Message from UPEI Health, Safety, and Environment: Finding birds on campus

There has been extensive media coverage recently about the presence of avian influenza in wild birds in Atlantic Canada. The UPEI Health, Safety, and Environment office advises members of the campus community to not handle any dead, injured, or sick birds as they can harbour diseases. If you find an injured, sick, or dead wild bird on campus, do not pick it up. Instead, contact either PEI Fish and Wildlife (902-368-4683) or the Canadian Wildlife Health Cooperative (902-628-4314).

As the end of the semester approaches and we focus on exam preparation, you might be thinking about various formats. This digest provides a summary of a recent research study examining time-limited tests.  

It's that time of year for award nominations!  Are you working on one right now? Here's a resource with 5 tips for writing strong letters of support that might make the difference for the colleague or student that you hope will be recognized. 

If you are working on a teaching dossier to support an award nomination, then join us for a session on Monday, March 14, at 12:30 pm, to learn more about the process and to get suggestions to make your dossier stand out to adjudication committee members. A panel of three teaching and educational leadership award recipients will be here to share their experiences. The session will take place in the Teaching and Learning Centre and will be recorded. For more details, e-mail TLC@upei.ca. 

Beginning March 14, yoga instructor Colleen Gallant will lead a Hatha Yoga class on Monday and Wednesdays from 4:30--5:15 pm, March 14--April 20. There will be a total of 12 classes. Fees: UPEI students--$10; UPEI faculty and staff--$25; all others--$100, plus applicable taxes. To register, log into recreation.upei.ca and click on Fitness Programs. Please contact Angela Marchbank, Fitness and Wellness Coordinator, at amarchbank@upei.ca if you have questions.

The next deadline for submitting biosafety applications including new applications, renewals, and/or amendments is Friday, March 25, 2022. These applications will be reviewed at the April 2022 meeting.

Please note that the IBC has instituted a new category of protocol amendment: Biosafety Permit Minor Amendment. This event form is included in the Researcher Portal.

Minor amendments that are strictly limited to changes in personnel and/or funding can be submitted at any time but require up to a two-week review period. They are normally reviewed by the IBC chair or designate, the BSO or designate, and one other voting member of the IBC. If the amendment is approved, then an approval notification will be sent to the PI. Submissions via this route may be sent for full committee review at the discretion of the IBC chair and the BSO.  

All research compliance applications, including biosafety application forms, must be submitted through the Researcher Portal.

Information about the Researcher Portal, including instructions for using the site, is available at https://www.upei.ca/research-services/forms. Contact researchcompliance@upei.ca if you have any questions about accessing or using the Researcher Portal.

For more information about the IBC review and approval process, please contact the Compliance Coordinator at researchcompliance@upei.ca

Ethics protocols that involve "more than minimal risk" must be reviewed by the full UPEI Research Ethics Board (REB). The next deadline for submitting these protocols is Friday, March 25, 2022.

Other ethics protocol submissions, including new applications that do not involve "more than minimal risk," renewals, and amendments may be submitted at any time. They will be sent for delegated review as soon as all necessary forms are received.

All research compliance applications, including Research Ethics Board application forms, must be submitted through the Researcher Portal. This online system is paired with electronic approvals to replace the hard-copy signatures process.

Information about the Researcher Portal, including instructions for using the site, is available at https://www.upei.ca/research-services/forms. Contact researchcompliance@upei.ca if you have any questions about accessing or using the Researcher Portal.

For more information about the REB review and approval process, please contact the Compliance Coordinator at researchcompliance@upei.ca

The deadline for Animal Care Protocol Submissions (new, renewal, or amendment) is Friday, April 1, for the April meeting. Please note that as of June 1, 2020, all animal user protocols must be submitted through UPEI Researcher Portal at https://upei.researchservicesoffice.com/Romeo.Researcher/

For new protocols, select "applications," and for renewal or amendment protocols, select "events." UPEI ACC SOPs and Codes of Practice can be accessed through myUPEI at https://portal.upei.ca/facultystaff/administrativeservices/AVCAnimalCare/Pages/default.aspx. 

