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Author: knutson4

All-In Milwaukee guides hundreds of low-income students through college. It plans to eventually help thousands

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Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

College completion rates for low-income students and students of color remain dismal. About half of them earn a degree from the University of Wisconsin System within six years. Universities face tight budgets, Republican state lawmakers aim to eliminate diversity programs supporting first-generation students and students of color, and a U.S. Supreme Court ruling last year scrambled the college admissions landscape.

All-In Milwaukee partners with Alverno College, Carroll University, Marquette University, Milwaukee School of Engineering, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, UW-Milwaukee, UW-Whitewater and Wisconsin Lutheran College.

Project exploring contributions of Black LGBTQ+ people among three projects in Wisconsin awarded funding by NEH

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Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

University of Wisconsin-Madison was awarded a fellowship to research and write a book on European socialist politics in the context of economic decolonization.

The project title is Failed Globalists: European Socialists, the Global South, and the Struggle for Economic Decolonization, 1945–2008. Giuliana Chamedes, associate professor of history at UW-Madison, was awarded $30,000 in funding for the fellowship.

Dogs like to watch dogs on TV, new study by UW researcher finds

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Wisconsin Public Radio

Loss of vision over time is a particular interest for study author Freya Mowat, a veterinary ophthalmologist and professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine. Mowat studies how dogs’ vision declines over time and what factors contribute to it. She said that research may have applications for humans, as well.

“If we are finding risk factors for unhealthy dog aging, we may also find risk factors for unhealthy human aging — because we live with our dogs,” Mowat said.

Joint Finance holds public hearing on funding capital projects in DEI deal

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Wisconsin Examiner

The Wisconsin Legislature’s Joint Committee on Finance held a public hearing Thursday on legislation to provide funding for the UW System capital projects that were used as bargaining chips in the system’s debate with legislative Republicans late last year over diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs.

The bill would provide more than $400 million from the state’s general fund to pay for new campus buildings, renovations, additions and the demolition of aging infrastructure. The marquee project included in the bill is funding for a new engineering building at UW-Madison.

‘Like a chain reaction’: UW-River Falls grappling with fourth student death in 2 months

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MPR

About 5,000 students at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls will return to start the spring semester in a little over a week.

But junior Juliana Graff knows the campus is still hurting, especially after the death of Mason Crum. He was a junior studying finance. “I can’t really shake that feeling that this is going to continue, that there’s still going to be issues in this regard going forward, unless something changes,” said Graff.

What robotics means for the future of Wisconsin dairy farms

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PBS Wisconsin

No longer tied to milking cows herself twice a day, Hinchley says both she and her dairy cows are happier with the robotic milkers operating 24 hours a day.

“It’s not necessarily something that you would have to do in order to stay in the dairy business,” said Chuck Nicholson, a UW-Madison professor of animal and dairy sciences. He noted only about 8% of Wisconsin’s dairy farmers have implemented the new technology, typically family farms that want to save on labor costs. “The labor shortage is definitely a key motivating factor.”

In ‘unusual’ move, Wisconsin judge Vincent Biskupic orders man to pay restitution that county didn’t seek

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Wisconsin Watch

“This judge seems to be a very activist judge,” said John Gross, a clinical law professor at the University of Wisconsin Law School. “He seems to want to insert himself into the resolution of cases in ways that are often not appropriate, or at the very least, not authorized by any statute.”

Gross also raised concerns the restitution order, which directed money to the county that supported the victim after the assault, could set a dangerous precedent in which judges or district attorneys could use restitution to fill government coffers.

How do you get a rural doc? Launch a rural med school

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MinnPost

States and the federal government have made efforts to increase the number of health care providers. Wisconsin has a rural residency program and a loan assistance program to draw medical students to rural and other shortage areas. The University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Medicine and Public Health developed an urban program and a rural program, called the Wisconsin Academy for Rural Medicine, to increase enrollment to address shortages. And there’s the effort of the Medical College of Wisconsin to open up two satellite campuses with 50 enrollment spots.

