On Monday April 11 at 7:30 pm join saxophonist Emily Proude and clarinettist Johanna Vessey for their Junior Recital in the Dr. Steel Recital Hall at UPEI. Pianist Frances McBurnie will collaborate with them as they perform works by Bach, Heiden, Pascal, Messager, Copland,and Semchyshyn. Dr. Richard Covey will also be assisting as a collaborative pianist for one of his own compositions.

Emily and Johanna are both completing their third year in the UPEI Department of Music in Dr. Karem Simon's Woodwind Studio. Both were also two of the top three performers in the 2016 Dr. Frances Gray Performance Competition. Following this academic year, Johanna will be traveling to Saskatoon to participate in the 2016 National Youth Band of Canada, and Emily will be going to Zambia with the Poetice organization.

Admission is free and it is sure to be an evening of exciting music. All are welcome to attend.

The Atlantic Veterinary College at UPEI is celebrating National Wildlife Week, April 10-16, 2016!

On Wednesday, April 13, Fiep de Bie, AVC Wildlife Technician, will present “Giving Wings to Wildlife: Wildlife Care at AVC” in Lecture Theatre A at 12:30 pm. Falconer Jamie Stride will bring in two of his raptors and share information on falconry.

Raffle tickets will be available outside Lecture Theatre A from 9 am to 12:30 pm, featuring fabulous wildlife items and artwork (donated by Dr. Spencer Greenwood, Jamie Linthorne, and Jordi Seger). Wildlife cupcakes will also be available for sale. Monies raised will support renovations to the outdoor flight cage.

Everyone is welcome to attend.

The Atlantic Veterinary College's community workshop about pet first aid has been rescheduled to Tuesday, April 26, at 7 p.m., in Lecture Theatre A. The workshop was originally scheduled to take place in March but had to be cancelled due to bad weather. 

Dr. Kathy Ling, AVC Community Practice Clinic, will provide basic information about recognizing and caring for emergencies and injuries in dogs and cats. Topics will include primary assessment, handling an injured pet, bleeding, shock, common toxins, and recognizing signs of pain and distress. 

Admission is free, and everyone is welcome! For information, contact (902) 566-0589.

UPEI students from around the world celebrated the Global Village and Gala on Saturday, April 2 in McMillan Hall of UPEI’s W.A. Murphy Student Centre. Students were encouraged to “discover and experience the world” at an event attended by students from the Caribbean, China, India, Japan, Mexico, Myanmar, Nigeria, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka and elsewhere. The event was hosted by the volunteer Global Village group and the Society of International Students (SIS).

The event featured a scavenger hunt, taking participants to displays and foods from around the world. The evening included performances, including a Lion dance from China, a group dance by students from Nigeria, a fashion show, and musical presentations. Students spoke often during the evening about unity, fellowship, friendship, and the power of students working together to promote peace and harmony.

UPEI’s Senate Committee on the Enhancement of Teaching (SCENT), the Faculty Development Office (FDO), and the UPEI Faculty Association (UPEIFA) have invited Dr. Len Findlay to give a presentation Wednesday, April 27 at 11 am in room 243 of Don and Marion McDougall Hall. Dr. Findlay is a distinguished professor of English at the University of Saskatchewan and a fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. His talk is entitled “Pedagogical Authority or Consumer Sovereignty? Academic Freedom and the Academic Mission.”

Dr. Findlay is past head of the academic freedom and tenure committee of Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT). He is a staunch advocate for radical humanities, a strong critic of the contemporary university, and a steadfast defender of academic freedom.

Dr. Findlay’s talk is the culmination of SCENT and FDO’s semester-long focus on academic freedom, pedagogy, and curriculum. 

UPEI is proud to announce that Dr. Colleen MacQuarrie, Associate Professor of Psychology, has been named a Fellow of the Canadian Psychological Association (CPA). Fellows of the CPA are members who have made a distinguished contribution to the advancement of the science or profession of psychology or who have given exceptional service to their national or provincial associations.

“The contributions of Dr. MacQuarrie and her collaborative research, teaching, and service have made tremendous impact in our province, region, and country,” says Dr. Alaa Abd-El-Aziz, President and Vice-Chancellor of UPEI. “The entire UPEI community is proud to see her recognized as a Fellow of the CPA. I congratulate her on this great achievement and thank her for her leadership.”

In her nomination letter to the CPA, Dr. MacQuarrie’s colleague Dr. Annabel Cohen writes: “Dr. Colleen MacQuarrie has had an extraordinary impact in her province, in neighbouring provinces, and beyond, as an educator, researcher, and community advocate, giving voice to those who would otherwise be silent, and improving lives for women and for all. Her impact increases daily through her contribution in feminist research and advocacy as exemplified in her collaborative work and spirit, her co-authored and co-edited books, and roles as conference organizer, mentor, educator, and advisor. This kind of productivity, dedication, scholarship and example merits the honour of the CPA Fellow designation.”

