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Author: jnweaver

Once struggling to learn English, student now heads for Harvard med

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Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

When he moved to Milwaukee from a tiny town in Mexico, Carlos Torres couldnâ??t speak a word of English. Not even hello or goodbye.

He was a frightened kid, plunked into fifth grade at a south side Milwaukee school. His family – heâ??s the youngest of 10 children – rented a place near 14th and Lincoln. Now, a mere dozen years later, Carlos is a standout graduate of Marquette High School and, as of last weekend, the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Faced with an enviable choice among four medical schools that accepted him, he has chosen Harvard on a full-tuition scholarship. Heâ??s the first member of his family to graduate from college.

The young know better in lesbian brouhaha at Marquette

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Capital Times

An inventive singer-songwriter named Peter Case who likes to play with words wrote a great line: â??We were too young not to know better.â?

That came to mind recently as many of the supposedly responsible grown-ups at Marquette University were making fools of themselves while their students demonstrated against discrimination and hypocrisy.

At issue was the action by Marquette President Father Robert Wild rescinding a job offer to Seattle University professor Jodi Oâ??Brien, who was recruited by Marquette to become dean of its College of Arts and Sciences.

Lucas: Ex-Badger Johnson finds another degree of success

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Madison.com

As a University of Wisconsin athlete, Lawrence Johnson knew what it took to get to the finish line. And he usually got there before anyone else. He still has the third-fastest time in the 200-meter run in school history.

As a UW student, though, Johnson had trouble finishing what he started. Over 30 years ago, he left school without his degree. And there was little or no commitment at the time to come back for it.

…Given this backdrop, you can better understand what it felt like for Johnson to finally cross the finish line during last weekendâ??s UW commencement exercises at the Kohl Center.

Legally stoned: Synthetic pot hits Wisconsin; regulators already on it

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Capital Times

Ben Masel strolls down a downtown street on a cool spring day, takes a hit on a joint, holds it in, then puffs out an aromatic cloud.

â??Iâ??m certainly feeling something,â? he says.

Masel, a longtime marijuana legalization advocate who has provided expert testimony in court on marijuana issues, is aware that he could be approached at any time by a cop. But heâ??s not worried. Heâ??s not breaking any laws.

Restarting is right move at UW-Parkside

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Racine Journal Times

Cooking from scratch takes more effort, but University of Wisconsin-Parkside Chancellor Deborah Ford knows it will yield a better finished product.

Her recommendation to stop accepting new students into the schoolâ??s teacher education program was, as she termed it in a letter, “a bold action.” And a necessary one, as the universityâ??s Faculty Senate affirmed last week.

Seen: Emotions take center stage on Graduation Day

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Wisconsin State Journal

(Varsity, varsity….)
The pomp and ceremony of graduation day at UW-Madison brought thousands of graduates and many thousands more family and friends to the Kohl Center for five commencements last weekend.

(U-rah-rah, Wisconsin)
But, no matter how many people attended, graduation isnâ??t a group thing.

(Praise to thee, we sing)
Itâ??s a very personal event, as personal as anything you can ever go through. When your son or daughter walks across the stage, name announced, video screen high above the floor showing the brief, shining moment, the memories and tears start to flow.

Delany offers no thought on Big Ten expansion

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Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

No need to hurry. That was the message Big Ten Conference commissioner Jim Delany shared with reporters Tuesday in Chicago when asked about the leagueâ??s expansion plans.

Despite a recent report that the Big Ten has already invited Notre Dame, Nebraska, Missouri and Rutgers to join the league, Delany reiterated Tuesday during the Big Tenâ??s annual spring meetings that he will continue to follow the timetable of 12 to 18 months that he laid out in December.

Council approves Edgewater project

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Wisconsin State Journal

After a year of passionate, polarizing debate and a final marathon meeting, the Madison City Council approved the Hammes Co.â??s proposed $98 million redevelopment of the historic Edgewater hotel.