Nearly 100 ancient dugout canoes found in Wisconsin so far

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Wisconsin Public Radio

In less than six years, the number of dugout canoes known to exist in Wisconsin rose from 11 to nearly 100. Locating and studying these vessels, ranging from about 150 to 4,000 years old, is the mission of the Wisconsin Dugout Canoe Survey Project. Interview with Sissel Schroeder, a professor of anthropology with a specialization in archaeology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison whose lab hosts the Wisconsin Dugout Canoe Survey Project which she heads up with state maritime archaeologist Tamara Thomsen.

COVID-19 cases continue to increase, vaccination lags and mask recommendations are back

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Wisconsin Examiner

The current increase in COVID-19 cases is a continuation of an increase in the illness that began in August and started to take off after children returned to school in September, said Ajay Sethi, an epidemiologist at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. The surge  also follows along with other respiratory viruses, although its pattern is not identical, he added.

“For someone who has symptoms for a respiratory virus infection, they may not have COVID-19 — it could very well be influenza or could be RSV,” Sethi said Thursday. Wherever they are given, “COVID tests are still useful, because it would be nice to know what virus you might have.”

Better schizophrenia treatment is out there—what’s standing in the way?

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Wisconsin Public Radio

Studies show that early intervention and integrated, team-based mental health services are an effective way to treat schizophrenia. However, many patients still can’t access the new approach to care. We talk to Ronald Diamond, a professor emeritus of psychiatry at UW-Madison and former medical director of the Mental Health Center of Dane County, about what’s standing in the way of patients getting the treatment they need.

Attempt to recall Speaker Robin Vos could face roadblock with Supreme Court redistricting ruling

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Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

“That language is pretty categorical, so my sense is that no recall election could be held until new maps are adopted or the court takes some other authorizing action,” Robert Yablon, a professor at the University of Wisconsin Law School who specializes in election and constitutional law, said.

Totaled car guide: Key things to know in 2024

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WalletHub

“When many talk about ‘totaling a car,’ it is often taken to mean that the car is a total wreck and cannot be salvaged, certainly not driven. However, in the insurance world, ‘totaling’ is when the insurer declares the book/cash value (e.g., Blue Book Value) of the car just before the accident is less than the costs of covered repairs from the accident,” says Karen C.A. Holden, professor emeritus, Department of Consumer Science and Public Affairs, University of Wisconsin – Madison Institute on Aging.

Madison cleans up after Tuesday snowfall

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Spectrum News

Prageeshwar Chandran, a graduate student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, was up bright and early to experience the snow.

He’s an international student from India and said he had never experienced a big snowfall before.

“The last time there was a winter storm in Madison, I wasn’t here; I was in Chicago,” Chandran said. “So, I didn’t know what went down here. But this is the first time, and I don’t think it bothered me too much. I think everyone worked tirelessly around the clock.”

‘Gain of function’ research prohibition bill receives public hearing

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Wisconsin Examiner

A bill that would prohibit higher education institutions in Wisconsin from conducting “gain of function” research on “potentially pandemic pathogens” received a public hearing on Wednesday.

The bill — AB 413 — was introduced by Rep. Elijah Behnke (R-Oconto) and Sen. André Jacque (R-DePere), who cited several incidents at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and controversy over the origins of COVID-19.

Nearly 1 in 10 teens worldwide have used ineffective and potentially harmful weight-loss products, study estimates

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CNN

Dr. Paula Cody, medical director of adolescent medicine at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, warned about the dangers of diet pills and supplements more than six years ago after hearing enough patients ask about supplements to lose weight or gain muscle — and the issue has only grown.

“The incidence of eating disorders has increased pretty dramatically after the pandemic. We’ve seen the numbers skyrocket,” she said. “So I do think that the concern I had before, which was not a small matter then — I’m even more concerned now.”

Wisconsin AD Chris McIntosh stresses importance of new football practice facility as donations reach more than 80% of goal

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Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

According to University of Wisconsin officials, a total of $62.5 million has been raised for funding the new football indoor practice facility adjacent to Camp Randall Stadium.

That amount, bolstered by a $20 million commitment from alums Ted and Mary Kellner, is 83.3% of UW’s goal of $75 million. The fundraising efforts started in late October.

