The Catherine Callbeck Centre for Entrepreneurship invites you to attend the Harry W. MacLauchlan Entrepreneurship Program Panther Pitch Finale!

Join us on April 15, 2025, at the W.A. Murphy Centre, McMillan Hall for an exciting day of student innovation and competition.

This year, we’re proud to introduce a new stream, Aspire, giving 1st and 2nd year students the opportunity to participate in Panther Pitch for the very first time.

Event Schedule:

• Aspire Finalists: 1:00 – 2:30 PM
• Accelerate Finalists: 4:00 – 6:30 PM
• Reception and Awards Ceremony: 6:30 – 8:30 PM

All events will take place in McMillan Hall.

Come support our student entrepreneurs as they pitch their ideas and compete for top awards!

Red Dress Day is a National Day of Awareness and Action for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and Gender Diverse Peoples (MMIWG2S) that takes place on May 5. 

MMIWG2S is an ongoing human rights crisis of gender-based and racialized violence in Canada. Indigenous women’s groups estimate that more than 4,000 Indigenous women, girls, and gender diverse people have gone missing or been murdered in Canada since 1980. This violence is a result of past and ongoing systems of oppression and harm including colonization, racism, misogyny, transphobia, and anti-Indigeneity. 

In 2010, in response to this crisis, Métis artist Jaime Black-Morsette created the REDress Project, an art installation featuring red dresses hung in public spaces to symbolize the missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls, and gender diverse people across this territory. Her art installation was the inspiration for Red Dress Day in Canada.

The UPEI Sexual Violence Prevention and Response Office (SVPRO) encourages the campus community to join them in honouring Red Dress Day:  

• Display a red dress or a red dress flyer in your department or office until May 5 (You can access a Red Dress flyer here: https://tinyurl.com/33kz2r8k  If you do not have access to a colour printer, Kelly at SVPRO can send copies by interoffice mail: 902-620-5428 or sv-pro@upei.ca)
• Educate yourself on MMIWG2S (You can access the final report of the National Inquiry here: www.mmiwg-ffada.ca and Safe Passage here: www.safe-passage.ca)
• Wear red on May 5
• Take part in local vigils, walks, or events (watch for news from the Aboriginal Women’s Association of PEI, L’Nuey, Mi’kmaq Confederacy of PEI, and the Native Council of PEI)
• Speak up about MMIWG2S on social media using hashtags #MMIWG2S, #RedDressDay, and #WhyWeWearRed 

There is 24-hour support available for Indigenous, Inuit, or Métis individuals impacted by this crisis at 1-844-413-6649. Any UPEI Campus Member impacted by sexual violence can access confidential, trauma-informed support at the UPEI Sexual Violence Prevention and Response Office (SVPRO), Monday to Friday, 8:30am to 4:00pm: 902-620-5090 or sv-pro@upei.ca . SVPRO is located at the Kelley Memorial Building, Room 115-118. 

Classes are over; you just have to make it through exams. The library is here to help, and not just with books and research advice. April 17-25, in the Robertson Library Lobby, we've scheduled a number of surprises, featuring a treat, craft, or activity to give your brain a break. Follow @RobertsonLibrary on Instagram and Facebook so you never miss a Pop-Up Surprise. (Here's a freebie: we're co-hosting a coffee break with Dana Hospitality, Monday April 20 at 1:00 pm!)   

You'll find the lobby lounge transformed into the Stress-Free Zone for the duration of exams. Relax with colouring pages, yarn, origami, and so much more!    

Good luck on your finals! 

Dr. Billy Johnson, a candidate for the new tenure-track position in the English Department, will give a research presentation titled "From Halifax to Harlem: Arthur Huff Fauset's Folklore from Nova Scotia (1931)" on Friday, April 17, 2026 at 10:30 am in SDU Main Building, Room 320. We invite faculty, staff, and students to attend.

Dr. Kristen Smith, a candidate for the new tenure-track position in the English Department, will give a research presentation titled "'Sounds despatched abroad': Poetics, Analysis, Experience" on Wednesday, April 15, 2026 at 1:30 pm in SDU Main Building, Room 213. We invite faculty, staff, and students to attend. 