The council, after an eight-hour public hearing featuring an A list of movers and shakers, historic preservationists, hoteliers and residents, and four more hours of questions for staff and debate, cast five separate votes to move forward one of the most controversial developments in recent city memory.

Commissioner: Big Ten expansion ‘months away’

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Madison.com

CHICAGO — Donâ??t expect a decision on expansion anytime soon from the Big Ten. Commissioner Jim Delany is basically sticking with the timeframe he laid out in December, when he said the league would explore its options over the next 12 to 18 months. He says a decision is “months away.”

Suspended UW-Madison researcher served on key safety committee

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Wisconsin State Journal

A University of Wisconsin-Madison researcher sanctioned for unauthorized experiments was a member of the schoolâ??s biosafety committee.

Minutes of Institutional Biosafety Committee meetings show Professor Gary Splitter played a key role reviewing safety protocols for research involving the 1918 flu strain, chronic wasting disease, other viruses. He served on the panel between 2003 and 2006.

Kudos to Helen Vukelich and Cynthia Lin

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Capital Times

Congratulations to longtime Madison progressive leader Helen Vukelich and community organizer and advocate for the homeless Cynthia Lin for the honors bestowed on them this week by the Social Justice Center.

….Lin received the centerâ??s Visionary Award. As a young activist, she has served as a volunteer organizer with Operation Welcome Home, a group of people affected by homelessness. Sheâ??s also a board member of Freedom Inc., a group that does community organizing and anti-violence work in low-income communities of color.

Employed by the UW-Madisonâ??s Multicultural Student Center, she trains students on social justice, community organizing and social movement topics.

Campus Connection: Killing a program, unionizing and a proposition

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Capital Times

** Faculty at UW-Parkside voted Friday to take the unusual step of dissolving the institutionâ??s Teacher Education Department and suspending further admission to the schoolâ??s teacher preparation program. For those who donâ??t follow the world of academia, thatâ??s a drastic move.

** Faculty members at UW-Superior voted overwhelmingly to unionize and will now be represented by a campus chapter of the American Federation of Teachers. Gov. Jim Doyle gave members of the University of Wisconsin System the right to unionize last year when he signed the state budget. The vote at UW-Superior was the first on unionization within the UW System, but AFT has organizing drives under way at other institutions, with a vote upcoming at UW-Eau Claire.

** Is higher education a benefit an individual should pay for? Or is it a public good that should be supported by your tax dollars?

Big Ten Conference likely seeking universities that fit its identity in expansion talks

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Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Big Ten coaches and athletic directors, including Wisconsinâ??s Barry Alvarez, will gather Monday through Wednesday in Chicago. The annual spring meeting likely will further stoke interest in the leagueâ??s future, even though the commissioner, Jim Delany, has indicated that expansion could be a year away. But the Big Ten isnâ??t merely a sports league – it is an identity. Expansion, if it occurs, will have to be considered carefully. The perfect match doesnâ??t include only ability on the football field but excellence in the classroom and the research lab.

Storm Chasers: Cooperative Institute for Meteorological Satellite Studies or CIMSS

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Fifty one years ago the era of satellite meteorology began on the campus of the University of Wisconsin Madison.

Madison is the mecca of satellite meteorology, thanks to the genius of the late professor Verner Soumi. He was a true visionary who understood that in order to accurately forecast the weather, you need to be able to see whatâ??s going on, not just over population centers, but over oceans, glaciers and especially the tropics.

Scientist inspired by Dalai Lama studies happiness (AP)

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After hearing about his cutting-edge research on the brain and emotions through mutual friends, the Dalai Lama invited Richard Davidson to his home in India in 1992 to pose a question.

Scientists often study depression, anxiety and fear, but why not devote your work to the causes of positive human qualities like happiness and compassion? the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader asked.

“I couldnâ??t give him a good answer,” recalled Davidson, a University of Wisconsin-Madison neuroscientist.

