IT Systems and Services is preparing virtual student computer lab applications for the Fall 2026 semester. We kindly ask that all faculty and/or lab facilitators who require access to virtual lab applications for their courses please submit their requests via the form below. 

Please complete this form if you are facilitating a course in the upcoming Fall 2026 semester and your students will require virtual lab access to complete their course.

Please note that any virtual lab access previously provided for courses will be removed by September 4th, 2026. If your students still require access during the Fall 2026 semester, please re-submit the above form.

In some specialized cases, there may be costs and approvals associated with provisioning virtual labs, and in these cases, ITSS will contact you to discuss next steps.

Work on a new extension at the south-east corner of the Robertson Library building, which will house a greatly enhanced and expanded preservation facility for the University Archives and Special Collections (UASC), will begin in September. While this will not significantly disrupt Library operations in the Fall 2026 academic semester, please note that a construction fence will be erected on Wednesday, August 19, to begin preparation work and to keep the site safe and secure.

It is anticipated that the fence will remain in place through to the end of 2027, requiring sections of the pedestrian pathway between RL and AVC and Parking Lot B to be closed (refer to diagram in full message on upei.ca). The construction entrance will be accessed from the road that leads to the Dean’s parking area at the Atlantic Veterinary College so at times there will be heavier traffic at this location. For more information, visit https://libraryupei.ca/renovations-2026

On Wednesday, August 26, ITSS will conduct maintenance on myUPEI Self Service and related services from 8:00pm to 12:00am. During this time, there may be intermittent access to and performance issues with Self-Service, Web Advisor, and Colleague.

As a reminder, you can access Moodle directly using https://moodle.upei.ca and Outlook email using https://outlook.office.com.

If you have any questions, please fill out our new Help Form: https://go.upei.ca/itrequest

Supervisors of campus student staff are invited to register their students for a half-day of in-person facilitated student training on Tuesday, September 1, from 9 am to 1 pm in MCDH 242. The training is designed to prepare student staff with common skills needed for on-campus roles; it will not replace the role-specific training conducted by supervisors. The goal is to equip student staff with the skills they will need to confidently and professionally represent your departments. 

This joint initiative was developed by the Office of Student Culture and Community Standards and representatives from various departments involved in a student training committee. Together, the committee developed and has secured facilitators for the following topics: 

• Representing UPEI as a Student Leader
• The Basics of a Trauma-Informed Approach
• Referral and Boundary Setting
• Interrupting Harm
• Conflict Resolution
• Professional Communication 

A supplementary information package will accompany these mini sessions. Students and supervisors will be invited to provide feedback on the training's relevance and to recommend future training opportunities. We hope that supervisors and students see this as an opportunity to better connect with campus peers and resources, and to inform future engagement opportunities. 

If interested, please register your student staff here. The registration deadline is Thursday, August 27. We ask that supervisors register all of the students they supervise who will be participating. This helps us ensure that students have approval to attend, track attendance, and ensure that we have enough space, materials, and refreshments for everyone. Questions can be directed to kewing@upei.ca. 

Rethinking Teaching Expertise: Toward a More Wholistic Framework for Conceptualizing, Assessing and Developing Teaching Expertise in Higher Education

What does it actually mean to develop and demonstrate teaching expertise? This 90-minute interactive session explores the Developmental Framework for Teaching Expertise in Postsecondary Education (Kenny et al., 2017), a model that reframes developing teaching expertise as multi-faceted, career-long, and relational journey. The framework is grounded in three foundational habits of mind that shape five interwoven and non-hierarchical facets of practice: teaching and supporting learning, professional learning and development, mentorship, research/scholarship/inquiry, and educational leadership. Within each facet, a developmental continuum illustrates how growth moves from developing oneself in a local context toward contributing to the growth of others and the broader teaching and learning community. Deliberately "written in pencil," the framework was designed from the outset to be shared, adapted, and reshaped to fit local institutional contexts. 

