The new Communications Committee had its first meeting on September 1, 2021. We have been hard at work ever since. Members of the Committee are Jonathan Bayley, Karen Roland, Bruce Elman, Richard Lewis, Richard Dumala, Gwendolyn Ebbett (Chair), Roger Lauzon (Ex Officio), and Stephen Karamatos (Ex Officio). Our mandate is to oversee and assist in setting policies for all aspects of WURA communications. Our first task has been finding members for the Editorial Board of the new WURA E-Bulletin. To date the members of this board are Bruce Elman, Stuart Selby, and Richard Dumala. If you would like to join either the Editorial Board or the Communications Committee, please let one of us know.

We are also in need of a WURA logo, so if you would like to try your hand at designing one for us we would welcome your efforts.

We are pleased to offer this first issue of the new WURA E-Bulletin to inform our WURA members of recent activities of some of our committees. We welcome feedback regarding this first issue and if you are interested in writing something to be included in future issues, the Editorial Board would welcome your potential input.

Happy reading!
 

WURA Design A Logo Contest

We need a logo for WURA. If you are interested in assisting by designing one, please send it to GEbbett@uwindsor.ca

The Communications Committee will be pleased to receive as many entries as you can design, and will announce the winner in a forthcoming issue of the WURA E-Bulletin.

Deadline for entries: November 30, 2021.

GREETINGS!
Welcome to the ‘FIRST’ WURA online Bulletin!

GREETINGS! Welcome to the ‘FIRST’ WURA e-Bulletin!

In January, 2021, the WURA Executive created a Communications to Members Committee (CMC) to review and make recommendations on how to best communicate to WURA members. In June, a CMC Report was created recommending a permanent Communications Committee, as well as establishing a new monthly electronic WURA Bulletin, with a first issue in the Fall of 2021. The WURA Bulletin could overlap with the current quarterly WURA Newsletter, edited by Datta Pillay, but he decided on his own to produce his last issue in the Spring. Please review the Communications Committee Report outlining some of their current activities, as well as information on designing a new WURA logo.

The WURA Executive continues to meet almost monthly. With the 4th wave of the pandemic, the WURA Fall AGM, normally held in November, will be held online, if held at all. We will keep you posted.

The Report from the Nominating Committee with the Call for Nominations/Volunteers for the WURA Executive and Committees in 2022, sent to the WURA members at the beginning of October, has been included as a reminder. If you have any time at all, please consider joining the WURA Executive or Committees. WURA members are very talented and we would very much appreciate you joining the WURA administrative team. If you plan to nominate a WURA member, please ensure you first secure their willingness to serve.

The WURA “Research Corner” from the Research Committee briefly outlines some research interests from WURA members. Please hear more information about some of this research at our WURA Zoom Social in October.

This past winter, to socially engage with our WURA members, the WURA Social Committee started some social activities using Zoom. We had some 20 to 30 WURA members in each session, running monthly from February to May, which included a “Meet-and-Greet” session, a “St. Pat’s Celebration”, a “Book Sharing” session, with a “FRIEND of WURA” Award given to Dr. Douglas Kneale, and a “Talent Show” at the end. Please review the WURA Social Events planned for this Fall. Please let us know your interests! We have received very good feedback from members attending these social sessions, as they have been able to pass their time during the pandemic, and see other members online. I look forward to seeing many of you again this semester on Zoom. Stay safe!

Roger Lauzon

President, WURA

Request for Interest - WURA Executives and Committees 2022

REQUEST FOR INTEREST

WURA EXECUTIVE AND COMMITTEES 2022

October 5, 2021

Dear Member of WURA,

Your Nominating Committee invites you to become active in WURA by serving on the Executive or one of its Committees.

Following up on the "heads up" message to members from Roger Lauzon and Jake Soderlund (email of August 20), we look forward to maintaining strong leadership in WURA, and ask your consideration of taking a ready part in it.

WURA's activities, while modified due to Covid 19, have continued in strength over the past year, a testament to the commitment of Executive and Committee members to the mission of the association, that is, to foster connection between retirees, to maintain and strengthen their benefits under the Collective Agreement, and to liaise regularly with the university administration. The Executive meets monthly, and prepares information and actions for the membership at its Spring and Fall meetings. The Committees work throughout the year as needed.

We invite your interest and input into WURA, whether in person or remotely through technology. Please see the list of positions below. Several incumbents have indicated that they are willing to serve another term, but we are open to all who would like to be active in WURA's activities.

