Check out the UPEI Bookstore's selection of gifts for the soon to be grads in your life.

Purchase clothing and gift items here: https://upei.bookware3000.ca/Catalogue/new/alumni--grads

Choose a beautiful frame for their degree: https://8734upei.com/order-frames-online

Pre-order flowers for their big day: https://www.thecommencementgroup.com/upei/

The Master of Arts in Island Studies program invites you to a thesis defence by Laurie Rayner Langford entitled “FOXMAN: The story of B.I. Rayner as told by eight women.” Please join in person or on Teams (email brinklow@upei.ca for the Teams link). Everyone is welcome!

April 24, 10:00 am, Memorial Building Room 104

Library spaces will be closed May, June, July, and August, with some services available at our temporary location. 

Beginning May 4, 2026, limited in-person library services will be available in Robertson Library Annex Room 235 (click here for a map). This temporary service point will be open Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. 

The Library’s website, OneSearch, research databases, digital materials, and online services will be available throughout the summer. The building’s central hallway (breezeway) – housing the book drop, ATM, lockers, bulletin board, microwave, etc. – will still be accessible.

Important Dates:

• Monday April 27 - Thursday April 30 - Library opens 8:00 am-5:00 pm with regular library services
• Friday, May 1 - Library spaces open 8:00 am-5:00 pm but all library services closed
• Monday, May 4 - Service desk opens in Li8brary Annex Room 235 with reduced services Monday-Friday 9:00 am-5:00 pm

Details of our availability and services may change as we adjust to the construction.

See our Library Renovations Closure Information page for more details

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

The eight meeting of the UPEI Senate will take place on Friday, April 24, 2026, from 3:00 to 5:00 pm in Room 102 at Alumni Hall (618 University Avenue). To view the 2025-2026 calendar of Senate meetings or documents for the upcoming meeting, click here. (Posted one week before the meeting)

All meetings are open to members of the University community, although certain in-camera items (e.g., granting of degrees) may require the Senate to go into a closed session. Only members of Senate are permitted to address the Senate unless otherwise recognized by the chair. 

For logistical purposes, members of the UPEI community who wish to attend the open session of a UPEI Senate meeting are asked to contact senate@upei.ca one week prior to the meeting. While Senate is an in-person meeting, members of the University community may request a virtual connection when they are unable to attend in person. 

Because of the generous support of many to "Love our Library"—the Robertson Library Revitalization Campaign, we are thrilled to announce that phase one renovations will officially begin on Monday, May 4, 2026, and continue through the second half of August.

To mark this significant occasion, you are warmly invited to attend a special kick-off event on Friday, May 1, at 10:00 am in the Robertson Library lobby to celebrate the beginning of renovations.

To learn how the Library will function during the renovation period, visit https://libraryupei.ca/renovations-2026

The University of Prince Edward Island’s Faculty of Sustainable Design Engineering (FSDE) will showcase the best in sustainable design engineering by its students at the annual Student Design Expo on Friday, April 24, starting at 1 pm. Projects can be viewed through the afternoon until 3:30 pm. Student projects will be presented in person. Each project is the result of collaboration between FSDE students and an industry or community partner. Students were tasked with designing and creating solutions to their partners’ unique challenges.

We look forward to seeing everyone.

The UPEI Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP) Office is updating the Access to Information and Protection of Personal Information and Privacy Policy and would like input from the campus community. Your feedback is important in helping us ensure that our practices reflect the needs, expectations, and concerns of everyone on campus. Please share your thoughts by completing this short survey —your input will help to inform the final policy updates.

Any questions related to the survey or the policy update can be directed to accessprivacy@upei.ca. The ATIP Office thanks you for your valuable input.

The Department of Health Management will be interviewing Dr. Guy Perry for the tenure-track faculty position in Aquaculture Population Health.  Dr. Perry's interview process will take place on Monday, April 27 and Tuesday, April 28, 2026

Dr. Perry is a quantitative geneticist with a research focus spanning genetic architecture in mammals, fish and invertebrates, with emphasis on genetic architecture including his own discovery, phenotypic dispersion theory. 

