Please join a group of colleagues from across campus in reading and discussing Bob Joseph's 2018 book, 21 Things You May Not Know About the Indian Act: Helping Canadians Make Reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples a Reality. On May 2, 12:00-1:00, in the Main Building Faculty Lounge, we'll discuss pp 3-105 and Appendix 3, pp 130-161 (the TRC's Call to Action). The book is easily available: the UPEI Bookstore has copies, and it's widely available online too (and perhaps also at other local bookstores). In addition, the Robertson Library has a copy of the book on reserve and has a number of valuable resources on its Truth and Reconciliation Resources page: https://library.upei.ca/trc

New Student Orientation 2019 is right around the corner and we're looking for some amazing students to join our NSO team! Our Volunteer/Leader application can be found here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScQANC1Pnv8nx23SwxbAzI9o_mjR2mJLwxqFa6tf6X1ssISsw/viewform?usp=sf_link
Our Point People application can be found here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSciupjsL0gKPuuO7fQWB1iJu9tJ66LzJVeCw3vlw0Uu-HfSSg/viewform?usp=sf_link
Applications are due May 17th at noon, so get yours in today! If you have any questions, you can contact Erin MacNeill at nso@upei.ca or at (902)620-5054.

This award-winning documentary tells the story of Canadian scientist Dr. Anne Innis Daag as she traces her 1956 journey to South Africa to study giraffes in the wild. Limited seating, $5 tickets can be purchased at https://giraffemovie.eventbrite.ca. 

This screening opens the Atlantic Connections Conference on Sustaining Women in SETT (ACT attendees can reserve one free ticket). More information and registration to ACT can be found at: http://atlanticconnections.ca/event-registration/ 

Thursday, May 30, at 6:30 PM in Theatre A, AVC.

Looking for an enriching volunteer experience this summer? The UPEI English Language Centre is looking for volunteers to join us in assisting with afternoon socio-cultural activities and acting as conversation partners in hosting this year’s English Language Camps for International students! This is a fantastic opportunity to learn and strengthen valuable skills, experience other cultures, and of course have a blast doing it! Activities may include things such as scavenger hunts, tours, on-campus workshops, beach visits, and more! If you are interested, please email Owen Shaw at oshaw@upei.ca, or call 902-566-0529.

As an instructor, you’ve set up a syllabus that clearly explains your expectations for where students will end up. Then you set them on the journey to that destination. However, some will get off track along the way. The information you provide, how you provide it and when you provide it will be key to getting them back on the right path or in keeping them on the right path. In this workshop instructors will learn strategies for the use of feedback and rubrics that they can use to accompany student assessments. The workshop takes place on Thursday, May 2nd from 10:30 to 11:30 am in Room 265, Robertson Library. REGISTER

Human Resources has developed a new online Tuition Waiver fillable form. The form, for both the Employee and Spouse/Dependent waivers, can be found on the main page of MyUPEI under UPEI Forms and on the Human Resources portal under Professional Development. Please submit all Summer 2019 semester Tuition Waivers via the online form as soon as possible.

If you have any questions please contact Heather Walsh at: (902) 566-0514 or hwalsh@upei.ca.

Interactive content can increase learner engagement and also help increase learning. Adding interactive content to your course is now so very easy to do. You can make videos interactive, images interactive, presentations interactive, quizzes interactive. The sky's the limit. In this workshop come learn how to get started creating your own interactive content. This workshop takes place on two separate dates: May 15th or June 13th from 10:30 to 11:30 am in Room 265 of the Robertson Library. REGISTER

The School of Mathematical and Computational Sciences at UPEI is hosting its 17th Annual Math Camp scheduled for the weekend of May 3 to 5, 2019. This year’s event has 25 students participating from Island high schools. 

Math Camp is an initiative of the School of Mathematical and Computational Sciences, in association with the Canadian Mathematical Society and the Atlantic Association for Research in the Mathematical Sciences. The first Math Camp at UPEI took place in 2002, and has been held annually since then. Math Camp brings to campus a group of grade 10 and 11 students, who spend a weekend participating in a variety of math-related activities, such as group problem solving, math relays, math trivia and sessions with faculty. The goals are to give the students an opportunity to broaden their mathematical horizons and to encourage them to continue their math studies at university.

The 2019 Math Camp is organized by Dr. Shafiqul Islam and Dr. Michael McIsaac.

