University affairs - Notices - NOW news and events - Concordia University

Open meeting to introduce candidates for vice-president, research and graduate studies

2012-05-23T15:21:48Z

The Advisory Search Committee for a Vice-President, Research and Graduate Studies, is holding an open meeting on Friday, June 1, 2012, of the Executive Committee of the Board of Governors and the Steering Committee of Senate. The meeting, which starts at 12 p.m., will be held in the J.A. DeSève Cinema.

Candidates
Candidate Claude Bédard will speak at 12 p.m. Bédard is currently the dean of research and technology transfer and a professor at École de technologie supérieure (ETS) in Montreal. He is a former faculty member and former dean of graduate studies and research at Concordia University.

Candidate Graham Carr will speak at 1 p.m. Carr is currently dean of graduate studies and interim vice-president, research and graduate studies, at Concordia University.

When: Friday, June 1, 2012, at 12 p.m.
Where: J.A. DeSève Cinema, Room LB-125, J.W. McConnell Library Building (1400 De Maisonneuve Blvd. W.), Sir George Williams Campus

While all members of the university community are invited to attend the meeting, initial speaking privileges will be restricted to the members of the Executive Committee of the Board of Governors and the Steering Committee of Senate, in accordance with the Rules and Procedures for Senior Administrative Appointments (Policy BD-5). Other members of the university community will be granted speaking privileges if time permits.

Comments to the Search Committee
The Advisory Search Committee invites comments concerning the candidates from the community. Comments on the proposed candidates should be submitted by Wednesday, June 11, 2012, noon, to Andrea Renaud, Secretary of the Advisory Search Committee, at andrea.renaud@concordia.ca.

The search committee’s reasoned recommendation will be presented for approval by the Board of Governors at the June 21, 2012, meeting.

Related links:
•    Policy BD-5
•    Curriculum vitae of Claude Bédard
•    Curriculum vitae of Graham Carr

Diversity and group dynamics workshops available for managers and staff

2012-05-22T20:17:38Z

As part of the Learning and Development Calendar, the Concordia Human Resources department is sponsoring two three-hour workshops for both managers and staff.

What: Embracing Diversity workshop
When: On June 11, 2012, from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Where: Room H-440, Henry F. Hall Building (1455 De Maisonneuve Blvd. W.), Sir George Williams Campus

This workshop provides a theoretical framework, practical exercises and group discussion to increase awareness of diversity issues.

What: Effective Group Dynamics workshop
When: June 12, 2012, from from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Where: Room H-440, Henry F. Hall Building (1455 De Maisonneuve Blvd. W.), Sir George Williams Campus

This workshop combines theory with experiential learning to help participants understand group dynamics and develop strategies for successful group work within the workplace.

It is important to note that these workshops are specifically designed for managers and staff of the university. Similar courses, designed for department chairs, college principals, associate deans, associate university librarians, supervisory librarians and program directors, are or may be offered by the Centre for Academic Leadership

While the workshops are offered at no cost to the employee, a cancellation policy may apply. Space is limited so registration is on a first-come, first-served basis. Registration is obligatory on my empath within the portal.

For questions, comments or suggestions, please contact training@concordia.ca.

Related links:
•    Learning and Development Calendar
•    Information on enrolment and cancellations
•    Centre for Academic Leadership

WiFi access extended to students with INC grade notations

2012-05-17T18:37:31Z

Concordia has extended Wi-Fi access to undergraduate students who have Incomplete (INC) grade notations for winter term courses (three credits) and fall/winter courses (six credits).

Students will have access until May 30, 2012, allowing them to complete and submit the required coursework.

There are currently 760 Wi-Fi access points across both campuses, including the libraries.

Related links:
• Connect in the library (wifi) and print from your personal laptop
• “Wi-Fi use hits record” – NOW, April 3, 2012

Libraries extend hours from May 22 to 30

2012-05-17T17:01:51Z

From May 22 to 30, Concordia’s George P. Vanier and R. Howard Webster libraries are extending hours to accommodate students completing coursework for winter term (three credits) and fall/winter (six credits) courses.

Beginning Tuesday, May 22, hours will be extended for study, circulation desks and the reserve rooms at both libraries, and for media services at the Webster Library.

Both libraries are closed on Monday, May 21.

