One week left until our EDIID symposium! Here's another blog in our April series of Tea(ching) Breaks related to EDIID topics: How Identities Impact Our Pedagogical Practices.

Looking to procrastinate your grading just a little? We get it.

The Experiential Education department would like to gather feedback from faculty about the type of supports and services they would like to see with respect to career development and work-integrated learning through the 2024/25 academic year. This feedback will help us plan and prioritize as we allocate resources to our work across campus.

Please visit https://forms.gle/DhhN8HvJzUYuK5US9 to provide your feedback. Thanks!

A series of information webinars on the Rhodes Scholarship for Canada will be offered this spring for students interested in learning more about this prestigious opportunity for fully funded postgraduate study at Oxford University! Applicants, advisors, and faculty who may wish to encourage students are welcome to attend and learn everything from the background of the Scholarship, what's needed to apply, and the Oxford experience as shared by recent scholars. There will also be a Q&A with current and recent Scholars.

The Eastern Canada session will take place on May 6, 2024, starting at 4 pm AST. Follow the link to register.

The full list of webinars and events will be posted on the Rhodes Trust website, including a Canada-wide session on June 3, 2024, starting at 4 pm AST: 

https://www.rhodeshouse.ox.ac.uk/scholarships/events-to-learn-more/

Dr. Brent MacLaine will launch a new poetry book called A Skeptic in Springtime on April 24, 2024, at 7 pm, in the Faculty Lounge (Room 201), SDU Main Building, University of Prince Edward Island. 

A Skeptic in Springtime wrestles with uncertainty and aging, hurricanes, gravity, and particle theory. Amid all the unknowns, “Still, the white-throated sparrow cries I’m here, here, here, here.” Rooted in the PEI landscape where MacLaine grew up, his gaze ranges farther afield to Assyrian myth in “Killing a Lassamu,” to the Song Dynasty in “Su Dongpo Makes Ink,” to art in “Claude Monet in the Waiting Room.”

The book closes with a tribute to the late Dr. John Smith, former poet laureate of PEI. Combining keen observation of the natural world and the human condition, the poems in this collection contain “a universe which has leapt from nothing into something.”

Dr. MacLaine is a professor emeritus at the UPEI Department of English and the author of six volumes of poetry. He grew up in the rural community of Rice Point, PEI, to which he returned after teaching at universities in Vancouver, Edmonton, China, and Singapore. His awards for poetry include a League of Canadian Poets prize, the Prince Edward Island Book Award, and the Atlantic Poetry Prize.

The event is free, and all are welcome to attend. Books will be available for purchase. The event is sponsored by Island Studies Press, the UPEI English Department, and The Bookmark. For more information, contact Bren Simmers at 902-566-0386 or ispstaff@upei.ca.

On April 23, there will be a full moon ceremony on the quad outside Kelley Memorial Building (where the tipi stood). The sacred fire will be lit at 8:00 pm. Leading the ceremony will be Elder Thirely, who is well-respected in the community. We ask participants to bring a bottle of water for blessing and to refrain from recording the ceremony (photo or video). If you would like to wear a skirt but do not have one, you may borrow one during the ceremony. As always, all are welcome.

Since time immemorial, Indigenous Peoples have followed the 13 Moons or moon cycles to ground themselves in their teachings and ensure balance. Life on Earth is connected to and regulated by Grandmother Moon, through the tides and waters, which stabilizes our Earth's position and determines the cycle of women and the birth of new life. Grandmother Moon helps us with healing and is strongly connected to human life.

Members of the campus community are invited to attend a special entrepreneurship announcement on Monday, April 22, at 2:00 pm in the Robertson Library Annex.

Presenter: Dania Tamayo-Vera, candidate for a tenure-track position in the School of Mathematical and Computational Sciences

Teaching talk: Monday, April 22, 9:30--10:20 am, Cass Science Hall 101

Research talk: Monday, April 22, 1:45--2:45 pm, Cass Science Hall 101

Title: "Adapting an Automated Machine Learning System to Enhance Research Replicability and Accessibility in Agroclimatic Studies"

Abstract: 

The urgency of climate change calls for innovative solutions across disciplines, particularly through the democratization of machine learning (ML) technologies in environmental sciences. My research trajectory began with the application of ML in cryptography and security, which has now shifted towards utilizing ML to predict and assess the impacts of climate change in various sectors.

