University of Waterloo Stratford Campus

University of Waterloo Stratford Campus

Type	Public university
Established	June 2009
Chancellor	V. Prem Watsa
President	Feridun Hamdullahpur
Director	Ginny Dybenko
Academic staff	18[1]
Administrative staff	6[1]
Undergraduates	89% [1]
Postgraduates	11%[1]
Location	Stratford, Ontario, Canada 43°22′05″N 80°58′54″W / 43.3680°N 80.98177°W / 43.3680; -80.98177Coordinates: 43°22′05″N 80°58′54″W / 43.3680°N 80.98177°W / 43.3680; -80.98177
Degrees Offered	GBDA, MDEI
Website	uwaterloo.ca/stratford-campus

The University of Waterloo Stratford Campus is located in Stratford, Ontario, Canada. It is one of the three satellite campuses of the University of Waterloo,^[1] a member of the U15 Group of Canadian Research Universities.^[2]

Established in June 2009,^[3] the University of Waterloo Stratford Campus is part of the Faculty of Arts at the University of Waterloo. The campus was established to provide programs that focus on future careers in digital media, digital technologies, content creation and user experience.^[4]

The University of Waterloo Stratford Campus is coeducational and has students from around the world.

History

On 16 October 2006, the city council of the City of Stratford authorized Mayor Dan Mathieson to sign a memorandum of agreement with the Stratford Festival and the University of Waterloo to explore the possibility of having a liberal arts college located in Stratford.^[5]

The Province of Ontario granted $10 million to the University of Waterloo Stratford Campus on 26 March 2008.^[6] The following day, Waterloo-based enterprise software company OpenText announced that they had committed $10 million to the project.^[7]

The University of Waterloo Stratford Campus was originally located at 6 Wellington St. in Stratford, Ontario.

On 22 January 2009, the federal government announced that it was pledging $10.7 million over five years for the Corridor for Advancing Canadian Digital Media - now known as the Canadian Digital Media initiative under the Canadian Digital Media Network (CDMN) – a joint initiative between Communitech and University of Waterloo Stratford Campus.^[8] In June of the same year, the first ever Canada 3.0 forum in Stratford, ON was hosted by the University of Waterloo Stratford Campus and CDMN. The event was the official launch of the University of Waterloo Stratford Campus.^[9]

The official opening of the campus took place on 20 September 2010 at its temporary location at 6 Wellington St., Stratford, Ontario.^[10] The first class of the Master of Digital Experience Innovation (MDEI) – an interdisciplinary, professional one-year program - began at the temporary campus the following year.^[11]

Exterior of campus building located at 125 St. Patrick St., Stratford, Ontario.

On 1 October 2011, Ginny Dybenko, the former Dean of the Wilfrid Laurier School of Business & Economics, becomes the Executive Director of the University of Waterloo Stratford Campus.^[12]

In January 2012, a part-time Master of Digital Experience Innovation option was added. The program integrated a Project Management Professional certification component into the curriculum for all students.^[13]

The first class of the Global Business and Digital Arts program began their studies on 5 September 2012 at the new campus located at 125 St. Patrick St. On 16 October 2012 the building was officially unveiled to the community.^[14]

On 15 November 2013 it was announced that University of Waterloo Stratford Campus would receive approximately $1.75 million in federal funding to strengthen the Stratford Accelerator Centre over the next five years. The centre provides mentorship and coaching for tech-related startups, including those launched by University of Waterloo Stratford Campus faculty and students. Stratford Accelerator Centre relocated to University of Waterloo Stratford Campus in spring 2014.^[15]

Campus

The University of Waterloo Stratford Campus is located at 125 St. Patrick Street. The building is a three-storey, 42,000 square-foot space that features digital media labs, sound and video editing suites, project rooms, open-concept collaboration spaces and software for design, video production and web development.^[16]

Christie MicroTiles Wall

Located in the centre of the University of Waterloo Stratford Campus is its Christie MicroTiles wall which is the tallest display of its kind in the world. It is three-storeys high, with 150 MicroTiles that can reproduce 115 percent of the NTSC colour gamut, exceeding typical LCD flat panels by more than 50 percent.^[17] The wall is used to showcase student content, highlight creative accomplishments and provide an open source canvas for digital media research.^[18]

The University of Waterloo Stratford Campus’ MicroTile wall was the Gold Winner in the Education and Healthcare category of the 2013 Apex Awards.^[19]

Engage: UX + Gamification Research Lab

The Engage Lab is open to local digital media entrepreneurs and industry partners who wish to explore the area of audience engagement.

Located in the University of Waterloo Stratford Campus, it is used by students and faculty for research, experimentation, prototype development and commercialization as it pertains to UX and gamification.^[20]

Stratford Accelerator Centre

Located at the University of Waterloo Stratford Campus beginning in 2014, the Stratford Accelerator Centre focuses on accelerating the growth and maturation of early stage technology and digital media companies.^[21]

School Within A University

Operated within the University of Waterloo Stratford Campus, School Within A University is a partnership between the Avon Maitland District School Board and the campus that gives eligible university-bound high school students the opportunity to experience what post-secondary experience is all about. Students take English and business courses taught by Stratford Central Secondary Schoolteachers and can access the campus’ equipment and resources.^[22]

Administration

Ginny Dybenko is the Executive Director of the University of Waterloo Stratford Campus.

