The University of Windsor will confer honorary degrees during its 97th Convocation ceremonies on five individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the advancement of the arts, science, education and law.

Receiving honorary doctor of law degrees are:

• scientist and educator Paul Hebert, Canada Research Chair in Molecular Biodiversity at the University of Guelph and a former director of the Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research;
• novelist Nino Ricci, author of the Lives of the Saints trilogy, Testament and The Origin of Species as well as a former University of Windsor writer-in-residence;
• actor Gordon Pinsent, winner of Gemini awards for his roles in the television series Due South, Street Legal and Power Play and Genie awards for the feature films Klondike Fever , John and the Missus, and Away from Her;
• alumna Sandra Pupatello (BA 1986), long-time Windsor West MPP and Ontario cabinet minister, including Minister of Economic Development and Trade;
• jurist Catherine Anne Fraser, Chief Justice of Alberta and the Northwest Territories, the first woman to hold the position.

Read DailyNews next week for more detailed biographical information on each of the honourees.