Partnership with 1st Choice Savings helps bring community together

trevor.kenney — Fri, 06 Feb 2015 21:14:06 +0000

The 1st Choice Savings Centre for Sport and Wellness will be the site for a pair of exciting community events in the coming days, thanks to the strong relationship between the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge and 1st Choice Savings and Credit Union.

On Saturday evening, 1st Choice Savings is sponsoring the final Canada West regular season home games for the Pronghorns men’s and women’s basketball teams (games at 5 and 7 p.m. against the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Saskatchewan) by presenting a Free Student Night. With the Horns men’s team seeking a playoff berth, the evening promises to be wildly entertaining.

During a break in the action, 1st Choice Savings will be making a significant donation to support the facility that bears its name – the 1st Choice Savings Centre for Sport and Wellness.

“Over the years, this outstanding facility has become a hub for community activity by hosting major sporting events, serving as the home court for Pronghorn Athletics and acting as an important venue for a variety of initiatives, such as being a site for community flu clinics,” says Dr. Mike Mahon, President and Vice-Chancellor of the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge. “And, of course, we can’t forget about our annual Play Day.”

Now in its fourth year, Play Day has seen southern Alberta families flock to the 1st Choice Savings Centre for the annual festivities. This year’s superhero-themed event will take place on Monday, February 16 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

“These next few weeks are very special to us at 1st Choice Savings as we get to experience the great relationship we have with the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge,” says Brian Kinahan (BMgt ’79), president & CEO of 1st Choice Savings and Credit Union and a U of L alumnus. “Through our support of this building and the annual Play Day event, to sponsoring this weekend’s basketball games, we are so grateful to have a part in opening this wonderful facility to southern Albertans. We invite everyone to come out, enjoy some excellent basketball and have a fun day of play with us. We sincerely thank the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ for these opportunities to celebrate our vibrant and exciting community.”

The activity list for Play Day 2015 will include classic favourites such as the cardboard box free build, the basketball, floor hockey and bouncy castle activity zones as well as the ever-popular face-painting area. Those looking to scale new heights can take advantage of the climbing wall, while open swim is once again available in the Max Bell pool.

The superhero theme will be reflected in a number of zones, including a Spiderman Web Maze and Green Arrow Archery and Wonder Woman Golden Lasso games. The ASPIRE Zone will feature the ins and outs of fingerprinting, the chance to construct super zoomer airplanes and a coding challenge whereby participants learn how to code their own superhero character or game on laptops and iPADs.

“Every year our organizers and volunteers come up with some really engaging and fun family activities,” says Mahon. “I really look forward to hosting Play Day every year. As a university, we are always striving to better our community, and through our partnership with 1st Choice Savings, we are able to provide this opportunity for families to spend some quality time together and really strengthen those family bonds.”

Admission and parking for Play Day are free and people are encouraged to bring gym shoes, comfortable clothing and a swimsuit to maximize their opportunity for fun. A Toonie BBQ will also be set up on the north end of the upper track.

A paperless solution

trevor.kenney — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 19:18:38 +0000

Imagine a tower of completely full binders more than 34 feet tall, or a large stack of photocopy paper packages greater than 19 feet tall.

That's a lot of paper (from a lot of trees), and the approximate amount of printed material required in a typical year to support the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Board of Governors in their decision-making processes.

In mid-November, however, the Board literally stopped the presses on printing hard copies of their materials (other than a set or two for document retention and archival purposes), and has migrated to an iPad-based paperless system.

Graduate Students' Association President Paul Walz and the rest of the U of L's Board of Governors has adapted well to the iPAD changeover. The paperless approach is expected to save both money and resources.

"We are incorporating sustainability and a more efficient use of resources into our operating model, just as other areas of campus are doing," says Jodie Black, the Board secretariat and person responsible for managing the Board's information flow.

"We conducted a complete analysis of our past practices, future needs, efficiency and cost effectiveness. The decision to go paperless was an obvious and sensible choice."

Black says that in addition to cost savings, the flexibility and quick process of information sharing with the new iPADs is becoming very handy.

"There is less paper to manage, we have less paper to worry about shipping, and I can easily get information in front of people very quickly," she says. "As an example, we were able to deliver a 40-page, last-minute agenda item immediately to our Board shared drive, versus printing off copies for everyone."

Board information packages are now available on a shared drive rather than printed, mailed and/or couriered. Over time, the previous folders and binders full of information used by most Board members would get cumbersome, while the iPad continues to take up the same amount of space, regardless of how much information it stores.

Black says the cost of the transition is being amortized over two years.

"The price of the initial iPad purchases will be recouped due to cost savings in printing and distribution."

Chris Robinson, left, from the U of L's IT department helps BOG member Jim Berezan get his iPAD up and running.

The big switch happened last month, and for the Board's first paperless meeting, members of the Information Technology team were on hand to make sure everything ran smoothly.

"Our IT group has been extremely helpful with the process, the transition and for the occasional challenges we've encountered," says Black. "We are also tracking how this works over time, so that other units on campus can take advantage of going paperless if they choose to do so."

Currently, Athabasca ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ uses a paperless system for their board of governors, and Black says that other institutions are watching the U of L's progress with interest as they research their own options.

"I am also willing to meet with any other business unit or group on campus looking to go paperless," says Black. "We're looking to lead by example, and also to have what the Board does to support sustainability be a part of our regular business practices."

Those interested can contact Black at Jodie.black@uleth.ca to set up a time to talk.

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Partnership with 1st Choice Savings helps bring community together

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A paperless solution

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