the Thames is
a community-based program that will
provide a one-of-a-kind professional
and artistic experience in musical theatre. The program begins July 6.
“It’s just extra training,” said Jackalyn Short, a Don Wright Faculty of
Music professor and co-artistic director of the program. “You’re never
ready when you finish your degree.
You’re always going and having to
prove yourself, and pay your dues
and do an internship. We’re trying to
fill that niche.”
While classical musicians have
countless opportunities, there aren’t
any equivalent summer programs
available for musical theatre, Short
said.
“When you’re in school you’re
learning theory and history and everything that goes along with your cho-
sen craft,” she said. “And this is basically just about the craft.”
Short will be working with fellow coartistic director – and family member
– Amelia Pipher Cane. The motherdaughter team will be bringing in
renowned specialists from Canada
and the United States to coach the
students.
Musical Theatre on the Thames
features intense one-on-one training
and focus more on vocals than dance
for this year’s production, Short said.
The program will keep its students
incredibly busy, occupying six days a
week for three weeks in July, culminating in a performance of the Broadway
musical Little Women during the week
of July 20.
From yoga and dance to singing
and acting lessons, students will be
able to train their inner passion to its
limits.
“At the end of it, you really know
what you can do,” Short said.
Taking place at Western’s Don
Wright Faculty of Music, students will
have plenty of rooms to rehearse,
practice, and perform.
The program isn’t exclusive to
Western students – or university students at all. It is open to anyone age
18-30 who is interested to auditioning.
“Someone who’s just graduated
and been out of the business for two
years thinks, ‘Oh my god, I really want
to get back in to it, but I haven’t had a
voice lesson in two years, and I don’t
know what I’m doing. But I’m going
to do it.’”
Short welcomes anyone from any
background. “What excites me is
when I see an application come in,
and I have no idea who they are.”
Musical Theatre on the Thames
will feature two concurrent sessions:
one two weeks, and one three weeks
long. The difference is, the three-week
session will feature four full-show performances.
Auditions take place at the end of
February. Applications can be submitted online at motot.ca. Live auditions
will be held in London and Toronto.
The program also accepts distance
auditions via email.
Senate has established the President’s Medal for
Distinguished Service to recognize those individuals
who have provided exemplary service to the university,
over a sustained period of time, over and above the
normal requirements of their positions.
The award is intended primarily to recognize staff,
but faculty may also be considered for work or
achievements that would not already be recognized
by the professor emeritus designation or other service
awards (such as teaching awards) in place.
Nominees must have been retired/resigned from
the university in any capacity (including Board or
Senate membership) for at least one year prior to
consideration and have no ongoing formal relationship
with the university.
A nomination form and additional information about the
award can be found at:
uwo.ca/univsec/senate/convocation/service_award.html
The deadline for nominations for 2015
is March 14th.
13
14
Western News
| January 29, 2015
// ACADEME
PhD Lectures
Pavlo Piatkovskyi, Applied Mathematics, Edge states and quantum Hall phases in grapheme, 1 p.m. Jan. 29, MC 204.
Jennifer Guadagno, Physiology, Mechanisms of neural precursor cell apoptosis by microglia-derived cytokines, 9
a.m. Jan. 30, MSB 148.
// CLASSIFIED
For Rent
One bedroom Tuscan cottage on
country estate. 15 minutes from Western. Ideal for professional or grad student. Sunroom, marble fireplace and
5 piece bathroom. Located on horse
farm. No bus route. Non-smokers only.
519-666-1531.
Condo for rent
3+1 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, finished
basement, double garage, central vac,
five appliances, patio. Quiet, clean,
close to Western, bus route and shopping. Fully furnished, $2,100/month
includes utilities. Contact Karen at [email protected].
Accommodation Wanted
Tax Receipt Information T2202As
and T4As
Tax Receipt Information T2202As (tuition
tax receipts) for the 2014 tax year will be
available online at the end of February.
See registrar.uwo.ca/student_finances/
tax_receipts.html for information on how
to obtain your T4A online.
Undergraduate Sessional Dates
Jan. 30: Last day to receive admission
applications: Business Administration.
*Jan. 31: Deadline to apply for relief
against a final grade in a first-term course.
*Feb. 1: Last day to receive admission
applications: Social Work (King’s University College)
Feb. 15: Last day to receive admission applications: Collaborative Nursing
Program.
Feb. 16: Family Day.
Feb. 16-20: Reading Week.
* Note: if this deadline occurs on a Sat
or Sun or Statutory Holiday, it will be
extended to the next working day.
For more information, please visit us on
the web at studentservices.uwo.ca and
follow us on Twitter @Western_WSS.
// CAREERS
A central website displays advertisements for all vacant academic posi-
Single male, semi-retired Western faculty member would like to house sit or
rent accommodation in warm climate
– Florida, Arizona, Caribbean island,
etc. Specific dates and length are flexible. I have house sat for doctors and
professors over the years. Non-smoker,
References. 519-895-2577.
tions. The following positions are among
those advertised at uwo.ca/facultyrelations/faculty/academic_positions.html
Please review, or contact the faculty,
school or department directly.
