It is funny how much a place can change, but still be the same. If I had to describe the University of Waterloo in one sentence I would use that tired cliché, different, but still the same. I graduated from the University of Waterloo in May of 1976, almost forty years ago. Back then the campus looked more like an elementary school than a University, and to my memory the most innovative-looking building around was the water tower my classmates spray-painted beer on. The brick of RCH and DWE was the favorite option back then; now it has been replaced by the shiny glass of E5 and the Quantum Nano Building.
However, the most profound difference I notice on campus is not the architecture, but the people. When I was in waterloo, the most exotic background in our class was a Quebecois or maybe even an American. Now the school is a cultural mish mash of people from Asia, Europe, the Middle East and all over the world. This new influx of brainpower from all four corners of the globe is a massive change for the better for the University I called home so very long ago.
Even more noticeable then the multiculturalism is the amount of people that now attend the University. With a student body the size of a small city, Waterloo is now one of the largest schools in the country. No longer is UW only a staple for Mathematics and Engineering, but also for Arts, Science and Business. It is now a school that leads in all areas of academia.
The city surrounding the University has also changed dramatically. Having grown up in the area, I remember when the University helped form a boundary between Mennonite farmland and the city of Waterloo. Looking around the University now, farmland is a distant memory. Waterloo has grown to be a large city in its own right, a mecca for people from all over the country and Canada not only because of its schools but because of its employment oppurtunities. With the presence of RIM and many other large scale tech companies, Waterloo can truly be called the brain of our nation. And it all started here at UW.
But as I stated previously, as much as things have changed, they’ve also stayed the same. Having a son at the University of Waterloo has made me realize that the fundamentals of engineering at this University are still very much the same. First year is still scary as hell, the almighty tool is still our mascot, beer is still worshipped amongst all UW Engineering students and four consecutive hours of class in the basement of RCH is still commonplace. And, how could I forget, June Lowe is still an idol. It is one of this faculty’s greatest strengths that the fundamentals are still the same now as they were forty years ago, despite the changes it has seen. So Waterloo plummers, keep being the smartest engineers out there, drink lots of beers and worship the tool, because that’s what this place has been and always will be all about.
Ron Lamb
Hi Dave,
I look back very fondly on our first year at Waterloo. I still thank God for the drafting classes, that have helped out so many times, and get a cold shiver when I think of some of the math classes.
I took my son and two daughters for a look at Waterloo about two years ago. We're in the San Francisco area. Quite surreal walking around with no one there. No classes were going on, it must have been between semesters. I did get to peek in on a couple of old lecture halls, and not sure why, but was expecting some sort of high tech solution rather than white boards. No luck. My daughter has followed in a multi-gneration tradition and was accepted into BioMedical Engineering at Cal Poly.
I was at the time, and even now, impressed with your fixing up the old sports cars. My son is after me to take on fixing up one. Hope all's well
Ron Lamb