MADISON, Wis. – Eric Hansen, the University of Wisconsin head coach for menââ?¬â?¢s and womenââ?¬â?¢s swimming, has reconfirmed his commitment to the Badger programs.
Hansen Confirms Commitment to Badgers
UWBadgers.com
Author: jplucas
Harvard Commits $50M for Women Faculty (AP)
Yahoo! News
BOSTON – Harvard University will spend $50 million over the next decade to support initiatives on women scientists and faculty that were recommended Monday by two task forces formed in the wake President Lawrence Summers’ comments on female aptitude in science and math.
Vote on Bone Care sale is June 30
Wisconsin State Journal
Quoted: Jim Seward, finance professor at the UW- Madison School of Business.
Dozens buy doors, windows from state Capitol
Star Tribune
MADISON, Wis. (AP) – Joe Kallas got a state senator’s office door for $100. John and Chris Schneider spent $200 on windows and light fixtures. Sonya Newenhouse went home with $750 worth of office decorations.
Kallas, the Schneiders and Newenhouse were among the dozens of treasure hunters, antique collectors and plain old deal-seekers who descended on a warehouse Saturday to buy a piece of Wisconsin history. State officials hung the “for sale” sign on three truckloads of stuff torn out of the state Capitol during restorations that wrapped up in 2003.
TABOR debate spreads
Colorado, a concerned citizen in Oklahoma writes, is a land of crippled job growth, low immunization rates and poorly funded classrooms: “Its universities are in shambles.”
Colorado, a Wisconsin state representative writes, is a land of student excellence, a booming economy and low crime: “Their university system is highly regarded.”
9/11 runs deep for class of ’05 (AP)
Four years ago, the class of 2005 arrived on campus like any other group of freshmen – eager and a little nervous.
Then, just a few days into their college careers, came the terrible jolt of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Some were shuffling in and out of morning classes when the news hit, followed by the realization they would have to confront a suddenly scarier world away from home, in the company of unfamiliar faces.
Back home again (Des Moines Register)
Quoted: William Aquilino , a professor in human development and family studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Legislatures Grapple with ‘Conscience Laws’ (NPR Weekend Edition)
National Public Radio
Quoted: Alta Charo, a professor of bioethics at the University of Wisconsin Law School. (Audio)
Obituary: Schroeder, Evelyn
Madison.com
Evelyn and Henry operated a retail business in Prairie du Sac and Sauk City for many years, followed by employment at the University of Wisconsin Hospital, Madison, until retirement.
Best institutes turn a service into a prized draw for future students (Financial Times)
Financial Times
High standards in food and accommodation are a vital part of the package in the executive education market, but there are many ways to fry an egg when it comes to providing a service.
“It’s a complete requirement, if you want to be highly regarded in executive education, that food and accommodation are first rate,” says Ted Beck, associate dean at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Business.
Baffling diseases emerging from Africa (Baltimore Sun)
Seattle Times
Quoted: Jonathan Patz, an expert on the link between disease and ecology who divides his time between the University of Wisconsin and the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
UW student abducted by man with gun, sexually assaulted (WSJ, 5/15/05)
A UW-Madison student was abducted and sexually assaulted by an armed man while walking home on campus along Observatory Drive early Saturday morning.
Snake’s mojo can kill appetite (Newsday)
Newsday
Quoted: Veterinarian Ronald Schultz of the University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine at Madison, one of the nation’s most respected veterinary immunologists.
Getting a degree in ‘Mortal Kombat’ (ZDNet.com)
Quoted: Kurt Squire, an assistant professor at Wisconsin’s Madison campus and a veteran of a similar education-focused program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
NCAA ponders the future of Indian nicknames
USA Today
After wrestling with the politically delicate issue for more than four years, the NCAA may be close to rendering a verdict on the use of Native American mascots and nicknames ââ?¬â? from Indians and Braves to Redmen and Savages ââ?¬â? by 30 of its member universities.
Mascots create divisiveness on some campuses
USA Today
He was a no-show at college basketball’s Final Four last month in St. Louis, but make no mistake: Illinois’ headdress-bedecked Chief Illiniwek was not forgotten.
Space Place to get more space in new place (WSJ, 5/15/05)
For years, Madison residents and school children have had a unique place from which to study the stars and the planets and all the wonders of the heavens. It’s called Space Place and it is operated as the outreach arm of the UW-Madison astronomy department.