Caps and gowns galore this weekend

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Capital Times

Let the commencements commence!

The rite of passage from undergraduate to graduate will keep both the Kohl Center and the Coliseum at Alliant Energy Center busy from Friday night through Sunday afternoon, as thousands of students get their diplomas from UW-Madison, Edgewood College and Madison Area Technical College.

UW-Madison kicks off the graduation ceremonies Friday at 5:30 p.m. at the Kohl Center, with doctoral, professional and honorary degrees being awarded. That will be the first of five commencements for roughly 6,000 UW-Madison graduates.

Bud Jordahl: conservationist, environmentalist, mentor to Wisconsinâ??s green leaders

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Capital Times

When Bud Jordahl was inducted into the Wisconsin Conservation Hall of Fame in 2005, a fellow member of the 1000 Friends of Wisconsin board, Steve Born, was asked to review the accomplishments of the former director of the agency that led to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.

Born did not have to wax poetic or pad the introduction of Jordahl, who has died in his 84th year. The basic details were more than sufficient to impress.

Campus Connection: Bogus degree mills a serious problem?

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Capital Times

A press release sent to my in-box Wednesday afternoon noted Gov. Jim Doyle signed Senate Bill 431 into law during a ceremony on the UW-Eau Claire campus.

The legislation, which prohibits the establishment of bogus degree mills or the use of false academic credentials in Wisconsin, was authored by Sen. Fred Risser D-Madison and Rep. Kim Hixson D-Whitewater.

“This legislation is designed to protect employers, consumers and the quality of higher education in the State of Wisconsin,” Hixson, a UW-Whitewater professor who serves as the Chairman of the Assembly Committee on Colleges and Universities, trumpeted in the release.

UW faces N.C. State in ACC/Big Ten Challenge

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Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Wisconsin coach Bo Ryan saw his basketball team go 2-0 against the Atlantic Coast Conference last season, with both victories coming against established powers that went on to play in the NCAA Tournament. Maryland fell to UW in a holiday tournament in Hawaii, and the Badgers upset eventual national champion Duke in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge in Madison. UWâ??s opponent in the 2010 ACC/Big Ten Challenge, North Carolina State, isnâ??t at that level.

Suspect in 1984 murder went on ‘reign of terror’

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Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

A man who is now suspected in a 1984 murder – but who remained free at the time after another man was sent to prison – went on a “reign of terror” shortly after the slaying and beat a man to death seven years later, court records show. The case shows how devastating a wrongful conviction can be, said Byron Lichstein, an attorney with the Wisconsin Innocence Project at the University of Wisconsin Law School.

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Vietnam vets to gather for â??welcome homeâ??: Are they ready to forgive?

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Capital Times

Youâ??ve got to understand what it was like here at home during the Vietnam War. How rapidly society was changing. How deep and broad opposition to the war grew and how sharp the backlash was. Soldiers returning from their time â??in countryâ? entered an altered landscape.

Quoted: UW-Madison professor of educational psychology Robert Enright, a pioneer in the study of forgiveness.

‘Hugging’ by phone just as good as being there, UW study finds

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Capital Times

A phone call from Mom could be chicken soup for the psyche, according to a study done on stressed kids and the effect a call or a hug can have.

Researchers at UW-Madison conducted the study, with the results published on Wednesday, the university news service said. A simple phone call or hug can release a stress-reducing hormone, with the effect lasting well beyond the immediate comfort right after the stressful event, the study showed.

Quoted: UW-Madison biological anthropologist Leslie Seltzer and psychology professor Seth Pollak

Can I get there from here? Summer road work to tie up campus traffic

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The traffic tie-up of the summer, hands down, should be the shutdown of Park Street from Johnson Street to University Avenue.

But thatâ??s only one of a half-dozen street projects beginning Monday in the UW-Madison campus area, projects that will cause a summer of headaches for commuters heading into and out of downtown from the west side.

