Accommodation: Disability, Faith, Gender and More
Thursday, Dec. 10, 9 am-noon, Seminar Room, Mackintosh-Corry Hall B176

This course is an introduction to the elements of workplace accommodation. Participants will learn to identify the elements of a good workplace accommodation policy; discrimination in workplace culture, practices, policies, and procedures; workplace barriers to the full participation of persons from equity groups; and the essential elements of return to work programs.

Queen’s Volunteer Engagement Certificate
Module 2: Recruitment and Screening, Relationship and Information Management
Thursday, Dec. 10, 1-3 pm, Seminar Room, Mackintosh-Corry Hall B176

Learn how to leverage the Queen’s Alumni Volunteer Opportunities Directory (VOD), an online forum for volunteer recruitment, information and professional development. The VOD provides a means for Queen’s staff to post alumni volunteer roles, and for alumni to match their skills, experience and interests with volunteer opportunities that are right for them.

Personal Resilience
Friday, Dec. 11, 9 am-noon, Seminar Room, Mackintosh-Corry Hall B176

Learn how to be more personally resilient in the face of difficulties. In this workshop, participants will learn:

• What resilience is and the benefits of increased resilience.
• How to do more than just bounce back from adversity.
• How to be more aware of your own thinking traps -- and how to get out of them.
• When to apply resilient thinking skills and turn this skill into a life-long habit.

Positive Space
Wednesday, Dec. 16, 9-11 am, Seminar Room, Mackintosh-Corry Hall B176

The Positive Space program at Queen’s brings visibility and support to queer communities at the university. Members of the Queen’s community can become program participants by attending a Positive Space information session. The session includes an exploration of language and discussion of scenarios, to assure a shared level of familiarity with queer issues, local resources and discrimination policies. At the end of the session, those who wish to become participants can register and receive a sticker to post.

Interviews: Mastering the Technique
Thursday, Dec. 17, 9 am-noon, Seminar Room, Mackintosh-Corry Hall B176

As an essential component of the recruitment process, mastering the interview can increase your chances of getting that dream job. This workshop will cover the following topics: how to prepare for an interview, the different ways interviews can be structured, how to answer those difficult questions, and what an employer can and can’t ask a candidate. Participants will also have the opportunity to practice interview questions in a supportive environment.

Thanks to Alfred and Isabel Bader, Queen’s art centre has added another Rembrandt painting to its collection – this time a remarkable, late-career masterpiece that had been privately owned and unavailable to scholars for much of its existence.

Portrait of a Man with Arms Akimbo, signed and dated 1658, will become part of the Agnes Etherington Art Centre’s permanent collection. The painting is a significant example of a dated portrait by Rembrandt from the 1650s, and one of the last works from the artist’s late career to enter a public collection.

“I am grateful the Baders have entrusted us with this remarkable work of art,” says Principal Daniel Woolf. “This gift distinguishes the art centre at Queen’s as the destination in Canada for the research, study and enjoyment of Rembrandt and his followers, and places the Agnes among the premier university art galleries in North America for the study of European art.”

Over a period spanning nearly 50 years, the Baders – two of Queen’s most generous alumni and benefactors – have donated to the Agnes more than 200 paintings, including two other works by Rembrandt, Head of an Old Man in a Cap (c. 1630) and Head of a Man in a Turban (c. 1661).

“Portrait of a Man with Arms Akimbo will be a centrepiece for the many portraits by the artists in Rembrandt’s circle currently in The Bader Collection at the Agnes. I’m truly grateful to Alfred and Isabel Bader for their vision in shaping this collection, and for this amazing gift,” says Jan Allen, Director of the Agnes. “Across the university, researchers from many disciplines, from art and art history to psychology, business, theatre and medicine will take advantage of access to this painting. Most of all, we’ll treasure this piece for its extraordinary quality, and as an example of the highest aspiration of painting, which is to capture the human spirit.”

The Agnes is currently preparing Portrait of a Man with Arms Akimbo for installation. The painting will be unveiled to the public in May 2016.

“This painting is a dazzling demonstration of the artist’s signature ruwe, or rough, style, embodying the painterly brilliance so associated with Rembrandt’s late work. It also beautifully demonstrates the artist’s consummate skill in capturing the psychological presence of his subjects,” says Dr. Jacquelyn N. Coutré, Bader Curator and Researcher of European Art at the Agnes.

The Baders’ most recent gift is a significant contribution to Queen’s Initiative Campaign, the most ambitious fundraising campaign in the university’s history. The campaign seeks to nurture a supportive campus community, enhance the student learning experience, and secure a global reputation in discovery and inquiry.

When asked about the motivation for his generous gift, Dr. Bader explains, “It is the best Rembrandt in Canada, and Queen’s is the best university in Canada. It is very fitting.”

Alfred Bader (Sc’45, Arts’46, MSc’47, LLD’86) and Isabel Bader (LLD’07) are among Queen’s most generous benefactors, supporting the university for seven decades. They have given back to Queen’s in countless ways: transforming the campus, enriching the student experience, supporting scholarship, and helping to enhance the university’s reputation as a top-tier educational institution. In an extraordinary philanthropic gesture, the couple funded Queen’s purchase of a 15th century English castle – Herstmonceux – that has been meticulously restored and is now home to the Bader International Study Centre. Last year, the Isabel Bader Centre for the Performing Arts opened, thanks to another transformational gift from the Baders.

The ITSC will be closed on Friday Dec. 4 from 11:30 am to 1:30 pm. The following services will not be staffed during that time:

•         ITSC Call Centre (ext. 36666)
•         Departmental computer support
•         Computer service desk/repair (lower level of Stauffer Library)
•         Walk-in support (lower level of Stauffer Library)
•         Service provisioning

All major systems will continue to be monitored for any emergency outages as per normal.  

Normal operations will resume at 1:30 pm.