Open for study

Tuesday, May 22 to Thursday, May 24: 8:30 a.m. – 11 p.m. (extended)
Friday, May 25: 8:30 a.m. – 9 p.m.
Saturday, May 26 and Sunday, May 27:10 a.m. – 9 p.m.
Monday, May 28 to Wednesday, May 30: 8:30 a.m. – 11 p.m. (extended)

Circulation and pickup

Tuesday, May 22 to Thursday, 24: 8:30 a.m. – 8 p.m. (extended)
Friday, May 25: 8:30 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Saturday, May 26: 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Sunday, May 27: Closed
Monday, May 28 to Wednesday, May 30: 8:30 a.m. – 8 p.m. (extended)

Reference and information services

Monday to Friday: 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Saturday and Sunday: closed

Reserve Room – Webster Library

Tuesday, May 22 to Thursday, May 24: 8:30 a.m. – 8 p.m. (extended)
Friday, May 25: 8:30 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Saturday, May 26: 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Sunday, May 27: closed
Monday, May 28 to Wednesday, May 30: 8:30 a.m. – 8 p.m. (extended)

Media services and interlibrary loans – Webster Library

Tuesday, May 22 to Thursday, May 24: 9 a.m. – 8 p.m. (extended)
Friday, May 25: 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Saturday, May 26: closed
Sunday, May 27: closed
Monday, May 28 to Wednesday, May 30: 9 a.m. – 8 p.m. (extended)

Loan deadline for U.S. students is June 27

2012-05-17T16:42:50Z

Students from the United States interested in applying to the Federal Stafford Loans or Parent Plus Loans must provide their Student Aid Report (SAR), an original Master Promissory Note (MPN), and a confirmation of credit load to the Financial Aid and Awards Office by June 27, 2012. This deadline applies to students registered for fall 2012 and winter 2013.

Most governmental student financial assistance programs are open to full-time students only; however, due to recent U.S. Department of Education regulatory changes, undergraduate and graduate students enrolled in diploma and certificate programs are no longer eligible for U.S. government funding.

Related links:
• Introduction to U.S. loans
• Concordia's Financial Aid and Awards Office site

Holidays and summer hours schedule now available

2012-05-16T20:41:18Z

The posting of the official university holidays and summer hours schedule is a clear sign that winter is behind us.

The anticipation of sunny summer weather and vacations that are around the corner provide employees something to look forward to. “It is one of the great advantages Concordia employees enjoy,” says Carolina Willsher, associate vice-president, Human Resources.

Concordia’s university holidays for the 2012-13 year are as follows:

St-Jean Baptiste Day: Monday, June 25, 2012
Canada Day: Monday, July 2, 2012
Labour Day: Monday, September 3, 2012
Thanksgiving Day: Monday, October 8, 2012
Holiday period: Friday, December 21, 2012, from 5 p.m. to Wednesday, January 2, 2013, inclusively
President's Day: Friday, February 22, 2013
Good Friday: March 29, 2013
Easter Monday: April 1, 2013
National Patriot’s Day: Monday, May 20, 2013

As in previous years, Concordia’s President’s Executive Group recommends, where feasible, that offices close at 1 p.m. on the following Fridays in the weeks of June 4 to August 7, 2012:

Friday, June 8
Friday, June 15
Friday, June 22
Friday, June 29
Friday, July 6
Friday, July 13
Friday, July 20
Friday, July 27
Friday, August 3
Friday, August 10

Managers of units that provide essential support services and cannot close on Fridays should make arrangements to provide their employees with equivalent time away from work, in accordance with operational requirements, university policies and applicable contractual agreements.

During the summer period, the following services will be provided at regular hours: university security, accounting and restricted funds, financial services, the FOFA Gallery and Fine Arts Supply Store, facilities management at the thermal central, as well as the Instructional and Information Technology Services machine room, service desk and cinemas (depending on booking schedules).

Best wishes to all Concordia faculty and staff for a safe and enjoyable summer.

Related links:
• Official policy on summer hours
• Concordia Human Resources web pages

Concordia Human Resources offers workshops designed specifically for staff

2012-05-16T15:25:00Z

As part of the Learning and Development Calendar, the Concordia Human Resources department is offering a series of short workshops for staff. From June 5 to July 10, 2012, there are a number of workshops that address topics such as effective communication, time management and emotional intelligence.

