UPEI students are going door to door in Charlottetown to collect non-perishable food items on Friday, October 31 from 5:00-7:00 pm in support of UPEI's food bank. The students will be visiting Queen Elizabeth Drive, Charlotte Drive, Prince Charles Drive, and Goodwill Avenue.

'Trick or Eat' is a national youth-led Halloween food drive event organized by Meal Exchange, a registered charity that empowers student leaders to address hunger in their communities. Since 1993, the charity has raised over $3 million worth of food and engaged over 87,000 youth across North America.

Suggested items include: pasta products/pasta sauce, rice, canned meats and fish, peanut butter, cereal, canned vegetables, dry and canned soups, fruit juices, canned/powdered milk, baby food, diapers, beans, and legumes.

Items can also be donated to the group organizers. All proceeds will support UPEI's Food Bank. Food items can be dropped off to the UPEI Residence Office, Bernadine Hall, 340 (first floor). The office is open from 9:00 am-8:00 pm.

Interested in canvassing for the campaign? Contact Aaron Patton at apatton@upei.ca or Mitchell McIntosh at mrmcintosh@upei.ca

Help support UPEI's food bank, and have a safe and happy Halloween!

Research on Tap returns for its sixth season of public discussion, debate, and ideas presented by researchers from the University of Prince Edward Island. Join our next conversation on Monday, November 3 at 7 pm at the Haviland Club in Charlottetown. Dr. Ron Srigley, professor of Religious Studies, will lead a discussion entitled: What does a university professor do all day?

The 2014/2015 season of Research on Tap is presented in cooperation with the Royal Society of Canada (RSC), Atlantic Chapter. The RSC is Canada's national academy and is the senior national body of distinguished scholars, artists, and scientists.

Research on Tap meets the first Monday of every month from October to April. The full schedule of speakers can be found at upei.ca/research/research-on-tap

On Thursday, October 30, and Friday, October 31, 7:00-11:30 pm, UPEI music students will be turning the Dr. Steel Recital Hall into a spooky three-story haunted house!

Admission includes a free cup of hot chocolate and is $5.00 per person, and $4.00 for UPEI and Holland College students-please bring a valid student ID. Proceeds for the event go towards music scholarships and awards, and to help support the UPEI Music Department's large performance ensembles.

All are welcome!

Richard Wagamese, award-winning Ojibwa novelist, journalist, and memoir writer will give a public reading on Monday, November 3, at 7:30 pm in the Confederation Centre Art Gallery.

His new novel, Medicine Walk, which follows his best-selling novel Indian Horse with its focus on Aboriginal hockey and residential schools, testifies to the redeeming power of love and compassion.

Among his honours are the 2013 Molson Prize for the Arts and 2012 National Aboriginal Achievement Award for Media & Communications.

Wagamese's reading is sponsored by the UPEI Department of English, with the collaboration of the Confederation Centre Art Gallery and generous support of the Canada Council for the Arts.

For information:
Dr. Richard Lemm
Winter's Tales Author Reading Series
(902) 566-0592, rlemm@upei.ca

The UPEI Panther Athletes of the Week for the week of October 20-26 are Alysha Corrigan, Women's Rugby; and Jared Murphy, Men's Soccer. UPEI Athletics and Recreation showcases these talented athletes to recognize their hard work and dedication to their respective sports. UPEI Athletes of the Week are also nominated to Atlantic University Sport and Canadian Interuniversity Sport for possible recognition in the region and/or country.

Who: Alysha Corrigan, Women's Rugby; and Jared Murphy, Men's Soccer

What: UPEI Panther Athletes of the Week

When: Week of October 20-26

Where: UPEI Turf Field

Why: Corrigan, a first-year business student from Charlottetown, PEI, had a strong performance for the Panthers during the rugby team's AUS semi-final 39-12 loss to Acadia University. Corrigan scored two tries on huge 50 m runs. Corrigan was physical the entire game, driving the Axewomen out of bounds, and saving the team many times. Corrigan was named an AUS Player of the Game.

Murphy, a fifth-year business student from Charlottetown, PEI, continued his strong performance for the Men's Soccer Panthers as they finished the regular season with two final wins, a 2-0 win over Memorial University and a 3-0 over Cape Breton University. Murphy scored three of the teams five goals in the two games.

