UW-Madison students showed their displeasure over a proposed split of the main campus from the UW system by staging a sit-in in Bascom Hall Tuesday afternoon outside of Chancellor Biddy Martin?s office.
The chancellor met with about 100 students and staff for about 90 minutes at about 1 p.m. Tuesday, talking about the New Badger Partnership, a plan to give UW-Madison “public authority” status by splitting it from the other schools in the system.
A group of more than 60 students convinced Biddy Martin to come out of her Bascom Hall office Tuesday afternoon to chat about the state budget and future of the University of Wisconsin-Madison. With five members of the UW Police Department looking on, the students and UW-Madison chancellor held a sometimes tense but mostly friendly conversation in a first-floor hallway.
The street is back in the Mifflin Street Block Party. For the first time in years, revelers at the annual end-of-the-school-year party on Saturday will be allowed to drink beer in the street on designated blocks of Mifflin and North Bassett streets. Majestic Theatre and Capitol Neighborhoods Inc., the co-sponsors of the event, obtained a beer license and the party will feature a stage with live bands. The party started in the late 1960s as a peace festival, but it has since morphed into a UW-Madison student tradition to celebrate the end of the school year. It has not been legal to carry open containers of alcohol on the street at the festival since the early 1990s, when the Mifflin Street Co-op stopped sponsoring the event.
The arrival of food carts on the UW-Madison campus and around Downtown is a sure sign of spring ? and street food in Madison has never been more popular than it is right now, officials say. This year a record 39 food vendors were approved for the State Street Mall and Capitol vending areas ? four more than last year and 13 more since 1997, the earliest year a consistent record was kept. In addition, up to eight carts are expected in the vending area on the southeast side of campus, now in its second year.
MADISON (WKOW)–Police at the University of Wisconsin were called to Bascom Hall on Tuesday evening after a group of protesters refused to leave the building.
MADISON, Wis. — University of Wisconsin-Madison students and campus community members are engaging in a sit-in at Bascom Hall to protest the idea of splitting UW-Madison from the rest of the UW System.
Madison aldermen, neighborhood students and police gathered at the Madison Senior Center Monday to discuss changes and protocol for Saturday?s Mifflin Street Block Party.
Four Democrats on the state?s highest finance committee said they would oppose proposed changes to tuition reciprocity, a measure that could cause tuition spikes for Wisconsinites studying in Minnesota.
Members of the student government are ironing out the details of a plan that would give students with minor alcohol policy violations a chance to opt for a $50 class instead of a drinking ticket.
I was disappointed last week to read in this newspaper?s “Labor?s last stand?” series that some UW-Madison students have been breaking up with their honeys over disagreements about what?s been happening at the Capitol.
Four Democrats on the state?s budget committee raised objections to proposed changes to Wisconsin?s tuition reciprocity program with Minnesota. The proposal won?t end the program, which allows Wisconsin and Minnesota students to pay in-state tuition at public universities in either state. But it means Wisconsin students would pay more to attend college in Minnesota. The changes would eliminate a subsidy – paid by the state of Wisconsin – which gives Wisconsin students a grant to cover higher in-state tuition in Minnesota. Gov. Scott Walker says the change would save Wisconsin taxpayers $12 million a year. About 10,300 students take part in the program.
On opposite ends of State Street, two student groups with radically different viewpoints will voice their opinions today about the proposal to split UW-Madison from the University of Wisconsin System. At Bascom Hall at 1 p.m., students will protest the budget proposal to make UW-Madison into a public authority. The group, including members of the Student Labor Action Coalition, will hold a mock auction to signify what they say is a handover of the university to private special interests. Bascom Hall is where UW-Madison Chancellor Biddy Martin?s office is located. About a mile away, at the state Capitol, students in favor the proposal will lobby legislators, said Jon Alfuth, a coordinator of Students for the New Badger Partnership.
Four Democrats on the state?s budget committee raised objections to proposed changes to Wisconsin?s tuition reciprocity program with Minnesota. The proposal won?t end the program, which allows Wisconsin and Minnesota students to pay in-state tuition at public universities in either state. But it means Wisconsin students would pay more to attend college in Minnesota.
For a group of women at Yale, the last straw came in October, when fraternity pledges marched on campus shouting a sexually offensive slogan. The women complained to the Department of Education, which began an investigation by its Office of Civil Rights.
When she was sexually assaulted in a UW-Madison dorm last year, there were three other students present.
Three late-night campus bus services will have different routes and stop times by next semester, ultimately resulting in less frequent service to the Lakeshore residence hall area, Madison Metro announced late last week.
A novel way to produce hydrogen from plant sugars in agricultural waste was worth $50,000 to four UW-Madison undergraduates who won an annual competition for new methods to fight climate change.
Physicist, neuroscience entrepreneur and businessman Jon Joseph traded the money and prestige of a flourishing career in corporate America for the opportunity to teach high level calculus, computer science and physics to high school kids. He?s doing his thing in the northern Green County community of New Glarus, teaching at a high school where there were exactly zero Advanced Placement courses less than 15 years ago.