Bike racer’s death brings life to 5 organ recipients
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Matt Wittig didn’t know four years ago that his signature on his driver’s license would result in five strangers getting a chance to live longer. He couldn’t have known then, at the age of 16, that his death four years later would elevate him to hero status in the eyes of his family and of those strangers who needed organ transplants to have a chance at survival. The 5 strangers – 4 of them from southeast Wisconsin – received one or more of Wittig’s organs in transplant surgeries that occurred Friday, hours after his death Thursday.
Raise Puts Eaves Under Microscope
Wisconsin State Journal
As far as University of Wisconsin athletic director and football coach Barry Alvarez is concerned, Mike Eaves has already earned the right to be one of the highest-paid men’s college hockey coaches in the nation.
“You pay a guy what he’s worth,” Alvarez said. “I think he’s an elite coach.”
Push for Tuition Predictability
Chronicle of Higher Education
Year after year, Steve Munch has watched his tuition bill at the University of Kansas increase by double-digit percentages. He wants state policy makers to do something about it.
But Mr. Munch is not clamoring for lower rates. Instead, he is pressing for predictability — a goal increasingly being trumpeted by state and college leaders across the nation who are looking for better ways to manage the erratic ups and downs of tuition rates.
College Libraries Set Aside Books in a Digital Age
New York Times
HOUSTON, May 13 – Students attending the University of Texas at Austin will find something missing from the undergraduate library this fall.
Books.
ROWING: Pulling together
Wisconsin State Journal
Jessie Manfrin, armed with a megaphone, barks orders relayed to her from Mary Beth Blanding, coach of the Camp Randall Rowing Club’s juniors program.
“Quick, quick, short strokes. No layback, girls!” commands Manfrin, her amplified voice resonating along the shores of Lake Wingra near Vilas Park.
9th Game For Big Ten?
Wisconsin State Journal
Could the newly legislated 12th regular-season game for college football lead to a major change in the Big Ten Conference schedule?
University of Wisconsin athletic director and football coach Barry Alvarez said Friday that he has heard from ADs in the league who want to use the extra game for a ninth Big Ten assignment.
Professor stresses Midwest regional identity
Wisconsin State Journal
Instead of viewing economic development as a local issue, civic leaders in Madison, Milwaukee, Chicago and the Twin Cities ought to strengthen regional ties and work together to foster growth, according UW-Milwaukee urban planning professor Sammis White.
“It really is the Midwest against the rest,” he told a group of about 80 gathered Friday for a breakfast meeting sponsored by the UW-Madison Small Business Development Center. “If we want to succeed, we really need to take advantage of the strength that each of these areas have, and the Midwest as a whole has, in order to compete with other sections of the country.”
Eagle Heights gardens thrive on diversity
Wisconsin State Journal
At this time of year, the hill nestled between Frautschi Point, on Lake Mendota, and the Eagle Heights Apartments looks more like foreign lands than an area of Madison.
In May, before the hill is blanketed with sunflowers and greenery, evidence of the work to make it bloom and grow is in place. Women in burkas work beside people dressed for a day in the rice paddies of Asia. People in African djellabas crouch besides those in Bucky Badger T-shirts.
Chazen show spotlights work of Don Reitz
Wisconsin State Journal
As The-Art-Museum- Previously-Known-As-The- Elvehjem changes its name to the Chazen Museum of Art, exhibits remain open for business.
Fittingly, the headline show that bridges the name change is “Clay, Fire, Salt, and Wood,” which runs through June 5. The 74-piece retrospective traces the prolific life and works of Don Reitz, a former UW-Madison professor (1962- 1988) and downright legend in the ceramics world – not to mention the university’s art department.
Program helps workers take home more money
Wisconsin State Journal
As the woman listened to information about filing for earned income credit on her taxes, she couldn’t believe what she’d lost.
“I’ve been ripping myself off for three years,” she repeated several times. By refiling her tax forms, the woman gained $3,000 in tax credits.
She was part of a pilot project at a Staples call center in Massachusetts to increase the disposable income of poor workers. The project, which began Feb. 1, was a test run for a program sponsored by the UW-Madison Center on Business and Poverty.
Downtown, State Street have a different summertime flavor, crowd
Wisconsin State Journal
You might think that with 25,000 students leaving campus for summer, you’d be able to easily snag a seat in a sunburst chair on Memorial Union’s Terrace one balmy evening.
Probably not.
TIME IN THE SUN: UW-Madison graduates sport bright smiles
Wisconsin State Journal
Saturday morning, the recent spell of springtime overcast lifted to brighten the setting for another UW-Madison graduation.
The sun, which disappeared again later in the day, assured plenty of light for photos outside the Kohl Center and a pleasant walk for those graduates descending on the arena, robes flapping in the breeze, from other parts of campus.