Full-Time Academic Appointments
Faculty of Law
Invites applications for probationary (tenure-track) appointments at the
rank of assistant professor or tenured
appointments at the rank of associate or
professor, depending on qualifications
and experience. Applicants with interests in the area of Criminal Law and Constitutional and Administrative Law are
encouraged to apply. Applicants must
have a JD, LLB or equivalent degree,
as well as a relevant advanced graduate degree or its equivalent. Review of
applications will begin as applications
are received and be accepted until the
position is filled.
Faculty of Social Science
Department of Anthropology
Nominations and applications are
invited for the position of chair of the
Department of Anthropology, Faculty
of Social Science, and effective July 1.
Appointments are normally for a fiveyear period. Applications and nominations should be submitted by Feb. 2,
when the committee will begin reviewing the files.
Faculty of Social Science
Department of Political Science
Nominations and applications are
invited for the position of chair of the
Department of Political Science, Faculty of Social Science, and effective
July 1. Appointments are normally for
a five-year period. Applications and
nominations should be submitted by
Feb. 2, when the committee will begin
reviewing the files.
All positions are subject to budgetary
approval. Applicants should have fluent
written and oral communication skills
in English. All qualified candidates are
encouraged to apply; however, Canadian citizens and permanent residents will
be given priority. Western is committed
to employment equity and welcomes
applications from all qualified women
and men, including visible minorities,
Aboriginal people and persons with
disabilities.
Faculty of Social Science
Department of Psychology
Nominations and applications are
invited for the position of chair of the
Department of Psychology, Faculty of
Social Science, and effective July 1.
Appointments are normally for a five
year period. Applications and nominations should be submitted by Feb. 2,
when the committee will begin reviewing the files.
Welcome to your London Home
the convenience of Apartment Living!
Blossom Gate offers you varied floorplans in either our existing lowrise and highrise
buildings OR one of our newer highrise buildings - rent varies accordingly.
// STUDENT BULLETIN
lounge, indoor bicycle storage, keyless entry
• 2 appliances
• Individual heating & cooling system
Student Central In-Person Hours
• Coin-less laundry facilities
• Free outdoor parking
• On-site management office
• Direct bus to downtown & Western Campus
• On-site variety store
• 1/2 block to shopping centre
9 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday
and Friday; 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Wednesday.
Follow Student Central on Twitter for
updates @westernuReg.
Apply to Graduate
Online application is now open for the
February 2015 In Absentia convocation. The deadline for undergraduate
students to apply is Jan. 22. Online
application for the June Convocation
opens in February and closes April 30.
There is no ceremony for February; all
graduate names will appear in the June
convocation programs. Tickets for the
June convocation will be released starting the end of May.
103-625 Kipps Lane (at Adelaide St. N)
519 432-1777
Like us on facebook.com/blossomgate
French Language Bursary
Program in Québec
Are you looking for a spring or summer program to learn French and earn a
Western credit? Do you want to discover
another region of Canada and meet new
people? Go explore at Western’s TroisPistoles French Immersion School. Application deadline is Feb. 28 at myexplore.ca.
2015-2016 Academic Calendar
The new academic calendar will be
posted online at the end of January at
westerncalendar.uwo.ca.
710 Adelaide Street N., just south of Oxford St.
THE SYMBOL OF QUALITY
Western News
Campus Digest
Alumna’s efforts earn
Hult Prize nomination
BY LIZ MCGINLEY
EDUCATION AND GARBAGE rarely find themselves
in the same category, but Western alumna Renee Vansevenant’s efforts to marry the two, for the benefit of some of
the planet’s neediest children has led to international recognition for the recent Business Administration graduate.
While working on her masters in finance, through the
Hult International Business School in London, England,
Vansevenant and five classmates formed Schools4Future,
an education program that provides schools, transportation and social support to children living in the slums of
India.
For their idea, Vansevenant and her team recently
advanced to the regional finals of the sixth annual Hult Prize
Challenge. Sponsored by the Hult Prize Foundation, the
challenge is the world’s largest student competition and
start-up platform for social good.
Two teams of Western students also have advanced in
the challenge.
“Winning the Hult Prize would be a dream come true.
Not only would it open the doors for our start-up venture,
but it will help me gain the experience needed to further
my career,” Vansevenant said. “To work on an international
platform to help reach children, who are far less fortunate
than the average individual, would mean a lot to me.
“I have been fortunate enough to have the right to a
quality education. I believe everyone should have the right
to accessible and affordable education.”
Schools4Future would locate schools in the most populated slums in India to ensure easier access for community
members.
