UW leaders behind graduates who carry on greatness

Last week at its fall convocation, the University of Waterloo celebrated the accomplishments of more than 2,400 graduates, bringing the total number in 2018 to more than 8,500.

As these newly minted alumni move on to the next steps in their lives, we not only celebrate what they have done, but what their predecessors would suggest they are going to do.

Looking at the accomplishments of those that came before them, we know these graduates will continue to put our institution on the map through their contributions in a variety of areas, including humanitarian, scientific and entrepreneurial endeavours.

While the successes of Waterloo graduates, past and present, are to be commended, we must always remember that neither graduates nor the institution itself are able to do it alone.

University of Waterloo graduates, students, faculty and staff have and will continue to benefit from the contributions

and support of our community and volunteer leaders who step forward to share their perspectives and expertise for the benefit for our university.

Nowhere is this truer than the university’s board of governors and its chancellor, which help to govern the strategic direction of our institution and to act as its most recognizable advocate, respectively.

This year, the university community has the opportunity to thank two such leaders who will be stepping away from their current roles and to welcome another who will be stepping forward.

With gratitude, our university community recognizes the efforts of outgoing board of governors member Ken Seiling, who has represented the regional government as an ex-officio member of the board for 33 years.

Seiling is himself a former educator and a man who helped steward our region toward the innovation hub it is now known for. In addition to his efforts to support our university, he shared his wisdom and experience with the Police Services Board, the Regional Library Board, Waterloo

North Hydro Commission, the Grand River Conservation Authority, the Regional Chairs of Ontario, and regional citizens as a whole.

Also deserving of our thanks is Tom Jenkins, who has served as the University of Waterloo’s 10th chancellor since 2015.

The chair of the board of the OpenText Corp. and an inspiration to many in the region who aspire to great things in tech, Jenkins has supported this university with his passion, his advocacy and his generosity.

He has contributed his time and effort as well as money to our institution.

As our university recognizes with gratitude the end of Jenkins’ and Seiling’s tenures, it celebrates the continuing tradition of attracting great new supporters to its ranks.

This year, our institution welcomes Dominic Barton, global managing partner emeritus of McKinsey and Company, as its 11th chancellor, the ceremonial head of our university, and institutional champion.

As an individual he has provided advice

and insights to heads of state and global business leaders, and will carry the stories of our students and faculty members with him to all corners of the world.

It is through the efforts of our campus and the help of figures such as Seiling, Jenkins and Barton that the University of Waterloo has become a global name in the past 61 years, and recognized as the most innovative university in Canada for the previous 27.

Our university and our graduates have been able to accomplish great things, but that success is due in no small part to the contributions of the people in the Waterloo Region and beyond who have supported us.

So, at the same time that we celebrate the efforts and accomplishments of the 2,400 graduates who crossed stage last week, we also honour the efforts of the people on and off campus who helped to get them there.

Feridun Hamdullahpur is the president and vice-chancellor of the University of Waterloo.