PolitiFact: Did Democrats want to expand slavery pre-Civil War, while Republicans opposed it?

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Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Kathryn McGarr, an associate professor in the School of Journalism & Mass Communication at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, who is also affiliated with the Department of History, pointed out the regional differences too, and then that there has been a shift since the Civil War for both of the parties. One example is the stance on equal rights.

“At the time of the Civil War, most members of what was then called the Democratic party supported slavery, and most members of what was then the newly formed Republican Party were anti-slavery,” she wrote in a December 28, 2023 email. “But what each party stood for has shifted dramatically over time, with the biggest realignments occurring in the middle of the Twentieth Century over civil rights. So someone like the segregationist senator Strom Thurmond was a Democrat until 1964 when he switched affiliation to the Republican Party.”

Herb Kohl rose to heights of power. You could run into him at George Webb diner.

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Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Kohl gave a lot of money away. Like… a lot. He put Kohl in the Kohl Center at his alma mater, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, by donating $25 million to get it built. Twenty years later, he put up $100 million to build a new stadium for the Bucks, now known as the Fiserv Forum. And he gave over $50 million in grants and scholarships to teachers, schools and programs throughout Wisconsin.

UW-Madison technology used to research early brain development

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WORT FM

Stem cell biologists are gaining new insight into the human brain — thanks to technology developed at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Dr. Randolph Ashton is the associate director of UW-Madison’s Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine Center and says they can use that research to screen for numerous conditions like spina bifida and autism; and, according to Dr. Ashton, RosetteArray technology could eventually help scientists develop more specific medical treatments – and perhaps even a cure. When it comes to medical ethics, he says his primary concern is the prohibitive cost of such treatment.

Bice: Ex-candidate Greg Gracz runs for office again 32 years after allegations he exposed himself

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Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Gracz declined to criticize the mayor or the Common Council. But he emphasized that he has a business degree from Marquette University, was a union leader for 20 years, spent seven years on the University of Wisconsin Board of Regents, did labor negotiations for the county and was head of employee relations for the state.

Scientists scrutinize happiness research

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Knowable Magazine

Simon Goldberg, a psychologist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, studies the effects of meditation, including research among people who have psychological problems such as depression and anxiety. He noted that because of Dunn and Folk’s strict criteria, they omitted hundreds of studies on meditation’s benefits. “It’s, in the spirit of rigor, throwing lots of babies out with the bathwater,” he says. “It’s really very obvious that meditation training reduces symptoms of anxiety and depression.”

Why you can be jailed for ‘failure to pay’ in Wisconsin

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Wisconsin Public Radio

For more than 150 years, debtors prisons have been illegal in the United States. However, that restriction only applies to private debts; a recent study found that between 2005 and 2018, eight thousand Wisconsin residents were jailed for failing to pay court debts each year. We talk to John Gross, director of the Public Defender Project at UW Law School, about the causes and consequences of modern-day debt imprisonment.

Lawmakers consider ranked choice voting proposal

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Spectrum News

“Ranked choice voting doesn’t have an obvious partisan advantage in places where it’s been implemented. It hasn’t helped the Democrats or the Republicans in any consistent fashion,” said Barry Burden, a political science professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. “But it’s become sort of a folk wisdom in Republican circles that ranked choice voting is a plan by Democrats to help them do better in elections and to hurt Republicans. I don’t know where that has come from exactly.”

How different legislative proposals could help payday loan borrowers

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Wisconsin Public Radio

We assess several bills working through the Wisconsin legislature that would seek to reform predatory — yet legal — payday loan operations, including one that could cap interest rates, and another that would expand the definition of a “payday loan.” Interview with Sarah Orr, clinical professor and director of the Consumer Law Clinic at the University of Wisconsin Law School.

How Wisconsin parents are protecting kids’ mental health from social media — without banning their phones

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Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Megan Moreno is a University of Wisconsin adolescent medicine physician and co-medical director of the American Academy of Pediatrics’ Center of Excellence on Social Media and Youth Mental Health. She often warns parents against romanticizing their own methods of socialization as adolescents over what their kids do to make and keep friends.

