The Odette School of Business has been recognized among 26 business schools featured by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business in its Innovations That Inspire member spotlight program. Through this annual program, the international accreditation organization recognizes institutions from around the world that serve as champions of change in business education.

The Odette School of Business and John Howard Society of Ontario have formed a partnership to share knowledge between faculty at the business school and experts at the society, with the goal of improving fair employment chances for people affected by the justice system.

The John Howard Society provides programs and services to help people affected by the justice system build productive futures after incarceration. Business faculty members involved in this partnership include Kemi Anazodo, Rachel Aleks, Yawo Kobara, and Maureen Sterling.

This partnership has four main areas of impact: a pre-employment program for marginalized people, scholarly and practical research, improved employment outcomes, and concrete and actionable policy recommendations to strengthen employment programming.

“This year’s Innovations That Inspire honorees exemplify the power of collaboration between business and higher education in driving positive change,” says the association’s president and CEO, Lily Bi. “Odette’s dedication to industry-centered education showcases how business schools are fostering innovation and ensuring graduates enter the workforce ready to make an immediate impact.”

View all Innovations That Inspire highlights.

Cheryl Collier has accepted an appointment as UWindsor interim provost and vice-president, academic, effective March 31.

Reporting to the president and vice-chancellor, Dr. Collier will be the University’s chief academic leader, providing direction and vision for its academic planning and administration. With oversight that includes student experience, academic labour relations and support, teaching and learning technologies, library services, strategic enrolment management, academic accountability, and international development, she will enhance the University’s academic mission, inspiring academic excellence and empowering positive change through regionally and globally engaged inquiry, learning, scholarship, creative activity, and research.

Collier has been a faculty member at the University since 2008, holding several leadership positions, including as acting head, associate dean partnership development and interdisciplinary studies, and acting associate vice-president academic. Since becoming dean of the Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences in 2021, she has overseen various initiatives that have increased enrolment for the first time in several years, expanded the Dean’s Honour Roll criteria, created a three-pillar approach to marketing, established a committee to bring together student support and retention activities, initiated faculty-specific strategic planning, developed new programs, recruited new faculty members, and reduced the faculty’s deficit.

An executive search to fill the role permanently is expected to begin in 2026.

The thesis exhibition of senior BFA students in visual arts, “Vantage Point,” promises works that challenge perspectives and celebrate creative evolution.

The show is the culmination of years of exploration and research by artists whose practices have evolved throughout their studies at the University of Windsor.

Participating artists include:

• Hannah King
• Alyssa Ferrara
• Andrea Niven
• Brayden Jones
• Ellie Bridle
• Emma Fleming
• Janine Sindrey
• Maya Rice
• Morghan Curtis
• Sabrina Tesolin

Works are on display in the SoCA and MFA galleries through April 11.

Don't miss out — the Canadian Campus Well-being Survey closes at 5 p.m. Friday, April 4.

Launched Feb. 10 by Student Health, Counselling, and Wellness Services, in collaboration with the Food Security Action Plan Committee from the Office of the Vice-President, People, Equity, and Inclusion, the survey will be used to assess the mental health and well-being needs of students and will allow for the comparison of results to other schools on a provincial and national level.

In just 15 to 20 minutes, students can provide input on such key topics as student experience, mental health, physical health, academic achievement, help-seeking behaviours, substance use, sexual health, housing security, and food security. Student voices are critical in helping to enhance existing policies and strategies.

By participating, students will be automatically entered into a prize draw, with the chance to win:

• one of four $750 prizes towards tuition,
• one of five $250 Visa gift cards, or
• one of 25 $25 Bookstore gift cards.

All students should have received an email with a unique survey link in their UWindsor email inbox from wellness@uwindsor.ca with the subject “Share your feedback on Mental Health & Wellbeing at UWindsor” or “Final Reminder! Take the Canadian Campus Wellbeing Survey.” If you’re a student who did not receive or cannot find these emails, email wellness@uwindsor.ca for assistance.

Join us in advancing a caring, compassionate, and connected campus community!

For more information on the Canadian Campus Well-being Survey, click here.

The UWindsor Three Minute Thesis contest is set for Tuesday, April 1.

The competition challenges graduate students to offer a presentation on their dissertation, thesis, or major research paper to a non-specialist audience in just three minutes. At stake are cash prizes of $1,000 for first place, $500 for second place, and $250 for third.