The University of Waterloo Stratford Campus operates under the same bicameral system as the University of Waterloo; a system that consists of a Board of Governors and a Senate, as legislated by the University of Waterloo Act, 1972. The campus shares the same Principal, President and Chancellor as the University of Waterloo.^[23]

The Office of the Chancellor is held by Prem Watsa,^[24] who has held the position since 2009. In March 2011, Feridun Hamdullahpur was announced as the sixth President of the university, having been interim president since October 2010.^[25] The Executive Director of the University of Waterloo Stratford Campus is Ginny Dybenko, the Director of Academic Programs is Christine McWebb and the Director of International Entrepreneurship is Paul Doherty.^[26]

Academics and Programs

The University of Waterloo Stratford Campus prepares students for careers in the area of digital media.^[27] Students are brought together with researchers, cultural organizations, business and entrepreneurs through coursework and project-based learning.

University of Waterloo Stratford Campus students have ties to the Open Data Institute, a collaboration between the Canadian Digital Media Network (CDMN), the University of Waterloo, Communitech, OpenText and Desire2Learn. The institute takes information or datasets collected by governments and develops a standard format that makes it easier to access, share, and eventually commercialize the information.^[28]

Master of Digital Experience Innovation (MDEI)

Offered at the University of Waterloo Stratford Campus, this program began in fall 2011. It is made up of both recent university graduates and working professionals that want to expand their skills. MDEI is a professional degree that offers project-based learning and a multidisciplinary set of courses, complete with the education portion of the Project Management Professional certification. The MDEI is offered on a full-time or part-time basis. The full-time program occurs over three consecutive terms: fall, winter and spring, while part-time students take two courses per term over 24 months, with a final project in the last spring term of their program.^[29]

Bachelor of Global Business and Digital Arts (GBDA)

The Global Business and Digital Arts program began in the fall of 2012. It is unique to the Stratford Campus.^[30] Students are involved in hands-on projects with industry partners and have access to the latest digital technologies. In addition, they receive a paid practicum and are able to earn the Certificate in Associated Project Management accreditation.^[31]

Housing

Students live off-campus in the Stratford community. The University of Waterloo Off-Campus Housing Office provides resources to all students including a list of accommodations available in the Stratford area.^[32]

Activities and Events

Canada 3.0

In 2008, the inaugural Canada 3.0 conference was hosted by the University of Waterloo Stratford Campus in Stratford, Ontario with over 1,500 attendees discussing how to make Canada a world leader in the digital economy.^[33]

Discovering Digital Media Days

Discovering Digital Media Days is an annual program that delivers interactive programming for high school students who aspire to be leaders in Canada's growing digital economy. Students interact with industry experts, develop their own digital designs, build business skills and discover the creative and commercial potential for digital media.^[34]

Data Scientist Hilary Mason was the keynote speaker at the 2014 CODE conference hosted by the University of Waterloo Stratford Campus.^[35]

The Stratford Accelerator Centre is home to the University of Waterloo Stratford Campus’ lunch and learn sessions.

Gamification 2013

Gamification 2013 was hosted by University of Waterloo Stratford campus and entertainment. There were academic research presentations, talks on gamification implementation and commercialization, workshops, and demonstrations of successful gamification initiatives in the areas of health care, marketing, education, and entertainment.^[36]

uXperience Design Camp

Taking place from November 16–17, 2013, uXperience Design Camp was an experiential User Experience (UX) bootcamp that focused on creating viable solutions to real life problems utilizing the principles of user experience (UX) design.

Software developers, engineers, computer scientists, psychologists, designers, UX professionals and students took advantage of the experience of mentors and usability testers to acquire the knowledge they needed to pitch their demos to a panel of judges.The winning idea was given support for commercialization.^[37]

CODE

The campus was a host site for the Canadian Open Data Experience (CODE) Hackathon from 28 February – 2 March 2014. It was where participants from across Canada turned federal Open Data into interesting and beneficial applications.^[38]

The University of Waterloo Stratford Campus hosted Inspiration Day with an information session on the use of Big Data and the power of combining it with Data Visualization.^[39]

Accelerator Centre Lunch and Learn Programs

The Accelerator Centre located at the University of Waterloo Stratford Campus provides lunch and learn sessions on relevant topics such as networking, how to secure funding for your business and public relations.^[40]

SOCDOCS

The University of Waterloo Stratford Campus is a partner of SOCDOCS, a film documentary festival that offers teachers and students a creative opportunity to make visual and audio statements through the digital vehicle of choice on social justice issues such as poverty, war, homelessness, environment, sex discrimination, addiction, slavery, or prejudice.^[41]

ESQ Camps

Throughout the summer, University of Waterloo Stratford Campus camps teams visit communities to engage kids in hands-on engineering and science activities.^[42] The camps have won a national award for engineering and science outreach.^[43]

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to University of Waterloo Stratford Campus.

• Official website
• Stratford Accelerator Centre website
• CommerceLab website
• University of Waterloo website
• Canadian Digital Media Network website

References