UPEI faculty are invited to attend an information session presented by UPEI’s Accessibility Services and the Faculty Development Office on Friday, March 28 from 1:00-3:30 in Bill and Denise Andrew Hall, room 142. The session will be on providing supports for the growing number of students affected with Asperger Syndrome. Students affected by Asperger Syndrome often face new challenges as they continue their education in post-secondary environments. Recognizing and understanding the key areas of difficulty is vital to providing a positive learning environment. This session will focus on the characteristics of this disorder which impact academic as well as social success and suggest practical and effective educational strategies. Our special guest speaker will be Marlene Breitenbach, a Special Educator and Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) with over 30 years experience teaching individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders. In her current role as Special Education Autism Coordinator at the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development, she supports the implementation of the provincial autism strategy, provides staff and consultant training and support for complex cases. If you are planning to attend, kindly RSVP to Gerald at the Faculty Development Office by March 25 at fdo@upei.ca We hope to see you there. Refreshments will be provided!

Rants, poems, raps, songs, skits... all related to diversity and social justice issues. Organized by the Student Diversity Office and DSJS

Join Dr. Chelsea Martin, Department of Pathology & Microbiology, AVC, for the next presentation in the Human Biology and Environmental Sciences Seminar series hosted by the Biology Department. The presentation entitled “Role of inflammation in oral squamous cell carcinoma,” will be held on Friday, March 28, 2014 at 12:30 p.m. in Duffy Science, Room 204. Everyone is welcome to attend.

Weather permitting, the second-year engineering students' final design presentation for community and industry clients is scheduled for Thursday March 27 from 2:30-5:30 pm in AVC C. Seven design projects will be presented including Vector Aerospace, Magin Snowboards, The Mount CCC, Country View Farms, Mikinduri Children of Hope, UPEISU, and Dr. Bill Whelan Bio-Optics. This is a formal presentation and all are welcome to attend!

An Emergency First Aid and CPR Training session will be held on Thursday, May 22nd from 9:00am to 3:30pm in AVC 286A North. The training is covered by the Health and Safety Budget. Space is limited so please sign up early. If you would like to attend the training session, please pre-register by contacting Debbie McKie at dmckie@upei.ca.

SPEAKER: Jessica Hawkins, Biomedical Sciences TITLE: Modulation of alpha-7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor function in organotypic hippocampal slice cultures

At the next Research on Tap, join us for a discussion about the bloody history of free blood in Canada. Dr. Sarah Glassford, assistant professor of history at UPEI, will lead a discussion entitled “Blood: It’s in you to sell. Why Canadians give and get blood for free.” The discussion begins at 7:00 pm on Tuesday, April 8 at the Pourhouse, above The Old Triangle Irish Alehouse in Charlottetown. Due to weather, this event has been rescheduled from April 1. In other countries, blood is treated almost as a commodity, where donors are paid, and blood has cash value. Dr. Glassford will present on the debate that led to our free system, and how Canada almost followed the American model. Sound interesting? Join us! Research on Tap is a series of public discussions with UPEI researchers. For more information, contact Dave Atkinson at (902) 620-5117 or datkinson@upei.ca.

SPEAKER: Bob Deziel, Biomedical Sciences TITLE: Evaluation of prefrontal cortical ischemic lesions on cognition in the rat.

It's that time of the semester! Join the Student Diversity Office for an hour of fun and thinking as we "rant" about a number of issues related to diversity and social justice. Poems, raps, skits, statements and manifestos--both serious and humourous... students and faculty have a lot to say! Come hear what's on people's minds! Free. Everyone welcome. For more information contact the Student Diversity Office at sdo@upei.ca or abraithwaite@upei.ca.

Are you a first or second year student at UPEI? UPEI wants to hear from you! How did your year go? What's working for you? What can we do better? Come hang out with us from 11:45 am to 1:00 pm on Tuesday, April 1 in McMillan Hall. We'll bring the (free) pizza and nachos, you bring your opinions.