News Articles
From the President
Let's Accentuate the Positive
One of the great things about working on a university campus is the many opportunities it affords a person to find insight and perspective when you need it most.
The relative importance of things became startlingly clear to me during the April 3 Last Lecture, and I have alumnus Jeff Lozon, student Holly Shrumm and Prof. Maurice Nelischer to thank for my much-needed mental reset. Their ‘last lectures' reminded me of the role of reflection, the need to emphasize successes and the importance of being open to learning from everyone and everything.
The Last Lecture is all about getting students to look ahead. We want them to embrace all of the unknowns and the adventures and opportunities the future will bring and be confident that the years spent at Guelph have aptly prepared them for whatever comes their way.
It is also a time for students to look back on how their entire experience at Guelph has shaped them to be the people they are today.
When they look back at their time here, it will be the achievements and memorable learning experiences that stand out, not the minor scrimmages and concerns. For these are the things worth remembering. I decided to apply the same philosophy to my own recollections of this academic year. That is not to say that I will disregard the challenges, but it is important to give precedence to the positive things that have happened.
And our triumphs are numerous indeed. To highlight just a few:
- Guelph was named “Research University of the Year” for the fourth year in a row, and we received top marks in the 2007 University Report Card published by the Globe and Mail.
- The University community raised more than $424,000 for the United Way during its annual campaign, exceeding the campus goal by more than $24,000.
- The University also met its goal of raising $100,000 for the Masai Project to help build an AIDS clinic in Lesotho, Africa, and launched a “Zerofootprint calculator,” that allows faculty, students, staff and alumni to measure their ecological footprint and reduce their collective impact on the environment.
- Students raised more than $63,000 for the Canadian Cancer Society during the Relay for Life and held a 14-hour stationary bike marathon to raise money toward the treatment and prevention of AIDS in Africa.
- Students also set a new national record by collecting more than 36,000 pounds of food items for the Guelph Food Bank as part of the annual Meal Exchange “Trick or Eat” event, raised $13,200 for children by pulling massive tractors 100 feet, spent five days living outside during the winter to raise money for the Homeless, and gave up their reading week to volunteer with Project Serve and help with hurricane relief efforts and HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention.
- Six of our students and recent graduates represented Canadian youth at the United Nations climate change conference in Bali, Indonesia, and our Student Renewable Energy Group received international recognition for its initiative to improve energy efficiency on campus.
- Two of our engineering students designed mobile dental clinics that are now travelling around the Dominican Republic providing dental health care to remote under-serviced communities. Another team of engineers designed a single-handed braking lever for a girl with a disabled hand, an invention that earned them first place at a competition sponsored by the James Dyson Foundation, and a third team won the Social Awareness Award in the Canadian Engineering Competition.
- Student inventors also won awards and accolades for their business ideas for gluten-free beer, biodegradable plastics, portable cereal and toys that aid in infant development.
- Kate Smolina, a fourth-year biomedical sciences student, won a prestigious Rhodes Scholarship to pursue graduate studies at the University of Oxford.
It was also a monumental year for athletics. Among the many successes, the University entered the record books by becoming the first school to win back-to-back team gold medals in both women's and men's cross-country running at the Canadian Interuniversity Sports (CIS) championships. Of course, both teams won the Ontario championships, with outstanding individual performances by Kyle Boorsma, who won the men's OUA gold medal, and rookie Lindsay Carson, who earned the women's individual provincial and national titles. Head coach Dave Scott-Thomas won Coach of the Year.
Michelle Joslin was named to the CIS women's rugby squad for the 2008 Federation International du Sport World University championships, and Drew Doughty helped Canada capture gold at the International Ice Hockey Federation World Junior Championships and was named one of North America's top skaters.
The women's field hockey team won a silver medal at the national championships and a gold medal at the provincial games, while our varsity football team advanced to and hosted the OUA finals.
In the academic arena, physics professor Carl Svensson was one of six Canadian scientists to receive a Steacie fellowship, the most prestigious award given by the Natural Science and Engineering Research Council.
Drama professor Judith Thompson became the first Canadian to win the prestigious Susan Smith Blackburn Prize for her political play Palace of the End.
Psychology professor Leanne Son Hing was named a Fellow of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research's Successful Societies program, and geography professor Barry Smit was appointed to a new provincial expert panel on climate change adaptation.
Chief information officer Mike Ridley has been honoured with the Ontario Library Association's Larry Moore Distinguished Service Award for his visionary work in establishing a digital library project called Knowledge Ontario.
Biomedical sciences professor Brenda Coomber was honoured by the Canadian Cancer Society for her research on colorectal cancer, geographer Rob de Löe was chosen to chair an advisory panel aimed at finding global solutions for freshwater preservation, and ecologist John Klironomos received the Humboldt Research Award, one of the top international prizes recognizing cutting-edge achievements in science.
In addition, staff member Cyndy McLean was named the honorary chair of the 13th annual Women of Distinction Awards by the YMCA- YWCA of Guelph. And just recently, OVC staff member Amanda Bridge was among the 2008 recipients of the Dr. William Winegard Exemplary Volunteer Involvement Awards, along with political science professor Tim Mau and U of G grad Christopher Zweerman.
I hope that remembering these many accomplishments will give all of us valuable insight and put things in proper perspective as we move toward the completion of another academic year. Indeed, it is our many achievements, individually and collectively, that embody the spirit of the Guelph community.