All information about the workshops, including subject matter, date and location, are available on the Learning and Development Calendar on the Human Resources website.

While the workshops are offered at no cost to the employee, a cancellation fee may apply. Space is limited to 16 employees. Registration on my empath within the portal is mandatory.

It is important to note that these workshops are specifically designed for non-management staff of the university. Other similar courses, designed for department chairs, college principals, associate deans, associate university librarians, supervisory librarians and program directors, are or may be offered by the Centre for Academic Leadership.

For questions, comments or suggestions, please contact training@concordia.ca.

Related links:
•    Learning and Development Calendar
•    Information on enrolment and cancellations
•    Centre for Academic Leadership

Intermittent phone interruptions: May 15

2012-05-15T20:01:36Z

Instructional and Information Technology Services (IITS) would like reassure the Concordia community that they are aware of connection issues on Cisco IP phone and are working diligently to resolve the situation in the shortest delay. They apologize for any inconvenience and thank you for your patience.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the Service Desk at ext. 7613 or help@concordia.ca.

IITS offering tech support for faculty email account transfer

2012-05-09T20:45:17Z

Instructional and Information Technology Services (IITS) is in the process of migrating all faculty and staff email addresses from their current system to a single integrated server. Over the next few weeks, the IITS Service Desk will be contacting faculty members currently assigned Alcor-based email addresses (ex: jdoe@alcor.concordia.ca) to schedule an appointment for a technician to perform the transfer.

For more information, please see here.

Email migration news for faculty
IITS offering personal tech support for transfer of Alcor-based email accounts

As you know, Instructional and Information Technology Services (IITS) is in the process of migrating all faculty and staff Alcor-based email addresses from their current email system to a single integrated server. In addition to offering Concordia’s academic and professional staff a more modern and feature-rich email environment, this will provide a uniform email address format (i.e.: john.doe@concordia.ca).

In an effort to make the transition process as seamless as possible, over the next few weeks, staff from the IITS Service Desk will be contacting those faculty members currently assigned Alcor-based email addresses (ex: jdoe@alcor.concordia.ca) to schedule an appointment.

At a time convenient to the faculty member, IITS will send to their office a technician to transfer their email address and mail to the new server. Appointments will be available weekdays 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. throughout May, June and July (Fridays unavailable as of June 29).

Before your migration date, IITS strongly encourages you to clean up your Webmail email account and/or desktop email client by deleting old messages that you no longer need from the Inbox, Sent, and Trash folders. By cleaning up your account prior to your migration date, the migration process will run much more smoothly.

Please do not hesitate to contact the IITS Service Desk if you have any questions related to email migration. To learn more about the entire process, please visit http://concordia.ca/email.

IITS Service Desk Contact Details
SGW-H-925
help@concordia.ca
514-848-2424 ext. 7613
http://iits.concordia.ca/servicedesk

Related link:
• "Plan to consolidate email addresses in high gear" - NOW, May 8, 2012

Roadwork on the way for De Maisonneuve

2012-05-09T18:15:20Z

Major roadwork begins this week on De Maisonneuve Boulevard. As of May 7, the Ville de Montréal, in partnership with Concordia University and the Commission des services électriques de Montréal, will carry out a series of renovations along the strip running between Bishop and St-Mathieu.

In addition to installing a permanent bike path, and increasing the overall greenery in this part of Quartier Concordia, the roadwork includes extending, by nearly seven feet, the sidewalks in front of the J.W. McConnell Library and Henry F. Hall buildings, as well as completely repaving this section of De Maisonneuve.

Expected to last from May 7 to May 28, the initial work will involve the temporary relocation of the bike path (between Bishop and St-Mathieu). Sidewalks will remain open and the campus shuttle bus will not be affected during this period.

Following this first phase of the roadwork, sidewalks in the construction area will be closed periodically, one block and one side at a time. Appropriate signage will be installed and alternative routes to all Concordia buildings will be maintained.

The shuttle bus stop will be relocated to the northwest corner of Mackay and Ste-Catherine, next to the Engineering, Computer Science and Visual Arts Integrated Complex (EV), once construction starts on the Hall Building sidewalk.

These renovations are currently scheduled to carry on throughout summer. Additional information and updates will be provided on a regular basis over the coming months.

