When the University Club opens for the school year on Monday, patrons will notice some changes, says president Mary Louise Drake, but one thing remains the same: it will continue to provide a campus respite for faculty members, staff and professional librarians.

“The club functions as a dining room catering to guests looking for a collegial atmosphere,” she says.

It serves lunch Monday to Friday from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.

This year’s menu offers a choice of four salads and four Panini-style sandwiches. There is also an all-you-can-eat soup and salad bar with bread roll for $7.95, or patrons can choose from three different soups daily with a bread roll for $3.95.

Members enjoy a number of perks:

• saving a dollar off each lunch bill with the presentation of a University Club card;
• receiving two-for-the-price-of-one lunch Mondays and Wednesdays;
• free pie for dessert Tuesdays and Thursdays;
• a complimentary non-alcoholic beverage Fridays.

The University Club is located on the ground floor of Vanier Hall. Membership is provided free of charge to faculty members and librarians; membership is open to other UWindsor employees for a fee of $40 per year.

Learn more on the University Club Web site, or contact president Mary Louise Drake, 519-253-3000, ext. 2273.

People hoping to submit nominations for the Employee Recognition Awards have until September 28.

The new program formally celebrates the outstanding contributions of employees campus-wide to the achievement of the University’s mission and vision in six categories:

• Service Excellence Award – Individuals—a maximum of two annually, one each for a staff member and a faculty member demonstrating consistent delivery of the highest level of service
• Service Excellence Award – Team—teams of two or more employees working collaboratively to share ideas, responsibility and skills
• Service Excellence Award – First 5 Years of Employment—to encourage new permanent employees who demonstrate high levels of professionalism
• Excellence in Leadership Award—recognizing role models who promote a collegial and supportive work environment
• Innovation Award—for individuals or teams that have implemented an initiative to enhance teaching, learning or service delivery
• “U” Make a Difference Award—for commitment to building a sense of community through volunteerism

The awards will be presented at a special recognition event. Find more information, including nomination forms, full descriptions and the criteria for each award, on the program Web site.

All of the dedication and commitment Dennis Ma has put into his research are beginning to pay off, both in his academic career and the progress he’s made in finding new ways to fight cancer.

“I’ve never worked harder in my whole life than I have in the past few years,” said Ma, a PhD student in Chemistry and Biochemistry and the recent recipient of a Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship. “A lot of times we’re here at 7 a.m. and don’t get home until after midnight. It’s been a lot of hard work and a lot of long hours.”

Ma was one of 156 doctoral students from 29 Canadian universities to receive one of the scholarships, which provide $50,000 per year in funding over a three year period. The successful recipients were announced at a reception last week in Kingston, Ontario.

Winning a Vanier scholarship places Ma among the elite scholars across Canada, said Patti Weir, dean of Graduate Studies. Ma becomes just the second UWindsor student to earn a Vanier scholarship since the program began in 2008.

“These scholars become the next generation of leaders across all sectors of society,” said Dr. Weir. “Dennis is doing some tremendous work which could one day offer new hope for cancer patients across Canada and around the world.”

Ma, who grew up in Windsor and went to high school at Kennedy Collegiate, spends most of his lab time studying the selective cancer cell-killing effectiveness of a compound called pancratistatin. A natural product derived from the Hawaiian spider lily plant that’s only available in limited quantities, he’s been analyzing synthetic versions of it developed by professor Tomas Hudlicky’s group at Brock University. He’s found that some have been especially effective at causing apoptosis in leukemia, brain, breast, ovarian, prostate, pancreatic, and colon cancer cells – essentially meaning those cells commit suicide when they interact with the compound, without harming the non-cancerous cells.

“They made several versions recently that are a very close replica to the original,” Ma said of the synthetic compounds. “Not only are they better than the previous versions, but they’re actually better than the natural compound. It’s one modification away for the original compound, but that modification makes it even more potent.”

Not one to take all the credit for his success, Ma was quick to point out that he received a lot of help from the staff in his department and in graduate studies, as well as the undergraduate students he’s trained in the lab and from his academic supervisor professor Siyaram Pandey, who he described as a “really great mentor.”

Dr. Pandey described Ma as most deserving of the award, praising him for his multiple talents and skill sets, as well as his passion and work ethic.

“He has more than demonstrated his academic ability,” said Pandey. “He’s already authored about six or seven publications. I’m very proud of him and everyone on campus should be too.”

One of the publications Pandey was especially proud of was an article published in the academic journal PLoS One. The article was included as a featured paper by Global Medical Discovery, a service that alerts the scientific community to breaking journal articles considered important to the drug discovery process. It’s viewed almost 285,000 times a month by academic and industrial R&D personnel. It’s also featured on the intranets of a growing number of the top 20 pharmaceutical companies and major academic institutions.

Additionally, his work has received tremendous local support from the Couvillon family, Chapter 9671 of the Knights of Columbus, and recently the Pajama Angels through their Yoga 4 Hope fundraiser.