Last week was bad for the New Badger Partnership?s prospects in the state Legislature. Reps. Steve Nass, R-Whitewater, and Robin Vos, R-Burlington, each said they had doubts that the University of Wisconsin-Madison will garner the votes to split from the UW System, casting a pall over Chancellor Biddy Martin?s hard-won successes thus far.
As debate surrounding the proposed New Badger Partnership has continued to intensify, University of Wisconsin students have organized to raise awareness of the plan?s possible implications for students in an attempt to sway popular opinion.
Living in Madison, it can be easy to take the University of Wisconsin?s Memorial Union for granted. Doesn?t every college town have a massive student center perched on a glorious swath of lakefront, with sailboats lazily gliding by in the summer? (I love to sip a New Glarus brew and watch for the Holstein-spotted one to go by.)
I?m glad Isthmus dedicated a cover story to the opening of the new Union South. Its a big project worthy of big print space. It?s a helluva upgrade from the eastern european airport terminal that we used to call Union South. Essentially, it looks like a facility built by rich people, rather than students.
I had the privilege of addressing the Phi Beta Kappa induction dinner in Great Hall at the Memorial Union last weekend, but the speech wasn?t anywhere near as exciting as what happened afterward.
Among those in attendance at the dinner was economics professor emeritus W. Lee Hansen, one of several distinguished Phi Beta Kappa lifetime members who came to applaud the 137 new inductees to the exclusive honor society that recognizes academic and leadership excellence in the liberal arts and sciences. One of the inductees, Steven Olikara, gave a speech on behalf of the new class.
Madison police called to a house left a man who had been drinking with a responsible party Monday night, believing the drinking was over for the night. The man didn?t get a second break when officers were called back to the home about 90 minutes later, police reported.
The system of awarding science Ph.D.s needs to be either reformed or shut down, a provocative series of pieces in one of the world?s pre-eminent scientific journals says this week. According to the multipart series in the journal Nature, the world is awash in Ph.D.s, most of them being awarded after years of study and tens of thousands of dollars to scholars who will never find work in academia, the traditional goal for Doctors of Philosophy.
….UW-Madison and Madison Area Technical College are open, but instructors have been advised not to schedule important tests or deadlines for Good Friday at UW, in case students are not in class, ostensibly for religious reasons.
For years, Katherine Cramer Walsh has had college students come into her office with concerns about grades or assignments. Lately, however, she has found herself being asked to offer romantic advice.
?I?ve had students coming to me in tears, saying, ?I?ve been dating this person for a year and I don?t know if I can do it anymore,?? said Walsh, a UW-Madison political science professor. The problem wasn?t fidelity or commitment ? it was Gov. Scott Walker?s collective bargaining law.
This year?s college graduates are finding a better job market than last year?s grads. Employers plan to hire 19.3% more recent graduates this year, says a report by the National Association of Colleges and Employers. The association surveyed 174 schools from February through April.
There?s no question that Union South is an enormous upgrade for the southwest side of campus, but the question remains: Will students use it? It will surely settle into being a prime meeting spot for the engineering community that lives and attends class nearby. The building is a convenient thirty-second walk from Wendt Library.
But the building also has enough features not found elsewhere – bowling, the climbing wall, and The Marquee – that it will probably draw crowds from other parts of campus, as well it should. The building definitely deserves the student body?s attention, so here?s hoping that the openness of the new Union South never feels like the emptiness of the old.
Metro Transit staff will hold a service input session on Tuesday, April 26 from 7 PM – 9 PM at Union South to present and discuss proposed service changes on the University of Wisconsin campus.
When most students think of Langdon Street, safety is rarely the first word that comes to mind, but one Madison Police Department officer?s entire job is making sure students can walk and play in the area free from harm.
As uncertainty surrounding Chancellor Biddy Martin?s proposed Badger Partnership continues to grow, members of the university?s administration and University of Wisconsin Foundation leadership have already begun making provisions to use many of the university?s proposed flexibilities to increase fundraising earnings for UW.
WASHINGTON — No matter how many subjects they?re acing, most college students these days find economics a grind. Tricky financial calculations influence everything from what school they attend and what major they choose to how quickly they finish their degrees – or whether they graduate at all. Money problems, not bad grades, are the reason cited by most college students who have considered dropping out, an Associated Press-Viacom poll finds.
Nine Madison area applicants are among 21 finalists in the Wisconsin Governor?s Business Plan Contest, and their business proposals range from a new diabetes treatment to wireless Internet access on buses. The 21 finalists, and winners of the UW-Madison Burrill competition, Northeast Wisconsin Business Plan Contest, Marquette University Kohler competition and the BizStarts collegiate competition will all vie for a total of $150,000 in cash and in-kind prizes.
