Arts and Social Sciences

Events to highlight legacy of Underground Railroad and Windsor-Detroit history

Ambassador Bridge The Detroit River is central to Windsor-Detroit's cross-border relationship (FILE/University of Windsor)

The Windsor-Detroit region has an extensive and rich history of cross-border connection, including as a key gateway in the Underground Railroad. 

A pair of events next week highlight the longstanding international ties across the Detroit River and the role this region played in helping formerly enslaved people escape to freedom. 

Theatre students turn a single word into a night of powerful performance

BFA acting students (from left to right) Rylan Thomas, John Liam Jones, Leon Trautwein, Cole Bailey rehearsing for the Black Box performance series.BFA acting students (from left to right) Rylan Thomas, John Liam Jones, Leon Trautwein, Cole Bailey rehearsing for the Black Box performance series. Pictured at the Jackman Dramatic Art Centre in Windsor, Ont. on Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025. (DAVE GAUTHIER/ The University of Windsor)

By Lindsay Charlton

Dramatic arts students are delving into what it means to be free — and captive — through a set of immersive performances ranging from a trapped toy to the inner world of a medieval prisoner. 

The production, opening this week, is the third instalment of the Black Box performance series. This student-led theatrical showcase brings together various voices in an intimate and collaborative production exploring a single theme. 

December 6 memorial part of 16 days of activism against gender-based violence

Students standing in front of the Memorial of Hope at UWindsor with roses in the foregroundThe École Polytechnique memorial event will take place Dec. 4 at 12:10pm at the Memorial of Hope between Dillon and Essex Halls (FILE/University of Windsor)

By Kate Hargreaves 

On Dec. 6, 1989, Charlene Senn was procrastinating finishing her grad school homework when she saw a television news report about a shooting at École Polytechnique in Montreal. 

‘Get it off the glass’: Writer-in-residence encourages students to embrace the page

Gustave Morin Fall writer-in-residence poet Gustave Morin at the University of Windsor in Windsor, Ont. on Thursday, Nov. 13, 2025. (LINDSAY CHARLTON/ The University of Windsor)

By Lindsay Charlton

Walking through the halls of Chrysler Hall North, you might hear the melodious notes of opera music alongside the click-clack of a typewriter ringing from a corner office as poet Gustave Morin gets to work on his latest piece.

The celebrated Windsor author has spent the last month in the University of Windsor’s creative writing department helping the next generation of writers hone their craft and sharing his insight and experience as the fall Pat Sturn writer-in-residence.

“I'm here to just give friendly advice,” Morin said.

Pasta dinner to support student-created Poet’s Cookbook

Students in the Editing Practicum course at the University of Windsor are hosting a pasta dinner on Saturday to raise funds toward the publication and launch of The Poet's Cookbook. Students in the Editing Practicum course at the University of Windsor are hosting a pasta dinner on Saturday to raise funds toward the publication and launch of The Poet's Cookbook.

By Lindsay Charlton

Combining literature with the culinary arts, students in this year’s Editing and Publishing Practicum courses are crafting The Poet’s Cookbook, the inaugural publication of the independent publisher Conspiracy Press.

“The Poet's Cookbook functions as an attempt to bring a human element into writing,” said English and creative writing student Regis Bogahalanda.

UWindsor poet recognized on national CBC Poetry Prize longlist

Trina Das, fourth year UWindsor studentFourth-year University of Windsor student Trina Das had her poem, A Body of Water Running, longlisted for the 2025 CBC Poetry Prize. (LINDSAY CHARLTON/ University of Windsor)

By Lindsay Charlton

Against the backdrop of the ongoing U.S.-Canada trade tensions, a University of Windsor poet penned a “border city love letter” inspired by the tensions and the people caught in the midst of it. 

The poem A Body of Water Running by fourth-year student Trina Das, earned a spot on the 2025 CBC Poetry Prize longlist. 

“Living in Windsor, right across the border, there’s all this political stuff going on, and we’re kind of ground zero for it because of how closely our economies are tied,” Das explained. 

Creative writing graduate course celebrates legacy of program

A pile of books on a table (titles of each book appears at end of this article)A graduate creative writing course will study books that began as MA theses (NICOLE MARKOTIC/University of Windsor)

By Kate Hargreaves

When professor of English and Creative Writing Nicole Markotić was selecting books for the department’s final graduate-level creative writing class, she knew she wanted to make a big splash. 

“We wanted a course objective that would both celebrate past achievements and project our current student cohort into their own literary futures,” she explains. 

Young musicians invited to join UWindsor’s Lab School string program

University of Windsor’s Lab School young musicians performingYoung string musicians from the University of Windsor's Lab School perform at the School of Creative Arts building in Windsor, Ont. (Courtesy of Vanessa Mio-Quiring)

Do you have the music in you?  

The University of Windsor’s Lab School is tuning up for another season of music-making, with registration now open for group string lessons. 

Students from the Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Social Science and School of Creative Arts (SoCA) launched the Lab School’s fall music instruction program on Oct. 25, with registration extended until Saturday, Nov. 8. 

How ancient traditions shaped Halloween

Stock image of children trick or treating on Halloween night. Stock image of children trick-or-treating on Halloween night. (stock.adobe.com/ The University of Windsor)

By Lindsay Charlton

A night when worlds collide 

As the leaves change and a chill creeps into the air, this time of year may also send a shiver down your spine. 

Ghosts, witches and ghouls make their presence known as All Hallows’ Eve approaches Friday, when the veil between worlds grows thin — or so says ancient Celtic lore. 

Participants sought for study on menstrual cycle, hormones and brain function

Taylor McEachnie, a doctoral student of clinical neuropsychology, is exploring how sex hormones interact and affect cognitive processes.Taylor McEachnie, a doctoral student of clinical neuropsychology, is exploring how sex hormones interact and affect cognitive processes.

By Lindsay Charlton

In an effort to better understand how sex hormones affect the brain, a University of Windsor PhD candidate is recruiting participants for a study aimed at closing gaps in women’s health research.