Dr. MacQuarrie received her undergraduate degree from UPEI, her MA from Carleton University, and her PhD from Simon Fraser University. In addition to her teaching and research at UPEI, she has held the position of chair of the PEI Advisory Council on the Status of Women.

Her colleague Dr. Philip Smith writes: “Giving voice to these women and finding solutions to their problems became Colleen’s passion and the focus of her research, community involvement, and student mentoring. Her feminist action research program was and continues to be directed to better understanding the multi-determined nature of health and wellness across the lifespan and within diverse community settings.”

“Dr. MacQuarrie has been a tireless and extremely effective advocate for understanding and addressing women's issues, in particular those related to health and wellness,” said Dr. Robert Gilmour, Vice-President Academic and Research. “Her impact has been felt both in the classroom and in the community and has importantly influenced the attitudes of academics, politicians, and the public at large. The University is delighted that her advocacy has been recognized by being named a Fellow of this prestigious organization.”

Dr. MacQuarrie will be officially bestowed her fellowship at a ceremony in June at the opening Plenary Session of the Annual CPA meeting. Later at the conference, Dr. MacQuarrie will deliver an invited address to the Section on Women in Psychology (SWAP), as a consequence of having received its Distinguished Member Award last year. Dr. MacQuarrie has held several positions within SWAP, and becomes chair this summer.

Congratulations, Dr. MacQuarrie!

A team from UPEI’s School of Business took first place at the Saint Mary’s Business Case Competition, held March 4 and 5 at the Sobey School of Business in Halifax. The students had just 18 hours to read, analyze, strategize, and come up with a solution to a business case they had never seen before. Other teams were from Acadia University, Dalhousie University, St. Francis Xavier University, and Saint Mary’s University.

The winning case team was made up of third-year School of Business students Hannah Dawson and Cullen Mullally. Dawson and Mullally presented to a panel of judges, which included representatives from the organization on which the case was based, the Anglican Foundation of Canada.

“Executive director Dr. Judy Rois flew to the competition, giving us the opportunity to directly present our solutions for the Anglican Foundation of Canada and left extremely enthusiastic about our ideas for her foundation moving forward,” said Mullally.

Mullally and Dawson, along with two other team members, competed in September at the Atlantic Schools of Business Case Competition and won first place. They also competed together at Concordia University’s John Molson School of Business Undergraduate Case Competition in February, where they made the final round.

“This has been a phenomenal season for our case team, achieving a top three finish in almost every competition we competed in,” said case coach Mary Whitrow. “It is exciting to cap off the year with another win.”

“Congratulations to Hannah and Cullen on their showing,” said Dr. Juergen Krause, Dean of the UPEI School of Business. “Their results are a testament to the strength of our students and the continuous strengthening of our case competition program here at UPEI.”

For the second year in a row, a team from UPEI’s School of Business has taken home the silver medal at the Network of International Business Schools (NIBS) Case Competition. The case team from UPEI, including Erin Devine, Robert McIsaac, Harrison Wood, and Megan Martin, competed in the qualifying round last November where they earned their chance to compete this winter at the championship round at the Greehey School of Business in San Antonio, Texas.

“NIBS is a prestigious international competition, and dozens of schools around the globe compete in the qualifying round each year,” said Dr. Juergen Krause, Dean of the School of Business. “To make it into the championship round and then to go on to win a silver medal two years in a row is an exceptional accomplishment. Congratulations to the students and their coach, Mary.”

UPEI’s team was one of only three universities from Canada to make the finals in Texas. Of the other 13 teams competing, two were from China, seven from countries in Europe (Netherlands, Ireland, Germany, Denmark, Finland, and the United Kingdom), one from Peru, and three from the United States. The four-day competition was organized in a divisional round-robin format. In each round, students receive a business case that they have never seen before, and they then have three hours to read, analyze, strategize, and come up with a solution and implementation plan for the business’s problem. Immediately after the three-hour preparation period, students presented their solution to a panel of industry and academic judges, who then questioned the students on their solution. The teams that advanced to the quarter- and semi-final rounds did two cases a day on the last two days. The final two teams that emerged after five rounds of competition were UPEI and Carleton University. The UPEI team took home its second silver medal.

“I’m very proud of our team and the results we were able to achieve,” said team member Harrison Wood. “I thank the School of Business for preparing us and supporting us throughout this year.”

“NIBS was an invaluable experience,” said Robert McIsaac. “Not only did it assert the fact that UPEI provides some of the best business education in the world, but it provided the opportunity to see how other cultures approach business, and gave us a spotlight on an international stage.”

Team coach Mary Whitrow said, “These students did some amazing work throughout their marathon of a week in Texas and their perseverance and hard work was rewarded. Thank you to all the professors and the Dean of Business who have supported and helped these students achieve outstanding results for UPEI.”

