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Author: jplucas

How Suite It Isn�t: A Dearth of Female Bosses

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New York Times

LIKE so many other women who entered corporate America in the 1970s, Carol Bartz simply wanted to make a little money. She did not harbor secret desires to run her own company or become chief executive of a large corporation. She just wanted to do a good job.
After working her way through college at the University of Wisconsin in Madison as a cocktail waitress (required uniform: red miniskirt, black fishnets and red feather in hair), Ms. Bartz graduated with a computer science degree in 1971. Tall, blonde, boisterous and ambitious, she entered the work force at a time when the promise of new professional opportunities for women was in the air.

Degrees conferred, with UW alum Ben Karlin on hand

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Wisconsin State Journal

Emmy and Peabody award-winner Ben Karlin told UW-Madison graduates Sunday he has a lot in common with them.
Karlin, 35, announced recently that at the end of the month, he’ll be leaving his position as executive producer of Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show” and “The Colbert Report” and hasn’t given many specifics about what he’ll do next.

Colleges Helping Students Pick Majors (AP)

Posted on
Guardian (UK)

DAYTON, Ohio (AP) – Maureen Fitzgerald wanted to find out what she was good at before declaring a major at the University of Dayton. So she took communications, philosophy, history, English, among other courses.

She’s still looking.

Winter Graduates Enter Best Job Market In Years

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WISC-TV 3

MADISON, Wis. — University of Wisconsin-Madison graduated around 1,600 students during winter commencement ceremonies on Sunday. As graduates walked down the aisle, they were also walking into one of the best job markets in more than four years.

WISC-TV spoke with several graduates who all had at least two job offers, some more.

“Management, real estate, risk management, insurance, they’re all majors in demand,” said Career Center director Steve Schroeder.

Police Make Arrest In Downtown Madison Sexual Assaults

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WISC-TV 3

MADISON, Wis. — Police said they have arrested a man who has been sought in connection with two sexual assaults in downtown Madison.

City and University of Wisconsin-Madison police said they jointly captured the 31-year-old Madison man at about 2 p.m. on Friday without incident.

Police said the man is believed to be connected to sexual assaults on Nov. 29 and Dec. 9.

Spam Surge

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WKOW-TV 27

Meg McCall with the University of Wisconsin Information Technology department likens it to a technology arms race. She said UW’s servers that handle e-mail accounts for 80,0000 people are almost full. “It is getting near capacity,” said McCall. “I think we have the ability to process about six to seven million message a day, and so we are getting up to that point.” McCall said about 80-percent of the e-mail at UW is spam.

Rob Kohlhepp with the campus’s engineering department said as long as spammers keep making money, there will always be spam. “We just bought servers last year, they were not very busy at all, now we’re seeing that they’re busy,” said Kohlhepp.

Aaron’s House

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WKOW-TV 27

Aaron Meyer was just 18 when he died. In the months before his death, Aaron had overcome a drug addiction. His parents say he envisioned his future supporting other college-aged recovering addicts.

His dream was cut short, but next month Aaronââ?¬â?¢s father, Tom Meyer, will close on “Aaron’s House,” a place where young men can live while transitioning from recovery to college.

Police Arrest Suspect In Downtown Sexual Assaults

Posted on
NBC-15

Madison: One man is in custody for a pair sexual assaults, but another rapist may still be on the loose.

Authorities believe 31-year-old Antonio Pope may be responsible for two attacks downtown. One happened November 29th on Observatory Drive and the other happened December 9th along North Carroll Street.

UW SafeRide Low On Funds

Posted on
NBC-15

“When you don’t have a car and you’re at the library until 2 in the morning, you can always call Saferide and you can always catch the bus,” says UW student Cari Schulman.

You can call SafeRide, but you might not get through.

“all of our lines are curently busy. please call back in a couple of minutes.”