Related Link:
• “A spring awakening for Quartier Concordia” – NOW October 19, 2011

Access to elevators in Guy-Metro Building limited for two months

2012-05-09T16:16:38Z

Beginning May 9, elevator access in the Guy-Metro Building will be partially limited for approximately six to eight weeks.

As part of a series of building renovations, each elevator cabin is being refinished with glass paneling.
In order to minimize disruptions, during business hours, three of the four elevators will continue to operate as normal, with only one elevator at a time out of service. Elevator #4 will be used by the contractors to move construction materials in the early-morning hours (8:00 a.m. and earlier).

Additional information and updates will be provided on a regular basis over the coming weeks.
For any questions or comments please call 514-848-2424, extension 2400.

Related links:
•    Guy Metro Building
•    "Work progressing on Guy-Metro Building" – NOW February 21, 2012
•    "Guy-Metro Building renovations continue" – NOW November 23, 2011

Guy-Metro Building renovation schedule update

2012-05-09T16:14:58Z

Renovations to the Guy-Metro Building have been delayed by approximately one month after the unfinished walls in the northwest corner were unexpectedly exposed during a recent storm.
Concordia has initiated a series of actions to assess the impact, mitigate any damage and evaluate asset deterioration.

“All necessary repair work will be conducted by the construction firm involved,” says Associate Vice-President, Facilities Management, Peter Bolla. “In addition, before any of the interior recladding continues, we have commissioned a full inspection, engineering, and environmental report.”

This means the proposed office moves scheduled for staff, many of whom are currently relocated throughout the Guy-Metro Building, will be unfortunately delayed by at least four weeks. The facilities management team will be in regular contact with the affected units to coordinate new moving dates.

“The health and well-being of Concordia’s staff are of paramount importance,” continues Bolla. “All appropriate safety precautions will be followed and any environmental approvals necessary will be obtained.”

Related Links:
•    Guy-Metro Building – Campus buildings overview
•    "Guy-Metro Building renovations continue" – NOW, November 23, 2011
•    "Work progressing on Guy-Metro Building" – NOW, February 21, 2012

IITS Service Desk: Summer hours

2012-05-08T18:28:47Z

Please note that as of Monday, May 14, the Instructional and Information Technology Services (IITS) Service Desk’s summer hours of operation will be the following:

Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m.

A representative can be reached at:

SGW-H-925
Help@concordia.ca
514-848-2424 ext. 7613

DPrint (Xerox) department network unavailable: May 3, 2012

2012-05-03T14:17:04Z

Please be advised that access to DPrint department network devices is currently unavailable due to emergency maintenance. Instructional and Information Technology Services (IITS) apologizes for any inconvenience. More information will be posted on The IITS site in the near future.

If you require immediate printing services please visit a DPrint counter in LB 115 or CJ 1.422.

For any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the IITS Service Desk at (514) 848-2424 ext. 7613 or dprint@concordia.ca.

Support the Pedal for Kids fundraising campaign

2012-05-01T18:20:21Z

This year marks the 21st anniversary of Pedal for Kids, which has grown into one of Montreal Children’s Hospital's most important fundraising activities, raising more than $9 million since 1992.

In previous years proceeds from the campaign funded research into childhood diseases, helped families in need cope with the financial burden of a child’s illness, and purchased a lifesaving piece of equipment for the hospital’s emergency department.

Last year Concordia's John Molson School of Business partnered with Concordia's Department of Human Resources (HR) to raise more than $13,000. This year's goal is two-fold: raise $40,000 and become one of the top teams featured on the Pedal.com website.

“In order to achieve our goal, we will need volunteers to mobilize their departments and come up with innovative ways to raise cash. We are looking for some friendly competition,” says Ida Giannelli, an employment assistant in HR.

Previous efforts included bake sales, raffles and soliciting friends and family to sponsor the ride on the Mighty Bike. An integral part of the Pedal for Kids fundraising campaign, the Mighty Bike is a custom-made bicycle built for 30 riders. Concordia has secured the Mighty Bike on Tuesday, June 12 at 10 a.m. for the ride.

For those interested in volunteering, contact Giannelli at ida.giannelli@concordia.ca. Those wishing to donote direclty can do so on the Pedal for Kids website (see link below).

Related links:
• Pedal.com
• "Take a ride on the Mighty Bike" — NOW, April 17, 2012