He is currently serving as the manager and geneticist at the Bideford Shellfish Hatchery in Bideford, PE, where he leads the development of MSX-resistant lines of Eastern oysters for commercial farming and recovery of the fishing beds on PEI, and further afield. His work integrates research, industry, and operations to address this critical and emergent issue. 

As part of the interview process, Dr. Perry 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”

Monday, April 27, 2026, 12:30pm

AVC Learning Commons, 287N
 

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

Tuesday, April 28, 2026, 12:30pm

AVC Learning Commons, 287N

Earth Day Event – Exploring Biochar as a Sustainable Solution

You’re invited to join us this Earth Day for a public presentation exploring the potential of biochar as a more sustainable alternative to traditional fertilizers.

This 4th year capstone project for the Bachelor of Environmental Studies, developed in collaboration with IonGlobal and NSCAR, looks at how biochar, including applications using human biosolids, could improve soil health, reduce environmental impacts, and contribute to more sustainable agricultural practices. We’ll be sharing our findings, discussing feasibility, and opening up the conversation to broader environmental and community perspectives.

April 22, 7:00 PM, Don and Marion McDougall Hall, Room 242

This event is open to everyone, and we welcome students, faculty, community members, and anyone interested in sustainability or environmental innovation.

A live stream will also be available for those who can’t attend in person. If you’d like access to the stream, feel free to reach out.

If you have any questions or would like the link to join online, please contact Evan eaherbert@upei.ca or Reece rrpackman@upei.ca

Hosted by Evan, Max, and Reece in partnership with IonGlobal and North Shore Climate Action and Resilience (NSCAR).

We look forward to seeing you there!

Convocation is almost here! All faculty members are invited to participate in the Academic Procession for each Convocation ceremony. 

May 12—Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Faculty of Nursing
May 13—Faculty of Business and Faculty of Sustainable Design Engineering
May 14—Faculty of Arts, Faculty of Education, and Faculty of Graduate Studies
May 15—Faculty of Science

Faculty members who have regalia and wish to participate are asked to RSVP via this form to confirm which ceremony they will be attending. Faculty members will line up with the graduates in the Faculty of Sustainable Design Engineering building concourse 45 minutes before each ceremony.  

For those faculty members who would like to order regalia online through UPEI’s official gown supplier, GradCo, they are encouraged to do so ASAP at http://gradco.ca/upei. The deadline for ordering is Wednesday, April 22, at 11:59 pm. 

Any faculty members who wish to purchase their regalia may contact GradCo at info@gradco.ca for information. 

The deadline for the Employee and Spouse/Dependent Tuition Waiver forms for the Summer 2026 semester is July 10, 2026.  We encourage you to have your tuition waivers submitted as soon as possible to assist in the timely processing. Tuition Waiver forms must be submitted electronically.  

The online Tuition Waiver fillable forms can be found on the HR Portal of the myUPEI site, under Training and Development.

Please note, the Employee or Spouse/Dependent must be registered in the course prior to applying for the tuition waiver.

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

Title of the Thesis: “A Comparison of Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices Related to Nutrition and Food Safety Between Primary School Students Receiving a Practical Agri-Nutrition Education Program and the Grade 5 Agriculture and Nutrition Competency-Based Curriculum in Meru County, Kenya”

Abstract: Micronutrient malnutrition remains a major public health challenge among school-age children in Kenya, driven by poor dietary diversity, food insecurity, and unsafe food practices. This study evaluates a Practical Agri-Nutrition Education (PANE) program implemented among Grade 5 students to improve nutrition-related knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP). Using a quasi-experimental pre-post design, outcomes were compared between students receiving PANE (n=43) and those following the national Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC) (n=55). Data were collected using structured KAP questionnaires, and Chi-square tests were used for data analysis. Post-intervention, PANE participants demonstrated significantly improved knowledge, more positive attitudes toward recommended practices, and reported fewer barriers to adopting them than the comparison group. Findings suggest that PANE improved knowledge and attitudes but did not translate into improved practices within the short study period. Since the PANE was found to enhance the CBC curriculum, our findings support integrating PANE into the CBC curriculum, with longer-duration interventions and teacher involvement.