In that area, the cost of transportation to and from school
has been a barrier for young children who want to attend
school. Vansevenant
“Winning the Hult Prize and her team tackled
this hurdle by creating, education4trash.
would be a dream
Here’s how it works:
come true. Not only
Parents can pay
for their child’s tuition
would it open the
in plastic trash – 40
kg a month to cover
doors for our starttuition. This may
seem like a lot of
up venture, but it
plastic, but with 6,000
tonnes of plastic
will help me gain the
dumped into urban
experience needed to areas of India every
day, the plan allows
further my career.”
parents to give their
children a better
- Renee Vansevenant
education while also
cleaning up their
community. Schools operate on profits generated by recycling all of the plastic collected.
Schools4Future will not only focus on education, but also
on the health of their students. Every day a full meal will be
provided to each student, a cost included in the tuition.
Under the theme, Early Childhood Education: The
Unmet Need of the Century, the 2015 Hult Prize focuses
on building start-ups that provide sustainable, high-quality
early education solutions to 10 million children under the
age of 6 in urban slums and beyond by the year 2020.
Each team selected for the regional finals was chosen
from more than 20,000 applications received from more
than 500 colleges and universities in more than 150 countries. Teams from eight Canadian universities qualified.
The Hult Prize regional final competitions will take place
on March 13-14 in Boston, San Francisco, London, Dubai
and Shanghai.
The Hult International Business School (London Campus) team will compete in London.
NEWS AND NOTES
Four Western students now stand among 38 members
of the fifth The Next 36 cohort, Canada’s most selective
program for young entrepreneurs, following the organization’s annual National Selection Weekend. James
Crocker, Engineering; Evan Ferguson, Engineering;
Aishi Jiang, Science; and Nikita Zhitkevich, Schulich
School of Medicine & Dentistry, were selected from a
pool of more than 630 applicants from 45 institutions
across the country.
“Each year the finalist pool seems to gets stronger,”
said Peter Carrescia, managing director of The Next
36. “Canada’s brightest young people now see entrepreneurship as the path of greatest opportunity – so
many of our finalists already bring extensive start-up
experience and an impressive array of other accomplishments to the table.”
Student entrepreneurs will spend the next seven
months building their companies with the support of
their mentors, a unique academic program and a pool
of business advisors.
Women’s rugby head coach Natascha Wesch has been
awarded a prestigious Endeavour Executive Fellowship from the Government of Australia.
For her fellowship, Wesch will work in Australia from
June to mid-September, primarily with Victoria University and both the Australia Institute of Sport and
Victoria Institute of Sport in the areas of sport psychology and applied sport psychology. Wesch will be conducting guest lectures and seminars, as well as working
directly with athletes and teams in sport psychology.
Among those she’ll be working with is Western alumnus Richard Baka, a senior lecturer at Victoria University’s College of Sport and Exercise Science.
“I’m excited for this once in a lifetime opportunity to be
able to work with some of the top people and organizations in the world,” Wesch said. “Australia has had a
lot of success in sport psychology and how they apply
it in their sport model. I want to learn how to take that
model and bring it back here to Western, to the athletics program, and to my own teaching to make them all
better and stronger.”
Former London Mayor, and Western alumna, Joni
Baechler has joined the university as the first-ever Distinguished Practitioner in Residence for its Local Government Program, which offers diplomas and Masters
degrees in public administration.
Before being appointed mayor in 2014, Baechler had
represented London’s Ward 5 as a city councillor since
2000.
During her one-year term, she will deliver guest presentations in a variety of courses, with an emphasis on
urban politics and increasing women’s participation in
municipal government. Baechler will also participate
in lectures, workshops, group discussions and other
events with students, faculty, staff and alumni.
“I am truly looking forward to connecting with students
at Western,” said Baechler. “I have enjoyed a life-long
love of learning and this new position not only allows
me to share my insight with the next generation of
public administrators but also provides an extraordinary opportunity to engage with Western’s faculty and
staff, who are already delivering a first-rate education.”
While the position of Practitioner in Residence is
not unique to Western, Baechler brings a distinctive
perspective to the role, said Martin Horak, director of
Western’s Local Government Program.
“Joni is one of Ontario’s most highly respected municipal politicians,” he said. “She is widely known for being
thoughtful and decisive and Western students will
greatly benefit from her vast knowledge of city politics
and her passion for civic duty.
“Most often, public administration programs host
practitioners who are public sector administrators.
Having a former politician in the role provides an
entirely different, and important, point of view for the
students.”
Since its inception in 1974, more than 1,000 graduates
have successfully completed Western’s Local Government Program. Many of these alumni now hold prominent administrative positions in local governments
across Ontario and Canada.
| January 29, 2015
15
16
Western News
| January 29, 2015
Millions of ways for the United Way
PAUL MAYNE // WESTERN NEWS
Western’s United Way campaign hit a major milestone as this year’s fundraising total of $745,014, announced Tuesday, pushed the university’s cumulative total over the $10-million mark
since organized campaigns began in the 1990s. Western has consistently been one of the largest single donors to the campaign and has now raised $10,216,722 over that time frame.
The largest non-government funder of social services in London and Middlesex County, United Way continues to create lasting change to improve the quality of life in the community.
The fundraising total of United Way of London and Middlesex, will be announced Feb. 28. The goal was set at $9 million.