A University of Windsor coding workshop for young women has more than doubled in size since launching in 2018. Nearly 100 female Grade 7 to 11 students left the university campus Feb. 8 equipped with one of the most in-demand skills across industries.

Mike Konstantino, the university’s engineering outreach co-ordinator, says the faculty has expanded the intake of the complimentary workshop and will host a second one that is open to both female and male students in the spring.

“These workshops always fill up quickly,” Konstantino says. “We decided to host a second event to accommodate a growing interest in the community.”

The four-hour computer programming workshop, called Go CODE Girl, is led by UWindsor engineering faculty, staff, and students. Participants learn how to design interactive web pages using HTML/CSS, create a personalized website, which can serve as a professional portfolio and the basics of a computer programming language called Python.

Participant Amna Ahmed, 13, lives in Michigan. She crossed the border for the second year in a row to take part.

“It’s fun and it’s teaching me new skills to create better projects,” she says.

Sponsored by the Ontario Network for Women in Engineering, the province-wide event encourages young women to learn about the world of coding and software development and discover opportunities in computing and engineering fields. Go CODE Girl aims to educate, inspire and equip girls with the digital skills, confidence and resources needed to pursue an education in engineering, technology and computing.

View photos from the event on the UWindsor Engineering Facebook page. Details about the spring workshop will be released shortly.

—Kristie Pearce

Two interactive events this week on the UWindsor campus will shed light on elder abuse. Both are set for the Multimedia Studio in the Alan Wildeman Centre for Creative Arts, located at 360 Freedom Way.

On Wednesday, Feb. 12, from 4 to 5:30 p.m. there will be an escape room called Sandra’s Keys. The game's purpose is to show the effects of elder abuse that will have a follow-up talk by Kim Sawchuk on the challenges and strategies used to build this escape room.

Dr. Sawchuk, a professor in the Department of Communications Studies at Concordia University, is an expert on research-creation worldwide. Her research focuses on ageing in networked societies and challenges the lingering assumption of old age not having a place within the new media era.

On Thursday, Feb. 13, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. there will be a roundtable conversation with Sawchuk and members of the Propeller Project. This event is devoted to exploring the concepts and practices of research-creation relating to ageist conversation illustrated by the escape room.

Both events are presented by the Propeller Project with the support of the Interdisciplinary Ageing Research Group at the University of Windsor and the SWW Gerontology Club of St. Clair College.

For more info, visit the Propeller Project’s webpage.

—Dana Roe

The Canadian Bar Association named a former University of Windsor law dean as one of two outstanding members of the black legal community honoured for Black History Month.

Juanita Westmoreland-Traoré, a judge of the Court of Québec for the District of Montréal, served as dean of the University of Windsor Faculty of Law from 1996 to 1999. She and Hugh Fraser will receive President’s Awards, honouring significant contributions to the Canadian legal profession.

“Juanita Westmoreland-Traoré is a woman of firsts: the first black, female Canadian law dean, and the first black judge to sit on a Quebec bench,” said association president Vivene Salmon. “She has been an amazing trailblazer and role model for me and other women of colour, a shining example of what we can achieve in our legal careers.”

Westmoreland-Traoré was the only Black student in her 1966 law class at the Université de Montréal and later became the first black woman to teach there, the Canadian Bar Association said. She was the commissioner of the Canadian Human Rights Commission, the first employment equity commissioner of Ontario, and the president of the Conseil des communautes culturelles et de l’immigration from 1985 to 1990.

Fraser is a former Canadian Olympian who went on to a career in law that included being a member of the Dubin Commission investigating the use of banned substances in sports.

The awards will be presented Feb. 19 in Ottawa.

Afrofest, the annual African Diaspora Festival, opened Friday and continues through Thursday, Feb. 13.

Each day features a different theme, with emphasis on advocacy, Black heritage, community, and love — and speakers drawn from across the province.

“It is my goal as Afrofest co-ordinator to ensure that life for Black students, and the general student body, on this campus is as inclusive and affirming as possible,” said organizer Josh Lamers, a first-year law student.

“Being halfway through such a momentous decade, it is important to ask ourselves what kind of conversations need to happen on campus when it comes to anti-Black racism and the resistance of Black people locally and elsewhere.”

Find a full schedule of Afrofest 2020 events at http://www.uwsa.ca/afrofest20.

Students heading south for Reading Week can get a break on warm weather wear, as the Campus Bookstore is cutting prices on all T-shirts, shorts, and tank tops.

Its spring break sale offers a 25 per cent discount on these items through Feb. 20. Check out the selection in the store, located on the lower level of the CAW Student Centre.

Insightful discussion is on the agenda for the Winter Social hosted by the Organization of Part-time University Students at 5 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 13, in its lounge, room 172, CAW Student Centre.

Presenters include:

• Jessica Sartori, chief executive officer of the John McGivney Children’s Centre
• Bill Marra, vice-president for external affairs, Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare
• Kevin Surette, advisor on community relations and outreach, Ontario Energy Board
• Rebecca Cao, co-founder of the Xpress Career employment agency
• Lori Maisonville of Therapeutic Touch Service

Free refreshments and door prizes will be available; part-time students in attendance may enter a draw for a $250 bursary.

The event is open to all UWindsor students. Find details on the organization’s website.

Canadian Blood Services will hold a blood donor clinic in the CAW Student Centre from 10:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 12

Walk-in donors are welcome, but appointments will better accommodate donors’ working schedules. To book an appointment, call 1-888-2DONATE (1-888-236-6283).

As with previous clinics, the Department of Human Resources encourages all eligible employees to participate in this worthwhile process and asks any employees who wish to donate to make the necessary arrangements with their supervisors regarding the possibility of extended lunch or break periods.

The University has declared an HP Laserjet printer for sale by bid as Disposal File 1022. The CC489A model prints professional-quality color documents at high speeds. Click here for details.