UPEI and the Rezaei and Jaberi Families in Canada and Kuwait invite you to gather at a memorial service to honour the life of UPEI student Khaled Rezaei who passed away in January in a tragic accident while he was visiting his family in Kuwait.

The memorial service will take place Friday, February 28, 2020 from 4:00–6:00 pm, with the program beginning at 4:30 pm, in McMillan Hall at the W.A. Murphy Student Centre. All are welcome to attend.

View the invitation on the upei.ca events calendar

The Environmental Studies Program and Robertson Library Talks Invite the UPEI students, faculty, and staff to attend the screening of the documentary “Athropocene: The Human Epoch.” The screening will be followed by the discussion led by the UPEI students.

Created by Jennifer Baichwal, Nicholas de Pencier and Edward Burtynsky, this documentary is “a cinematic meditation on humanity’s massive reengineering of the planet.”

Date and time: March 5, 2020 at 5:30pm

Place: RL 235

Invited discussants: Sarah Davison, Island Studies; Noble Newman, Applied Communication, Leadership, and Culture; Isabelle Fitzpatrick, Applied Communication, Leadership, and Culture; Emily Smith, Environmental Studies; Choyce Chappell, Environmental Studies.

All are welcome!

If have any questions/suggestions, please feel free to contact Dr. Nino Antadze at nantadze@upei.ca

Speaker:  Dr. Kai Liu, School of Mathematical and Computational Sciences (SMCS)

Title: Real-time Valuation of Large Variable Annuity Portfolios: A Green Mesh Approach

Abstract: The valuation of large variable annuities (VAs) portfolio is an important problem of interest, not only because of its practical relevance but also of its theoretical significance. This is prompted by the phenomenon that many existing sophisticated algorithms are typically efficient at valuing a single VA policy but they are not scalable to valuing large VAs portfolio consisting of hundreds of thousands of policies. As a result, this sparks a new line of research direction exploiting machine learning methods on providing more efficient algorithms to estimate the market values and sensitivities of the large VAs portfolio. 

In recognition of the outstanding performance and dedication of our faculty and staff, a number of annual awards have been created to acknowledge their efforts and achievements. 

Up to 10 Presidential Awards of Merit for UPEI Faculty, Librarians, Clinical Veterinary Professionals and Clinical Nursing Instructors and four categories of Presidential Awards of Merit for UPEI Staff will be awarded in 2020.  These awards will be presented during a Celebration of Colleagues to be held on Wednesday, May 13, 2020 from 10:30am-12:00pm in McMillan Hall, W.A. Murphy Student Centre. 

Susan Connolly, Associate Vice-President, Human Resources & Legal, will lead the process and chair the committee to select award recipients. 

Nominations for both faculty and staff awards close on Friday, March 27, 2020. 

For further details on the awards and the nomination process, please visit: http://www.upei.ca/president/presidential-recognition-awards-merit

Dr. Yoshi Takano, candidate for the tenure track position with the Department of Psychology in the Faculty of Arts, will make two public presentations.

The first is entitled "Stories of change in men who were violent and abusive toward their partners: A collaborative narrative inquiry" and will take place on Thursday, February 27, 2020 at 10:30 am in Memorial Hall, room 308.

The second is entitled “Building a connection with resistant clients”. This presentation will be held on Friday, February 28, 2020 at 10:00 am in Kelley Memorial Building, room 210.

All are welcome to attend.

UPEI’s Faculty of Business will hold an information session for those interested in its Executive MBA program. The event will be Thursday, March 12 at 5:00 pm in the Boardroom at the Confederation Centre of the Arts in Charlottetown.

UPEI's Executive MBA program offers a high-quality learning experience for working business professionals. The program is designed for those working in, or aspiring to work in, a management or leadership position. Classes are offered bi-weekly on Fridays and Saturdays with the option to complete the program in 20 months.

Central to the program design is an evidence-based management approach which helps students develop the skills and knowledge to make better-informed and well-supported decisions both in the program and in applied situations in their workplaces.

To learn more about this exciting opportunity, the Faculty of Business invites you to attend this upcoming information session. Learn more about the program and application process, have your questions answered, and meet with staff, faculty and students.

We encourage you to call 902-894-2866 or email mba@upei.ca to reserve a seat. For more information about UPEI's Executive MBA program, please visit www.upei.ca/emba or email mba@upei.ca

Help Build an Inclusive Campus Culture at UPEI!

UPEI is conducting consultations for the development of a new Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy for the UPEI campus. 

Survey

Everyone is welcome to complete the survey here, or at upei.ca/edi.  The survey should take less than 15 minutes to complete.