An Ominous Milestone: 100 Million Data Leaks

Posted on
New York Times

On Thursday, Kevin Poulsen, senior editor for Wired News, noted in his blog (blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/), a milestone in the number of records that have been compromised in data breaches since the ChoicePoint breach nearly two years ago:

ââ?¬Å?Rapid-fire announcements this week by U.C.L.A. (800,000 records) and Aetna (130,000) moved the total to the threshold, when Boeing revealed yesterday that a laptop recently stolen from an employeeââ?¬â?¢s car contained names, Social Security numbers and other data on 382,000 current and former employees of the aerospace giant ââ?¬â? bringing the total to a grim 100,152,801 records (as of this post).ââ?¬Â

Animal farm (Isthmus)

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Isthmus

It�s a week or so before Halloween, and I�m driving out to see Sue Medaris on her farm near Daleyville. The sky can�t seem to decide whether it wants to rain or not, and although Sue gave me pretty clear instructions on how to get there, it�s not long before I�m lost.

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Bibles Replacing Beer On College Campuses (CBS News)

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CBSNews.com

You don’t have to look far to see why the University of Wisconsin makes the Top 10 list of party schools year after year, CBS News correspondent Kelly Cobiella reports. A trip down popular State Street says it all.

But these days, another kind of bingeing is catching on, one that is less about beer and more about the Bible.

UW gets $5 million grant

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Wisconsin State Journal

UW-Madison has been named one of nine new Kauffman Campuses and will receive a $5 million grant to help make entrepreneurship education a campuswide opportunity, rather than just for business students.

Confronting roommate issues can be a sticky proposition.

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Wisconsin State Journal

With the end of UW-Madison’s fall semester imminent, many students, and more specifically roommates, are settling into their ways.

Perhaps your roommate’s peanut butter-covered knives have been resting on the kitchen counter for weeks, your favorite pair of earrings are missing or the $60 you lent her at the beginning of September for textbooks has yet to be repaid.

Doyle Cool On Free Tuition Idea (WPR)

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Wisconsin Public Radio

(EAU CLAIRE) Governor Jim Doyle says he�s skeptical whether Wisconsin can afford a plan to offer free tuition to University of Wisconsin system students who pledge to work in Wisconsin five to ten years after graduation. He notes 80 percent of UW graduates already stay in Wisconsin. He says offering free educations to that many people would be a heavy financial burden.

UW coaches take a pass on Chavez events

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Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Little-known municipal judge wannabe Phil Chavez appeared to have scored a major coup when legendary Badger football coach Barry Alvarez and Bret Bielema, Alvarez’s hand-picked successor, agreed to host a couple of fund-raisers, including Chavez’s kickoff event at a popular south side eatery.

Safe Ride Strapped for Cash

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NBC-15

Programs aimed at keeping UW students safe are having a hard time keeping up with demand.

The recent attacks on or near campus are leading to an increase in calls for services like Safe Ride or Safe Walk and students who work for those programs have a message for those who might be abusing them.

Lampert Smith: Some gifts are just what we didn’t want

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Wisconsin State Journal

Yippee! They’d be getting a new chairman of the Assembly Committee on Colleges and Universities. They happily ripped open the shiny new package, only to find inside the Legislature’s version of the killer Chucky doll: Rep. Stephen Nass, R- Whitewater.

Barrows moves toward suing UW

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Wisconsin State Journal

Paul Barrows may have announced his retirement from UW-Madison, but his business with the university is far from concluded.
On Tuesday, the former UW- Madison administrator was denied his $124,521 claim for damages by the state Claims Board in a 4-0 decision, with one member recusing himself.

Posted in Uncategorized

Barrows Retires From UW, Still Pursues Legal Action

Posted on
WISC-TV 3

MADISON, Wis. — Embattled University of Wisconsin-Madison administrator Paul Barrows has retired from the university but is still pursuing legal action.The former vice chancellor for student affairs came under fire after collecting his $191,000 salary during seven months of unpaid leave in 2004.

