UW-Madison is among the top 20 universities in the world, according to a new ranking from TIME.
TIME ranked the university 20th next to top private and global institutions and gave UW-Madison the no. 2 spot for public universities in the United States, after the University of Michigan.
Dane County health officials continue to contact hundreds of people who may have been exposed to measles after a University of Wisconsin–Madison student tested positive for the highly contagious virus.
Public Health Madison & Dane County posted a growing list of exposure locations on its website, including several UW-Madison buildings such as Union South, the Genetics and Psychology buildings, multiple Madison Metro bus routes, Qdoba on Park Street and the Waisman Center.
A bill that would provide funding to a program that helps identify the remains of missing-in-action service members is in limbo after an Assembly committee put off a vote Wednesday due to concerns by Republican lawmakers that Gov. Tony Evers would use his partial veto on the measure.
The University of Wisconsin Missing-In-Action (MIA) Recovery and Identification project, which was started in 2015 at the state’s flagship campus, works to further the recovery and identification of missing-in-action American service members. Those working on the project include researchers, students, veterans, alumni and volunteers who conduct research, recovery and biological identification. The program is partnered with the federal Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) on the work and has acted as a model for DPAA, which now partners with more than 50 other academic and nonprofit institutions to work on MIA identifications.
The scribe who copied Phaenomena, which details how various constellations rise and set, onto the parchment integrated descriptions of the stars’ positions that were probably based on Hipparchus’ work. The celestial objects’ coordinate system and accuracy align with references to the ancient astronomer’s writings, reports Science News’ Adam Mann. “There’s an appendix which includes coordinates of the stars discussed in the poem, and then little sketches of the star maps,” Minhal Gardezi, a physicist at the University of Wisconsin–Madison who is working on the project, tells the outlet.
The University of Wisconsin-Madison Global Health Institute convened experts from around the world with UW-Madison faculty for a Jan. 27 webinar examining the growing complexities of infectious disease control.
The discussion, moderated by Daniel Shirley, an infectious diseases professor at the UW-Madison School of Medicine and Public Health, brought together researchers working across human, animal and global health systems to address two converging crises: antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and declining childhood vaccination rates.
Clint Sprott, a UW-Madison physics professor who retired in 2008, started the show in 1984 as a free, public lecture. He still attends the show every year.
“[My] most favorite is seeing the smiles and enthusiasm of the audience,” Sprott said. “The show was a major part of my life for 40 years, and it is certainly fun to be something of a celebrity.”
Growing up in a first-generation Indian household, Armaan Jain was thrown into activities from a young age — baseball, basketball, soccer and everything but football. The packed schedule forced him to learn time management early, a skill reinforced by parents who deeply valued education and structure.
“From elementary school onward, I had to have systems in place to succeed,” he said. “I learned early that motivation isn’t always there, so you need something that keeps you going anyway.”
After concerns were raised about spending on DEI, the University of Wisconsin-Madison shuttered a department but kept most of the staff and their titles working on equity issues, an investigation by The Center Square found.
The former Division of Diversity, Equity and Education Achievement – which employed about 100 people who earned more than $7 million annually – had been mired in financial mismanagement and attacks from Republicans before the university closed it last year.
An audit found that the university had no grasp of its total diversity spending and whether it was effective, and auditors identified problematic employee bonuses, travel and other expenses in the division.
Tensions rose in discussion over a bipartisan bill that would require state agencies, including the University of Wisconsin System, to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of antisemitism for any “law, ordinance or policy” when evaluating possible discriminatory intent at a Jan. 28 public hearing.
Daniel Hummel, a research fellow with the History Department at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and an expert on U.S. relations with Israel, said there has been increased “antisemitic rhetoric around campus” since the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel.
Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin’s decision to leave the University of Wisconsin-Madison for Columbia University has drawn mixed reactions from campus, varying from bittersweet goodbyes from campus leaders to celebratory farewells from Badger sports fans, labor leaders and student activists alike
A UW-Madison student has contracted measles, according to a Feb. 2 email to the campus community. It’s the second case of measles in Wisconsin this year.
Health officials confirmed a second measles case in Wisconsin earlier this week — this time in Madison — and one local expert says there’s a reason to be concerned but clear ways to stay safe and healthy.
The Cap Times spoke with Dr. Joseph McBride, an infectious disease specialist at UW Health, after public health officials reported a University of Wisconsin-Madison student contracted measles, likely through international travel, and potentially exposed people on campus.
The Wisconsin Historical Society has reopened and expanded its hip hop exhibit for Black History Month, offering visitors a deeper look into more than five decades of hip hop culture in Wisconsin.
Phase two of the “Lead Between the Rhymes” exhibit now includes recognition of University of Wisconsin artists, students, professors and student organizations that partnered with Madison’s hip hop scene. These collaborations helped organize events including the “Hip Hop as a Movement” conference and other significant cultural gatherings.
Wisconsin football coach Luke Fickell did not receive the usual approval for a contract extension following the Badgers’ disappointing 2025 season.
The UW athletic board approved one-year extensions for the Badgers’ other coaches of fall sports – a longstanding common practice by the athletic department – but Fickell did not receive an extension at the board’s bimonthly meeting Feb. 4.
The UW Athletic Board has approved contract extensions for three University of Wisconsin head coaches.
Volleyball coach Kelly Sheffield, women’s soccer coach Paula Wilkins, and men’s soccer coach Neil Jones all received extensions to their five-year agreements, now running through January 31, 2031.
The University of Wisconsin has a practice where athletic contracts for coaches that include predetermined extensions, providing a level of security and continuity for the programs. Recently, Kelly Sheffield, along with the coaches for the men’s and women’s soccer teams, received their contract extensions, continuing their tenure with the Badgers.
Wisconsin football coach Luke Fickell did not receive the usual approval for a contract extension following the Badgers’ disappointing 2025 season.
The UW athletic board approved one-year extensions for the Badgers’ other coaches of fall sports – a longstanding common practice by the athletic department – but Fickell did not receive an extension at the board’s bimonthly meeting Feb. 4.
Wisconsin gives routine extensions to avoid ambiguity about where a coach stands with the university and avoid any negative recruiting that could be done regarding a coach’s contract status, a spokesperson told BadgerExtra last year. Badgers fans chanted “Fire Fickell” at multiple home games in 2025, a season that brought Fickell to 17-21 overall and 10-17 in Big Ten play as Wisconsin’s coach.
Fickell’s contract, originally signed in November 2022, was for seven years and remained at that term after receiving one-year extensions in 2024 and 2025. He now will coach under a six-year deal. His salary, which is set to increase $100,000 to $7.8 million per year April 1, and his buyout remain unchanged. Fickell’s buyout ranges from roughly $22.7 million to $21.3 million during the 2026 season.
(Video) The name Mark Johnson echoes through Olympic history with a particular resonance—1980, Lake Placid, the Miracle on Ice.
Scott Craven, emeritus professor and UW Extension wildlife ecologist, joins us for another Wildlife Wednesday.
