Here comes the rain again! November certainly made its mark this week, flinging buckets of rain to go with the bucket of tears that is 2020. The somber weather seems fitting, given that today is the International Transgender Day of Remembrance. Some KPU resources relating to Transgender issues can be found here and here. 

And as we write, the “Second Wave” may be cresting, but legitimate prospects for a vaccine offer a ray of light amidst all the soggy darkness. Let’s steel our collective resolve as we enter the semester’s final weeks; raindrops may be falling on our heads, but we know that one fine day, we’ll throw our raincoats in the river, look skyward, and at long last say: here comes the sun. 

Silver Linings: Lilach Marom (EDST) recently shared some perspicuous reflections on the pandemic as a “pedagogic Kinder Egg.” We’re sharing them as an attachment. Thank you, Lilach, for these uplifting insights! 

Hail to the Chief: Don’t miss the upcoming Faculty of Arts Research and Scholarship Speaker Series keynote address from President Alan Davis on November 23 from 1:00 – 2:00. Click here to join the meeting. Dr. Davis will reflect on the realities of “Remote Life,” exploring themes of resilience and sustainability, and sharing his thoughts about the way forward in the post-pandemic context. Dr. Shelley Boyd will act as host and interlocutor for this talk and will also facilitate questions and dialogue with attendees.  

Research Rainbow: The Deadline for the Arts Undergraduate Research and Scholarship courses has been extended to Friday, November 27th!!  If you have an idea for research or have a scholarly endeavor underway, we invite you to engage students in your work! If you are interested in participating, please send the completed form to anne.lin@kpu.ca.  

The Heavens Open: If you would like to build on your experiences with Open Educational Resources (OER), then you will want to consider the Open Education Research Fellowship. Receive up to $4500 in funding for this annual fellowship that runs from January 1 to December 31 and is aimed at supporting scholarly research on open educational practices by regular faculty at KPU. This may include investigations into the cost savings, perceptions, outcomes, and use of open educational resources (see the Open Education Group’s COUP framework) as well as research on the perceptions and impact of renewable assignments and other forms of open pedagogy. The application deadline is fast approaching on November 30th.  Visit https://www.kpu.ca/open/research-fellowship for more information. 

I’ll Take “Singing in the Rain” for $200, Alex: This…is…KPU Jeopardy! KPU Engage brings you a weekly KPU edition of the classic game show, with Associate Dean Wade Deisman in the role of the legendary and much-lamented Alex Trebek. KPU Jeopardy runs every Friday afternoon – see the KPU Engage Calendar https://our.kpu.ca/sites/hr/onboard-engage/Lists/KPUEngageVirtualHappyBreakEvents/calendar.aspx for the MS Teams link and specific timeslot each week.  

It Doesn’t Rain but it Pours: Are you awash in academic integrity violations? Our deepest appreciation goes out to all faculty who not only insist on integrity from their students, but report violations to the Dean’s Office via the link here. Filing a report both allows our office to take a formative, restorative approach towards students who violate integrity norms, and serves as the only way to formally track repeat offenders, which is a very important dimension of the academic integrity process. Please bookmark the link and save it for future use. 

With that, we’ll sign off. If you didn’t like this Update, please blame it on the rain! All our best for restful weekend, filled with laughter and only a little grading, as we seek to follow the sun, over the rainbow.

Diane, Wade, Shelley, and Greg