For information:
Ron Annear
UPEI Athletics and Recreation
(902) 566-0991, annear@upei.ca

Alysha Corrigan, Women's Rugby

A recent forum in Charlottetown brought together students, teachers, and community partners participating in unique research, which examines school-based health promotion projects in Prince Edward Island schools. Dr. Donna Murnaghan and Dr. Jo-Ann MacDonald, researchers from the University of Prince Edward Island's School of Nursing, received funding from the Canadian Cancer Society Research Institute (CCSRI), for the (S)chools (A)gainst (C)ancer: Using a (K)nowledge to Action Process (SACK) project. SACK is aimed at translating local evidence into school-based health initiatives.

The SACK project used data from the School Health Action, Planning, and Evaluation System-Prince Edward Island (SHAPES-PEI), which monitors key health indicators of PEI students from grades 5 through 12, and has done so since 2008. SHAPES-PEI provides health profiles to individual schools so that health promotion activities may be tailored at each school, based on identified needs.

'Funding from the CCSRI for the SACK project has been instrumental for us to partner with schools to better understand how knowledge exchange works between researchers and schools,' said Dr. Donna Murnaghan, co-principal investigator of SHAPES-PEI and SACK. 'Most importantly we are better able to understand the complexities of what works and what does not work, for both researchers and schools, when evidence is being used to inform action on prevention.'

SACK was able to proceed thanks to the cooperation and participation of schools, the PEI English Language School Board, and La Commission scolaire de langue française.

'Through SHAPES-PEI, the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development has been generating local health evidence to help inform school-level policy and planning,' said Sterling Carruthers, School Health Specialist. 'Research projects like SACK provide opportunities for PEI schools to leverage additional resources and supports in their efforts to create healthier school communities.' Since 2009, the government has provided funds for schools to act upon their SHAPES-PEI data through the School Health Grant.

SACK was funded through a CCSRI Knowledge to Action (KTA) Grant. KTA Grants are designed to support projects capable of closing the gap between what health research tells us, and what we do with that knowledge. Accordingly, the SACK projects undertaken by PEI schools address chronic disease prevention by helping young people to understand modifiable risk factors and get an early start at living healthy lives. One school project had students pair with teachers to lead various activities including geocaching, a scavenger hunt, Zumba classes, and arm wrestling; this project was also supported by community partners in the region, including Go!PEI.

The SACK project explored how a knowledge to action process can be tailored most effectively within individual schools. This research will help support PEI schools in using evidence and building community partnerships to create healthier school communities.

For information:
Dave Atkinson
Research Communications Officer, UPEI
(902) 620-5117, datkinson@upei.ca

Veteran broadcast meteorologist Peter Coade will join authors Don Jardine and Adam Fenech for the launch of 'Some weather we're having!' The 2015 PEI Weather Trivia Calendar. The event takes place Tuesday, November 4 at 6:30 pm at The Pourhouse, above The Old Triangle Irish Alehouse in Charlottetown. Proceeds from calendar sales go to UPEI's Climate Research Lab.

Prince Edward Island history comes to life in this first ever PEI weather trivia calendar of 365 stories about PEI weather and its impact on Islanders' everyday lives. Meet the authors, Don Jardine and Adam Fenech, as they visit eleven libraries (and one pub!) across the Island during the month of November.

Come for the launch with Peter Coade, stay for music from singer/songwriter Patrick Bunston.

The 2015 PEI Weather Trivia Calendar brings stories from North Cape to East Point, West Point to Murray Head-and all points in-between over the last 150 years. Calendars are sold at each reading tour event, at all Murphy's Pharmacies, and online at peiweathercalendar.ca.

For information:
Dave Atkinson
Research Communications Officer, UPEI
(902) 620-5117, datkinson@upei.ca

The UPEI Music Department is pleased to present soprano Sarah Jo Kirsch, winner the Eckhardt-Gramatté (EGré) National Music Competition, on Tuesday, November 4 at 7:30 pm.

The EGré is the most important annually held contemporary music competition for exceptional emerging Canadian performing artists in piano, voice, and strings. Since 1976, the Eckhardt-Gramatté National Music Competition discovers, develops, and promotes exceptional young Canadian performing musicians who show artistic proficiency, knowledge, and keen interest in Canadian and international repertoire of the 20th and 21st centuries.