The work centers around the final phase of the East Campus Utility Project, according to the UW-Madison facilities department.

Madison360: Why is the UW Athletic Department willing to give up a six-figure payday?

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Capital Times

UWâ??s athletic department is not exactly known for leaving money on the table. Just ask those compelled to make annual contributions to the Badger Fund to maintain seat locations and parking priority for Badger sports events.

That fact makes even more baffling the departmentâ??s refusal to accommodate the promoter, and more significantly, the big ticket-buying public, in rescheduling the Simon and Garfunkel concert.

Campus Connection: State privates boast of decrease in ‘net tuition’

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Capital Times

Frustrated with the ever-increasing costs of a college education?

The folks at the Wisconsin Association of Independent Colleges and Universities passed along an interesting tidbit: The “net tuition” tuition minus financial aid to attend a WAICU institution actually went down for 2008-09, the most recent year for which federal figures are available.

Listecki raised alarm over Marquette hiring

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Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Milwaukee Archbishop Jerome Listecki and the judicial vicar for the Archdiocese of Milwaukee separately raised red flags over Marquetteâ??s hiring of a Seattle University professor as Arts and Sciences dean. Listecki called Marquette President Father Robert A. Wild about the universityâ??s offer to Jodi Oâ??Brien after receiving calls from clergy and lay leaders, the archbishopâ??s spokeswoman said.

Campus connection: Nike’s victory, job outlook and Marquette’s PR blunder

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Capital Times

Time to catch up on a couple higher education-related items.

** Itâ??s been a month since UW-Madison cut ties with athletic apparel giant Nike due to alleged labor rights abuses at two factories in Honduras. Nike paid UW-Madison nearly $50,000 for the right to use the universityâ??s name or marks — such as Bucky Badger or the “motion W” — on apparel it made during the current academic year.

Anti-sweatshop activists were hopeful other universities would follow UW-Madisonâ??s lead and force Nike to reevaluate how it does business. However, a quick news search shows no one else has followed Buckyâ??s actions on this one — making Nike the clear winner. At least for now.

Our toxic bodies: Historianâ??s book explores chemicalsâ?? health effects

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Capital Times

Nancy Langston opens her new book with the story of UW graduate student Maria, who enjoyed what would seem to be an idyllic Wisconsin childhood.

On Fridays her family ate the local catch at the tavern fish fry; on hot summer days they splashed in the waters of Green Bay, where the Fox River empties into Lake Michigan.Yet, as in the horror movie â??Jaws,â? under those waters lurked a terrible menace. Not a great white shark. Something potentially far more dangerous: toxic waste.

(Langston is an environmental historian at UW-Madison.)

UW’s languishing jazz program is out of tune with the times

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Capital Times

As Rodney Dangerfield might say, jazz canâ??t get no respect at UW-Madison.

“Personally, I wouldnâ??t tell anyone who wants to study music to come to the UW,” says Alyssa Kroes, a graduating senior who majored in instrumental music education and played saxophone with the UW-Madison Jazz Orchestra. “I came here thinking this is a Big Ten school and the crown jewel of the UW System, but the lack of jazz opportunities and respect jazz gets really bothers me.”

Other students, local musicians and jazz instructors are similarly frustrated with what they regard as the universityâ??s withering commitment to jazz, which many view as Americaâ??s most important home-grown music genre.

Pro Arte readies to celebrate 100 years of music

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Wisconsin State Journal

When violist Sally Chisholm started playing with the Pro Arte Quartet nearly 20 years ago, she looked at her music and noticed the markings of the musicians that had come before.

â??I told Parry (Karp, the cellist), Iâ??m hesitant to erase anything in my part,â? Chisholm said. â??He said, â??No, no, no. We start anew each day. You take a fresh look at everything. You want to honor history, but you want to make new history every day.â??â?