During this 90-minute interactive session participants will:

• Explore the structure and value of the framework within the context of their roles.
• Consider adaptations and applications to the framework and how components of the framework could be applied across multiple organizational levels (e.g., individual courses/educators, across departments, at the institutional level)
• Leave with a call to action on how you might use, adapt, or advocate for a more holistic conceptualization of teaching expertise in your own department, unit, or role at UPEI.

Students, faculty and staff are invited to attend. No prior familiarity with the framework is required. Bring your curiosity and a willingness to reflect on your own teaching and learning journey, however you currently define it!

The deadline for the Employee and Spouse/Dependent Tuition Waiver forms for the Fall 2026 semester is Friday, August 28, 2026.  We encourage you to have your tuition waivers submitted as soon as possible to assist in the timely processing. Tuition Waiver forms must be submitted electronically.

The online Tuition Waiver fillable forms can be found on the HR Portal of the myUPEI site, under Training and Development. 

Please note, the Employee or Spouse/Dependent must be registered in the course prior to applying for the tuition waiver. 

If you have any questions, please contact Human Resources at: (902) 566-0514 or hrgeneral@upei.ca.

Our Annual Back to School Sale is on all week from August 24 to 28. Save 20% on all regular priced clothing, backpacks, school supplies and giftware items. Shop online at upei.ca/bookstore 

The Office of Student Culture and Community Standards invites staff and faculty to get involved in the upcoming Welcome Week celebrations, which run over the first two weeks of September. We are working hard behind the scenes to finalize event details. If interested, in volunteering, please use this sign-up form to place yourself on the list. 

We look forward to sharing more information in the coming weeks. Please contact Krissi Ewing kewing@upei.ca with any questions about plans for Welcome Week events. 

Human Resources is pleased to introduce UPEI’s Exit Interview Program, now in place as an ongoing initiative to better understand and improve the employee experience.

Exit interviews are a voluntary opportunity for employees who are leaving UPEI or transitioning to a new department to share feedback about their experience. Insights gathered will help identify trends and opportunities to strengthen our workplace. Aggregate findings will be shared in a confidential and appropriate manner.

Eligible employees will automatically receive a survey link. The survey will be sent from UPEI HR Engagement: survey@talentmap.com.

More information is available on the Human Resources SharePoint page.

If you have any questions, please contact the Employee Experience & Development team at hrengage@upei.ca.

Artificial intelligence continues to spark important debate in higher education. Explore two thought-provoking articles that present opposing perspectives on the role of AI in universities, one arguing for its potential to enhance teaching, learning, and research, and the other raising concerns about its impact on academic values, critical thinking, and the purpose of higher education.

AI in Universities - the case in favour

AI in Universities - the case against 

Research on Tap provides an opportunity to talk about research and network with the public in a casual setting for an evening of informal discussion and dialogue. The next session will take place in Fall 2026, specific dates to be determined based on speaker and venue availability.

Each Research on Tap session is led by one or two Faculty Researchers from UPEI who present the central theme/topic in a way that is accessible, insightful and exciting to the lay audience. The rest of the time is for questions and discussion. The conversation is interesting, engaged, and lively.  

Are you and/or a colleague interested in leading one of these discussions?  If so, please provide a short abstract to Research Services researchservices@upei.ca describing your topic and emphasizing how it would be of interest now to the PEI public. Please also indicate a preferred day of the week for the session. 

The deadline for expressions of interest for Research on Tap is end of day Friday, September 4 2026.    

For questions, please contact Jo Minx, Research Services Liaison jminx@upei.ca, 902-566-0843

Sports Centre/Fitness Centre: Tuesday, August 25 opened 6:00 am – 6:00 pm. Closing at 6:00 pm due to a planned power shutdown.

As ITSS prepares to welcome a new academic year and support thousands of UPEI students, faculty, and staff, we are streamlining the submission of support requests. To help us route requests more efficiently, improve response times, and ensure requests reach the appropriate team, we ask that all IT requests be submitted through our online forms.