Open Meeting for Students

Students are invited to a consultation session open to all students being held Tuesday, February 25, 2020, 1:30 – 2:30 pm in the Faculty Lounge (SDMB 201).  The session will be jointly run by Keesha Ryan, UPEI Student Union Vice-President Finance & Administration and Patti Wheatley, UPEI Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Officer.  Coffee and snacks to be provided.

Open Meeting for Staff

Staff are invited to a consultation session open to all staff being held Thursday, February 20, 2020, 10:00am – 11:00am Andrew Hall Room 142.  Coffee and snacks to be provided.

For more information on the process see upei.ca/edi or contact equity@upei.ca

How to Start a Business for Students Workshop

MCDH Room 328 - March 7th; 10am to 3pm; Lunch Provided

Learn the skills and theory behind starting your business idea. 

Operated by Dr. Matthew Pauley, Director of the Hostetter Centre for Enterprise and Entrepreneurship

Please contact mpauley@upei.ca to reserve your space, only 45 seats available!

Guest speakers: PEI Business Womens Association; Eastern Chamber of PEI; Grant Thornton; Synapse; Innovation PEI and more to come! 

The water line break near Wanda Wyatt Dining Hall has been repaired. Facilities Management staff have flushed the water lines to allow water service to be restored to all affected locations. However, the buildings listed below will be on a boil water order until test results are back from the lab and are clear.

• Blanchard Hall
• Bill and Denise Andrew Hall
• Bernardine Hall
• Wanda Wyatt Dining Hall
• Don and Marion McDougall Hall
• Daycare building
• K.C. Irving Chemistry Centre

Residence Services has distributed water to students living in residence and purchased water bottles for the Dining Hall as UPEI awaits lab test results.

We thank you for your patience and will issue a further update when the boil water order is lifted. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Jackie MacPhail at 902-566-6034 or jmacphail@upei.ca

Dear colleagues:

You are invited to attend the "3-minute research roundabout on environmental issues" on Wednesday, February 26, 2020 from 5:00 -7:00 PM in HSB104.

This multidisciplinary research roundabout includes a number of  3-minute presentations by our colleagues from various departments at UPEI followed by Q&A and discussion from the audience. This is a great opportunity to learn about the ongoing research and projects related to the environmental issues at UPEI.  

We look forward to seeing you at this event.

Nazanin and Justin

Please join Mahdis Tabatabaei for her Molecular and Macromolecular Sciences Seminar Program presentation entitled " Nanoparticles Based Immuno-PCR Assay for Trace Detection of Biomarkers"

Abstract: Sensitive detection of analytes in biological fluids is critical for early detection of disease and can enhance the timely treatment, management and prevention strategies in clinics. Immuno- PCR is a relatively novel method that combines the two most widely used methods, namely enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to create a very sensitive, specific, facile and robust strategy, for detection of small quantities of analytes in biological fluids. Employing nanoparticles in immuno-PCR has the potential to further improve the sensitivity of the assay and gold nanoparticles are one of the most promising nanomaterials for this purpose. Gold nanoparticles are non-toxic, offers large surface area for facile conjugation of variety of biomolecules and possess unique optical and electronic properties, which are useful for a variety of immuno-assays including immuno-PCR. This study is primarily focused on evaluating the role of size of gold nanoparticles to improvise the sensitivity of immuno-PCR assays.

Everyone is welcome to attend!

Please join Amin Babaeighazvini for his Molecular and Macromolecular Sciences Seminar Program presentation entitled "Development of “green” nano-composite films based on starch/tunicate-based/plant-based nano-crystalline cellulose exposure to a magnetic field: Physicochemical and mechanical properties"

Abstract: In this study, the effects of two different types of nanocrystalline cellulose (NCC) and the exposure of a magnetic field (MF) on the physicochemical and mechanical properties of starch/NCC films have been investigated. Permanent Neodymium magnets (≈1.4–2.8 T) were employed to control the alignment of NCC within the starch matrix, resulting in improved physical and mechanical properties. High aspect ratio tunicate sourced NCC, showed much better physicochemical properties as compared to the low aspect ratio plant sourced NCC.  This orientation and alignment is supported by Raman data and SEM micrographs. By tracing the intense Raman peak at ≈1095 cm-1, we confirmed the purposive orientation of the NCCs in the starch matrix.

Everyone is welcome to attend.

UPEI and the Rezaei and Jaberi Families in Canada and Kuwait invite you to gather at a memorial service to honour the life of UPEI student Khaled Rezaei who passed away in January in a tragic accident while he was visiting his family in Kuwait.

The memorial service will take place Friday, February 28, 2020 from 4:00–6:00 pm, with the program beginning at 4:30 pm, in McMillan Hall at the W.A. Murphy Student Centre. All are welcome to attend.

