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 2019. These awards will be presented during a Celebration of Colleagues to be held on Tuesday, April 30, 2019 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 29, 2019. 

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

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 and the UPEI Student Diversity Office (SDO) are presenting I Am Not Your Negro, an Oscar-nominated documentary narrated by Samuel L. Jackson. This documentary “…explores the continued peril America faces from institutionalized racism.”

Wednesday, February 6th
Room 312, Upper Level
Robertson Library
5:00 pm

The topic for this week's Graduate Seminar in the Faculty of Sustainable Design Engineering is "Managing Stress in Graduate Studies", given by James Reddin, MEd, CCC, Counsellor, Student Affairs.

While the topic will be focused for FSDE graduate students, all are welcomed to attend. The event is today at noon in room 212 of the Faculty of Sustainable Design Engineering. 

Don't forget that a new article is up on the Arts Equity and Inclusion website! Entitled "If someone wants to be called “they” and not “he” or “she,” why say no?", it addresses issues such as the pronouns do and don't do. Head over to http://projects.upei.ca/arts-equity-and-inclusion/category/discussions/ and join the discussion! New articles are posted every Monday morning, as is a new "something to ponder" observation. We welcome the entire campus community to be part of the ongoing discussion about equity and inclusion on campus. 

For more information, contact Ann Braithwaite, abraithwaite@upei.ca

Jack Frost Winterfest 20% Discount for UPEI Alumni, Faculty and Staff!

The UPEI ALUMNI ASSOCIATION is offering an exclusive 20% DISCOUNT for UPEI ALUMNI, FACULTY and STAFF attending JACK FROST WINTERFEST! 

Help celebrate UPEI’s 50th Anniversary by visiting the UPEI booth in the lobby of the Eastlink Centre on Saturday, February 16 between 1:00 pm and 3:00 pm. 
Say Hello to Pride the Panther and some of his Jack Frost Character Friends, get some Free Swag, Free Cookies, and Enter to WIN some Awesome Prizes!

From January 2 – February 8th register with the UPEI Alumni office to receive your special promotion code for discount on ticket purchases and be automatically entered for your chance to win up to 4 Jack Frost Weekend Passes. 
The lucky winners will be contacted on February 11. 
Contact Sarah today at shastelow@upei.ca or by calling 902-566-0615.

Once you have your promo code you will be all set to purchase your weekend passes.

There will be a UPEI Basic Biosafety training session:
Thursday, February 14th, 2019 9:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. 
AVC, Room 287N

Topics to be covered include basic biosafety principles and how they are applied at the University of Prince Edward Island, as well as biosecurity training. This session is open to everyone including graduate students.

Please note: those who attended training in 2016 or earlier are currently due for the Biosafety Refresher Course.

To attend the Basic Biosafety course, you must pre-register by contacting Sarah Sudworth, before February 11th, 2019 by email (ssudworth@upei.ca) or by phone (902-566-0901).

Please provide your name, department, your supervisor’s name (if applicable), email address, and phone number in your email or voice message. Please indicate if you are a graduate student. 

If you have any questions about this training session, please contact Sarah.

With the increase in quality and quantity of cognitive sciences research over the last few years, what of it can be usefully applied to teaching? This workshop aims to summarize that research on learning and memory and provide instructors with tips for integration into their teaching. Offered by the E-Learning Office, this workshop will be offered on two different dates: February 11th or March 19th from 10:30 to 11:30 am in Room 265 of the Robertson Library. REGISTER

A new article is on the website at http://projects.upei.ca/arts-equity-and-inclusion/category/discussions/. The Arts Equity and Inclusion group invite the campus community to check out this week's addition to the ongoing discussion series aimed at getting us all to think more deeply about how equity and inclusion can affect our everyday behaviours and practices. This week's resource--“If someone wants to be called 'they' and not 'he' or 'she', why say no?”--addresses the issue of pronouns. Everyone welcome to read and leave a comment!

The Office of Experiential Education is hosting an alternative reading week offering of the Professionalization Badge program from February 19 to 21. This 2.5 day intensive program is a chance for students to complete all of the Professionalization skill-building workshops and register for a 10-hour job shadow experience. Topics covered will include communication skills, such as teamwork and conflict management, and labour market literacies, such as resume writing and interview preparation.

Open to all students, visit our webpage to learn more and sign up: http://www.upei.ca/experientialeducation/ex-ed
Questions? Email us at experientialed@upei.ca

Phishing is a cyber attack that uses disguised email as a weapon. The phishers goal is to trick you into believing the email you just received is from someone you know - for instance a colleague or boss, maybe even your bank, asking you to click on a link or send some information. There are lots of ways to protect yourself from phishing attacks and ITSS have put together a guide here. Please read through and if you have any questions about suspicious emails give us a call 902 566 0465

A new article is on the website at http://projects.upei.ca/arts-equity-and-inclusion/category/discussions/. The Arts Equity and Inclusion group invite the campus community to check out this week's addition to the ongoing discussion series aimed at getting us all to think more deeply about how equity and inclusion can affect our everyday behaviours and practices. This week's resource--“If someone wants to be called 'they' and not 'he' or 'she', why say no?”--addresses the issue of pronouns. Everyone welcome to read and leave a comment!

Colleen MacQuarrie and Sobia Ali-Faisal from the Department of Psychology will be facilitating a workshop on white privilege in the academy. They will be applying liberation psychological theory to:
- examine white privilege and white supremacy in the academy
- provide space for attendees to explore and navigate their emotions and thoughts around their own privilege, and 
- provide time to practice strategies to challenge their white privilege.

We are holding this workshop to support UPEI's efforts at honouring the TRC recommendations and creating a safe environment for everyone. (Side note: We will also be holding a workshop for Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour (BIPOC) communities on campus on March 4th. Please keep an eye out for a notice regarding that very soon.)

When: February 4th, 1 - 3pm
Where: Andrew Hall, Room 142
For: Faculty, staff, and students

It is a free workshop and refreshments will be provided.

Please feel free to email Sobia (sali@upei.ca) or Colleen (cmaquarrie@upei.ca) if you have any questions. 

We would like to thank the Department of Psychology, Office of the Dean of Arts, and Office of Vice-President Academic and Research for their support of the workshop.

Energy History of PEI The Environmental Studies Book Club Discussion Series

This winter we will be reading and discussing "Time and a Place: An Environmental History of Prince Edward Island" (2016). Our discussions will probe into past and present environmental changes on PEI, and how and why the Islanders are particularly sensitive to environmental issues and enmeshed in their landscape in a way that is unique among Canadians.

During our second discussion, we will talk about energy transitions in PEI history and will focus on the chapter by Kathleen Stuart: “Two centuries of energy on Prince Edward Island.” Those interested in more information about the province’s energy policies in the 1973-1990 period can also read the book by Alan MacEachern "The Institute of Man and Resources: An Environmental Fable" (2003).

We are thrilled that the authors and editors of these books, Ms. Kathleen Stuart, Dr. Alan MacEachern, and Dr. Josh MacFadyen, will join our discussion. 

Date and time: February 15, 2019 at 4pm
Place: The Fox & Crow, W.A. Murphy Student Centre, UPEI campus.

All are welcome!

"Time and a Place: An Environmental History of Prince Edward Island" and "The Institute of Man and Resources: An Environmental Fable" are available at the UPEI library. The former is available as an e-book at https://library.upei.ca/ and the first chapter of the latter book is available on library reserves as a digital file. 

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