A review of ML and deep learning (DL) applications in agriculture revealed a critical need for well-documented methodologies to improve research reproducibility and accessibility. My current research focuses on the introduction and development of an Automated Machine Learning (AutoML) system designed to enhance the replicability of ML applications in agroclimatic research. As a result, this research is promoting innovation in agricultural practices tailored for climate mitigation and adaptation.

Looking ahead, my research will integrate additional scenarios such as market dynamics and decision-making processes affecting agriculture. Prince Edward Island (PEI), an area suffering from climate-related challenges, serves as an ideal place for testing and advancing these technologies. While PEI has the potential to be the birthplace of these technologies, global technology sharing is crucial to ensure equitable distribution, especially in areas that are most prone to climate challenges. Supporting technology development and distribution is a way to combat climate change and injustice and promote global resilience.

Teaching and research talks are open to the UPEI campus community.

There will be a basic biosafety training session on May 15, 2024, at 1:00 pm in AVC 287N. Topics will 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.

To attend, you must pre-register by contacting Jacky Buell by the end of the day on May 10, 2024, by email (hse@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. 

NOTE: An online basic biosafety training refresher course is available for those who need it. 

Looking to procrastinate your grading just a little? We get it.

The Experiential Education department would like to gather feedback from faculty about the type of supports and services they would like to see with respect to career development and work-integrated learning through the 2024/25 academic year. This feedback will help us plan and prioritize as we allocate resources to our work across campus.

Please visit https://forms.gle/DhhN8HvJzUYuK5US9 to provide your feedback. Thanks!

Presenter:  Tyler Power

Title: “The influence of oyster leases and eelgrass beds on local biodiversity levels at two productive bays in Prince Edward Island”

Marine sedimentary communities include epifaunal and infaunal organisms, and those found in Prince Edward Island (PEI) are often associated with beds of eelgrass (Zostera marina) and Eastern oysters (Crassostrea virginica). Unlike eelgrass, oysters are farmed as part of a productive aquaculture industry and occur adjacent to both eelgrass and bare sediments. Since eelgrass and oysters contribute to the structural complexity of the seafloor, the overarching hypothesis of this thesis was that habitats formed by these species sustain more diverse communities. To test this hypothesis, I compared epifaunal and infaunal communities in eelgrass beds, on-bottom and off-bottom oyster leases, and bare sediments across North Rustico and Rustico Bay. Epifauna was sampled using trapping surveys during 2021-2022, while infauna was sampled on a single diving survey (2021). Generally, eelgrass and on-bottom oyster leases supported more diverse and abundant epifauna than bare sediments, and their community composition and abundance were different. The infauna was more abundant in bare sediments, but diversity was again higher in eelgrass beds and on-bottom oyster leases, and their community composition was distinct. Most of the results gathered supported the hypothesis proposed and suggest that structurally complex habitats foster richer local communities.

Date/time/location: Tuesday, April 23, 2024, 1:00 pm, AVC 286A

Everyone is welcome.

The UPEI Bookstore will be closed from April 29 to 30 to complete our inventory. This is a reminder that any purchasing for this fiscal year-end needs to be completed by April 26, 2024. 

If you have any questions, please contact bookstore@upei.ca.

The deadline for Summer 2024 tuition waivers is April 22, 2024.  We encourage you to have tuition waivers submitted as soon as possible to assist in the timely processing. Tuition waiver forms must be submitted electronically.  

Online employee and spouse/dependent tuition waiver fillable forms can be found on the main page of MyUPEI under UPEI Forms.

If you have any questions, please contact Human Resources at (902) 566-0514 or hrgeneral@upei.ca.

UPEI's fiscal year ends on April 30, 2024.