View the invitation on the upei.ca events calendar

“Freedom to Read Week is an annual event that encourages Canadians to think about and reaffirm their commitment to intellectual freedom, which is guaranteed them under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms” -- that includes having access to all reading materials!

We encourage you to come to the Library and check out books that have been challenged or banned in our Freedom to Read Week display. We also have a selection of books “under wraps” which were banned/challenged in Canada, with an excerpt of why they were challenged. Test your knowledge to see if you can guess their titles!

Fill out a Freedom to Read puzzle or word search to win a $15. gift card to the UPEI Bookstore.

Take a pic with your favourite challenged or banned book. Share your favourite banned or challenged book on social media!

Check out the Freedom to Read Week website at http://www.freedomtoread.ca/

Books in the display may be borrowed from the Library.

February is Black History Month. During Black History Month, Canadians celebrate and honour the legacy of Black Canadians, past and present.

In recognition of Black History Month, Robertson Library, the UPEI Student Diversity Office (SDO), BIPOC USHR, and the Hive are presenting a screening and discussion of The Ninth Floor, an NFB documentary written and directed by Mina Shum.

This feature documentary “…revisits the infamous 1969 Sir George Williams Riot―an event that began quietly when a group of Caribbean students started to suspect their professor of racism, but ended in the most explosive student uprising Canada had ever known.”

Thursday, February 27, room 235, Robertson Library.

Doors open at 5:30 pm. The documentary begins at 6 pm. 

Based upon the popularity of our first Reading Group of 2020, we will build upon that reading with another chapter from The Equity Myth.

This time, please come to discuss the "Everyday World of Racialized and Indigenous Faculty Members in Canadian Universities" (Frances Henry and Audrey Kobayashi).

The library has a copy of the book, but we’ve also put a PDF of the chapter on a shared Google folder, at: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1C-Kp3Rgic3p4Beu_26WK5h4i0ZD4LZmv?usp=sharing (accessible to anyone with a UPEI email address; we’ll be putting future readings in the same folder).

Take a look, grab a colleague, and come join the conversation on Wednesday March 4, at 3:00 pm, in Arts 409.

Everyone welcome!

The annual UPEI Career and Summer Job Fair is fast approaching. The Experiential Education department would appreciate your help in getting the word out and encouraging students to attend. The event welcomes a wide variety of employers from various industries who will be actively hiring students and recent graduates in March 2020. Attendance for students is free, and there will also be headshots available at no charge. 

Students seeking assistance with preparing for the fair can drop by the Career Studio, 209 Dalton Hall. A list of employers planning to attend can be found on the Career Services webpage. 

https://www.upei.ca/career-services/upei-career-and-summer-job-fair 

Are you a member of UPEI’s LGBTQ2S+ community looking for a safe and fun space to discuss your experiences and connect with others? Then this group is for you!

On Friday March 6th, join UPEI’s LGBT+ Support Group as we connect for our first meeting. Headed by Joshua Peters and Allegra Netten, both Doctoral Psychology students and proud members of PEI’s LGBT2S+ community, this group will explore the unique mental health experiences of LGBT2S+ individuals. Topics may include anything from sex and sexuality, to finding support for specific LGBTQ2S+ issues, or tips for maintaining healthy relationships. Most importantly, this group will be a safe place to connect, learn, and support one another. For those who are new to the community or just want to listen – participation isn’t necessary. We hope to create a space for everyone, so confidentiality among participants will be strongly encouraged.

For our first gathering, we will be asking folks what they might want to include in our conversation as we move forward as well as outlining a few ideas we have for getting started. Light snacks will be provided.

Any questions or concerns? Don’t be afraid to reach out to either Allegra Netten (anetten@upei.ca) or Joshua Peters (jpeters5634@upei.ca), or find us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/LGBT-Support-Group-for-UPEI-students-and-staff-102290731361044/

We look forward to seeing you there!

February 23 – March 1 and Beyond at the Chaplaincy Centre

Sunday Feb 23 – 6:00 Sunday Mass and Monday Feb 24 – 12:05 Daily Mass

Tuesday Feb 25 – Pancakes and Sausages 9:00 – 11:00 at The Fox and Crow.  $2.00 / plate

Wednesday Feb 26 – Ash Wednesday Masses 12:05 and 4:05 at the Chaplaincy Centre

Thursday Feb 27 – Lectio Divina 11:00 (praying with the gospel for Sunday Mar 1) followed by mass at 12:05

Sunday March 1 – 6:00 Mass followed by Busy Students Retreat at 7:00 concluding Thursday at 5:00

If you use Moodle for receiving assignment submissions, you can create rubrics and marking guides to change how students see their grades and feedback. This short workshop will show how to build rubrics and marking guides for Moodle assignments. There will be time for guided practice as well. Register for the workshop here. 

If you have any questions about the session please contact jbhogan@upei.ca.