Care on campus
Wisconsin State Journal
Like harried parents anywhere, many faculty, staff and students at UW-Madison need good quality, affordable and flexible child care.
And while there’s any number of places around town that could provide it, many people in the university community are looking for spots near their jobs.
UW-Madison operates eight centers in and around campus that serve about 500 children a week, from infants to 12-year-olds.
Sexual Assault on Campus
WKOW-TV 27
Madison police say a UW student was walking home at about 3:30 this morning when she was attacked. The suspect had a handgun, and allegedly forced the victim in his car and sexually assaulted her near a parking lot off
SAT Essay Scores Are In, but Will They Be Used?
New York Times
Three years after the College Board increased students’ anxieties with its decision to add a handwritten essay to the SAT, and three months after the test made its debut, many universities are still grappling with how, when and even if they will use the new scores.
California to Open University Despite Budget Woes
Washington Post
MERCED, Calif. — The high school seniors visiting the University of California campus here this spring got a typical sales pitch — about the small classes taught by top professors, the spacious living quarters, the exquisitely fresh food served by a dining hall that pipes in the hottest new music.
Anti-Sweatshop Group Grants ‘Accreditation’ to 6 Companies That Manufacture College-Licensed Gear
Chronicle of Higher Education
The Fair Labor Association, an anti-sweatshop group that includes nearly 200 colleges, endorsed the workplace-compliance programs of six major apparel and footwear companies on Thursday, saying their labor practices around the world met the group’s standards.
Anti-Israel campus activity rises (Jerusalem Post)
Jerusalem Post
Anti-Israel activity on US campuses this spring has been at its highest level since the outbreak of the second intifada and has successfully pushed through three divest-from-Israel resolutions, according to Israel on Campus Coalition (ICC) Executive Director Wayne Firestone.
In two state systems, Michigan and Wisconsin, a spate of resolutions yielded some victories for the pro-divestment camp.
Researcher removes Taser official as adviser (AP)
St. Paul Pioneer Press
MADISON, Wis. ââ?¬â? A Wisconsin researcher removed Taser International’s medical director as an adviser to a study of the safety of stun guns after critics said his invovement with the manufacturer tainted the research.
Obituary: Greene, Laurentine
Madison.com
She was a graduate of St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minn., and worked for many years in biological research for the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
What’s in a Nickname?
NBC-15
Quoted: Steve Malchow, of the UW’s Athletic Communications.
Conklin: Geraldo trumps Madison men
Wisconsin State Journal
Apparently when some Jewish parents want their daughters to find upstanding Jewish boys, they send them to the UW-Madison. At least that is what the Levys, a labor lawyer and an educator from Shaker Heights, Ohio, did for their daughter Erica Levy, according to the latest Atlantic magazine.
Texas and the 10% Plan (Inside Higher Ed)
Inside Higher Education
Texas appears likely to change its law guaranteeing the top 10 percent of graduates of state high schools admission to the public college of their choice ââ?¬â? though isnââ?¬â?¢t clear yet just how extensive the changes might be.
The changing face of college graduates
Wisconsin State Journal
Civil engineering major Nate Haugen was juggling four attractive job offers as classes at UW-Madison finished up this spring, but in the end he chose the company that would let him start late.
About two years late.
Haugen, 23, of Aurora, Ill., will join the Peace Corps first, building water systems and sanitation improvements in Central or South America. He does have to work six months for his new employer, M.A. Mortensen Co. in Minneapolis, before leaving – but even that commitment, to start in July, will come after a monthlong trip to Europe he begins Wednesday.
Surgery reduces prostate cancer deaths
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Quoted: David Jarrard, head of urologic oncology at the University of Wisconsin Comprehensive Cancer Center in Madison.
Not Gold
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Father Robert A. Wild, president of Marquette University, used a Vietnam War reference on Wednesday to explain what went wrong when the Board of Trustees adopted Gold as the new school nickname, only to face a torrent of criticism.
Resting heart rate may reveal risk of death
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Quoted: Patrick McBride, a professor of medicine at the University of Wisconsin Medical School in Madison.
Badgers’ bus tour to hit road in four cities
Wisconsin State Journal
For decades, University of Wisconsin Athletic Department officials and coaches spent their summers taking part in fund-raising golf outings across the state.
Penney pursuing NBA dream (TV New Zeland)
Tall Black shooting guard Kirk Penney is back in New Zealand taking some rare time off before he prepares to launch another assault on the NBA.
The staff dreams are made of (Nature)
Nature
Quoted: Christina Hull, a microbiologist and new investigator at the University of Wisconsin, Madison.
