Deadlines & important upcoming dates

2024 Zoology Holiday party
 

⏰ Reminder: Zoology Faculty Meetings 🗓️

Tuesday December 17: 12:00 – 13:30, AERL 107

Assistant Professor in Cell & Developmental Biology: candidates and research seminar and PDF/Grads lunch schedule:

December   2 -  3 - Leah Greenspan

December   5 -  6 - Cara Brand

December   9 - 10 - Callista Yee

December 12 - 13 - Miranda Hunter

December 16 - 17 - Pravrutha Raman
 

More on candidaes, research seminars, feedeback surveys and recordings (CWL login)

   Graduate Students - Awards

🖥️  ZCU TIP 💽

Outlook Exchange: M365 migration: to those who have been migrated to M365, you can access a wide range of online Microsoft apps at
https://portal.office.com (login with first.last@ubc.ca and CWL password).

FASMail will be retiring in 2025
New Outlook is accessed here: outlook.office.com once you have received an email notice that migration to Microsoft Exchange Online is completed

Mail Client Setup:
https://it.ubc.ca/microsoft-365/current-projects/exchange-online-migration#ios
(if page doesn't display for you, copy and paste the link directly to a web browser)

Second email migration is scheduled for end on January 28 for the following email accounts:
Zoology Faculty email
Generic (shared) mailbox

You will receive an email announcement from UBC IT with specific dates and details.

Email ZCU

Committees and other units - updates

iGEM

Update over the past season from the iGEM team co-directors: Narjis Alhusseini and Chaehyeon Lee - this year, the iGEM project aimed to optimize DNA-based data storage methods through the use of specialized enzymatic synthesis in a sustainable and highly integrated software & hardware pipeline. Given the goal to produce a toolkit that can be implemented into the market as a replacement for current cloud energy-consuming storage methods, our project fell within the Biomanufacturing Advancements village.

The results of the 2024 iGEM Grand Jamboree competition: the judges ranked the iGEM team as follows:

1. Gold Medal for Excellence in Synthetic Biology
2. Best Hardware Special Award: for developing accessible, sustainable, cost-effective bioreactors and a microfluidic chip + pump system
3. Best Sustainable Development Impact Special Award: for employing green chemistry and green engineering principles into the project while making contributions towards the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
4. Top 5 Biomanufacturing Project: nominated as a top 5 team given the vast work in developing an entrepreneurial and data security based framework for future implementation.
5. Overall: the team was the top performing undergraduate team in North America.

The UBC iGEM team last won a special award in the 2013 season so we are extremely proud that we were able to achieve 2 prizes for the first time in UBC history as well as a village award nomination.

These judging results could not have been achieved without the generous contributions that the Department of Zoology.

UBC iGEM: https://ubcigem.com/

Graduate Program

• January Awards application due January 15- this is our annual departmental awards competition that includes the 4YF, Zoology Graduate Fellowship (ZGF), and department-recommended awards. Please see Mimi’s email from Nov 29 for more information.
  https://apex.zoology.ubc.ca:8443/ords/r/jan_awards/january-awards-competition/home
   

• 2024W Term 2 Tuition Deadline Deferrals - A friendly reminder to graduate students who are waiting for their GRA or GTA salaries to pay Winter Term 1 tuition and need a tuition deadline deferral to March 31, applications are open until December 31 for 2024 Winter Term 2: https://ubc.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_cw0JHfpA16wf2RM
  
  Please note: due to a change in funding setup, some students will need a Term 2 GRA or GTA extension in Workday. If you don’t see an appointment with at least an April 30^th end date in Workday and you need it to show proof of Term 2 compensation, please contact Mimi so she prioritizes your extension and/or Term 2 appointment.
  
  ***Students with tuition awards typically don’t need this deadline deferral unless they require more time to pay their student fees, which share the same deadline as tuition but is not covered by tuition awards.

BIOLOGY

• TADA: The Biology TA Development and Advancement (TADA) team is hosting a Biology TA Social Hour and Reflection will be held on Monday, December 9th 2024, from 10-11:30AM. Come by and socialize with your fellow Biology TAs to celebrate and reflect on Term 1!
   

  Facilitators: TADA Team- Amy Kim, Erica Jeffery, Stella Lee, Gigi Lau + senior TA facilitators
  Where: Michael Smith Laboratories (MSL) 101
  Register here:
  https://qualtricsxmqg2yztnnl.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_6K9GmbJcncp7uqq
  
  Refreshments will be served. For our planning purposes, please reach out to us if you can no longer attend the social hour + workshop via email (gigi.lau@ubc.ca).
  
  Everyone that attends 7 TADA workshops over 2 years, plus submitting a teaching philosophy statement, is eligible to receive CIRTL associate status. Our two asynchronous workshops are now online, check them out on our Canvas page:
  https://canvas.ubc.ca/enroll/R6JCLW
  
   

G+PS

• New faculty workshop: supporting excellent supervisory relationships

  In this interactive session, G+PS will share some helpful tools and resources for new faculty members as they start their journey supervising graduate students here at UBC. This will include a useful framework to help set the stage for a productive, meaningful and positive supervisor and student relationship.
  * Designed for new research stream faculty members, but open to all interested faculty members and postdocs.

  When: Wednesday, December 4 from 2 to 3:30pm
  Where: Zoom
  To register: https://ubc.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_6mLI4HyJPIMsnpI
  
  Note: This session was originally planned for November 21 and was rescheduled to December 4
  
  For questions, please contact Brianne Howard (brianne.howard@ubc.ca) or Emily Pitcher (Emily.pitcher@ubc.ca) (G+PS).

CTLT

• The 2024 CTLT Winter Institute sessions will take place in-person and online from December 9-11. This year, we’re reimagining the Winter Institute as a “wellbeing potluck,” co-created by the UBC teaching and learning community. Hear about the “secret ingredients”—ideas and strategies for fostering and enhancing learning environments that benefit everyone: faculty, staff, and students.
  https://institute.ctlt.ubc.ca/winter-institute/winter-institute-events/

Reminders

Check www.zoology.ubc.ca
for news, events, resources & more

Zoology event calendar