1. If you have lost access to your account, use our publicly accessible account recovery form at go.upei.ca/lostaccount
2. For all other support issues, submit a request at go.upei.ca/itrequest
3. For IT-related forms (account, computer, mobile, and printer requests), visit go.upei.ca/itforms or my.upei.ca
4. For self-service resources, knowledge base articles, and additional support options, visit go.upei.ca/itss or upei.ca/itss

Please note that helpdesk@upei.ca is no longer monitored for ticket creation purposes. Help requests submitted by email will not be processed. To ensure timely assistance, please use one of the methods listed above.

Please review our guidance on ticket criticality and then if you are experiencing a live critical issue significantly impacting classroom learning, patient care, or core university operations, contact ITSS at 902-566-0465, press 2, during regular business hours (Monday to Friday, 8:00 am to 4:00 pm AST). Users calling about non-critical issues will be directed to submit a support request through the appropriate online form. 

Students requiring assistance may contact ITSS at 902-566-0465 and press 3 during regular business hours (Monday to Friday, 8:00 am to 4:00 pm AST).

For after-hours global IT emergencies, contact UPEI Security Services at 902-566-0384.

Kind regards,

IT Systems and Services (ITSS)

Looking to strengthen your skills or bring new knowledge back to your team? The UPEI Office of Continuing Education and Professional Development (OCEPD) has a wide range of practical professional development opportunities available to UPEI staff this fall. Choose from leadership, AI, project management, data analytics, case management, workplace skills, and more.

Full-time UPEI staff can take eligible certificate programs and microcredentials for just $995. Take advantage of this special staff rate to invest in your professional growth.

 Certificates and Microcredentials

• Certificate in Collaborative Leadership — Starts September 22, 2026.
• Certificate in Case Management (online) — Starts September 28, 2026.
• Certificate in Motivational Interviewing — Starts October 1, 2026.
• Microcredential in Applied Artificial Intelligence for the Workplace — Starts October 5, 2026.
• New Managers Certificate — Starts October 6, 2026.
• New Managers Certificate (online) — Starts October 13, 2026.
• Certificate in Project Management — Starts October 19, 2026.
• Certificate in Professional Office Administration(online) — Starts October 27, 2026.
• Certificate in Mental Health Case Work — Starts November 5, 2026.
• Certificate in Introductory Data Analytics – Bridging Qualitative and Quantitative Analysis — Starts December 16, 2026.

Workshops

• Understanding Epekwitk Through Mi'kmaq Perspectives – Developing Cultural Competency Through Indigenous Knowledge, History, and Outlooks — Starts September 28, 2026.
• The Adult Learner: Course Design and Facilitation Workshop(online) — Starts November 18, 2026.

Learn Anytime — Self-Paced Online Courses

• Safe Work Spaces
• Beyond Awareness – Strategies for Neurodiverse Workplace Success 

This is an excellent opportunity to build new skills, strengthen your current role, prepare for future opportunities, and invest in your professional development at a significantly reduced rate. Learn more about the UPEI staff professional development discount through the UPEI Human Resources staff discount page.

Questions or looking for the right professional development opportunity for you? Contact pdp@upei.ca.

On Wednesday, August 26, ITSS will conduct maintenance on myUPEI Self Service and related services from 8:00pm to 12:00am. During this time, there may be intermittent access to and performance issues with Self-Service, Web Advisor, and Colleague.

As a reminder, you can access Moodle directly using https://moodle.upei.ca and Outlook email using https://outlook.office.com.

If you have any questions, please fill out our new Help Form: https://go.upei.ca/itrequest

The Robertson Library team is looking forward to welcoming UPEI campus community members and visitors to our newly renovated spaces—the main lobby and adjoining all-gender washrooms, the central staircase, and the upper landing—this fall. Thanks to the efforts of the project contractors and UPEI Facilities Management (Capital Projects), work has been progressing well, but there have been a few delays. The full library reopening is now scheduled for Monday, September 21, 2026.