Wisconsin star Tucker breathing confidence

Posted on
USA Today

There were times last season when Wisconsin’s Alando Tucker could barely catch his breath. Doctors warned him he would struggle when he declined to have surgery immediately to repair his septum after he broke his nose against Wake Forest in his fifth game. Tucker, who missed almost the entire 2003-04 season because of a foot injury and wasn’t about to risk missing another, told his doctors he would wait until after the season.

UW Students Want SAFE Walk To Expand

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WKOW-TV 27

After two random sexual assaults on campus, students are hoping the SAFE-walk and safe ride programs can expand.

The programs offer escorted walks home and rides for students after dark – students want the program to expand to later hours. But the safe program says increased demand already has them stretched to their limit and that change cannot come overnight.

Barrows’ Disability Retirement

Posted on
WKOW-TV 27

Controversial UW-Madison administrator Paul Barrows has cleaned out his desk.

But Barrows’ retirement does not end his struggle over money.

27 News has uncovered Barrows, who at 54 is too young to take standard retirement, has been granted early retirement by state officials because of a disability.

Background Check Policy Could Put UW At Risk (WPR)

Posted on
Wisconsin Public Radio

(OSHKOSH) State legislators say they’re keeping a watchful eye on the University of Wisconsin systemââ?¬â?¢s new procedure for doing criminal background checks on job applicants. State Representative Scott Suder (R-Abbotsford) applauds the UW system for its new background check policy. He says drug dealers, child molesters, and murderers have no place in institutions with large numbers of young adults.

The Reality of Rape

Posted on
NBC-15

Stranger-danger is top of mind after the recent UW student attacks. But, statistics show the true threat lies elsewhere. One in four women will know what it’s like to be sexually assaulted–as many as 90-percent will know their attacker.
“The image we have in our heads is that stranger that grabs you off the streets or breaks into your home,” says Kelly Anderson

Joy Cardin: UW tuition plan (WPR)

Posted on
Wisconsin Public Radio

A new proposal would give UW students free tuition if they stay and work in Wisconsin for ten years. But how much would it cost the state? Joy Cardin and her guest talk about whether the idea is too costly, or if it could trigger an economic boom.

Guest: Philip Trostel, visiting scholar, Wisconsin Center for the Advancement of Postsecondary Education. Professor of economics and public policy, Univeristy of Maine. (Audio.)

Close Wisconsin’s economic divide

Posted on
Wisconsin State Journal

When state and local leaders look at the economic gap between Dane County and the rest of Wisconsin, they should hear an alarm.
While Dane County is riding the trends of a new economy forward to generate more jobs and higher incomes, much of the rest of the state is foundering.

Editorial: Bold tuition idea is bad idea for state (Appleton Post-Crescent)

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Appleton Post-Crescent

There’s a common misperception that unusual ideas are good ideas. If it’s something people have never heard before, they’re more likely to greet a concept with a smile than the scowls they reserve for the same old status quo.

Unfortunately, while thinking outside of the box is good, that doesn’t necessarily mean the thoughts themselves are always good. That’s why the proposal of tying free tuition in the University of Wisconsin system to a state residency pledge sounds great but is actually a bad idea all around.

EDITORIAL: Bold thinking. What’s the cost? (Beloit Daily News)

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THE PROBLEM HAS been expressed in many ways, such as a ââ?¬Å?brain drain,ââ?¬Â or the notion that ââ?¬Å?Wisconsin’s biggest export is its educated young people.ââ?¬ÂSo we applaud a study panel’s bold idea to examine whether Wisconsin should offer free college tuition in exchange for students agreeing to stay and work at least 10 years in the state after graduation.

Shafted by the glass elevator (The Australian)

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Projects are springing up that bring to light men’s unfair advantage in the field of science.

For example, the Women in Science and Engineering Leadership Institute at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in the US runs workshops for faculty chairmen of search committees. Part of the aim of these workshops is to point out the tendency we all have to take an unfairly doubtful view of women’s achievements and abilities. Promisingly, science departments that sent at least one faculty member to such a workshop ended up with a 19 per cent increase in new female assistant professors, compared with a dismal 23 per cent decline in departments that did not participate.

