Dear Faculty of Arts, 

Welcome to a new year and a new Update! Happy Orthodox Christmas to those who celebrate on this day too.  As we undertake this phased return and the start of classes on Monday, January 10th, we have many resources, friendly reminders, and exciting initiatives to share on this first Friday of 2022. 

Refresh and Refamiliarize 

Whether it’s your first term at KPU or you’re a new-term veteran, it’s always good to refresh and refamiliarize yourself with the faculty handbook.  https://kpuemp.sharepoint.com/sites/fh/SitePages/Home.aspx  

Return and Resume

For those uncertain about the steps to our “phased return,” please note the following: 

  • The semester now starts on Jan. 10. This applies to all classes: online, in-person, or blended. Please treat the Jan. 10 date in the same way you would treat the first day of classes in any other semester. 
  • We will not be “making up” the lost days. Therefore, the semester will be 12-weeks long, unless your class is scheduled for Mondays, in which case you get a 13th Monday of instruction. Some folks may find this frustrating, but there is a need to minimize the changes (and consequent confusion) for students. 
  • Every class should be conducted online between Jan. 10 and 23 unless it is absolutely impossible to do so. If you are uncertain as to whether it is “absolutely impossible,” by all means consult the Dean’s Office.  
  • We expect to revert to the delivery model originally scheduled for each course on January 24th. 
  • The add/drop deadline for full term classes has been amended to Jan. 23; Jan 16 is the revised add/drop deadline for Session 1 classes. 
  • Student services of the “administrative” variety have been open since Jan. 4, albeit with skeleton crews. 

Reminders and Opportunities 

Private Spaces: KPU has private and secure spaces available for students needing confidential advising and counselling. There are five spaces available across four campuses: Langley 1071, Richmond 1556, Surrey Cedar 1175, Surrey Main 162, Tech 1123. Inquiries about the use of these spaces should be directed to the Counselling and Advising Assistant team via cassist@kpu.ca  

Arts Speaker Series: Please join us on Wednesday, January 12 from 1 – 2 pm for our first Arts Speaker Series talk of 2022! Mark Vardy, Dept. of Criminology, will present: “Post-Enlightenment Climate Science and the Challenge of Articulating the Political”. Please see the link below for the Microsoft Teams event. We look forward to seeing you there! 

Click here to join the meeting 

For a list of upcoming 2022 Arts Speaker Series talks, please visit kpu.ca/arts/speakerseries.  

Join the Network: A new network to support research, scholarship and creativity has formed in the Faculty of Arts and we already have more than 60 members! The Network aims to support faculty, students and staff who are engaged in (or wish to become engaged in) research, scholarship, and creativity by providing a clearinghouse of resources, fostering a shared sense of collegiality; promoting collaborations and encouraging synergies; stimulating innovative thinking; and raising awareness about the ways that research, scholarship, and creativity contribute to educational excellence. The Network, which is housed on Moodle is integrated with Pebble Pad. If you are interested in joining, or if you know of students who might want to participate, please feel free to invite them to join the Network. To sign up or get more information you can contact student research assistant Paul.Fader@kpu.ca or Associate Dean Shelley Boyd.

Respectful Workplace Training: Last year KPU launched an updated version of the online Respect in the Workplace training program. This is reminder that if you have not already done so, please complete the required online Respect in the Workplace program. You will find instructions on how to access the training here: Respectful Workplace. 

‘Preferred’ Names:  As many of you will have noted via an earlier Today@ message, KPU has updated student information change processes, which is an important change especially for trans and enby students. Please follow this link for more information: https://kpuemp.sharepoint.com/Today/SitePages/Class-Lists-Receive-a-Makeover.aspx.   There is also a new information page for students on how to change their personal info with the possibility of having one’s email address include one’s ‘preferred’ name. Faculty and staff may want to share this information with students via this link: https://www.kpu.ca/ses/personal-information. As of December 15, new students will have their email addresses created using their ‘preferred’ names.

The Working Mind Workshops: KPU has partnered with the Mental Health Commission of Canada to virtually offer: The Working Mind. This is an evidence-based program designed to promote mental health and reduce the stigma around mental illness in the workplace. The Working Mind for employees offers practical knowledge to increase participants’ overall comfort level with mental illness. On completing the course, employees will be able to: understand mental health and mental illness; recognize its signs and indicators, in themselves and others; reduce stigma and negative attitudes toward people with mental health problems; support colleagues with mental health problems; and maintain their own mental health and improve their resilience. Upcoming workshop: Thursday, Jan. 13, 9:30 AM – 12:30 PM & Friday, Jan. 14, 9:30 AM – 11:30 AM (Course participants must be available to attend both days.). For more information and registration, please visit https://bookeo.com/humanresourceskpu. 

Upcoming Nominations and Initiatives 

Faculty of Arts EDI Awards: The nomination period for the Faculty of Arts EDI Awards is now open until January 31st.  The Faculty of Arts, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) awards recognize faculty, students, staff, and alumni who have demonstrated excellence in supporting and promoting equity, diversity, and inclusion from an intersectional social justice lens within the Faculty of Arts and/or the broader community. These awards honour individuals or groups/teams within the Faculty of Arts whose actions serve to advance KPU’s commitment to EDI. For more information on nominating an individual or self-nominating your group/team, follow this link. 

JEDI Awards: The nomination period is now open for KPU’s JEDI awards.  Please follow this link for more information: Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (JEDI) Awards | KPU.ca – Kwantlen Polytechnic University 

Dean of Arts Teaching Award Nomination: The Dean of Arts Teaching Award is presented annually to a KPU Faculty of Arts instructor in recognition of outstanding and innovative teaching practices that consistently encourage student success and academic achievement. Particular points of emphasis may include the following: transformative impact, enthusiasm for the course material and field of study, encouragement of students’ interests in the course and field, promoting and developing high academic standards, development of students’ confidence through mentoring, tutoring, course design, and delivery, provision of opportunities for experiential learning (including research, creative work, service learning/community engagement, practicums, etc.), design or delivery of innovative pedagogies or assessment method, contribution to curriculum development, sharing teaching excellence and innovation within KPU and beyond. Nomination forms should be submitted by February 7, 2022. https://www.kpu.ca/arts/teachingaward/nominate

Free Stuff!  As the KDocsFF’s gold partner, Faculty of Arts received 6 complimentary individual film tickets for KDocFF 2022! We will hold a draw and 6 winners will receive a free film ticket. All Arts faculty and staff are welcome to participate. Please note that they are individual film tickets, not festival passes. An individual ticket does apply to a Special Presentation; however, a Special Presentation is treated as a single film purchase. There are three Special Presentations (Feb 19, Feb 25, and Feb 26). If you wish to enter a draw, please send an email to arts.funding@kpu.ca and indicate which film you would like to see. The Official Selections can be found here: http://www.kdocsff.com/upcoming-events/2022/2/18/kdocsff-2022 The entry will close on Friday January 14, 2022.

In Memoriam

December 2021 saw the passing of two pivotal writers and thinkers. May Joan Didion’s and bell hook’s words continue to inspire for generations.

“We tell ourselves stories in order to live.” 

—Joan Didion, The White Album, 1979 

The function of art is to do more than tell it like it is – it’s to imagine what is possible. 
– bell hooks, Outlaw Culture: Resisting Representations, 2012 

Greg, Billeh, Shelley, and Wade