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Category: Higher Education/System

Controversial free speech survey will relaunch on Monday across UW System

Wisconsin State Journal

The survey, which is meant to gauge student attitudes toward free speech on campuses, will be sent to a random selection of students — anywhere from 2,500 to 7,500 at each of the 13 System universities — starting Monday. Researchers from the Wisconsin Institute for Public Policy and Service, a unit of the System, are looking to gather 500 responses from each campus.

School for beginning dairy farmers slated for closure

Wisconsin State Farmer

It looks as if the University of Wisconsin-Madison is getting ready to close down the School for Beginning Dairy and Livestock Farmers, which has graduated almost 600 budding farmers after training them in grazing practices as well as business planning for their new operations.

The school was founded and directed by Dick Cates, a Spring Green beef farmer who also served on the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection’s citizen policy board and various state sustainability panels.

Scholars of Urban Education Gather for Solutions-Based Conference

Diverse Issues in Higher Education

Noted: Over 270 sessions were offered at the conference, including a keynote address by Dr. Gloria Ladson-Billings, one of the world’s most prolific educational researchers. Ladson-Billings is Professor Emerita and former Kellner Family Distinguished Professor in Urban Education in the Department of Curriculum & Instruction at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

The widening racial disparities between Blacks and whites is dramatic, noted Ladson-Billings, who pointed out that in 2019, about 30% of Black children lived in poverty, with 1 and 4 Black children facing severe food insecurity. With regard to public schools, she noted that 45% of Black students attend high-poverty schools compared to 8% of white children.

During the COVID pandemic, a number of Black children were only able to access the internet through their smart phones.

“Think about remote learning,” she said, adding that children struggled to receive their lessons via a small phone screen. “But that’s the reality.”

Additionally, Ladson-Billings noted that 75% of Black students who are considered eligible for advanced placement (AP) courses never take one, in part because so many of these students are enrolled in schools where these accelerated courses are not even offered.

“They’re bright enough, but there’s no access,” she said, adding that too many Black students are frequently discouraged from achieving their full potential by schoolteachers and administrators, even as suspension and expulsion rates for Black children steadily inclines.

Abortion training is part of medical school curriculum, but some Wisconsin programs are having trouble providing it post Roe

Wisconsin Public Radio

Quoted: Administrators at the University of Wisconsin-Madison are also coming up with ways to solve the current training problem, but they’re also beginning to worry about future recruitment.

Dr. Laura Jacques, an assistant professor and the director of medical student education at UW-Madison’s Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, said the repercussions could be felt for years.

“I’m worried that we’re going to have a challenging time recruiting the best residents to our program because of these concerns, and not just for obstetrics and gynecology, but for all types of medicine,” she said.

Wisconsin OB-GYN programs must send residents across state lines for training because of abortion ban

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Noted: The state’s two other OB-GYN residency programs − at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Medicine and Public Health, and Aurora Sinai Medical Center in Milwaukee − are vulnerable as well.

An Aurora spokesperson said Thursday the hospital also plans to send OB-GYN residents out of state, though they would not provide specifics of the arrangement. A UW doctor said they are in the process of determining a course of action.

“We are committed to following the ACGME mandates of training our residents and putting out well-trained obstetrician gynecologists,” said Dr. Laura Jacques, an assistant professor and academic specialist in obstetrics and gynecology. “We are actively exploring options.”

Students rip ‘woke’ colleges for Halloween ‘offensive’ costume warnings: ‘Don’t think that’s their place’

Fox News

Schools such as the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Ohio University, University of Colorado-Boulder, University of Nebraska-Lincoln and the University of Michigan are all encouraging students to choose a Halloween costume that does not appropriate another culture.

The University of Wisconsin-Madison has a webpage dedicated to “Halloween cultural awareness” which states that students should avoid “racist, crude, or culturally insensitive” costumes.

UW-Madison professor says student loan forgiveness faces uncertain future as lawsuits play out

TMJ4

Quoted: “To get standing, you have to prove that you’re harmed by these actions and so to prove that you’ve been harmed by canceling a loan is a really hard needle to thread,” UW-Madison professor Nick Hillman explained.

Hillman says the lawsuits are attacking the forgiveness plan from all sorts of angles to clear the legal standing hurdle and more lawsuits are expected to come now that the application process is officially open.

Out of the three that are currently still awaiting a court decision, Hillman thinks the one filed jointly by six states has the best chance to undo the forgiveness.

