It's oddly poetic that she is directing The Wedding Party, says drama professor Alice Nelson, because she has been engaged for seven years, but didn't want to take on the production of a wedding.

Now she is leading a production of the play — a comedy about two families, mistaken identities, and love — by third- and fourth-year BFA acting students in the School of Dramatic Art.

“This show is like Modern Family meets Tony ’n’ Tina’s Wedding,” Nelson says. “When you enter the Studio Theatre at the Jackman Dramatic Art Centre, you are walking into the wedding reception venue as friends and family of the happy couple.”

She is excited that the cast is premiering a script newly updated by playwright Kristen Thomson.

“This show delivers,” says Nelson. “It lends itself to tons of physical comedy, as 17 characters are divided up among six actors. The ensemble has been working creatively on movement and voice to make each character distinct and practising such fundamentals of comedy as timing and pacing.”

She promises audiences charming characters and ridiculous conflicts, as well as a chance to support the arts and emerging artists.

“Right now, with everything going on in the world, we need to find ways to laugh together,” Nelson says.

Admission is free to performances in the Studio Theatre, at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, March 28 to 30. Wedding appropriate attire is encouraged but not required. Come early to enjoy a mocktail. To reserve a seat, email drama@uwindsor.ca.

This year’s Spring Open House — Saturday, April 5, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. — is the perfect opportunity for prospective and admitted UWindsor students to immerse themselves in campus life and take the next step in their academic journey, says Trish Sokoloski, director of recruitment.

“This year, we are excited to offer future Lancers the chance to apply or accept their offer while on campus at the event,” says Sokoloski. “Our staff at the Office of the Registrar will be available to provide one-on-one assistance, making the process as smooth as possible.”

Future Lancers will explore the campus with information booths and presentations at multiple locations. Event attendees will have the chance to win a $10,000 tuition voucher or enter the grand prize draw for two semester tuition fees, accommodation, meal plan, and textbook credit, valued at $20,000.

Sokoloski encourages faculty and staff to share an invitation to Spring Open House with friends and family. Register now at uwin.life/soh-daily.

Jeff Defoe, an associate professor in the Department of Mechanical, Automotive and Materials Engineering, has launched a project in collaboration with Turbostream Ltd. and Pratt & Whitney Canada Inc. to optimize jet engine fan technology and reduce environmental impact in aviation.

The three-year project, supported by $690,000 from NSERC, Mitacs, and industry contributions, will fund four graduate students and provide opportunities for several undergraduates in various programs.

“This research is crucial to improving fan efficiency and minimizing environmental impacts for future aircraft in Canada and globally,” Dr. Defoe says.

A key challenge the project will tackle is predicting rotating stall, when unstable airflow in a jet engine fan leads to a significant drop in performance. Addressing it requires high-fidelity, time-resolved simulations, which are computationally expensive. Defoe’s team will explore the trade-offs between accuracy and cost when predicting stall onset, aiming to improve fan and engine efficiency without sacrificing safety.

The research will also examine simplified computer models of fan aerodynamics to predict stall at lower computational costs, particularly under conditions involving inlet flow distortions. Turbostream, software developed by Turbostream Ltd. Employing computational fluid dynamics, will be used to assess these approaches.

“This work is vital to keeping the Canadian aerospace industry competitive,” Defoe says. “It will help reduce the environmental impact of future aircraft while boosting engine performance.”

The project holds the potential to revolutionize jet engine fan design and contribute to global efforts in developing more sustainable aviation technologies, he says, setting the stage for a future of more efficient, environmentally friendly aircraft.

After getting a taste for giving back last year, a group of students kept the momentum going with another popcorn fundraiser, bringing in $18,500 for a local charity.

Armaan Saini, a fourth-year biomedical sciences student, and his friends partnered with 10 daycare centres in Windsor-Essex to sell bags of Richmond Popcorn Company popcorn to raise money for the W.E. Care for Kids Foundation.

“It’s incredible to see the community come together to support pediatric care in Windsor-Essex,” Saini says. “Raising as much as we did through this fundraiser reinforces the importance of accessible health care for children, and I’m grateful for the generosity of everyone involved.”

With the help of friends Lauren Oschanney, Olivia Wahby, Vanessa Riolo, Selina Grado, Fatima Hamad, Ian Strange, and Riley Canjar, the group raised $18,500 for the foundation, an organization close to Saini’s heart.

Saini says that when he was young, he came down with an advanced pneumonia infection and was sent to London for treatment.

“It’s difficult being in a new environment, especially when you or a loved one is sick. Needing care away from home adds another layer of challenge to an already tough situation,” Saini explains.

W.E. Care for Kids supports pediatric health-care initiatives, and this student-led popcorn fundraiser will contribute to its efforts. Proceeds help purchase hospital equipment and support community programs like the Windsor-Essex Therapeutic Riding Association, Ronald McDonald House of Windsor, and the John McGivney Children’s Centre.

“W.E. Care for Kids plays a vital role in ensuring Windsor-Essex has the infrastructure needed to support our children’s health care. Being able to contribute to that mission through this initiative has been extremely rewarding,” Saini says.

This is the second popcorn fundraising campaign led by Saini. Last year, he and his fundraising club raised $25,000 in just three weeks for medical equipment at Windsor Regional Hospital — an experience that inspired him to continue giving back to the community.

