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Wisconsin child care costs soar, but thousands miss out on state aid

The Capital Times

“If you’re eligible for a subsidy and there’s just no child care in your community, or no providers that accept subsidies, that’s going to make it a lot harder for you to actually participate in (Wisconsin) Shares,” Pilarz said.

The state’s providers could care for up to 33,000 more children if they had staff to operate at full capacity, according to a 2024 UW-Madison study commissioned by the Department of Children and Families. The study found nearly 60% of Wisconsin child care providers had unused space, including closed classrooms.

Ag industry leaders say Trump policy changes on trade, immigration could hurt farmers

Wisconsin State Farmer

Farm economists and industry experts weighed in on these impacts during the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Wisconsin Agricultural Outlook Forum, an annual event for farm and food industry leaders in the state. Chuck Nicholson, associate professor of agricultural and applied economics at UW-Madison, was one of the speakers.

“If we substantively implement some of the policy ideas that have been proposed and talked about prior to the inauguration, I think that will pose some pretty significant economic challenges for the farmers of Wisconsin and the U.S. generally,” Nicholson said.

Trump Orders Could Drain Millions From Universities, but Few Protest Openly

The New York Times

During a Faculty Senate meeting that was streamed online on Monday, Jennifer L. Mnookin, the chancellor of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, urged professors to “hold off” on optional expenses so the university could help ensure that “you’re making smart choices.”

“The transition has created for us an enormous amount of uncertainty, combined with fast-moving and changing information,” she said. “It’s generated some potentially quite significant threats to important aspects of our mission, as is true for our peer institutions nationally.”

These colleges and universities are the most selective in Wisconsin, new report says

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

The University of Wisconsin-Madison is the most selective university in Wisconsin, according to a recent analysis from The Business Journals.

The Jan. 17 report used data from the U.S. Department of Education to determine the most selective higher education institutions in the country. Analysts used a weighted formula — based on acceptance and matriculation rates — to determine each ranking.

Trump’s federal aid freeze could hurt Head Start, health centers, more

The Capital Times

Baldwin toured the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Pharmacy Monday morning to learn about opioid treatment efforts — programs that could be halted by the president’s funding freeze.

“The work being done here will save lives,” Baldwin said, “and that’s why I’m sending a loud and clear message that the president cannot cut off funding for vital programs like these.”

Tom Still: Federal support for academic R&D helps people, economy in many ways

Wisconsin State Journal

UW-Madison is one of the nation’s leading research universities in terms of receiving federal grants — and levering those dollars with private and other external funds that make it possible to move ideas from the lab bench to the marketplace.

It’s not just about Madison, which is the sixth-leading federal R&D campus in the country. Every campus in the Universities of Wisconsin receives some federal R&D dollars, as do major private institutions such as the Medical College of Wisconsin, Marquette University and the Milwaukee School of Engineering.

What would a trade war mean for Wisconsin?

Wisconsin State Journal

But UW-Madison Donald Hester Professor of Economics Charles Engel told the Wisconsin State Journal “the overall effect on the cost of living would be relatively small” because the price consumers pay doesn’t only cover the cost of the good itself.

“If you think about when you buy a t-shirt, say that’s made in China,” he said. “The actual t-shirt is really a relatively small part of the cost that we pay, and a much bigger part is the cost of the design, which is probably done in the U.S., and then the cost of bringing the shirt from the port to the store where you get it.”

Richard Bruce Bilder

Wisconsin State Journal

Richard’s career was dedicated to the challenges of international law and the betterment of international relations. He worked in the Office of Legal Advisor at the U.S. State Department, before coming to Madison, where was a Professor of Law at the University of Wisconsin for more than 50 years.

Sharon James

Wisconsin State Journal

She left her tenured position to return to the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she entered higher education administration, serving as both Assistant and Associate Vice President of Academic Affairs for UW Systems.

UW-Madison pauses some spending amid federal funding uncertainties

WKOW-TV 27

The university announced a pause on any uncommitted expenditures, including purchases, hiring, and out-of-state travel. In a memo from Provost Charles Isbell and Vice Chancellor Rob Cramer, it was stated that no new obligations on existing federal awards would be created, meaning hiring on federal funds is currently on hold.

Big reveals are unlikely in Trump-ordered Kennedy and MLK document drops, experts say

NPR

Kathryn McGarr, a professor of history at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, says she doesn’t think there’s much more to learn. “We already know quite a bit about how much the government was surveilling and looking at [MLK] … and how many enemies he had within the government,” she says. “I don’t think that the narrative is going to significantly change, although of course, we could get some more details here and there.”

Can the U.S. head off a potential bird flu pandemic? UW-Madison researchers weigh in

Wisconsin State Farmer

As the bird flu strain continues to threaten animals and public health, the U.S. government has stepped up its response. But Tom Friedrich, a professor of virology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s School of Veterinary Medicine, isn’t sure the scale and speed of the response are equal to the potential impact of the problem.

Wisconsin literacy center gives community to immigrants and refugees

Wisconsin Public Radio

Whether the Trump administration will restart the U4U program is an open question, according to Yoshiko Herrera, political scientist professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and an expert on Russia.

“I think they wanted to show that they were acting quickly on immigration right from the start. So my sense is that they just are like, ‘OK, we’re pausing everything’,” said Herrerra. “But I wouldn’t be surprised if … in the next couple of weeks, (they) decide that United for Ukraine is OK.”