UW-La Crosse College Republicans scrawl anti-Semitic message on campus, prompting group chair to resign in protest

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

The student leader of the College Republicans chapter at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse resigned from her post this week after group members scrawled an antisemitic message on a campus sidewalk and promoted it on social media.

UW-La Crosse is at least the second Wisconsin school to be hit with antisemitic messages this school year.

UW-Madison historian Monica Kim awarded MacArthur ‘genius’ grant

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

A University of Wisconsin-Madison historian on Wednesday won one of the nation’s most prestigious awards, which comes with a no strings attached $800,000 stipend to spend however she sees fit.

The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation named UW-Madison professor Monica Kim, 44, as one of 25 national recipients of the MacArthur fellowship. Also known as the “genius grant,” the awards are given annually to a select group of individuals across a range of disciplines who show exceptional creativity in their work and future ambitions.

Acceptance rates are declining at public universities

Washington Examiner

Less than half of the University of Georgia’s applicants, 42%, were accepted this fall after the university admitted a historically low number in 2021 at 39%. It previously toted accepting over 40% of students without a test score of any kind. The University of Illinois and the University of Wisconsin similarly let in less than half of the applicants. Ten years ago, however, all three of the schools accepted more than 60% of applicants.

It’s Good For Business When Socioeconomically Disadvantaged Workers Are Given A Fair Shot

Forbes

For instance, a recent study showed that 80% of all tenure-track faculty members in the United States derived from just 20% of PhD-granting institutions. What’s more, no historically Black colleges and universities were among that 20%. Indeed, one in eight tenure-track faculty members got their PhDs from either Harvard, Stanford, UC Berkeley, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, or the University of Michigan.

A Cold War Program Gets Hijacked

Wall Street Journal

NRC-funded efforts included a training institute last year at the University of Texas, Austin, where teachers of pre-kindergartners through fifth graders were schooled in “(Un)learning patterns of whiteness in literacy teaching.” In May, Stanford University’s Center for Latin American Studies sponsored a webinar about using picture books to initiate “conversations centered on advocacy for LGBT Latina/o(x) youth.” The University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Center for Russia, East Europe, and Central Asia hosted a graduate student who uses critical race theory in her research on Russia and Ukraine.

UW-Superior professor starts organization to tutor Ukrainian students whose lives were upended by war

Wisconsin Public Radio

University of Wisconsin-Superior chemistry professor Michael Waxman has the reputation of a tough instructor. But this year he has students who might say something different.

In late February, Waxman was horrified by the destruction of homes and families in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He felt he had to do something to help.

UW System launches campaign to increase financial aid applications

Wisconsin State Journal

The University of Wisconsin System’s new tuition-waiver program aims to help the state compete for talent and fill critical worker shortages.

But financial aid applications determine eligibility, and Wisconsin ranks 38th in the nation for the percentage of high school seniors who file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).

Johns Hopkins U. Paused Its Plans for a Campus Police Force. 2 Years Later, Resistance Is Stronger Than Ever.

Chronicle of Higher Ed

Kristen Roman, chief of police at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, said that for colleges, one of the advantages of having a police department is that officers are more familiar with the institution’s particulars.“

As a community member, I myself would rather have somebody in a police role who is invested and understands some of the unique challenges of my community,” said Roman, who serves as director-at-large of the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators’ Board of Directors

UW-Green Bay bucks UW System trend with 7th year of enrollment growth, driven partly by Hispanic students

Green Bay Press-Gazette

As declining enrollment continues to plague the University of Wisconsin System, UW-Green Bay is experiencing its seventh year of growth.

Based on preliminary data from the first day of classes, UW-Green Bay saw a 3% enrollment increase over last year among its four campuses despite a 1% decrease across the state’s public university system. After two years of the COVID-19 pandemic disrupting education, the system expected the drop.

After organizations condemn antisemitic chalkings, UW-Madison administrators report they are working to educate Students for Justice in Palestine

The Wisconsin Jewish Chronicle

University of Wisconsin-Madison administrators are working to educate members of Students for Justice in Palestine on the harm caused by their antisemitic messages, after the messages were chalked around campus overnight before the first day of the fall 2022 semester, according to officials. 