It is time again to offer support to our students during exams and final papers. The Chaplaincy Centre continues to host a free meal for students on Friday, April 17, with the generous help of many UPEI faculty and staff. There are three chances to volunteer: 

• set up on April 16 and
• two (2) servings on April 17. 

Please use this link to sign up for a 30-minute shift to volunteer. Opportunities to set up, serve, and clean up are available as well as a chance to mingle with students in an informal conversation with good food. 

On Thursday, April 16, from 10:00 - 10;30, we will set up the space, including tables, chairs, and decorations for the next day.  

On Friday, April 17, we will offer two serving times:11:30 am-1:00 pm and 4:30-6:00 pm. If slots are full, please check back closer to the day as schedules change and time slots may open up. Contact Sister Sue at sukidd@upei.ca for further information.  

This event is a little different from Soup for the Soul as this time, staff at the Fox and Crow cook and UPEI faculty, staff and friend volunteers set up, serve and clean up.

UPEI fiscal year ends on April 30, 2026.

Preparation for Fiscal Year End

Procurement Services request that all departments review their outstanding purchase order list to see if there are any purchase orders that should be cancelled. Your purchase order listing can be found in the myUPEISelf-Service Menu under "Financial Management" and the “Receive Goods and Services” selection.

If any line items have been backordered for some time, it is recommended that you confirm with the supplier that the goods are still on their records as being back ordered. 

To cancel a purchase order, please email procurement@upei.ca with the PO number and vendor name.

If you are in possession of vendor invoices, please forward these to invoices@upei.ca as soon as possible. For questions or concerns you may have regarding billing and invoicing, contact apadmin@upei.ca. 

Requisitions & Purchase Orders:

The last day to create a requisition or purchase order for the 2025-26 fiscal year will be Friday, April 17, 2026, at noon with guaranteed delivery date on or before April 30, 2026. 

For requisitions and purchase orders created after April 17, 2026, please change the requisition date to May 1, 2026. For these requisitions, the goods and services must be delivered or performed on or after May 1, 2026.

Receiving Goods & Services Cut-Off: April 30, 2026

For the expense to be recorded in the 2025-26 fiscal year, goods and services must be received by April 30, 2026. Only the goods that have been physically received on campus or performed services should be accepted against the purchase order at this time. 

Please note that you cannot backdate receiving items in myUPEI. Please reach out to procurement@upei.ca for assistance accepting backdated goods or services for 2025-26. Additionally, the vendor invoice must be dated on or before April 30, 2026.

Any goods received or services performed after April 30, 2026 will be recorded against your new fiscal year budget (2026-27). 

The Faculty of Education would like to invite all to attend Mudtha Wijesundarage's public presentation of her MEd research titled: "Empowering Globally Competent Professionals Through Virtual Work-Integrated Learning." 

Please join us in person on April 17 at 10:00 am, Memorial Hall, Room 417 or on Teams: Muditha Wijesundarage - Thesis Dissertation Exam | Meeting-Join | Microsoft Teams

The Office of Continuing Education and Professional Development (OCEPD) at UPEI is pleased to announce our Spring and Summer 2026 Certificate programming. Whether you are strengthening leadership capacity, improving workplace culture, enhancing technical skills, or sharpening communication strategy, we have a program designed for measurable impact.

Explore full program details at: https://www.upei.ca/professional-development

The following programs are available with start dates this spring:

• Certificate in Occupational Health and Safety
• Certificate in Introductory Data Analytics – Bridging Qualitative and Quantitative Analysis
• Certificate in Workplace Mental Health and Well-Being
• Certificate in Conflict Resolution
• Certificate in Professional Communications
• Certificate in Marketing and Branding
• Certificate in Motivational Interviewing
• Microcredential in Applied Artificial Intelligence for the Workplace

UPEI Staff are eligible for all of these programs for a rate of $995. Please contact pdp@upei.ca for more details.

For program selection guidance or group registrations, contact us at rdbyrne@upei.ca.

We look forward to supporting your professional growth this Spring and Summer 2026!