Purchasing Cut-Offs

Requisition/purchase order:

The last day to create a requisition/purchase order for the 2023-24 fiscal year will be on Thursday, April 18, 2024, at noon, with guaranteed delivery date on or before April 30, 2024.

Requisitions/purchase orders created after April 18, 2024, will have the requisition date changed to May 1, 2024, and the goods and services must be delivered on or after May 1, 2024. If you are unable to change the requisition's date to May 1, 2024, please put a note in the comment section of the requisition indicating it is a new year order.

Receiving goods/services cut-off: April 30, 2024

Goods and services must be received on campus by April 30, 2024. Only the goods that have been physically received or completed services should be accepted at this time. This will ensure that these goods and services are paid in the 2023-24 fiscal year.  Any items received in myUPEI after April 30, 2024, will be considered new fiscal year goods and services and will be deducted from your new fiscal year budget (2024-25).

All departments are required to look at their outstanding purchase order list to see if there are any purchase orders that need to be cancelled. This functionality can be accessed through the myUPEI self-service menu under "Financial Information" and the “Receive Goods and Services” selection.

If the items have been back-ordered for some time, you will need to check with the supplier to see if they are still on their records as back-ordered. If they are not back-ordered, then please email procurement@upei.ca to cancel your purchase order.

If you are in receipt of vendor invoices, forward these to invoices@upei.ca ASAP. Please contact apadmin@upei.ca with questions or concerns regarding billing and invoicing.

Need assistance? 

Please take a look at the “Financial Tools Reference Guide” under the "Self-Service Help" tab on myUPEI. 

Members of the campus community are invited to attend a special entrepreneurship announcement on Monday, April 22, at 2:00 pm in the Robertson Library Annex.

Presenter: Dania Tamayo-Vera, candidate for a tenure-track position in the School of Mathematical and Computational Sciences

Teaching talk: Monday, April 22, 9:30--10:20 am, Cass Science Hall 101

Research talk: Monday, April 22, 1:45--2:45 pm, Cass Science Hall 101

Title: "Adapting an Automated Machine Learning System to Enhance Research Replicability and Accessibility in Agroclimatic Studies"

Abstract: 

The urgency of climate change calls for innovative solutions across disciplines, particularly through the democratization of machine learning (ML) technologies in environmental sciences. My research trajectory began with the application of ML in cryptography and security, which has now shifted towards utilizing ML to predict and assess the impacts of climate change in various sectors.

A review of ML and deep learning (DL) applications in agriculture revealed a critical need for well-documented methodologies to improve research reproducibility and accessibility. My current research focuses on the introduction and development of an Automated Machine Learning (AutoML) system designed to enhance the replicability of ML applications in agroclimatic research. As a result, this research is promoting innovation in agricultural practices tailored for climate mitigation and adaptation.

Looking ahead, my research will integrate additional scenarios such as market dynamics and decision-making processes affecting agriculture. Prince Edward Island (PEI), an area suffering from climate-related challenges, serves as an ideal place for testing and advancing these technologies. While PEI has the potential to be the birthplace of these technologies, global technology sharing is crucial to ensure equitable distribution, especially in areas that are most prone to climate challenges. Supporting technology development and distribution is a way to combat climate change and injustice and promote global resilience.

Teaching and research talks are open to the UPEI campus community.

Looking to procrastinate your grading just a little? We get it.

The Experiential Education department would like to gather feedback from faculty about the type of supports and services they would like to see with respect to career development and work-integrated learning through the 2024/25 academic year. This feedback will help us plan and prioritize as we allocate resources to our work across campus.

Please visit https://forms.gle/DhhN8HvJzUYuK5US9 to provide your feedback. Thanks!