Sarah Jo Kirsch is a soprano/vocalist currently based in Winnipeg, Canada. She continues to make waves as a soloist with local ensembles - large and small - and maintains a continuing presence at the WSO New Music Festival, Cluster New Music + Integrated Arts Festival, and Groundswell, Winnipeg's new music concert series.

In the spring of 2014, Kirsch was awarded second-place in the WMC McLellan Competition and first-place in the Eckhardt-Gramatté National Music Competition. Outside of Manitoba this season, Kirsch embarks on a cross-Canada tour with Winnipeg pianist Maddy Hildebrand this fall, and premieres Michael Matthews' new song cycle 'Solo queda el desierto' with L'Orchestre de Chambre de Montréal and performs Mozart's Große Messe in c-moll at the American University of Beirut and Ligeti's Mysteries of the Macabre and Berberian's Stripsody with Calgary's Land's end ensemble in spring.

Kirsch will be accompanied by pianist Madeline Hildebrand. Madeline's love for piano music has directed her path from the age of six, culminating in a Master of Piano Performance from the University of British Columbia under the tutelage of distinguished Canadian artist, Jane Coop, and is presently on the piano faculty at Canadian Mennonite University.

Tickets are $15 or $10 for students and seniors and are available at the door, online at www.brownpapertickets.com/event/890309, or in advance by calling (902) 566-0507. The recital takes place in the Dr. Steel Recital Hall, UPEI.

The University of Prince Edward Island has announced that Susan Connolly has been appointed Associate Vice-President Human Resources after an extensive search process.

Susan is a native of Prince Edward Island and holds a BA (Hons) in Psychology (from Mount Allison) and a Bachelor of Laws degree (from Dalhousie). Called to the PEI bar in 2005, she has practised law with Stewart McKelvey since 2007.

Vice-President Administration and Finance Jackie Podger led the search process. 'A key factor in the University successfully fulfilling its academic mission is to attract and retain quality employees. We have a great team at UPEI, and need to ensure we have the right person leading the efforts to support the team in their work. Susan will be a tremendous asset to UPEI.'

Susan is a demonstrated leader who has significant experience in providing advice on complicated legal issues and in building relationships of trust with clients and colleagues. While her work is often adversarial, Susan is known for her success at building bridges, collaborating with others, and navigating and negotiating controversial situations with positive results. She has also worked on a number of files related to UPEI and UPEI Human Resources.

'I'm very excited to join UPEI,' said Connolly. 'I look forward to developing and strengthening the relationship between our employees and administration, as well as supporting and providing resources so that UPEI can continue to deliver quality post-secondary education to our students.'

Susan Connolly will begin her new role on November 24.

After receiving the Atlantic University Sport (AUS) Student-Athlete Community Service Award last week, fourth-year science student and UPEI rugby player Shanda Mosher-Gallant attended the All-Canadian Rugby Gala in Guelph, Ontario this week where she was further recognized with the CIS national award. She is the first player from UPEI to be honoured with the Student-Athlete Community Service Award since its inception in 2009. Mosher-Gallant is in her third year of eligibility with the UPEI Women's Rugby Panthers and plays on the wing.

This past summer in western Prince Edward Island, Mosher-Gallant spearheaded the creation of a Rookie Rugby program, Rugby Canada's non-contact introduction to the game that is implemented in schools and communities across Canada for youth of all ages.

Mosher-Gallant, small but mighty, standing at five-feet tall, is originally from Wellington, PEI. She decided to take matters into her own hands as she single-handedly approached the City of Summerside to secure funding for Rookie Rugby. She also approached other local businesses to get them on board to financially support the program. Mosher-Gallant managed the bulk of advertising and marketing tasks, and contributed $500 of her own money to purchase necessary equipment for U10 and U12 rugby participants. Thanks to Mosher-Gallant, PEI was able to host its first-ever mini rugby game in late August.

Mosher-Gallant has her level one coaching certification and attended Rugby Canada's Rookie Rugby training session in Halifax in October.

'PEI has a small population of 145,000 and promoting and retaining rugby players here is very challenging,' UPEI Women's Rugby Head Coach Shannon Atkins said in a news release. 'Shanda saw the need in her community to engage young athletes in this dynamic sport and jumped at the chance to offer children the opportunity to play a sport that has been so good to her. She is an innovator and giver. I feel that she is one of those great people that you get to have in your life.'

Congratulations, Shanda!