“I have a 16-year-old and an 18-year-old, and one thing I think a lot about is checking my own biases of how they’re supposed to be spending their time,” Moreno said.

Wisconsin stars on Hollywood Walk of Fame, from Liberace to Chris Farley to Willem Dafoe

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Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Born in Kenosha, Don Ameche went to Marquette University and the University of Wisconsin before getting into acting. He received his star in 1960, part of the initial 1,500-plus awarded when the Walk of Fame formally opened. A quarter-century later, Ameche won an even bigger honor — an Oscar for best supporting actor for the 1986 movie “Cocoon.”

If you’re having a health insurance dispute in Wisconsin, these organizations may be able to help

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Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Covering Wisconsin, a program of the University of Wisconsin-Madison Division of Extension, helps people sign up for and understand their health insurance.

The program’s GetCovered Connector Tool can connect you with a local health insurance expert via Zoom, phone, or in person. The experts can provide advice on applications, appeals, coverage issues and more.

How did the Dobbs decision affect the birth rate in Wisconsin?

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Wisconsin Public Radio

In an opinion column in the Wisconsin State Journal, two University of Wisconsin-Madison professors wrote that the additional births caused harm to Wisconsin communities.

“Dobbs is just the latest abortion restriction to harm Wisconsinites, especially low-income Wisconsinites,” wrote Tiffany Green, associate professor of population health sciences and obstetrics, and gynecology, and Jenny Higgins, director of the Collaborative for Reproductive Equity. “In our role as scientists and public health professionals, we conclude that the evidence is clear: Restrictions and policies in our state that make abortion inaccessible and unaffordable harm the health and well-being of Wisconsin families

UW-Madison researcher shows spike in early births linked to COVID-19 infections declined as more people were vaccinated

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Wisconsin Public Radio

At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, many health experts were concerned about the new disease’s impact on older adults and people who are immunocompromised.

Jenna Nobles, sociology professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, was interested in another potentially vulnerable group – pregnant people.

“We know that emerging infectious diseases can be extremely consequential for pregnancies, both people who are carrying the pregnancies and the infants who are born from them,” Nobles said.

PFAS lawsuits involve complex science and law, but settlements can be worth millions

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Wisconsin Public Radio

Quoted: “There can be some ability to trace that, because each company would be producing, potentially, different types of PFAS that could be linked back to them,” said Steph Tai, a law professor and associate dean of the Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, an expert on environmental law.

Bipartisan bills aim to reform payday loans in Wisconsin

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Wisconsin Public Radio

“There are companies out there lending to Wisconsin consumers at really just exorbitant interest rates. I mean, I’ve seen 400 percent, 300 percent APRs,” said Sarah Orr, director of the University of WIsconsin-Madison Law School’s Consumer Law Clinic.

“And although the repayment terms are more like an installment loan, they’re really just terrible financial traps for people,” Orr continued. “A person who gets one of these products really spells ruin. I don’t know any other way to express it.”

Study: Lack of childhood nurturing linked to accelerated aging

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Wisconsin Public Radio

A new study by a researcher at the University of Wisconsin-Madison found that a lack of nurturing as a child is associated with accelerated aging later in life. The research looks at changes to a person’s genome that have been linked to their environment or behaviors — what’s called epigenetics. These markers can indicate a person’s biological age, or how much their body has aged physically.

Lauren Schmitz, professor at UW-Madison’s La Follette School of Public Affairs, said the field of research around these epigenetic changes is still new because data is limited. Studies require both survey data on people’s health experiences and a blood sample.

Republicans likely to take Wisconsin gerrymandering case back to the U.S. Supreme Court

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Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

In order to get the U.S. Supreme Court to look at the case, the Legislature and its allies will need to make the argument that there was a violation of federal law. That’s because, explained Rob Yablon, University of Wisconsin Law School professor and co-director of the State Democracy Research Initiative, the core legal claim in the case — contiguity — is a matter of state law.

The case brought to the court argued the maps violate Wisconsin’s Constitution because some legislative districts include pieces of land that are not connected. “The Wisconsin Supreme Court has the last word on state law questions,” Yablon said.