For information or to make a nomination, please contact any member of the Committee: Dr. Norman King nking@uwindsor.ca

Dr. Barbara Thomas thomas9@uwindsor.ca Prof. David Palmer dpalmer@uwindsor.ca

Deadline for nominations: October 29

The Committee will present a slate of candidates at the Fall General Meeting for members' ratification. That meeting and election will likely be online at this point.

We look forward to hearing from you. Thank-you, and with all best wishes,

David Palmer, Past-President and Chair, Nominating Committee

ACCEPTING NOMINATIONS AND VOLUNTEERS FOR THE FOLLOWING POSITIONS:

President:

Vice-President:

Secretary:

Treasurer:

Directors-at-Large: (at least 3 members)

Webmaster:

Standing Committees (3 to 5 members)

Bursary Committee:

Nominating Committee:

Pension and Benefits Committee:

Social Committee:

Communications Committee:

Editorial Board: (part of the Communications Committee, with responsibilty for the online "Bulletin")

Special Committees(3 to 5 members)

Membership Committee:

Research Support Group:

Travel Grant Review Committee:

Ad Hoc Committee

Bylaw and Constitution Review Committee:

WURA Representatives to WUFA Committees

WUFA Contract Committee:

WUFA Executive Committee:

WUFA Faculty Council:

WUFA Retirement & Benefits Committee:

WURA Representatives to University Committees

Retiree Healthcare Subsidy Committee: Retired Members Pension Committee (D.7):

WURA Representative to the Board of Governors

Board of Governors Pension Committee:

WURA “Research Social”

To be held on Zoom, Wednesday, October 27th at 2:00pm

Find out what WURA Researchers have been up to.

PROGRAM

Greetings-

Jonathan Bayley – “A Review of Recent Music Scholarship: An International Perspective”

Ihor Stebelsky – “Wartime Ukraine, 2014: Russian Intentions”

Roger Lauzon – Important Announcements

Susan Gold-Smith - “Jardinage urban: Windsor artists collaborating on a theme during a world-wide pandemic”

Jake Soderlund – “The Responsibility to Protect: Death of a Noble Concept”

Presentations will be followed by questions from the audience.

 

Save the Date!
Upcoming Social Events

November – Talent Show #2 (November 24^th)

      [We will have a variety of student performances from the School of Creative Arts (SoCA) and well as WURA members.]

December – For the love of reading #2 (December 15^th)

      [Members have an opportunity to give a brief review/description of a book or books they have been reading during COVID.]

WURA “Research Corner”

A WURA “Research Support Group” was approved by the Executive Committee in December of 2020. It was enthusiastically supported by Research and Innovation the University – thanks Heather Pratt. Following is a quick look at what its 15 or so members have been up to over the past two to three years. We plan to make the Research Corner an on-going feature in the new WURA Bulletin. If you are interested in joining the group, please contact Jake Soderlund at akajake@uwindsor.ca – all that is needed is an interest in research.

Research Completed

Jonathan Bayley- (2020). “An Investigation of Canadian undergraduate music education students’ personal and professional experiences during a three-month residency in China.” Journal of Teaching and Learning. (with V. Mio).

Jonathan Bayley- (2020). Nine English Madrigals for three flutes. ALRY (United Music and Media) Publications.

Jonathan Bayley- (2020)- “It’s never too late:” Adult students and music learning in on and offline convergent community music school.” International Journal of Music Education. (with J. Waldron).

Tony Blair (2021)- Studies in Critical Thinking, 2nd ed.(Editor).

Tony Blair (2020)- “Technical Terminology and Argument Analysis and Approaches.” In TheLanguage of Argumentation.

Ihor Stebelsky (2018). “A tale of two regions: geopoloitics, identities, narratives and conflict in Kharkiv and the Donbas.” Eurasian Geography and Economics.

Research in Progress

Tony Blair- “How to define informal logic.” (a critique of Leo Groark’s article of the same name).

Tony Blair- Co-Editor of the journal Informal Logic.

Lloyd Brown-John – “Murder Trials in Canada, 1867-1976: Evidence of Systemic Racism?” (with Steve Fox).

Jake Soderlund- International Military Intervention in Domestic Conflicts: Correlates of Success and Failure in the Era of Responsibility to Protect. (with Tanja Collet and Tom Najem).

Ihor Steblesky- Various entries for the Internet Encyclopedia of Ukraine.