The event will get underway at 1:30 p.m. in the Alumni Auditorium, CAW Student Centre.

The presentations cover a wide range of topics from varying disciplines.

Samira Narimannejad, civil and environmental engineering, “The Fight Against Cannabinoids in Our Water Supply”

Kalie Chapman, English and creative writing, “Stem: A poetic exploration of mental illness”

Pavel Shelyganov, chemistry and biochemistry, “Molecular Muscles in Action: Flexing Crystals for Nanotechnology”

Abo-Bakr Emara, physics, “Unlocking the Universe’s Secrets: Tackling Radon in Rare Decay Searches”

Faith Ezekwe, education, “The Unseen Burden, Breaking the Silence:
Financial Stress on Black International Students in Canadian Post-Secondary Institutions”

Mohamad Alkassab, biomedical sciences, “The Never-Ending War: Natural Killer Cells Versus Cytomegalovirus”

Polina Sukhova, physics, “How we shined a light, counted some photons, and tweaked the math until the numbers looked right”

Jaycee Rowe, education, “A Cultural and Global Perspective on Academic Integrity Policies and Misconduct Procedures, and their Impact on International Student Success”

Dora Strelkova, mechanical, automotive, and materials engineering, “You wouldn’t want a pie filled with holes, so why should we accept 3D printed parts with them?”

Reem Al-Saidi, computer science, “Privacy Preservation for Synthetic Data Generation Using Large Language Model (LLM): A case study of Genomic Data”

Piumi Kulatunga, chemistry and biochemistry, “Detect, Attack and Degrade: New Era in Brain Cancer Treatment”

Entrants will be evaluated on three criteria:

• Communication — did the presenter use non-verbal cues effectively and language that was understandable to a general audience?
• Comprehension — did the presentation describe the nature and impact of the research, including conclusions and outcomes?
• Engagement — did the talk capture and maintain audience attention?

The local champion will receive an all-expenses paid trip to represent the University of Windsor in the provincial finals at the University of Toronto on May 14.

If, at a certain stage of life, you find yourself sucker-punched by a sweaty fistful of symptoms you can’t believe no one told you about, Susan Holbrook’s new book may be for you.

Steamy: A Menopause Symptomology is a comic memoir chronicling an experience half the population will face but still constrained by cultural silences and myths.

A creative writing professor, Dr. Holbrook details 45 of the ever-expanding list of things people can encounter when going through “the change of life,” from night sweats and hot flashes to individuation.

Biblioasis Bookshop will host a launch at 7 p.m. Tuesday, April 1, offering copies for purchase.

Students can get an early taste of spring Tuesday, as the CAW Student Centre brings in the Little Petal Truck to brighten the exam season by giving away free flowers and helping students create their own bouquets.

The giveaway gets underway at noon April 1 and will last as long as the supply of flowers.

The Campus Bookstore is offering savings to education students on Tuesday, April 1, as part of a series of discount days targeted to students in specific programs.

Hooded sweatshirts embroidered with “Education” available for $55 — a savings on the regular price of $69.95. The sweatshirts are a 50-50 blend of cotton and polyester and boast a kangaroo pocket.

Teacher candidates can claim a 10 per cent discount on any gift in-store on Tuesday.

The program discounts continue:

• April 8, Forensics
• April 10, Psychology
• April 17, Business
• April 23, Human Kinetics
• May 1, Law
• May 6, Nursing
• May 15, Biomed
• May 21, Neuroscience
• June 9, Social Work
• June 20, Computer Science, including Masters of Applied Computing

See the selection in the store, located on the lower level of the CAW Student Centre.

With over 40 years of service to the University, Robyn Nease will step down from her role as institutional analyst, surveys in the Office of Institutional Analysis effective March 31.

John Dube, director of institutional analysis, calls her impact “immeasurable.”

“With unwavering commitment, Robyn provided thoughtful, individualized support to countless colleagues, always going above and beyond to share her vast expertise,” he says. “Her institutional knowledge, attention to detail, and steadfast dedication have left an indelible mark on our work and our campus community.”

He invites friends and colleagues to join his staff in wishing Nease happiness and fulfillment in this exciting new chapter: “Robyn, thank you for everything — your hard work, wisdom, and warmth have made a lasting difference. May retirement bring you joy, adventure, and well-deserved relaxation!”