A team of four students from UPEI’s School of Business made it to the final round of the 2016 John Molson Undergraduate Case Competition (JMUCC) held at Concordia University in Montreal. The team competed February 21-27 against two dozen teams from business schools around the world.

Members of the UPEI case team were Hannah Dawson, John Donaldson, Kate Kinsman, and Cullen Mullally. This was the team’s third competition together, having competed before at the 2015 Atlantic School of Business Case Competition (where they came in first) and the Scotiabank Ethics in Action Case Competition (where they came second).

JMUCC began with a divisional round-robin tournament. Teams received a score from judges after each match and the team with the most points in each division at the end of the round robin moved onto the final round.

In the first three rounds, teams had just three hours to read, analyze, strategize, and come up with a solution to a business case they had never seen before. They then presented to a panel of judges, who grilled the team with questions about their solution. The fourth and last round had a 24-hour preparation period, where students had access to internet and other resources, and even were able to interview a representative from the company featured in the case. The team achieved the highest score in their division and secured a coveted spot in the finals against the University of Alberta, Concordia University, University of Navarra (Spain), National University of Singapore, and Queensland University of Technology (Australia). In the final, the team re-presented their 24-hour case solution to a new panel of judges, which included the owners of the business. The team did not finish in the top three, but received excellent feedback from the judges.

"JMUCC gave me the opportunity to deal with and present to real, large-scale companies,” said Cullen Mullally. “This allowed me to apply my education in a practical setting, but also develop confidence around what I will be able to provide in the real-world of business. The knowledge and relationships I developed at JMUCC will be something I cherish forever."

“JMUCC was an amazing competition,” said Hannah Dawson. “We networked with—and competed with—students from the top business schools in Canada and around the world. Throughout the week, we were able to gain valuable feedback from industry judges. This experience helped us to raise our thinking to the next level.”

“JMUCC was the best experience of my academic career so far because I had the opportunity to meet wonderful people from around the world, and I was pushed harder than ever to produce some amazing work,” said Kate Kinsman.

Mary Whitrow was the coach of the UPEI case team. “I am so proud of the students for doing some of their best work at JMUCC. It is a rigorous competition, and they stepped up and showed that UPEI has strong students, a strong curriculum, and a strong case program.” 

April 16, 2016 is World Voice Day. More than 500 events around the world are drawing attention to the importance of the speaking and singing voice in everyday life. Two of these events will take place, back to back, on the campus of the University of Prince Edward Island (UPEI) in Charlottetown. 

Advancing Interdisciplinary Research in Singing (AIRS) UPEI World Voice Day Celebration, 4:00 pm 

The first event is a series of short talks on research on the singing voice, followed by a short concert from members of the UPEI Multicultural Choir and Song Circle. This is all under the auspices of the AIRS project, supported by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. Dr. Annabel Cohen, professor of psychology and the director of AIRS, will give a brief overview of the scope of AIRS research which has been ongoing for seven years in PEI, across Canada, and in over a dozen countries world. Three of Dr. Cohen’s honours undergraduate students will also present. Jessica McKellar will talk on the recognition of popular music by members of three generations: university students, their parents and grandparents. Kyle Dutton and Eric DeSilva’s topic focuses on their study on a singing test (AIRS Test Battery of Singing Skills) completed by 40 UPEI student-athletes. Following these presentations, members of the AIRS Multicultural Choir and Song Circle will sing songs from Britain, Japan, China, Kenya, and Ukraine, and will lead a few traditional rounds of singing for those who would like to join in.

The event is in the SDU Main Building Faculty Lounge at 4:00 pm. A light pizza dinner will be provided to enable attendees to stay on campus and attend the second celebratory event.

Vocal Recital of Baritone Parker Clements, 7:30 pm

Parker Clements will present “Into My Own: A Senior Recital” as part of the UPEI Student Recital Series. The recital begins at 7:30 pm in the Dr. Steel Recital Hall. His program will include classics of the baritone repertoire such as Ravel’s Don Quichotte à Dulcinée, Finzi’s Let Us Garlands Bring, and Barber’s Three Songs (Op.10) on poetry by James Joyce. Works by Handel, Mahler, and Mozart will also be featured. Clements will be accompanied by Frances McBurnie on piano. Admission is free.

Parker Clements is a graduating voice major in the Bachelor of Music program at the University of Prince Edward Island. He has completed his degree under the tutelage of professor Stephen Bouey. Clements is an alumnus of the National Youth Choir of Canada (2014) and will be returning to the group for its tour of Alberta this coming May. He has performed in Mavor Moore’s “A Christmas Carol” (Confederation Centre), “Le Grand Cercle” (Festival de l’Escaouette), and the title role in Mozart’s “The Marriage of Figaro” (UPEI Opera). Upon graduating, Clements intends to continue his vocal studies at the Master’s level in pursuit of a career in opera.

For more information, contact Annabel J. Cohen at acohen@upei.ca or phone 902-628-4325.