What is causing the dramatic ice heaves on Madison’s lakes?

Wisconsin State Journal

The formations, called ice heaves, often happen in the spring along the shorelines as ice begins to melts and wind pushes it up into solid, jagged waves. But they can also be seen where water levels and temperatures fluctuate, said Hilary Dugan, professor with UW-Madison’s Limnology Department. As water freezes it expands, with sections pushing against one another to create pressure ridges between a few inches to a few feet high, Dugan said.

Here’s what’s at stake in Madison and Wisconsin if federal grants are blocked

Wisconsin State Journal

The pause in federal funding is “significant and concerning” for UW-Madison, Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin and other leaders said in a statement.

UW-Madison is encouraging most federally funded research to continue, outside of a “small number” of unspecified stop-work orders aimed at a handful of researchers, the statement said.

Madison, state officials still confused by Trump funding pause

The Capital Times

UW-Madison’s Office of University Relations created a working group to track and respond to the latest executive orders and congressional activity that affects higher education.

The group includes representatives from across campus, including strategic communication, the provost’s office, legal affairs, research, student affairs, human resources, the international division, enrollment management, campus police and others.

Some missing Madison ballots could have been counted, if clerk’s staff had acted in time

Wisconsin State Journal

Other provisions may also allow the election commission to require the county to correct its canvass, said Bree Grossi Wilde, executive director of the State Democracy Research Initiative at the University of Wisconsin Law School. Wisconsin law appears to allow for the “ability to make a correction” if the county board of canvassers or the Wisconsin Elections Commission becomes aware of an error, she said.

Moms on Medicaid would get a year of postpartum care under bill

The Capital Times

Dr. Amy Domeyer-Klenske is an OB-GYN at UW Health, assistant professor in the University of Wisconsin-Madison Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and the legislative chair for the Midwest region of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. The current coverage period for Wisconsin Medicaid — 60 days after birth — is “arbitrary,” she said.

“There’s no physiologic magic writing that says that, you know, all pregnancy complications end at that point,” Domeyer-Klenske said.

Boo-U changes campus director ahead of consolidation

Wisconsin State Journal

Matthew Fencl, a professor of health and human performance at the campus and the Sport Administration Graduate Program Coordinator for UW-Platteville, took over as campus director at the beginning of the year. Former director Stephen Swallen returned to his full-time role as an associate chemistry professor at the Baraboo Sauk County campus.

You may have felt the earth move, Madison, but that was no earthquake

Wisconsin State Journal

“The energy is pretty powerful near the center of the quakes, but it kind of decays away further out,” UW-Madison seismologist Luke Zoet said.

Madison’s recent booms can be explained by three main factors, Zoet said: A sudden cold snap, ground water close to the surface and a lack of snow, which tends to insulate the soil from the cold air like a blanket.

John Olson

Wisconsin State Journal

In addition to his coaching career, John served as Assistant Principal at Madison Memorial and later as a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He was employed for 44 years in public education as a teacher, coach, and administrator, teaching at the elementary, junior high, and high school levels. He also prepared aspiring teachers and coaches for careers in education for seven years while teaching at the School of Education at UW-Madison.

School cell phone bans could be coming to Wisconsin

The Capital Times

Adolescents report better moods in the short-term when using their phones compared with not using them, according to a study last year by University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers. However, the U.S. Surgeon General warns social media is a major contributor to a nationwide youth mental health crisis.

Madison’s drinking water is getting saltier, road salt likely to blame

The Capital Times

For 80 years, Madison’s lakes have gotten saltier, according to Hilary Dugan, an associate professor and researcher at University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Center for Limnology.

The salinity of Madison’s lakes was close to zero a century ago and road salting has been the biggest source of contamination, she said. Researchers like Dugan closely monitor chloride levels in local waterways because it’s easier to track the environmental impacts than sodium.

What will UW-Madison scientists learn from hundreds of people vaping?

The Capital Times

Researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison launched a new study this month to reveal the lasting effects vaping may have on people’s hearts and lungs.

“Although e-cigarettes have been on the U.S. market for over 15 years and used by millions of Americans, we do not really understand their long-term health effects,” said Dr. James Stein, a professor of medicine at the university.

Wisconsin AG Josh Kaul joins lawsuit challenging Trump’s order on birthright citizenship

Wisconsin State Journal

On Trump’s proposal for mass deportations, Evers pointed to an April 2023 survey by UW-Madison’s School for Workers that found more than 10,000 undocumented immigrant workers in the state perform an estimated 70% of the labor at Wisconsin’s dairy farms. The researchers behind the survey said, without those workers, “the whole dairy industry would collapse overnight.”

New Wisconsin QB coach’s passion brought him back to familiar ground

Wisconsin State Journal

Kenny Guiton’s time as a professional translator is over. Make no mistake, the University of Wisconsin assistant football coach has had to teach a variety of techniques and details to wide receivers during his 11 years as a receivers coach. But one of his great skills leading receivers was he could teach them how his team’s quarterbacks wanted things done because he played quarterback.

 

Wisconsin focuses on reading, but Madison students struggle with math

The Capital Times

Knowing basic math is crucial to set up students for success later in life, according to Lisa Hennessey, a UW-Madison educator helping to organize the tutoring program. Research shows understanding the subject in middle school prepares students for more advanced math in high school and ultimately leads to higher-paying jobs in adulthood.