STAFF ROUND UP

4 March 2013

Vice-Chancellor's Blog

In his latest blog post, the Vice-Chancellor talks about Queen's commitment to creating opportunities for staff, students and the wider community, including new internships for our students, staff appointments, research facilities and job creation.

To read the blog, visit: http://blogs.qub.ac.uk/vcblog/

Fairtrade Fortnight

It's Fairtrade Fortnight and staff across the University are organising events in their Schools and Directorates to raise awareness of Fairtrade.

Teams participating in the Green Impact Scheme should submit photographs of their Fairtrade event to carbonmanagement@qub.ac.uk by Friday 8 March.

To celebrate the conclusion of Fairtrade Fortnight, the Students' Union will host an event for staff and students on Friday 8 March. Complimentary Fairtrade tea or coffee will be available in Relish Restaurant from 10.30am to 12.30pm and staff can avail of special 'Fairtrade Friday' offers. For more information, click on Fairtrade Friday or contact lorraine.meneilly@qub.ac.uk

Science Media Centre

There are still places available on the Science Media Centre's Introduction to the News Media session on Wednesday 20 March.

The session is aimed at scientists, social scientists, engineers and clinicians from any discipline who would like to find out more about engaging with the media and promoting the impact of their work.

The event runs from 9.30am - 1.30pm in the Canada Room and Council Chamber. For further information, click here.

To register for a free place, go to http://sciencequb.eventbrite.co.uk/ or email lisa.mcelroy@qub.ac.uk by Friday 8 March.

International Women's Day

International Women's Day (IWD) is on Friday 8 March and a number of events are taking place at Queen's this week to mark the occasion:

Dr Moyra Haslett from the School of English will give an illustrated talk entitled Claiming a place: group portraits of women, 1779-2003 on Wednesday 6 March, 12.30pm -2.00pm in the Canada Room/Council Chamber. Lunch will be provided. Please confirm your attendance by emailing Cathy Tolan at: qgi@qub.ac.uk

The School of Nursing and Midwifery will host an International Women’s Day (IWD) Lecture on Friday 8 March at 4.30pm in the Canada Room. Entitled The role of women in leadership to effect positive change to create a more compassionate society, the lecture will be given by the Chief Executive of the Northern Ireland Hospice, Professor Dame Judith Hill DSc FRCN. To confirm a place, contact Gillian Higgins, g.higgins@qub.ac.uk or telephone 028 9097 2639. For further information, click on International Women's Day lecture

For further details on events taking place to celebrate International Women's Day, click here

Queen's Now - Copy deadline

The copy deadline for the next edition of Queen's Now is Friday 8 March. Contributions should be sent to qneditor@qub.ac.uk.

Postgraduate Research Experience Survey 2013

The Postgraduate Research Experience Survey (PRES) is a national online survey which is designed to help universities improve the quality of their postgraduate research degree provision. At Queen’s, the surveys provide valuable feedback which assists the University to ensure that postgraduate research students have the best possible experience during their time here.

This survey will be launched on Tuesday 5 March and postgraduate research students will receive individual email invitations requesting them to complete the survey. Directors of Research, supervisors and any other staff involved in postgraduate provision are asked to encourage the postgraduate students in their Schools to participate.

For further information, please contact Aisling Harkin in the Postgraduate Student Centre at a.harkin@qub.ac.uk.

Call for Course Proposals for Open Learning Programme

The School of Education is seeking course proposals for the Autumn and New Year Open Learning Programme (September 2013 - March 2014). The Programme offers hundreds of short courses across a wide range of subject areas each year.

In the coming year, the School is especially interested in course proposals from the following subject areas:

Archaeology/Built Heritage
Literature
Music
Philosophy and Religion
The Natural World
Visual Arts

Those wishing to submit proposals should normally be qualified to degree standard or have equivalent specialist expertise. Proven experience of designing and delivering courses in either an adult education or training context is desirable.

Course proposal forms and an information pack can be downloaded from www.qub.ac.uk/edu/ol

Closing date for submission is Monday 25 March at 4.00pm. For more information, contact Open Learning, School of Education, 028 9097 3323/3539.

School of History and Anthropology Newsletter

The February edition of the School of History and Anthropology newsletter is now available online. To read the latest news from the School, click on: School Newsletter - February 2013

SU Lets

SU Lets, based in the Students’ Union, is looking for properties to add to its rental portfolio.

If you have any properties, whether suited to the student, academic or professional sector, and require tenants, please get in touch. SU Lets offers free HMO (Housing in Multiple Occupation) inspections and reports on properties.

For further information, contact 028 9023 1000 or email info@sulets.net

Information Services Coffee morning

The Information Services' (IS) Coffee Morning held on 6 December 2012 raised £3,880.64 for Friends of the Cancer Centre, Belfast City Hospital - the most IS has raised at any single event. The Directorate would like to thank everyone who supported the event.