Nine Madison area applicants are among 21 finalists in the Wisconsin Governor?s Business Plan Contest, and their business proposals range from a new diabetes treatment to wireless Internet access on buses.
Sixty-nine percent of college applicants this year say having information about a college?s commitment to environmental issues would contribute to their decision to apply to or attend the school, according to a survey of 8,200 students by The Princeton Review.
While differing opinions bombard the state concerning the New Badger Partnership, some UW-Madison students have formed a group to show their support for the proposed change to the UW system.
If you ask for a business card from Masood Akhtar, be prepared to get a handful. Akhtar wears many hats.
About two years ago, the chancellor at University of Wisconsin-Madison developed a campus initiative that needed student support. But social media connections with students were almost nonexistent. While the university had a Twitter account, it streamed nothing but news content.
Of Montreal was introduced Friday night by a Union worker who reminded the crowd of the groups? last stop at UW-Madison: a free show at Club 770 in 2005 that advertised an incorrect start time and offered only red spotlights.
Most of the decisions surrounding the New Badger Partnership have focused on its promise to keep UW-Madison competitive in spite of deep budget cuts from the state. But beyond the financial benefits of increased autonomy, public authority status also presents UW-Madison students with a golden opportunity to strengthen shared governance.
After nearly two years of construction, $95 million in construction costs and the input of thousands of students, the University of Wisconsin finally has its new Union South.
MADISON, Wis. — The University of Wisconsin-Madison?s Union South opened to the public on Friday.
Joint Finance Assembly Co-chair Robin Vos says lawmakers are likely to change the guv?s budget proposals for recycling grants, SeniorCare and spinning off UW-Madison from the rest of the system.
Billy Collins is one of today?s most popular poets, revered for his ability to evoke humor and heartbreak in verses both subtle and sagacious. Collins served as U.S. poet laureate from 2001 to 2003 and has taught English at Lehman College of the City University of New York for more than 30 years. He?ll speak on Monday night at Union South as part of the Distinguished Lecture Series, which is also part of the UW-Madison student-organized Madison Lit Fest.
The new Union South re-opened Friday on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus.
Back in high school, not all of the MadHatters were the kinds of guys you?d expect sorority girls to be swooning over in college.
Students, members of the community and James Cameron fans were on hand to witness the debut of a new robot designed by University of Wisconsin students at the biannual Engineering Expo.
Plans for the Mifflin Street Block Party have been significantly scaled back following an announcement from the Madison Police Department that its officers would not enforce attendees only being allowed to drink alcoholic beverages bought at the event.
It?s here. Today the 21st century incarnation of Union South opens its doors and invites students, faculty and alumni to check out all it has to offer.
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — University of Wisconsin-Madison students plan to march silently on the Capitol to bring awareness to bullying in schools and universities.
This Friday?s inaugural Union South music show featuring Of Montreal comes at a price: $10 for students and $20 for non-students.
Despite a sluggish economy, 87.3 percent of recent Madison Area Technical College graduates are working according to the school?s annual “Graduate Employment Report.” This most recent study also indicates that for the academic year which ended in May of 2010, a whopping 96.2 percent of those surveyed said they were “very satisfied” or “satisfied” with the education they received at MATC.
Students from across Wisconsin are slated to rally Friday in Madison with the hopes of breaking the silence which is too often associated with bullying in schools and universities. Participants from the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus are meeting at Library Mall at 4 p.m. before silently walking down State Street to the Capitol, where a “Break the Silence, Wisconsin” rally will begin at 5 p.m.
MADISON (WKOW)–The University of Wisconsin Varsity band is celebrating its 125th anniversary in grand style.
Madison city officials addressed the street use complications that could come with the Mifflin Street Block Party taking place the same day as the annual Crazylegs Classic Race on April 30.
A city commission delayed action on an entertainment and street use permit for the Mifflin Street Block Party Wednesday, asking the event?s new sponsors to further explain and finalize details for the party?s schedule and set-up plan.
It?s enough to make you want to go back to school. The $95 million new Union South, which has its official grand opening on Friday, April 15, at 1308 W. Dayton St., is an eye-popper of a building.
The University of Wisconsin-Madison is ranked sixth in Playboy?s annual list of the “Top 10 Party Schools.” Wisconsin?s flagship placed third last year. We?d provide you a link to this year?s rankings, but the photos accompanying the text are a bit, um, racy.
….According to a press release, Playboy’s editors compiled the list with “input from students, fans of Playboy’s social media pages, alumni, feedback from Playboy campus representatives at schools across the country, and interviews with countless others.”
When UW-Madison released some emails of professor William Cronon to the state Republican Party earlier this month following a much-hyped open records request, the university withheld correspondence with students, citing federal privacy laws.
“We are excluding records involving students because they are protected under FERPA,” UW-Madison Chancellor Biddy Martin wrote to the campus community in explaining why some of Cronon?s emails were not given to the state GOP.