Those protocols received after the deadline will be reviewed the following month. The committee requires at least one month for processing applications.

UPEI will host a virtual Relay for Life event on Sunday, March 20, from 7:00--9:00 pm. Relay for Life is a fundraising event for the Canadian Cancer Society. It includes opening and closing ceremonies, a luminary ceremony in which we honour loved ones affected by cancer, guest speakers, and games. This year, our fundraising goal is $10,000, and we have already raised over $3,000.

The cost to participate in the event is $20 and includes a t-shirt and luminary. If you are interested in signing up or making a donation, you can do so at the following link:

https://support.cancer.ca/site/TR/RelayForLife/RFLY_NW_odd_?pg=entry&fr_id=28072

If you have any questions about the event, you can email Sarah Doak at sjdoak@upei.ca.

It's that time of year for award nominations!  Are you working on one right now? Here's a resource with 5 tips for writing strong letters of support that might make the difference for the colleague or student that you hope will be recognized. 

If you are working on a teaching dossier to support an award nomination, then join us for a session on Monday, March 14, at 12:30 pm, to learn more about the process and to get suggestions to make your dossier stand out to adjudication committee members. A panel of three teaching and educational leadership award recipients will be here to share their experiences. The session will take place in the Teaching and Learning Centre and will be recorded. For more details, e-mail TLC@upei.ca. 

Beginning March 14, yoga instructor Colleen Gallant will lead a Hatha Yoga class on Monday and Wednesdays from 4:30--5:15 pm, March 14--April 20. There will be a total of 12 classes. Fees: UPEI students--$10; UPEI faculty and staff--$25; all others--$100, plus applicable taxes. To register, log into recreation.upei.ca and click on Fitness Programs. Please contact Angela Marchbank, Fitness and Wellness Coordinator, at amarchbank@upei.ca if you have questions.

We are so excited to share this free event! Join us tonight (Thursday, March 10) at 7:00 pm for "A Winter's Night of Poetry with Poet Laureate Julie Pellissier-Lush"!

Julie will share her amazing work in her new book, Epekwitk Mi'kmaq Poetry from Prince Edward Island. This event is to all students, faculty, and staff and will be held on Zoom. To join, click the link below:

https://upei.zoom.us/j/65023366990...
Meeting ID: 650 2336 6990
Passcode: 235688

We have hot chocolate and popcorn packages available for pick up in the Mawi'omi Indigenous Student Centre. Can't wait to see you there! You won't want to miss it!

The next deadline for submitting biosafety applications including new applications, renewals, and/or amendments is Friday, March 25, 2022. These applications will be reviewed at the April 2022 meeting.

Please note that the IBC has instituted a new category of protocol amendment: Biosafety Permit Minor Amendment. This event form is included in the Researcher Portal.

Minor amendments that are strictly limited to changes in personnel and/or funding can be submitted at any time but require up to a two-week review period. They are normally reviewed by the IBC chair or designate, the BSO or designate, and one other voting member of the IBC. If the amendment is approved, then an approval notification will be sent to the PI. Submissions via this route may be sent for full committee review at the discretion of the IBC chair and the BSO.  

All research compliance applications, including biosafety application forms, must be submitted through the Researcher Portal.

Information about the Researcher Portal, including instructions for using the site, is available at https://www.upei.ca/research-services/forms. Contact researchcompliance@upei.ca if you have any questions about accessing or using the Researcher Portal.

For more information about the IBC review and approval process, please contact the Compliance Coordinator at researchcompliance@upei.ca

Ethics protocols that involve "more than minimal risk" must be reviewed by the full UPEI Research Ethics Board (REB). The next deadline for submitting these protocols is Friday, March 25, 2022.

Other ethics protocol submissions, including new applications that do not involve "more than minimal risk," renewals, and amendments may be submitted at any time. They will be sent for delegated review as soon as all necessary forms are received.

All research compliance applications, including Research Ethics Board application forms, must be submitted through the Researcher Portal. This online system is paired with electronic approvals to replace the hard-copy signatures process.