New stem cell company an early mover

Posted on
Wisconsin Technology Network

Madison, Wis. – It’s not too early to gauge the level of investor interest in Stemina Biomarker Discovery, Inc., a new company formed by Beth Donley and University of Wisconsin-Madison stem cell scientist Gabriela Cezar.

Obituary: E. David Cronon (Oshkosh Northwestern)

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MADISON ââ?¬â?? E. David Cronon, the son of Edmund D. Cronon and Florence Meyer Cronon, passed away at age 82 on December 5 after a brief illness. Born in Minneapolis on March 11, 1924, he served in the Philippines during World War II and rose to the rank of 1st Lieutenant.

Barrows Appeals For $ 211 Per Day Compensation

Posted on
WKOW-TV 27

UW-Madison administrator Paul Barrows is appealing to the state Claims Board for more than $100,000 in compensation.

Chancellor John Wiley demoted Barrows in 2005 from his $191,000 job, over sexual harassment.

Posted in Uncategorized

Student Government Group Offers New Safety Recommendations

Posted on
WISC-TV 3

MADISON, Wis. — A University of Wisconsin-Madison student government group is pushing for changes to make students safer on campus.

After a year-long examination, Associated Students of Madison released a series of safety recommendations on Tuesday. The ASM report comes amid heightened safety awareness among students, staff and police because of two sexual assaults on UW students in the past month.

ASM campus safety intern Kelly Arendt said that students want a neighborhood watch program. UW fraternities and sororities have been conducting bar-time walks, which are popular among students. ASM leaders said that they want the program expanded campus wide, WISC-TV reported.

Commission Discusses Free Tuition Plan

Posted on
NBC-15

A UW commission says the idea of free tuition is worth more discussion.

The proposal would provide free tuition for all students in the UW System who agree to live and work in Wisconsin for 10-years after earning a bachelor’s degree.

Republican Appointment Problematic For UW

Posted on
Wisconsin Public Radio

(MADISON) The legislature’s most vocal critic of the University of Wisconsin System will chair the state Assembly’s higher education committee in the upcoming session. Whitewater Republican Steve Nass has at times been a thorn in the side of the UW, but he says it’s always been for good reason. Nass has criticized the University for a 26-million dollar contract that went awry; for offering backup appointments to some employees; and for hiring instructor Kevin Barrett, who says the federal government helped orchestrate the 9-11 attacks.

Weighing the Costs in Public vs. Private Colleges

Posted on
New York Times

As parents and students cope with the ever-rising cost of higher education, many debate whether attending private institutions � which charge far more than public universities � is worth the expense. Is the quality of the education better? Will students have more access to their professors? Will those professors be more distinguished? Do students make important contacts that pay off later in life? Are any such advantages worth going deeply into debt?

Democrats’ Plan to Hold Spending at ’06 Levels Will Eliminate Earmarks, Cost Academe in Other Ways

Posted on
Chronicle of Higher Education

Federal spending for student aid and scientific research in the 2007 fiscal year will be frozen at last year’s levels, and most academic earmarks will be eliminated, under a plan announced on Monday by chairmen of the Congressional appropriations committees. College lobbyists and a senior Democrat said that there remained a slim chance for some increases in education programs.

From Bad to Worse (Inside Higher Ed)

Posted on
Inside Higher Education

The 2007 federal budget was never destined to be a great one for higher education, given the strict spending limits imposed by Congress and the government�s generally penurious financial climate.

But the outlook took a fairly drastic turn for the worse late Monday, when Democratic leaders announced that they would essentially punt on the 2007 budget process that the Republican-led 109th Congress had begun, opting instead for a yearlong ââ?¬Å?continuing resolutionââ?¬Â that will for the vast majority of federal programs adopt the spending levels set in the 2006 budget. Congress finished work on only two of the appropriations bills, those for the Departments of Defense and Homeland Security.