“It meant a lot to me that I was able to help out in a way I never thought I could, and it pushed me to do this fundraiser,” says Saini. “I hope to do it again next year too, and hopefully, with each year, it gets bigger and better.”

As members of a Canadian Coast Guard icebreaker crew collected samples from Lake Erie on March 10 for analysis by scientists at the Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research, a satellite far above collected images as part of a joint NASA-U.S. Geological Survey program.

So when the NASA Earth Observatory selected one of those photos as its image of the day for March 24, GLIER director Mike McKay was able to explain what it showed.

“We actually had boots on the ground to provide the story behind the image,” says Dr. McKay. “We were in the right place at the right time.”

The accompanying text by science writer Lindsey Doermann explains that thawing surface ice reveals signs of life in the lake’s waters — swirling bands containing a mix of sediment and phytoplankton.

McKay noted that the samples provided to his lab by the Coast Guard contained elevated concentrations of the pigment chlorophyll, indicative of a winter-spring bloom of diatoms, accounting for 80 to 90 per cent of the present phytoplankton.

Read Doermann’s full story on the NASA website.

Law professor Daniel Del Gobbo, a leading advocate for human rights and gender equality, has been at the forefront of discussions surrounding the complexities of gender, law, and the social forces driving transphobia in Canadian society.

Prof. Del Gobbo currently teaches a course called “Law and Sexuality” at Windsor Law.

“From the law school building, my students and I can see the Ambassador Bridge connecting Windsor with Detroit, our country’s busiest international crossing and a powerful symbol of the Canada-U.S. relationship,” Del Gobbo says. “That close connection means (U.S. president Donald) Trump’s policies are normalizing transphobia on our side of the border, increasing the risk of violence at Canadian universities. It’s a frightening time for students pursuing gender and sexuality studies. Universities must act to protect students now.”

Del Gobbo has published three opinion pieces on gender justice and trans rights this month, two in Policy Options and one in The Conversation. The first two pieces in Policy Options are single-authored. The first, The fight for trans rights is a women’s rights issue, focuses on the relationship between women’s rights and trans rights. The second, The pernicious effects of transphobia on campus, focuses on how normalizing transphobic rhetoric increases the risk of gender-based violence on campus.

He co-wrote the third op-ed, It’s important to protect trans athletes on campuses, and this benefits all students, with second-year law student Asha Holland. This piece focuses on the moral panic around trans athletes and the importance of promoting trans inclusion in sports.

Del Gobbo was recently named the Chair in Law, Gender, and Sexual Justice. His publications remind readers that human rights struggles are interconnected, and that it’s important to understand current fights for trans justice in the context of broader movements for gender equality and social justice. Through his research, teaching, and legal activism, he is challenging harmful narratives about gender and sexuality and advocating for safer, more inclusive spaces on university campuses for women and trans students.

Student ambassador co-ordinator Youstina Asaad is seeking enthusiastic student volunteers to help out at Spring Open House.

The event will welcome visitors to campus on Saturday, April 5, and requires volunteers from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

“This is a great opportunity to share your Lancer pride, connect with prospective students, and be part of a fun, campus-wide event,” Asaad says.

To join the volunteer team, sign up for a training session March 25, 26, or 28.

The Lancer men’s volleyball team received the R.W. Pugh Fair Play Award after finishing sixth in the U Sports championship tournament Sunday in Brandon, Man.

The league named setter Markus Law-Heese a first team all-Canadian at its awards breakfast before games began.

Windsor dropped its opening match against the Alberta Golden Bears on Friday, defeated the Western Mustangs in straight sets Saturday for the program’s first-ever victory in national tournament competition, and lost in its consolation final to the top seeded Winnipeg Wesmen.

The sixth-place finish is the best in Lancer men’s volleyball history.

Read more at goLancers.ca.

This year’s Humanities Research Group faculty fellow, Gregg French, will present research supported over the past year by his term as the HRG Faculty Fellow on Thursday, March 27, at 6 p.m. in the SOCA Armouries Performance Hall, 37 University Ave. East.

An assistant professor and the undergraduate advisor in the Department of History, where he teaches courses on U.S. history, American foreign relations, and race-based identity formation, Dr. French will discuss his current book project, America’s Hispanic Empire: Antecedents and Identity Formation in the U.S. Imperial Experience. The work critically examines how agents of the U.S. empire were influenced by their interactions with Spanish colonial officials and the country’s imperial legacy throughout the long 19th century, as well as how this understanding of the American past can inform the study of historical memory, myth-making, and identity formation.

French will also address his development of the HRG Student Fellowship Program and the importance of maintaining the humanities in turbulent times.

HRG director Kim Nelson says: “Gregg French’s work on identity and imperialism in the U.S. context could not be more relevant to present-day concerns, and his contributions over the past year as a leader to our cohort of six HRG student fellows have been nothing short of transformative. This promises to be an engaging evening of exciting research presented by a talented and highly acclaimed historian, teacher, and lecturer.”

A cabaret Saturday will feature the musical stylings of the University Jazz Ensemble along with the high school musicians in the Honours jazz ensemble.

The evening will open with a concert set, followed by tunes to dance to while enjoying light refreshments and a cash bar.

The CAW Student Centre’s Alumni Auditorium is the venue, starting at 7:30 p.m. March 29. Tickets are $20 general admission with a student rate of $10. Buy them online through the School of Creative Arts.