Since May, the Robertson Library has been operating a temporary service point in Library Annex, Room 235, from 9 am– 5 pm, Monday–Friday, and this will continue through Friday, September 18, 2026.

Evening and weekend printing/scanning support will remain unavailable until the Library’s main Service Desk reopens September 21, so please plan accordingly; if you have time-sensitive printing/scanning needs outside of the Room 235 service point hours, the Charlottetown Library Learning Centre (downtown) or the Staples Printing Centre may be able to assist.

In addition, McMillan Hall in the W.A. Murphy Student Centre has been booked for use throughout the day and evening as a student study space during the month of September. Remember to check out the new UPEI new UPEI Support Services Campus Map, created by UPEI Welcome Week and the UPEI Student Culture and Community Standards teams; the green icons on this map highlight buildings offering student study spaces. For more information, visit https://libraryupei.ca/renovations-2026

The UPEI Faculty of Indigenous Knowledge, Education, Research, and Applied Studies (IKERAS) invites you to attend Mawi - Lukutimk / Working Together, where we’ll be sharing Indigenous knowledge from L’nuey, the Mi’kmaq Confederacy, Curtis Michael, Dr. Judy Clark, and Thirley Levi.

Mark your calendars:
Date: Wednesday, August 26, 2026
Time: 9:30 am to 2:30 pm
Meet and Greet: 12:00 to 12:30 pm and 2:30 to 3:00 pm
Location: Kelley Memorial Building (KMB) 211 and 237 (level two, upstairs on the main floor)

We hope to see you there!

The University of Prince Edward Island is now accepting nominations for the 2026 Founders. Founders are members of the campus community—most often retired faculty and staff—who have contributed to UPEI’s mission in an exceptional way. Recognizing our Founders is an opportunity to celebrate our rich heritage and traditions, honouring those who have worked diligently and passionately to build the University into the highly regarded institution of higher education it is today.

Established by President Emeritus Wade MacLauchlan in 2000, the Founders award is presented to those who have played a direct role in

• supporting the vision, reputation, and continued success of the University, and/or
• creating a new era of educational, research, and/or service excellence at the University. 

If you wish to nominate someone as Founder, please fill out the online form or email your submission to communications@upei.ca. 

Completed nominations must be received by Wednesday, August 26, 2026, at 11:59 pm AT.

If you are interested in learning more about this award and past award winners, please visit the UPEI Founders web page. 
 

Our Annual Back to School Sale is on all week from August 24 to 28. Save 20% on all regular priced clothing, backpacks, school supplies and giftware items. Shop online at upei.ca/bookstore 

The UPEI Back to School Fair, organized by the Office of Student Culture and Community Standards in partnership with the UPEISU, will take place on Tuesday, September 8, from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm at the UPEI Gym A and B in the Chi Wan Young Sports Centre.

Staff and faculty student service groups can register here. Student clubs and societies must register separately with the UPEISU. 

• The setup time allotted for the event is from 10:30 to 11:00 am, with doors opening at 11:00 am for students.
• The teardown time allotted for the event is 1:45 - 2:00 pm, sharp!
• Each vendor will be assigned a table and 2 chairs.
• Please bring along the following items:
  • A tablecloth
  • Your banner bug or any identifiers for your office, unit or service
  • Pamphlets, brochures, handouts or any other promotional material for your office, unit or service
• A chart will be posted at the doors to identify your table assignments, and a small sign will be on your assigned table.
• Please have at least 1 staff member at your table; 2 staff members to rotate are highly recommended and encouraged.
• Please show off your UPEI Panther merchandise!
• Please expect it to be busy and noisy atmosphere. 

Questions outside of information on the registration form can be directed to Krissi Ewing kewing@upei.ca. 

We look forward to seeing you all soon!