With topics in disciplines ranging from chemistry to kinesiology, criminology to computer science, eight finalists in the 2016 Three Minute Thesis contest will compete tomorrow for the right to represent the University of Windsor in a provincial championship April 14.

The competition challenges graduate students to present the topics of their thesis or dissertation to a non-specialist audience in just three minutes. Top finishers will also win cash prizes. A list of the eight finalists and their titles is available on the contest website.

The public is invited to watch the free event. It gets underway at 2 p.m. Wednesday, March 30, in Ambassador Auditorium, CAW Student Centre.

The public may listen in as Canadian soprano Tracy Cantin conducts a master class for voice majors Tuesday, March 29, at 7:30 p.m. in room 126, Music Building.

A recent graduate of the prestigious Ryan Opera Center at Lyric Opera of Chicago, Cantin won critical acclaim as Berta in its production last year of Il barbiere di Siviglia.

Among her numerous awards are a 2014 Sullivan Foundation Award, a 2014 Lieutenant Governor of Alberta Emerging Artist Award, a 2013 Jacqueline Desmarais Foundation career development grant, and first place in the 2010 Lois Marshall Memorial Competition.

Learn more on the School of Creative Arts website.

Education should be more than just sitting in a classroom, says kinesiology professor Scott Martyn, who put that theory into practice by taking 12 students in his graduate course “Crisis, Politics, and Commercialism in the Modern Olympic Movement” on a pilgrimage of Olympic sites March 14 to 19.

The trip included stops at the corporate office of the Canadian Olympic Committee in Toronto, several venues in Montreal and the United States Olympic Training Center in Lake Placid, New York.

In Montreal, the group attended a game between the National Hockey League’s Canadiens and the Florida Panthers, visited the Olympic Park built for the 1976 summer games, and enjoyed a question-and-answer period with Richard Pound, founding president of the World Anti-Doping Agency and former vice-president of the International Olympic Committee.

“Meeting with such an important figure as Mr. Pound was a great experience for myself and the whole class,” says MHK student Peter Baldwin. “Mr. Pound gave us a first-hand look into some of the intricacies and factors that contributed to making key decisions in the regards to International Olympic Committee.”

In Lake Placid, students were able to rub shoulders with future and current Olympians while catching a glimpse of what it is like to train full-time for the games. The village hosted winter games in 1932 and 1980. The group toured the arena and adjacent museum, ski jump and bobsled runs, guided by Jim Rogers, a member of 1980 organizing committee.

“Having Jim Rogers as our guide really added to the authenticity of our visit,” says student Matt Leixner. “It is impressive how many Olympians are produced in such a small town, and equally as impressive how much Mr. Rogers knows about each one.”

Dorey (D.J.) Lafreniere is recalled by co-workers as someone who always made the day brighter. An administrative/financial clerk in the Department of Biological Sciences, she died March 22.

“We loved her and will certainly miss her,” says Nancy Barkley, secretary to the head of the department. “We all work closely together in this department and D.J. always had us laughing and she enjoyed every day to the fullest.… We had a lot of fun.”

Barkley adds that Lafreniere loved her children and brought many stories from the hockey rink or the baseball diamond to share: “They were the world to her.”

Lafreniere began her employment with the University of Windsor in January 2006 as a part-time research grant accounting clerk in the Department of Finance and transferred to biology in December 2013.

Campus flags will be lowered on Wednesday, March 30, in her memory. Funeral services are planned for Wednesday; for details, see her obituary online.

A class Tuesday, April 5, will help staff and faculty responsible for maintaining UWindsor websites learn the basics of the Drupal content management system.

Drupal 7 - Basic Training will focus on teaching site editors how to create pages and events, upload graphics and use menus and blocks, says instructor Rob Aitkens, web architecture, development and design lead in Public Affairs and Communications.

The class is aimed at employees with little previous experience with the system, for those upgrading their sites from version 6 to 7, or as a refresher. It will run 1:30 to 4 p.m. and is limited to 16 participants. Registration is required through this online form.

The 34th Windsor-Essex Engineering Month Luncheon, on the theme “Engineering and Biomedical Innovations,” will take place Friday, April 1, at the Caboto Club.

Ward A. Detwiler, associate director at Henry Ford Health System Innovations, will deliver a keynote address. Ward is focused on bringing emerging digital health technologies from concept to market, supporting the growth of external start-up companies through collaborative research and development and engaging employee population in the development of solutions to unmet healthcare needs.

In addition to Engineer and Technologist of the Year, awards will be presented to University of Windsor and St. Clair College students. The luncheon will begin at noon at the Caboto Club, 2175 Parent Avenue. Tickets are $25 in advance and $30 at the door; student tickets are $15 each.

To purchase tickets, contact Jennifer Johrendt at j.johrendt@uwindsor.ca, tel. 519-253-3000, ext. 2625, or Jacquie Stagner at stagner@uwindsor.ca, tel. 519-253-3000, ext. 5948. To purchase tickets online, visit guestlistapp.com/events/406119.

On Friday, April 1, provost Douglas Kneale heads to the Centre for Engineering Innovation to visit with students, staff, and faculty at his monthly “Meet the Provost” event.

As it is also the day when many engineering students will present their capstone design projects, he’s hoping to take in a few of their presentations while he’s there.

“I’m looking forward to seeing their work, and hearing from them about their hands-on experiences,” says Dr. Kneale. “The capstones require ingenuity, collaboration, and plain hard work from everyone involved, and I’m keen to see what they’ve accomplished and hear what they feel they have gotten out of the process.”

The provost will be in the CEI atrium from 1 to 3 p.m. The monthly drop-in sessions with the provost are open to all members of the campus community.

The Campus Bookstore has launched a blowout sale to clear its inventory before the end of the semester.

It is offering savings of up to 80 percent on selected merchandise. Check it out today, on the lower level of the CAW Student Centre.

In accordance with the Ontario Public Salary Disclosure Act, 1996, the University of Windsor is releasing the report below listing all employees who earned in excess of $100,000 in salary and taxable benefits for the 2015 calendar year. Click here to view the list.