Pro Arte has been the quartet in residency at the University of Wisconsin-Madison for 70 years.

Biz Beat: Replacing Charter St. coal plant not coming cheap

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Capital Times

Converting the aging coal-burning Charter Street Heating Plant into one of the greenest facilities of its kind is coming at a price.

The new facility, which received initial approval from the city Plan Commission Monday night, will have the capacity to burn wood chips, corn stalks or other biomass.

But including biomass in the fuel mix has added at least $50 million in cost to the estimated $250 million power plant, the most expensive single project in UW-Madison history.

UW lands shooting guard Ben Brust

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Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

The addition Friday of Mundelein (Ill.) High School senior guard Ben Brust adds the fourth and final player to the class and provides coach Bo Ryan and his staff a second combo guard less than two months after the departure of senior guards Trevon Hughes and Jason Bohannon.

On matters of personal finance, education is a two-way street

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Boston Globe

The financial teaching grade is in for teachers â?? and itâ??s not good.

Researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison surveyed K-12 educators and not surprisingly most instructors donâ??t think they are suitably trained to teach their students the basics of personal finance. The study, â??Teachersâ?? Background & Capacity to Teach Personal Finance,â??â?? was funded by the National Endowment for Financial Education.

The Dad Vail Regatta (Philadelphia Bulletin)

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The very first race, before the formation of the Dad Vail Rowing Association, was held in 1934, hosted by coach Rusty Callow and the University of Pennsylvania. Callow created a trophy as the competition prize and named it after Harry Emerson â??Dadâ? Vail in honor of his many years of coaching at the University of Wisconsin, Madison.

In response to a letter asking him why he gave this name to the original trophy, Callow replied: â??Dad Vail was a lovable character, entirely devoid of secretiveness or slyness, and with a great sense of natural humor. I recall one year observing that he was going up one side of the river in his coaching launch, and across the river, about half a mile away, rowed his Wisconsin crews. So I asked him: â??Dad, why do your crews go up one side of the river and you in your launch up the other? Your lads canâ??t hear anything you may say.â?? He replied, â??You know, Rusty, Iâ??ve found out through experience that the farther off they are, the better they look.â?? That was Dad Vail.â?

Cellular Dynamics licenses Japanese cell reprogramming technologies

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Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

The Madison company founded by stem cell pioneer James Thomson said Friday it has forged an agreement to use cell reprogramming technologies developed by a rival Japanese scientist.

Cellular Dynamics International Inc. negotiated a non-exclusive licensing agreement to use the techniques covered by Kyoto Universityâ??s patents on some of Shinya Yamanakaâ??s groundbreaking work. This makes the company, known as CDI, the first in the world to license key patents from both stem cell leaders involving an alternative to embryonic stem cells known as iPS, or induced pluripotent stem cells, CDI said.

UW’s Jefferson still on track off the field

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Madison.com

Call it what you will, enlightenment, a jolt of insight or simple maturity, but Kyle Jefferson is starting to see what he can do as a member of the University of Wisconsin menâ??s track and field team. Itâ??s an exciting sight to behold.

Jefferson is best known as a wide receiver for the football team, a senior-to-be who has caught 44 passes for 636 yards and two touchdowns in 34 games.

Dean to return to ag school post (The Country Today)

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Molly Jahn will be back at the helm as dean of the UW-Madison College of Agricultural and Life Sciences on June 1.

Jahn will return from an interim position at the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Washington, D.C., where she has been deputy undersecretary of research, education and economics since Nov. 9, 2009. She had been granted a one-year leave from her dean duties to accept the position.

“Itâ??s been very exciting. It has been an incredible opportunity,” Jahn said. “Itâ??s really been worth it. But I will be happy to get back to Wisconsin.”