Presenter:  Tyler Power

Title: “The influence of oyster leases and eelgrass beds on local biodiversity levels at two productive bays in Prince Edward Island”

Marine sedimentary communities include epifaunal and infaunal organisms, and those found in Prince Edward Island (PEI) are often associated with beds of eelgrass (Zostera marina) and Eastern oysters (Crassostrea virginica). Unlike eelgrass, oysters are farmed as part of a productive aquaculture industry and occur adjacent to both eelgrass and bare sediments. Since eelgrass and oysters contribute to the structural complexity of the seafloor, the overarching hypothesis of this thesis was that habitats formed by these species sustain more diverse communities. To test this hypothesis, I compared epifaunal and infaunal communities in eelgrass beds, on-bottom and off-bottom oyster leases, and bare sediments across North Rustico and Rustico Bay. Epifauna was sampled using trapping surveys during 2021-2022, while infauna was sampled on a single diving survey (2021). Generally, eelgrass and on-bottom oyster leases supported more diverse and abundant epifauna than bare sediments, and their community composition and abundance were different. The infauna was more abundant in bare sediments, but diversity was again higher in eelgrass beds and on-bottom oyster leases, and their community composition was distinct. Most of the results gathered supported the hypothesis proposed and suggest that structurally complex habitats foster richer local communities.

Date/time/location: Tuesday, April 23, 2024, 1:00 pm, AVC 286A

Everyone is welcome.

Welcome to the following new employees who joined the University of Prince Edward Island community in March 2024:

• Jonathan Hewitt, Student Affairs
• Dr. Marti Hopson, Companion Animals, Veterinary Medicine
• Veronica Lynn Kaye, Biomedical Sciences, Veterinary Medicine
• Steve Love, Ancillary Services
• Emily MacIntyre, Facilities Management
• Mikalia Ann MacLaurin, Veterinary Teaching Hospital
• Courtney Catherine MacLennan, Veterinary Teaching Hospital
• Edwin Nawa Mfone, Marketing and Communications
• Graham Nixon, IT Systems and Services
• Elizabeth Pan, Psychology, Arts
• Kwan Ting Peng, Registrar’s Office
• Marie Trudy Wisener, Nursing

We are excited to have you join the UPEI team!

Presenter: Dr. Kristina Kupferschmidt, candidate for a tenure-track position in the School of Mathematical and Computational Sciences 

Teaching Talk: Friday, April 19, 9:30--10:30 am, Cass Science Hall 101

Research Talk: Friday, April 19, 1:30--2:30 pm, Cass Science Hall 101

Title: "Back to the building blocks: Making AI more human-centric through data-centric practices" 

Abstract: The growing popularity of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) presents tremendous opportunities for high-stakes fields such as medicine and public policy. However, the risks associated with their use must be properly quantified and mitigated. Human-centered AI (HCAI) is an approach that applies design thinking, with a heavy focus on collaboration with experts, to facilitate the responsible development of AI systems. HCAI typically considers many pillars including fairness, explainability, and usability; however, the current literature often fails to recognize the complex interactions between these pillars, and recommendations are often theoretical in nature. 

To address these challenges, my ongoing research has focused on developing practical tools and studying real-world examples that demonstrate effective integrations of HCAI across different domains. My future research program will continue to build on this work by leveraging modern ML technologies, such as large language models (LLMs) and multimodal transformers, to provide additional context to models designed for high-stakes scenarios. These settings, which often rely on expert insight to consider complex contextual factors such as diagnostic risks or ethical values, highlight the limitations of current AI systems. By enhancing the ability of ML systems to process and interpret the contexts in which they operate, my research aims to significantly improve the transition of novel ML tools from the experimental stage to practical, reliable applications. The potential benefits expand beyond just improving technical performance but also include building user trust in AI systems.

Teaching and research talks are open to the UPEI campus community.

In order to accommodate UPEI computer classroom and lab software adds, drops, or modifications for the 2024 fall semester, we have set a firm deadline of June 1, 2024.

This date is necessary to allow sufficient time to plan and implement the installation of new and upgraded software. This ensures our students will have the software resources they need. Any requests received after the deadline will be applied in the next round of software updates.

Further information is available on the ITSS website, or you can email smahar@upei.ca by June 1 with your request indicating:

• New software requirements (licensed or freeware). Please provide the software name and vendor.
• Version upgrades to existing software (if multiple versions are required please provide specifics)
• Software that can be decommissioned