Math Camp is sponsored by:
• Canadian Mathematical Society (CMS)
• Atlantic Association for Research in the Mathematical Sciences (AARMS)
• Dean of Science, UPEI
• School of Mathematical and Computational Sciences, UPEI

All faculty and staff are invited to attend the “Celebration of Colleagues” on on Tuesday, April 30, 2019 from 10:30am-12:00pm, in McMillan Hall, W.A. Murphy Student Centre. 

Come to socialize and celebrate the achievements of our friends and co-workers at UPEI. Refreshments will be served! At 10:45am, the 25-Year Service Awards and The Presidential Awards of Merit for Faculty and Staff will be presented. 

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

Hope to see you there!

Due to software updates, UPEI Marketing and Communications will conduct testing on Tuesday, April 30, beginning at 1:30 pm, to ensure emergency messages display correctly on the campus screen network and UPEI.ca homepage. The testing is expected to be completed by 2:30 pm.

The UPEI Emergency Alert mass notification system (email and text messages) and fire/security alarm system are not included in this test.

Questions or concerns about the testing may be directed to web@upei.ca.

UPEI's Second Annual Teaching Community Conference will be hosted on May 7th, 2019 from 9:00 - 3:30. The conference features UPEI faculty and staff talking about their teaching and how they support teaching at UPEI. The afternoon will feature special guest Dr. David Creelman (UNBSJ) facilitating his popular workshop "Using Groups and Teams: A Practical Approach."

All UPEI faculty and staff are invited to attend any sessions of interest and join in the conversation. Nutrition breaks and lunch will be provided.

A schedule for the conference is available at http://www.upei.ca/teachingsupport/upei-teaching-community-conference

This is a reminder that the early-bird registration deadline for the two Epi on the Island Summer Courses 2019 is May 4. The two 5-day courses will be held from June 3 to 7 and from June 24 to 28 at the Atlantic Veterinary College (AVC).

The first course, “Survival Analysis”, covers the basic of survival analysis and the introduction of more advanced topics such as frailty models and analysis of discrete survival data. The instructors will be Drs. Ian Dohoo and Henrik Stryhn of the AVC. The second course, “Applied Course in Quantitative Risk Modelling for Animal Health and Food Safety”, will focus on the quantitative modelling, i.e. how data and probability distributions are used in risk assessment, and how to model uncertainties in risk assessment. The instructors will be Dr. Håkan Vigre, from National Food Institute at Technical University of Denmark and Dr. Javier Sanchez at AVC.

The course schedules and the course description can be found on the CVER (Centre for Veterinary Epidemiological Research) website at: http://cver.upei.ca/training/epi-on-the-island-2019/

For local registration, please contact Jenny Yu at: jennyyu@upei.ca

The National Day of Mourning, or Workers’ Mourning Day, originated in Canada in 1984 and is now observed annually in over 100 countries on April 28 to honour the memory of those who have died, and pay respect to those who have been adversely affected by life-changing injuries or illnesses in the workplace (read more). The PEI Federation of Labour will host a National Day of Mourning Ceremony on Sunday, April 28, 2019 at 2:00 pm at St Paul's Church Hall, 101 Prince Street, Charlottetown. The University of Prince Edward Island will observe the day by keeping the flags at half-mast (they were lowered earlier this week to honour UPEI alumnus Josh Underhay and his son Oliver who passed away suddenly as a result of a tragic accident).

As part of UPEI’s 50th anniversary, the Robertson Library is presenting a lecture series to celebrate the historical roots of higher education on Prince Edward Island and its future. The series is named after educator Frank Pigot, honoured as a UPEI Founder for his work building the library’s PEI Collection and University Archives.

PEI historian and folklorist John Cousins will present the second lecture in the series, entitled “Stand for Your Lessons: Educational Change and Cultural Reaction.” This illustrated talk will be Tuesday, April 30 from 7:00 to 8:30 pm in the Eptek Centre in Summerside.

The period between 1960 and the early 1970s brought the most dramatic change in Island education since the creation of the one-room district schools in the early 1850s. The consolidation of the public schools saw the disappearance of a major element in Island culture. This presentation will examine the impact of that change on rural Island communities, on their families and on the children who were “consolidated.” Further, a main question remains to be examined: what lessons can learned by using prior experience as a guide to evaluate how elements of culture may react during dramatic, and sometimes traumatic, change?

Refreshments will be provided. All are welcome.