The 2026 Zoonoses, AMR, and BioInformatics (ZAMBI) meeting will take place in Halifax, Nova Scotia, from July 6-9. The meeting brings together cross-disciplinary researchers and trainees working at the intersection of antimicrobial resistance, emerging zoonotic diseases, and computational biology to share their research and develop new cross-cutting One Health skills. There will be a mix of talks and workshops. 

May 1 is the deadline to submit a title and abstract for consideration for poster and oral presentations, and May 31 is the deadline to register to attend the meeting. Registration for all four days is $50 (plus $20 for an optional conference dinner and Agricultural Campus tour). More information about the program and the meeting in general can be found at https://zambi.ca/

All are invited to the Inge Dorsey Student Showcase on Wednesday, April 15 from 9:00 am - 12:00 pm in SDU Main Building (various rooms).

•  Session 1, 9:00-10:30 am
• Session 2, 10:45 am -noon. 

Come celebrate the amazing work of our Faculty of Arts students! This showcase features the best of student projects, including individual and group presentations, digital projects, creative performances, and displays.

What’s the goal?

• Celebrate student achievement
• Give students the chance to present their work
• Build connections and support within our academic community

Don’t miss out on this chance to cheer on our talented students and explore their creative projects!

We can’t wait to see you there!

The Department of Health Management will be interviewing Dr. Rod Beresford for the tenure-track faculty position in Aquaculture Population Health. Dr. Beresford's interview process will take place on Thursday, April 16 and Friday, April 17, 2026

Dr. Beresford is a biology professor at Cape Breton University. He grew up in Glace Bay, attended Cape Breton University and Dalhousie University for his post-secondary education. His past work experience includes working at Dalhousie University, the RCMP Forensic Laboratory Service, Health Canada, and now Cape Breton University. His aquaculture interest and research are focused on shellfish (molluscs) diseases, specifically those that have impacted the local (Atlantic Canada) oyster industry – Haplosporidium nelsoni (MSX) and Perkinsus marinus (Dermo). He has worked closely with industry and communities over the past 18 years to build a strong research program around re-establishing the Bras d’Or Lake oyster industry where they investigate ways to mitigate the impact of these devastating invasive pathogens.

As part of the interview process, Dr. Beresford has been asked to present two brief seminars: the first, a topic that would be appropriate to teach DVM/graduate students; the second, to present their research interests.

Research Seminar

“Vision on How my Research Program (current and planned) would Assist in the Rejuvenation of the Shellfish Industry in PEI and Atlantic Canada in the Short-term and Long-term”

Thursday, April 16, 2026 at 1:30pm

AVC Lecture Theatre "B"

Teaching Seminar

“The Role of Health Management in Shellfish Production in Atlantic Canada”

Friday, April 17, 2026 at 12:30pm

AVC Lecture Theatre "B"

The UPEI Writing Centre will be closing at 6:00 pm on Tuesday, April 14 (final day of classes). Please contact the coordinator with any questions regarding availability in May and June at jschneider@upei.ca

We would like to thank all our clients, faculty members, and the Robertson Library staff for a productive and rewarding semester!

MSc in Mathematical and Computational Sciences

Presenter:  Maleeha Haris

Title of the Thesis: “Theory and Applications of Linear Difference Equations via the h-Operator”

Have you ever wondered about the study of classical differential equations, but restricting the independent variable to take discrete values? This is where the study of Difference Equations comes in.

We will be exploring the h-difference equations, the study of the linear difference equations, some theorems and corollaries of the h-difference operators and recovering their analogue in the classical differential equations. We will look at linear first-order difference equations and ways to find their solutions. We will also explore the equivalent forms of the second-order difference equations and derive the d_{h}AIM scheme for finding the solution. We end by applying the methods studied above to find the solution of several classical second-order difference equations.

April 15, 9:00 am in Don and Marion McDougall Hall, Room 328

Everyone is welcome.

The Catherine Callbeck Centre for Entrepreneurship invites you to attend the Harry W. MacLauchlan Entrepreneurship Program Panther Pitch Finale!

Join us on April 15, 2025, at the W.A. Murphy Centre, McMillan Hall for an exciting day of student innovation and competition.

This year, we’re proud to introduce a new stream, Aspire, giving 1st and 2nd year students the opportunity to participate in Panther Pitch for the very first time.