Letter: Two-year centers play important role
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
The May 8 editorial concerning the prospect of tying the two-year University of Wisconsin campuses to particular four-year campuses had some excellent ideas but was also discouraging (“Merge two campuses – if”). It brought forth that old lament of educators that young people never seem to learn from history.
Weedkiller opponents say your lawn can be healthy without pesticides (Cleveland Plain-Dealer)
Cleveland Plain Dealer
Quoted: Warren Porter, a professor of zoology and environmental toxicology at the University of Wisconsin at Madison.
Fairness of Taser study in question
USA Today
WASHINGTON ââ?¬â? An adviser to a federally funded study concerning the safety of stun guns made by Taser International also is a paid consultant to Taser, the Justice Department acknowledges.
Monitor says conditions improving at Boscobel prison (AP)
Duluth News
Quoted: Walter Dickey, a University of Wisconsin law professor.
Selling the Capitol, piece by piece
WKOW-TV 27
Wisconsin will sell away scraps of its history this weekend. This Saturday morning, people can purchase 90-year-old doors, light fixtures, exit signs and woodwork.
All used to grace the Capitol until the decade-long restoration which ended in 2003. The sale will run from 8 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the University of Wisconsin SWAP (Surplus with a Purpose) building, 2102 Wright Street.
State minimum wage hike expected
Wisconsin State Journal
After a year of haggling, Republican leaders of the state Legislature and Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle are in the heat of agreement over raising the state’s minimum wage.
The end result will look like this: Beginning June 1, the minimum will increase from $5.15 an hour to $5.70, then rise to $6.50 an hour on June 1, 2006.� Madison, which� approved a higher increase, will have to abide by the new statewide limits, a condition insisted upon by Republicans.
City should learn from Mifflin party
Wisconsin State Journal
This year’s Mifflin Street block party offers some lessons that should be applied to next year’s event:
� At the top of the list is the need for advance coordination with UW-Madison students.
This year Madison officials were caught unaware when the traditional day for the annual Mifflin Street party, the first Saturday in May, turned out to be the UW-Madison study day prior to final exams. Students responded by moving the party one week earlier.
Signs of success: Large Format Digital gets noticed
Wisconsin State Journal
Local examples of the company’s work can be seen on vehicles for TDS Metrocom, the UW-Madison Athletic Department, American TV & Appliance, Thorstad Chevrolet and Joseph Huber Brewing Co., which heard about Large Format Digital through its advertising agency.
UW Natural Areas have a new name
Wisconsin State Journal
Though they are old and beloved Madison landscapes, they now have a new name.
UW-Madison announced Wednesday that the woods, meadows and marshes along Lake Mendota – from Eagle Heights Woods on the western edge of campus all the way to Muir Woods and the Howard Temin Lakeshore Path – will be known as “The UW-Madison Lakeshore Nature Preserve.” The areas were known previously as the Campus Natural Areas.
Theft robs student of research
Wisconsin State Journal
Sarah Jane Alger, a doctoral student in zoology at UW- Madison, was at that point in her research all scientists long to reach.
She had collected her data, hundreds of songs of the European starling, and was about to begin analyzing them. She would listen for differences between the songs of breeding and non-breeding males.
It was time-consuming and tedious research that explored almost entirely new ground, according to Lauren Riter, an associate professor of zoology and Alger’s adviser. And the research is promising not only because it offers insights into bird songs and behavior but also into autism and communication in humans. Her work is being funded by the National Institutes of Mental Health.
Capitol history up for sale
Wisconsin State Journal
If these doors could talk, think of the stories they would tell.
Maybe the leather-covered oak door swung back and forth as politicians brokered backroom deals. Perhaps the oval window looked down on lawyers arguing before the Wisconsin Supreme Court.
Pieces from the state Capitol, from transom window frames to quarter-sawn oak trim, will be sold beginning Saturday at the UW-Madison SWAP Shop. Some items already have been offered in the shop’s online auction.
New UW master’s program ramps up to fill demand for biotech skills
Wisconsin Technology Network
Madison, Wis. ââ?¬â? The second-ever group of Master of Science in Biotechnology students will walk across the stage for their diplomas at the University of Wisconsin-Madison this weekend.
Eaves to get raise
Wisconsin State Journal
A major pay raise for University of Wisconsin men’s hockey coach Mike Eaves is likely to get final approval from school officials later this week.
The UW Athletic Board will meet Friday to consider a recommendation from its personnel committee that Eaves receive an upgraded compensation package, believed to be worth $250,000 annually, starting in 2005-06.