Anti-poverty advocate Adam Vasey wants UWindsor law students to consider atypical law careers. He’s spending eight months at Windsor Law as a Community Leadership in Justice Fellow, helping to create a work experience program to place students in social justice organizations.

“The fellowship has been a cool experience that helps me balance using my law degree and my social work degree,” said Vasey.

Vasey is a UWindsor graduate several times over. He did his undergraduate degree in political science (1999), he has a Master of Social Work (2008) and got a law degree here too (2002). For the past five years he’s been director at Pathway to Potential, a poverty reduction organization in Windsor-Essex that focuses on changing policies and attitudes about poverty.

It was at Pathway to Potential that Vasey first joined Windsor Law with a pilot project externship. With the help of a Strategic Priority Fund grant, a handful of law students spent the summer of 2014 working on policy initiatives.

“With the grant we provided law students with non-traditional placement opportunities,” he said. “Instead of offering legal advice, they helped us develop policy initiatives that deal with issues like living wage and food security.”

Windsor Law approached Vasey to apply for the fellowship to create a more permanent externship program that would link up students with community organizations with a social justice bent.

“I think for the law school that’s important because there are a lot of talented keen students who don’t necessarily have an outlet for all of their talents,” said Vasey. “They want to get involved in the community but they don’t necessarily know the best way to do that.”

He admits there are some barriers to cross with the unconventional program but says it’s well suited to the tone set at the law school.

“Windsor Law attracts students with different educational and work backgrounds, in fact Windsor encourages that,” said Vasey. “So it makes sense to offer these experiential opportunities along the way that actually take advantage of the talents and skills the students have.”

Vasey says this field is less developed in Canada than in the United States so he’s looking at some American models as inspiration. He will spend the next few months surveying community organizations and law students to get an idea on how to better construct the program. Vasey completes his fellowship in April 2015.

UWindsor’s Psychological Services and Research Centre will offer “Living Fully, A Group for OCD,” a series of free weekly group therapy sessions for those struggling with symptoms of obsessive compulsive disorder, beginning Thursday, January 29 from 5 to 6:30 p.m. at the centre’s “House on Sunset” building, 336 Sunset Avenue.

The group therapy is offered as part of the centre’s accredited academic program, which supports clinical training for graduate psychology students under the direction of faculty advisors.

According to PhD candidate and Living Fully co-facilitator Lauren O’Driscoll, individuals who spend a great deal of time and energy fighting anxiety; who feel overwhelmed by intrusive thoughts, images or impulses over which they feel little control; or those who constantly check, arrange, wash or count, may find the group helpful.

For more information or to register, call 519-973-7012 or email: beautifulmindsgroup@gmail.com.

Diners like the tomato sauce served by Food Services so much, they ask to bring it home. Now they can, thanks to a little initiative by culinary staff.

The popular item is available starting today from the grab-and-go coolers in select campus outlets. Cook Peter Polak, a trained chef himself, says he is excited to launch the new product.

“When I prepare the sauce here in our kitchens, the scent is beyond enticing,” he says. “Our own workers get all hungry for pasta when they smell it.”

He cooks it up in batches of 180-200 litres twice a week and says it is a very straightforward recipe.

“There are just eight ingredients: crushed tomatoes, tomato filet, garlic, onions, basil, oregano, salt and pepper,” Polak says. “No preservatives because we make it fresh. That’s what makes it so delicious.”

A 500 mL tub of the sauce will sell for $3.89 at the Marketplace in the CAW Student Centre and the Bru in Alumni Hall. If it’s a success, Food Services will consider introducing additional take-home products, maybe a meat or Alfredo sauce, says Polak: “It’s all demand-driven.”