The University of Windsor presented a lot of opportunities to her, says recent biology and biotechnology grad Irina Bacanu. She joined hundreds of students in signing a large “thank you” card to donors, Thursday outside the CAW Student Centre.

“I am very grateful to the university for all the resources it has offered us,” Bacanu says. “I just wanted to say thank you to the supporters who made it possible.”

The banner will be displayed for alumni and other donors to see the expressions of gratitude from those who have benefitted from their giving, says Chris Schnurr of University Advancement.

“The students have been very eager to sign their names to the message,” he says. “It’s a tangible way for them to let donors know their generosity is appreciated.”

During the first day of classes, students took advantage of Adrenaline Rush to engage in fun activities ranging from an inflatable obstacle course to tests of their throwing accuracy. Below, find a collection of photos from Thursday’s carnival in front of Dillon Hall and Wednesday’s Welcoming Celebration in the St. Denis Centre.

Windsor Welcome Week events continue today, including the Taste of Sandwich eatery walking tour and an evening riverboat cruise. Saturday is Shinerama Shine Day with events from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m., including a pep rally in the residence quad leading up to the Lancer football game on Alumni Field. Visit www.windsorwelcomeweek.ca for a full list of events, locations and times.

Social work student Natalie Jones tries her hand at tossing the old pigskin.

Classics major Jessica Breault absorbs a hit from her twin sister, Jordan Breault, a concurrent education student, during a bout of jousting.

Mechanical engineering senior Jeff Gagnier somersaults while completing the obstacle course. “It’s a lot of fun!” he enthused.

Biology student Michaela Cromwell tumbles from her steed and loses a bouncy horse race to psychology student Ibukun Adekoya.

Students enjoy a round of the classic party game Twister. “It’s a good way to meet people,” said Cindy Navarro.

The Shinerama barbecue fuels students in hopes they will join the charity fundraiser’s efforts on Saturday. Serving up the grub are volunteers Thuy Nguyen and Mehwish Kamal.

Friends look on as Teodora Cvetkovic attempts to navigate a straight line while wearing beer goggles that mimic the effects of alcohol consumption. “I learned not to drink that much!” said the first-year student of Spanish and media.

Video presentations combined with live camera work by staff of the Centre for Teaching and Learning helped to raise the excitement of new students at the Welcoming Celebration, Wednesday in the St. Denis Centre.

Lancer mascot Winston shamelessly mugs for applause.

Do the wiggle, yeah: Human kinetics students show off their moves to the dulcet tones of “I’m sexy and I know it.”

Students starting their five-year voyage of discovery in the concurrent education program demonstrate their pride.

Foam fingers indicating “Lancers are No. 1” proved a popular accessory.

UWindsor president Alan Wildeman performed a song of his own composition and accompanied himself on the mandolin.

Saturday’s football game offers more than the opportunity to watch the Lancer team—ranked seventh in the nation after Monday’s lopsided victory over Ottawa—take on the Guelph Gryphons under the lights on Alumni Field.

It also marks the Windsor debut of the NFL on Campus, a program of the American professional football league offering interactive games, promotions and prizes for young fans.

Among the free activities on offer are videogame consoles to play EA Madden football, a challenge to compare your vertical jumping ability against NFL stars, and inflatables to test your bungee run, kicking and passing skills.

The game starts at 7 p.m. September 8 but doors will open at 6 p.m. The first 500 fans will receive a free poster of quarterback Austin Kennedy, whose record-setting performance against the Ottawa Gee Gees to open the season earned him offensive football player of the week honours from Ontario University Athletics and Canadian Interuniversity Sport. Kennedy set team records for passing with 482 yards on 31 completions; his six passing touchdowns tied the Lancer mark.

Tickets are available for purchase at the gate; admission is free for UWindsor students.

The Humanities Research Group will present thought-provoking discussion during Humanities Week, September 10 to 14 on the University of Windsor campus.

Physics professor Gordon Drake, principal of Canterbury College, will analyze current thinking on the topic of free will in his free public lecture “Free Won’t,” at 4 p.m. Monday, September 10, in Alumni Hall’s McPherson Lounge. Dr. Drake will examine some of the underlying assumptions that may not necessarily be correct within the context of science, religion, and artificial intelligence.

Drake will join Leo Groarke, Martin Morf and Stanley Cunningham for a roundtable discussion on free will Thursday, September 13, at 7 p.m. in the Freed Orman Centre, Assumption University.

The School of Dramatic Art will co-sponsor a presentation by Samantha Holdsworth, entitled “Artistic Practice and Social Change.” Exploring the role of arts practice and its potential to generate positive social change in communities, Holdsworth will explain how she has come to define herself as a “creative entrepreneur” and how this approach has developed her understanding of participatory arts practice and encouraged her to challenge traditional systems of working. Her talk is set for 10 a.m. Friday, September 14, in the Studio Theatre, Jackman Dramatic Art Centre.