April 23, 2026, 8:30 am in Health Sciences Building, Room 323

EVERYONE IS WELCOME

The Master of Arts in Island Studies program invites you to a thesis defence by Laurie Rayner Langford entitled “FOXMAN: The story of B.I. Rayner as told by eight women.” Please join in person or on Teams (email brinklow@upei.ca for the Teams link). Everyone is welcome!

April 24, 10:00 am, Memorial Building Room 104

The Master of Arts in Island Studies program invites you to a thesis defence by Em Coates entitled “Now I know my ABC(D)s: Lessons in island sustainability via asset-based community development (ABCD) and autoethnography in community-based research on the Port au Port Peninsula, Newfoundland, Canada.” Please join in person or on Teams (email brinklow@upei.ca for the Teams link). Everyone is welcome!

April 23, 10:00 am, Memorial Building Room 104

The UPEI Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP) Office is updating the Access to Information and Protection of Personal Information and Privacy Policy and would like input from the campus community. Your feedback is important in helping us ensure that our practices reflect the needs, expectations, and concerns of everyone on campus. Please share your thoughts by completing this short survey —your input will help to inform the final policy updates.

Any questions related to the survey or the policy update can be directed to accessprivacy@upei.ca. The ATIP Office thanks you for your valuable input.

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. 

The Faculty of Education would like to invite all to attend Bukola Kehinde's public presentation of her MEd research titled: "Teaching and Learning Science in the Age of Generative Artificial Intelligence" 

Please join us on April 23 at 9:00 am, in person at Memorial Hall, Room 417 or through Teams: see the link below:

Bukola Kehinde - Thesis Dissertation Exam | Meeting-Join | Microsoft Teams

Welcome to the following new employees who joined the University of Prince Edward Island community in March 2026:

• Kazi Raisha Inshad Anwar, Human Resources
• Ryan Blair, Veterinary Teaching Hospital, Atlantic Veterinary College
• Megan Douthwright, Faculty of Nursing
• Aimee Dow, Faculty of Nursing
• Heidi Duchesne, Ancillary Services
• Andrea Hanlan, Faculty of Nursing
• Leah Kristufek, Faculty of Sustainable Design Engineering
• Julia Larkin, Applied Human Sciences, Faculty of Science
• Emma MacLean, Office of the Associate Vice-President, Students
• Melissa Markovich, Faculty of Nursing
• Zhouwei Miao, Faculty of Nursing
• Katelyn Ostridge, Faculty of Nursing
• Ashley Powell, Diagnostic Services, Atlantic Veterinary College
• Shaylyn Uchtenhagen, Faculty of Nursing
• Cecilia Walsh-Gallison, Faculty of Nursing
• Michelle Young, Faculty of Nursing

We are excited to have you join the UPEI team!

Earth Day Event – Exploring Biochar as a Sustainable Solution

You’re invited to join us this Earth Day for a public presentation exploring the potential of biochar as a more sustainable alternative to traditional fertilizers.

This 4th year capstone project for the Bachelor of Environmental Studies, developed in collaboration with IonGlobal and NSCAR, looks at how biochar, including applications using human biosolids, could improve soil health, reduce environmental impacts, and contribute to more sustainable agricultural practices. We’ll be sharing our findings, discussing feasibility, and opening up the conversation to broader environmental and community perspectives.

April 22, 7:00 PM, Don and Marion McDougall Hall, Room 242

This event is open to everyone, and we welcome students, faculty, community members, and anyone interested in sustainability or environmental innovation.

A live stream will also be available for those who can’t attend in person. If you’d like access to the stream, feel free to reach out.

If you have any questions or would like the link to join online, please contact Evan eaherbert@upei.ca or Reece rrpackman@upei.ca

Hosted by Evan, Max, and Reece in partnership with IonGlobal and North Shore Climate Action and Resilience (NSCAR).

We look forward to seeing you there!