The Prestige Hierarchy: Five Universities Trained One Of Every Eight Tenure-Track Faculty At Doctoral Universities

Forbes

According to a new study, one in eight (13.8%) of U.S.-trained tenure-track faculty members employed at doctoral universities earned their PhDs from just five prestigious universities: the University of California, Berkeley; Harvard University; the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor; Stanford University; and the University of Wisconsin, Madison.

Do College Rankings Serve Applicants Well?

WSJ

The fact that Columbia falsified its data shows that the importance of these rankings is grossly overestimated. The scandal shows that Columbia’s administrators seem to think the school is untouchable, that consequences don’t apply to them. And they are not wrong. Columbia dropped 16 spots once the news of its cheating broke, but that is unlikely to have an impact on its next application pool. Students will still compete to attend the school for its prestigious Ivy League status. Even if Columbia now looks slightly worse in national rankings, its reputation as a top-tier institution will compensate for this blemish on its record.—Jackson Walker, University of Wisconsin-Madison, journalism and English

Headstone dedication for first Black woman to attend Marquette University Law School

TMJ4

Before the legendary Vel Phillips accomplished her many firsts in the City of Milwaukee and Wisconsin, there was Mabel Emily Watson Raimey.

Raimey was the first African American woman to graduate from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She earned a B.A. in English in 1918 and was the first African American woman to attend Marquette University Law School. There is a marker at 11th and Wisconsin honoring her.

The robots are coming! Marquette launches high-tech food delivery service

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Noted: The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire is also launching a fleet of Kiwibots on campus this fall.

UW-Madison partnered with a different company, Starship Technologies, though the general concept is the same. The university’s 30-bot fleet debuted in November 2019, which turned out to be good timing. The robots offered students a dining option without needing to set foot in a busy dining hall during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Last school year, UW-Madison received nearly 80,000 orders, said UW-Madison spokesperson Brendon Dybdahl.

“The Starship robots have become a very popular fixture on our campus,” he said. “Students take pictures with them, help them when they occasionally get stuck, and treat them almost like people.”

New Leadership Will Continue the Wei LAB Legacy

Diverse Issues in Higher Education

Twelve years after its creation, Wisconsin’s Equity & Inclusion Laboratory (Wei LAB) at the University of Wisconsin—Madison has a new director: Dr. Brian A. Burt.

Burt, a 2019 Diverse Emerging Scholar and associate professor of higher education at the University of Wisconsin—Madison (UW—Madison), was previously assistant director and research scientist at the Wei LAB. He takes the reins from founder Dr. Jerlando F. L. Jackson, who is now the dean of Michigan State University’s College of Education.

As More College Presidents Quit, Search Firms Prosper

Forbes

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Columbia University, Tufts University, New York University, George Washington University, Ohio University, Bowdoin College, Harvey Mudd College, Smith College, and St. Olaf College are among those currently seeking a new chief executive. Dartmouth College, Northwestern University and the University of Wisconsin Madison recently wrapped up searches for their newest presidents and chancellor, respectively.

UW-Madison in-state tuition frozen for another year

Daily Cardinal

In-state tuition rates for the University of Wisconsin System have remained stable since 2013. The UW System Board of Regents continued this trend by extending the tuition freeze to in-state undergraduates for the 2022-23 academic year. Tuition cost is decided in the summer by the Board of Regents through discussions with the chancellors.

‘The students are deserving’: Fostering Success expands to more UW campuses this fall

Wisconsin Public Radio

For students living in foster care, or those who’ve experienced homelessness, navigating college can be daunting. But a program to support those students is expanding across the University of Wisconsin System — in hopes of increasing school success and retention.

Fostering Success began at UW-Stout in 2013. The program is designed to support students by offering help navigating financial aid, academic advising and tutoring. Angie Ruppe, director of the program at UW-Stout, said Fostering Success is important because “the students are deserving.”

Student worker shortage leads UW-Milwaukee to ask professors for help in dining halls

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

A staffing shortage on the UW-Milwaukee campus led the university to make an unusual ask of its professors: Come help in our dining halls.

Faculty and staff received an email asking for volunteers to clean tables, serve food and replenish buffet bars, all in an effort to keep the thousands of students who moved into dorms last week fed.

UW alum and Oscar winner Fredric March’s name was removed from a campus theater in 2018. Calls for its return are getting louder.

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

There’s a renewed push to restore Academy Award-winning actor Fredric March’s name on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus.

A student-led group voted in 2018 to remove the UW alum’s name from a theater in Memorial Union because of his association with a student group that shared a name with the Ku Klux Klan in the early 20th century.