This year’s Coffee Morning will be held in the Great Hall on Thursday 5 December, in aid of Marie Curie Cancer Care. More details to follow closer to the time.

Mother’s Day

Mother’s Day is on Sunday 10 March and Queen’s Welcome Centre is now stocking a wide range of gift ideas, cards and gift bags for the occasion. A 10% discount is available for staff.

Welcome Centre opening hours are: Monday – Friday, 8.00am – 6.00pm and Saturday and Sunday, 11.00am – 4.00pm.

Auditions now open for QUB’s Got Talent 2013

Auditions are now open for staff and students to take part in QUB’s Got Talent 2013, hosted by the Students’ Union. The event will take place on Wednesday 17 April in the Mandela Hall and one of twelve lucky finalists will walk away with the £1000 prize.

There are two ways to audition:

Email a video audition to su.vpcommunity@qub.ac.uk by Wednesday 20 March at 5.00pm or
Email su.vpcommunity@qub.ac.uk to book an audition slot. You will be given a number of options and you can choose the time that best suits you.

If you have any questions, please contact Aidan Hughes, Vice President Community, 028 9097 1050, email su.vpcommunity@qub.ac.uk

Win 2 tickets to see Robot & Frank at Queen’s Film Theatre

One of the big hits from last year's Sundance Film Festival, Robot & Frank offers a sci-fi twist on the crime caper as a retired burglar gets an unlikely new partner.

To win a pair of tickets to see the film, email qftcomments@qub.ac.uk with Robot & Frank in the subject line and the answer to the question: What is the name of the veteran actor who plays Frank in Robot & Frank?

Competition closes on Wednesday 6 March at 12.00pm and the winner will be contacted by email. Robot & Frank will be showing at QFT from Friday 8 March to Thursday 21 March.

Inaugural Lecture by Professor Dimitiros Nikolopoulos: Thursday 7 March

Professor Dimitrios Nikolopoulos, School of Electronics, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, will deliver his inaugural lecture on Thursday 7 March. Entitled Searching for data: The ever increasing role of memory hierarchies on the performance and sustainability of computing systems, it will take place at 4.00pm in Peter Froggatt Centre, Room 0G/007, followed by a reception in the Peter Froggatt Centre Foyer.

Larmor Lecture: Thursday 7 March 2013

The 44th Larmor Lecture will take place on Thursday 7 March 2013 at 4.00pm in the Larmor Lecture Theatre. It will be given by Professor Nicola Spaldin, ETH Zurich, on From Multiferroics to Cosmology.

For further information on the lecture, click here.

CED

First and Second Year Experience Surveys 2013 now open
All eligible students have been emailed a link to the questionnaire. Please encourage students to take part. Two short presentations, suitable for showing at the start of a lecture, are available from Directors of Education and School Managers.

Students who complete the survey will be entered into a prize draw with the opportunity to win one of four prizes of £50. For further information, contact Pat McNally, Educational Developer, CED on 028 9097 1435 or by email: pat.mcnally@qub.ac.uk

Reflections
The copy deadline for the next issue of Reflections, the Queen’s Learning and Teaching newsletter, is Friday 12 April. Please send your contributions to Linda Carey, l.carey@qub.ac.uk or Liz McDowell, e.mcdowell@qub.ac.uk.

Teaching, Learning and Assessment in Higher Education
The following courses are available for booking:

Wednesday 6 March: Using Computer Assisted Assessment (including Questionmark), 9.30am – 4.30pm
Wednesday 20 March: Teaching Larger Classes, 2.00pm – 5.00pm
Wednesday 20 March: Creating Interactive Learning Resources Using Excel 2010, 2.00pm – 5.00 pm
Wednesday 27 March: Using the Personal Response System in your Classes, 2.00pm – 5.00pm

Please note that a decision is made one week in advance as to whether or not to run the course, so early booking is advisable.

Registration is via Queen’s Online. For information or for assistance with registration, email ced@qub.ac.uk or telephone 028 9097 1447.

STDU Courses

Places are available on the following courses:

STDU Courses

Thursday 7 March: Time Management for Support Staff, 10.00am – 1.00pm
Thursday 14 March: Purchasing for the University, 9.30am – 1.00pm
Wednesday 27 March: Introduction to Project Management for Technical Staff, 9.30 am – 1.00pm

Researcher Development

Tuesday 19 March: Project Planning and Time Management for Researchers, 9.30am – 4.30pm
Wednesday 20 March: Introduction to the Media, 9.30am – 2.00pm
Tuesday 26 March: Introduction to Nvivo, 9.30am – 4.30pm
Thursday 28 March: Preparing for Academic Interviews, 9.30am – 1.00pm

Leadership and Management Development

Tuesday 26 March: Creative Thinking, Problem Solving and Decision Making, 9.30 am – 4.30 pm
Wednesday 17 April: Presenting with Impact, 9.30 am – 4.30 pm

Courses can be booked via Queen's Online. Further information on courses can be found here.

IT Training Courses