Event Schedule:

• Aspire Finalists: 1:00 – 2:30 PM
• Accelerate Finalists: 4:00 – 6:30 PM
• Reception and Awards Ceremony: 6:30 – 8:30 PM

All events will take place in McMillan Hall.

Come support our student entrepreneurs as they pitch their ideas and compete for top awards!

The UPEI Teaching and Learning Centre is pleased to invite you to our annual Teaching Community Conference, taking place on Tuesday, April 28, 2026, in the Health Sciences Building.

This year’s theme, Connected Teaching: Connecting with Community, Self, and Place, invites us to reflect on how teaching is shaped by relationships, context, and care. We hope you’ll join us for a full day of conversation, learning, and connection with colleagues from across campus.

The Teaching Community Conference is an opportunity to further energize UPEI’s strategic commitment to innovative and connected teaching, research, and scholarship by sharing our experiences, questions, and opportunities for advancing teaching and learning at UPEI.

Throughout the day, participants will be invited to explore questions such as:

• What supports, skills, and critical capacities do faculty need to embrace the relational and connected nature of teaching?
• As we expand the walls of our classrooms and broaden our partnerships, how do we move beyond supplementing traditional practices to truly transform what teaching can be?

Please RSVP by April 20 to help us with planning and catering, and be sure to save the date in your calendar.

We look forward to learning together and hope you can join us for this engaging day.

Dr. Kristen Smith, a candidate for the new tenure-track position in the English Department, will give a research presentation titled "'Sounds despatched abroad': Poetics, Analysis, Experience" on Wednesday, April 15, 2026 at 1:30 pm in SDU Main Building, Room 213. We invite faculty, staff, and students to attend. 

It is time again to offer support to our students during exams and final papers. The Chaplaincy Centre continues to host a free meal for students on Friday, April 17, with the generous help of many UPEI faculty and staff. There are three chances to volunteer: 

• set up on April 16 and
• two (2) servings on April 17. 

Please use this link to sign up for a 30-minute shift to volunteer. Opportunities to set up, serve, and clean up are available as well as a chance to mingle with students in an informal conversation with good food. 

On Thursday, April 16, from 10:00 - 10;30, we will set up the space, including tables, chairs, and decorations for the next day.  

On Friday, April 17, we will offer two serving times:11:30 am-1:00 pm and 4:30-6:00 pm. If slots are full, please check back closer to the day as schedules change and time slots may open up. Contact Sister Sue at sukidd@upei.ca for further information.  

This event is a little different from Soup for the Soul as this time, staff at the Fox and Crow cook and UPEI faculty, staff and friend volunteers set up, serve and clean up.

We are pleased and excited to invite all to attend Warren Britton's PsyD Dissertation Defense presentation taking place April 15, 2026 at 7pm in Memorial Hall Room 104. Please join us in supporting Warren on this momentous occasion!

Join author and entrepreneur, Scott Stirrett, for a talk on navigating today's unpredictable global economy through a six-pillar framework. Scott is the founder of Venture for Canada (VFC), where he spent over a decade building a national movement that equips early-career professionals with the skills, networks, and mindset needed to thrive in an uncertain economy. Since launching VFC in 2013, he has supported over 10,000 young people in launching their careers and raised more than $80 million to expand entrepreneurial opportunities across Canada. This impact has been made possible through collaborations with Employment and Social Development Canada, RBC Foundation, TD Bank, Scotiabank, and leading Canadian foundations.

He is also the author of The Uncertainty Advantage, a practical guide for young professionals navigating today's unpredictable global economy. The book is endorsed by leaders including Andrew Yang, Stephen Poloz, Amanda Lang, Eric Ries, Sukhinder Singh Cassidy, and Michele Romanow. It draws on his experience scaling VFC and emphasizes the importance of adaptability, entrepreneurial thinking, and lifelong learning in the future of work. Free copies of the book will be available at the event. Students, faculty, and staff are invited to join. Refreshments will be provided. 

In partnership with Experiential Education, the Office of Student Culture and Community Standards looks forward to seeing you and encourages you to check out the other events offered in the Convocation Countdown series listed in the UPEI events calendar. 

Please direct any questions to Krissi Ewing, kewing@upei.ca