Posted in Uncategorized

Property Trax: Best cities for recent college grads to live are ranked

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Wisconsin State Journal

A new survey says Atlanta, Phoenix, Denver, Dallas and Boston — in that order — are now the top five cities for new college graduates to live and find a job. The third annual survey from Apartments.com and CareerRookie.com based its findings on three criteria:

* Census data for cities with the highest concentration of young adults age 20 to 24.
* An inventory of jobs requiring less than one year of experience.
* And the average monthly cost of rent for a one-bedroom apartment.

Badgers part of field for Old Spice Classic

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Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Wisconsin officials on Thursday confirmed the UW menâ??s basketball team is scheduled to compete in the 2010 Old Spice Classic in Orlando, Fla. The tournament is scheduled for Nov. 25, 26 and 28 at the Milk House at Disneyâ??s Wide World of Sports Complex.

UW-Illinois football games moved

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Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Wisconsin has agreed with Illinois to push their Big Ten football matchups into December in 2011 and 2012. Wisconsin coach Bret Bielema said playing later in the season gives the teams more exposure and an advantage in bowl preparation.

Washington, UW star Voss dies at 76

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Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Itâ??s hard to overstate just how good an athlete Don Voss was.

In 1951, he was part of the University of Wisconsin football team and its famous “Hard Rocks” defense, the top defensive unit in the country. UW track coach Riley Best wanted Voss, too, asking football coach Ivy Williamson if Voss could skip spring football practice to compete as a hurdler.

Williamson gave the OK. Voss became an All-American in track.

Marquette on hot seat for rescinding job offer to lesbian

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Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Marquette University has pulled an offer to hire a new dean for the College of Arts and Sciences from a lesbian who has written scholarly works on gender and sexual orientation, a move that is sparking criticism from faculty and a protest by students.

A university spokeswoman said the decision to withdraw an offer to hire Seattle University professor Jodi Oâ??Brien wasnâ??t about her sexual orientation or the quality of her scholarship. It did have to do with some of Oâ??Brienâ??s published writings “relating to Catholic mission and identity,” Marquette spokeswoman Mary Pat Pfeil said.

UW women’s rowing: Bryans gets Big Ten honor

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Madison.com

Bebe Bryans was named Big Ten Coach of the year Wednesday after leading the University of Wisconsin womenâ??s rowing team to its first conference title.

Bryans is the first UW coach to win the award, but it is the third time she has received the honor. She also was lauded in 2000 and 2003 while at Michigan State.

UW Health denies it is dropping plans to offer second-trimester abortions

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Capital Times

The Attorney Generalâ??s Office is claiming that the UW has abandoned its plans to offer second-trimester abortions at the Madison Surgery Center. But UW Health issued a statement late Wednesday denying it had dropped its plans.

â??UW Health remains strongly committed to a comprehensive womenâ??s reproductive health service that includes this important procedure,â? the statement said. The statement was vague though on when or where this procedure would be offered.

University disputes attorney general on abortion (AP)

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WKOW-TV 27

MADISON, Wis. (AP) – University of Wisconsin Health is denying that it is dropping plans to offer abortions at a Madison clinic.

A letter sent Friday from an attorney with the state Department of Justice says that UW had abandoned its controversial plan to offer second-trimester abortions at the clinic. But on Wednesday, UW Health issued a statement saying that was not true. The statement says “UW Health remains strongly committed to a comprehensive womenâ??s reproduction health service that includes this important procedure.”

The board that oversees the clinic approved a plan to begin offering abortions there back in February 2009 but the services have not begun.

AGâ??s office says plans to offer second-trimester abortions at UW are off

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Capital Times

The attorney generalâ??s office is claiming that the UW has abandoned its plans to offer second-trimester abortions at the Madison Surgery Center.

UW Health officials would not comment verbally but have promised a written response by early afternoon Wednesday.

In an April 30 letter to Eau Claire attorney Karen Mueller, Assistant Attorney General Kevin Potter would not be pursuing a requested investigation into the surgery centerâ??s plan to offer abortions because of the facilityâ??s own change in plans.