What Matters to UofT Students? The Innovation Hub’s 4-year journey to understanding this question

Julia smeed smiling at the camera, wearing a striped shirt
Julia Smeed smiling at the camera

Well into our fourth year at the Innovation Hub, we continue our mission to improve campus life through student-centric design. Over the last four years, we have collected an immense amount of data, including over 600 interviews from students and other community members from across campus. Our diverse teams of students have logged over 4,600 hours of data analysis to generate empathy for students and their experiences on campus.

There is tension in our work, and our teams have learned that we must recognize the biases we carry from our respective capacities. The diversity of our teams is a strength and we challenge each other daily to understand how our own perspective is just one perspective, shaped by our own positionality. I feel so privileged to lead these diverse teams of students in this work and I learn alongside of them each day. I also feel honoured that so many students have felt safe to share stories of their experiences with us. Our job is to constantly think about how we honour these stories and ensure that they are shared back to the larger UofT community.

Recap – Hub Progress to Date

Headshot of smiling woman with red hair in grey topBy Julia Smeed, Innovation Hub Project Lead

We are so excited to launch the Innovation Hub blog to provide a space for dialogue about innovative mindsets and methodologies and to document the story of the Hub.  Over the past two months we’ve been busy identifying our domains for innovation and preparing to build the Innovation Hub teams.  I’d like to first take this opportunity to say a huge thank you to the hundreds of students, staff and faculty who were part of this process.  It’s been so wonderful to work collaboratively and I am so excited to continue this work with you!

Innovation Hour – July and August

The Innovation Hour is an informal morning coffee hour for staff, faculty & students who are interested in learning more about the Innovation Hub and sharing innovative ideas that will enhance the student experience at the University of Toronto.  It’s a chance to chat with colleagues about where innovation is already happening, to learn more about the Innovation Hub and to brainstorm opportunities for innovation.  Hub updates will be provided during these meetings.

Innovation Hub Launch – May 16th, 2016

We launched the Innovation Hub on May 16th at Chestnut.  This was a great day where we over 260 students, staff and faculty gathered to explore the mindset of innovation and discuss how we can bring innovation to the student experience at University of Toronto.  our AVP of Student Life, Lucy Fromowitz, reminded us that our role is to “hold the door open” for students.  She shared about the incredible innovation that is already happening across the University and encouraged us to explore ways to deepen our collaborations to explore how “when we work together the sum is much greater than the individual parts”.