Information about the Researcher Portal, including instructions for using the site, is available at https://www.upei.ca/research-services/forms. Contact researchcompliance@upei.ca if you have any questions about accessing or using the Researcher Portal.

For more information about the REB review and approval process, please contact the Compliance Coordinator at researchcompliance@upei.ca

Please join us for the second webinar in the "Resistance, Change and Survival: Mi'kmaq'ik to the Mayan Nation" series, presented by Dra. Vera Tiesler. The webinar is titled "What we know about the first nations of Mesoamerica by studying their human remains"/"Lo que sabemos de los pueblos originarios de Mesoamérica a través del estudio de sus restos humanos".

The physical anthropology of the native peoples of Mesoamerica has been revealing deep and interesting data that allow us to delve into the ancestral past. This webinar will bring us closer to much new knowledge obtained through bone analysis of men and women who lived in pre-Columbian cultures. // La antropología  fìsica de los pueblos originarios de Mesoamérica ha ido revelando profundos e interesantes datos que nos permiten adentrarnos en el pasado ancestral. Esta conferencia nos acercará a muchos nuevos conocimientos obtenidos a traves del análisis oseo, de hombres y mujeres que vivieron en las culturas precolombinas. 

Please register for the webinar at https://tinyurl.com/y5p4dr7t

The "Resistance, Change and Survival: Mi'kmaq'ik to the Mayan Nation" webinar series is coordinated by Dr. John Doran, University of Prince Edward Island, and Dr. Víctor Hugo Medina Suarez, Universidad Autonoma de Yucatán.

Additional webinars coming up in the series include:

• April 8, 2022, at 2 pm AST: “Intercultural Education of the Mexican State: An autopsy”/“Educación Intercultural del Estado Mexicano: una autopsia” - Dr. Juan Carlos Mijangos (UADY) 
• May 13, 2022, at 2 pm AST: "Mayan feminism in the literary works of Ana Patricia Martínez Huchim"/“El feminismo maya en las obras literarias de Ana Patricia Martínez Huchim” - Dra. Cristina Leirana (UADY)
• June 10, 2022, at 2 pm AST: “The Mayan language in history: from instrument of colonization to means of modernization” “La lengua maya en la historia: de instrumento de colonización a medio de modernización” - Dr. Lorgio Cobá Noh (UADY)

We would like to thank our sponsors, The Canadian Society for Studies in Education (CSSE) and the UPEI Faculty of Education, for their help in making this event possible.

The deadline for Animal Care Protocol Submissions (new, renewal, or amendment) is Friday, April 1, for the April meeting. Please note that as of June 1, 2020, all animal user protocols must be submitted through UPEI Researcher Portal at https://upei.researchservicesoffice.com/Romeo.Researcher/

For new protocols, select "applications," and for renewal or amendment protocols, select "events." UPEI ACC SOPs and Codes of Practice can be accessed through myUPEI at https://portal.upei.ca/facultystaff/administrativeservices/AVCAnimalCare/Pages/default.aspx. 

Those protocols received after the deadline will be reviewed the following month. The committee requires at least one month for processing applications.

The E-Learning Multimedia Development Grant is being offered for the fourth time as an opportunity for faculty and staff members to create a multimedia course resource with the help of the E-Learning Instructional Multimedia Specialist. Find out more about the grant here. The closing date for applications is March 11, 2022.

If you have questions related to your multimedia project ideas, please contact Kristy McKinney at kmckinney@upei.ca. 

SoTL Canada is presenting a webinar with Brett McCollum, editor-in-chief of CJSoTL, on the "Ins and Outs of Participating in Peer Review," discussing the roles of authors, editors, and reviewers on Friday, March 11, 2022 at 1:00 pm Atlantic. Faculty and students are welcome. Click here to RSVP.

PhD Defense, Faculty of Science--Emad Naseri

"Development of controlled-release drug-eluting wound dressing"

If you wish to attend the public presentation, please contact the Graduate Studies Coordinator at gsc@upei.ca to receive the link.

Everyone is welcome.