First Nations children and families living on reserve and in the territories receive public services funded by the federal government. Since Confederation, these services have fallen significantly short of what other Canadians receive.

A free public presentation Wednesday, Oct. 21, will describe how a growing movement of children is aiming to change that.

Cindy Blackstock, a professor of social work at McGill University and a member of the Gitxsan First Nation, will deliver “Spirit Bear’s plan to end inequality for First Nations children” over Microsoft Teams today at 10 a.m.

Blackstock is executive director of the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada and employs the Spirit Bear as a mascot to engage children in meaningful action to implement the recommendations of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

The event is held in celebration of Persons Day, commemorating the historic 1929 decision to include women in the legal definition of “persons.” Find more information, including the link to the live event, on the website of Women’s and Gender Studies.

Three UWindsor grads are hoping to find audience support for their entry in what is billed as the world’s largest short film competition.

Writer and director Jakob Skrzypa (BA 2016), producer and composer Alex Forman (BA 2016), and producer and cinematographer Milos Savic (BA 2016, MFA 2018) collaborated on Balls! a Pixar-inspired short that follows the purported life of a soccer ball.

They have entered it in the My Rode Reel contest, which offers a total of $1 million in prize money, including a $30,000 audience choice award. Voting in that category will close Oct. 22.

“The film was a massive undertaking, as it opens in 1939 and ends in 1970,” says Skrzypa. “We needed cars, costumes, locations, and drew heavily upon Windsor-Essex residents for these things.”

The film involved more than 40 cast and crew members, but Savic notes that one proved particularly challenging.

“You know they say don’t work with animals, don’t work with kids? I put balls on that list,” he says.

View the film, watch a behind-the-scenes reel, and vote on the contest website.

Lancer Gaming opened its inaugural season with a 2-0 victory in League of Legends against the Trent Excalibur on Oct. 8 to make an auspicious start, says Cindy Crump, director of the Student Success and Leadership Centre.

“We are absolutely thrilled with the launch of the esports program here on campus,” she says. “We have come a long way in a very short time to launch the program and are excited for the future of Lancer Gaming as we continue to strive toward providing opportunities that enable the complete student experience at the UWindsor.”

The program held player tryouts during reading week and has announced members of its leadership team:

• head coach Ali Abduelmula, a student of computer science;
• co-ordinator Jeremy Renaud, an instructor of sport and recreation management at St. Clair College;
• assistant co-ordinator Shubham Mehta, also a computer science major; and
• sport and performance psychology assistant Erkin Zuluev, a Master of Human Kinetics candidate.

The program will announce its final roster during the week of Oct. 26. The selected players will represent the University in Ontario Post-Secondary Esports and National Association of Collegiate Esports competition.

Learn more on the Lancer Gaming website.

An online panel discussion at 11:30 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 22, will highlight mental health strategies in response to stress and anxiety.

The event is part of the Chancellor’s Leadership Series sharing insights in innovation, entrepreneurship, sustainability, and diversity. It is open to all students, alumni, faculty, staff, and community members.

UWindsor chancellor Mary Jo Haddad will lead panelists Catherine Zahn, president and CEO of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, and Katherine Hay, president and CEO of Kids Help Phone in the discussion, entitled “Resilience in Times of Change and Uncertainty.”

Running on the MS Teams videoconference platform, the event will offer the audience a chance to engage with the panel. Register here for the link to participate and to submit a question for consideration.

Are you a UWindsor alumni with a passion for sport, Lancer athletics, and giving back?

The Alumni Association is looking for alumni interested in volunteering on the Sports Hall of Fame Committee. This position, in collaboration with other committee members,  is responsible for reviewing and choosing nominations that will go onto the Alumni Sports Hall of Fame ballot each year. The committee also offers guidance to administration regarding the annual Hall of Fame induction ceremony.

Interested volunteers are encouraged to review the role description and apply before the Oct. 30 deadline.

Trading places proved especially rewarding for film student Gemma Cunial (BA 2019) when actor Martin Ouellette (BA 2013) won recognition at the Central Alberta Film Festival this past weekend for his performance in a short she helmed.

Ouellette was named Best Actor for his work in Rabbit and the Snare, directed by Cunial and her fellow MFA student Calum Hotchkiss (BA 2018). Hotchkiss headed the cinematography; Cunial produced and wrote the screenplay, which follows a man (Ouellette) who must survive a snowy Canadian winter when he falls into isolation after the death of his young daughter.

Cunial had worked with Ouellette when he directed her in plays with KordaZone Theatre.

“It’s fun to have the roles reversed, where I get to direct him from behind the lens,” she says. “One of my favourite things about making films in Windsor is working with its local acting community.”

Rabbit and the Snare also received a nomination for Best Short Narrative at the festival, held in Red Deer, Oct. 14 to 17. It premiered at the Windsor International Film Festival in 2019 and has since screened at the Oregon Short Film Festival, the Short to the Point festival in Romania, the Canadian Cinematography Awards, and the Ontario International Film Festival.

Hotchkiss notes this was his first project outside of school.

“It’s encouraging to be recognized for our efforts,” he says. “Martin is a tremendous talent; we were very fortunate to have him bring our story to life.”

Besides Cunial and Hotchkiss, the production involved UWindsor students and alumni shooting on location across Essex County over the winter of 2019, including: Alysha Baker (BA 2017), Armend Bajrami (BA 2018), Brandon Bastien (BA 2019), Nathan Bergs (BA 2017), Mitchell Branget (BA 2019), Douglas Cunningham (BA 2015), Jay Li (BA 2019), Aruna Martin-Bhalla, Rachel McEwen (BA 2020), Vy Nguyen (BA 2016), Braunte Petric (BA 2019), Niall Quinn (BA 2019), Will Rogers, Sikandar Saleem, and Kitu Turcas. M.Ed student Stephanie Johnston created special effects.

The University of Windsor’s Jane McArthur, a PhD candidate in sociology/social justice, has recently had an article published in the Conversation Canada on what she says sheds lights on issues not addressed in current breast cancer awareness initiatives.

“As COVID-19 makes abundantly clear, our health exists in a nested set of relationships, each part of the whole interacting and influencing each other,” says McArthur, a SSHRC Doctoral Fellow Investigating Women’s Narratives of Breast Cancer.

“Climate change, institutionalized racism, political unrest and more also make the nestedness of our overall health clear. So does breast cancer. Addressing environmental, occupational, and social factors that influence the development of the disease is as important as ever as we move forward with public health policies that prioritize prevention.”

Read McArthur’s article here:

 https://theconversation.com/breast-cancer-awareness-is-not-enough-public-health-strategies-need-to-be-based-on-prevention-147549

Lorraine Grondin (BA 1987) has begun a term of approximately one year as acting University Registrar, succeeding Alice Miller.

Grondin’s duties in her previous position as associate registrar, systems and records, will be assumed by Sue Holiga.

Grondin brings a broad range of experience and passion to her new role, said Chris Busch, associate vice president, enrolment management, in announcing her appointment.

“The evolving and important leadership role of registrar is at the core of our University’s student-centred mission, with responsibility for student registration, degree audit, credit transfer, transcript fulfillment, student data, articulation/transfer pathways, course and exam scheduling, and curriculum management,” he said.

Miller has accepted a position at Saskatchewan Polytechnic as associate vice-president, student services.