Category: State news

The U.S. economy is slowing but probably will not fall into a recession next year, people attending a semi-annual economic outlook conference at the University of Wisconsin-Madison were told Friday.

MADISON – Republican Mark Green’s campaign acknowledged Friday it is using actors in a new television ad in which the gubernatorial candidate criticizes admissions and tuition policies in the University of Wisconsin System.

The 30-second ad is scheduled to begin running statewide next week, said Green campaign spokesman Luke Punzenberger, who acknowledged the use of actors.

The next governor likely will face a $400 million gap to pay for state programs next year, but that hasn’t stopped Democratic incumbent Jim Doyle and Republican challenger U.S. Rep. Mark Green from offering spending proposals and tax cuts that would worsen the fiscal picture.

An announcement from Gov. Jim Doyle last week regarding admission to Wisconsin�s institutions of higher learning for the 75,000 students now in eighth grade was lost in the frenzy of campaign coverage, but the agreement with public and private colleges and universities has the potential to endure long after the polls close in November.

Quoted: Charles Franklin, political science.

MADISON, Wis. (AP) – Republican gubernatorial candidate Mark Green said Friday he would stop the University of Wisconsin System from changing admission standards to put greater emphasis on nonacademic qualities such as family income and race.

In addition, Green called for legislation to guarantee that in-state students are never denied admission in favor of students from other states with lower academic credentials.

An extensive student financial aid plan signed by Gov. Jim Doyle and state leaders in higher education Wednesday would open the opportunity for many more students to attend college, but it is receiving skepticism from Republicans.

Convincing the State Legislature of the University of Wisconsin-Madison�s need to provide domestic partner benefits is a campus priority, and one that we have advocated for some time.

MADISON, Wis. – Wisconsin eighth-graders in spring will be the first class allowed to sign a pledge promising to be good students in exchange for state help getting into college, Gov. Jim Doyle vowed Wednesday.

Gov. Jim Doyle and leaders of the state’s public and private colleges and universities agreed Wednesday on a framework for the Wisconsin Covenant program, which would guarantee eighth-graders who maintain a B average and stay out of trouble admission to one of those schools in four years.

“Star Trek” fans are acquainted with nanotechnology, which the feared Borg employed to transform humanoids into automaton members of their conquest-minded collective. Well, the real world is catching up with science fiction. Nanotechnology, which entails the development of super-tiny products and machines invisible to the naked eye, is a rapidly growing discipline and, according to the National Science Foundation, could amount to a trillion-dollar industry by 2015.

Already under intense scrutiny from the state Legislature, University of Wisconsin lecturer Kevin Barrett may be close to losing the confidence of the UW administration as well.

Quoted: Laura Dresser, research director of the Center on Wisconsin Strategy at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

MADISON, Wis. — As part of the We The People/Wisconsin series, WISC-TV looks at one of the challenges facing both 2006 gubernatorial candidates — how to keep recent Wisconsin graduates from leaving the state to work elsewhere.

Madison, Wis. – The recent decision by a young researcher to leave the University of Wisconsin-Madison has exposed some of the financial consequences of the same-sex union debate in Wisconsin.

Following UW-Madison�s defense of Kevin Barrett, state Republicans have added the embattled lecturer to their laundry list of problems with the UW system.

Sixty Republicans and one Democrat signed the resolution calling for Barrett�s termination. Additionally, both incumbent Gov. Jim Doyle and his opponent Republican opponent, Mark Green of Green Bay, have both expressed their opposition to hiring Barrett.

ââ?¬Å?Professors who are going to try and teach our students that two plus two equals five have no place at the UW,ââ?¬Â said Luke Punzenberger, a spokesperson for Green.

The latest departure of a star researcher from UW- Madison shows again why domestic partner benefits are so needed on campus.

Madison, Wis. – I am a northern Wisconsin boy – Marinette County. My hometown, Marinette, has lost over 30 percent of its population since I grew up there in the 1950s and 1960s. Why?

A method to obtain stem cells without destroying human embryos was recently published in a scientific journal with much fanfare and hope.

But a UW-Madison scientist advises caution over this development and its potential to defuse the moral and ethical debate over embryonic stem cell research.

MADISON, Wis. (AP) – Gov. Jim Doyle won the support of a coalition of researchers, business leaders, patient advocates and families affected by stem cell research. Doyle supports embryonic stem cell research while his opponent, Republican U.S. Rep. Mark Green, opposes expanding the research.

Severe thunderstorms slashed across south central Wisconsin Wednesday night, the first wave of bad weather expected to continue to hammer the area today and Friday.

….The University of Wisconsin-Madison campus was spared this time around from the massive flooding experienced during the July 27 cloudburst that struck downtown and the campus, said John Harrod, the UW director of physical plant.

“We’re still working on the last one,” Harrod said, as crews hurry to get campus buildings ready for the fall semester.

MADISON – A promising University of Wisconsin-Madison researcher who has won millions of dollars in grants says he is leaving the school, citing its lack of health insurance benefits for his domestic partner.

Dear Editor: Several weeks ago Rep. Steve Nass did us all a favor by criticizing the UW for letting a 9/11 skeptic in the classroom; now he’s hit the mother lode with an expose of UW-Extension’s shadowy links to a provider of worker-friendly news and ideas. The taxpayers of Wisconsin should not be forced to support such dangerous and divisive doings in our ivory towers….

State Rep. Steve Nass is apparently undeterred in his campaign to ideologically cleanse the University of Wisconsin System, despite the fact that a little principle known as “academic freedom” always seems to get in his way.

After unsuccessful attempts to ban speakers and fire faculty, the Whitewater Republican now is going after a well-regarded radio and print news service called Workers Independent News, which is headed by Frank Emspak, a professor at the UW-Extension’s School for Workers.

The University of Wisconsin System cannot afford another $26-million mistake.
Neither can the state’s taxpayers.

That is why System executives should not quickly put their failed payroll-and-benefits management project behind them. They should keep the embarrassing and costly episode right in front of them, so they can remind themselves of what went wrong.

They need to ensure that it goes right next time.

How many times have you heard someone say they never go to the Wisconsin State Fair?

I hear it too often. The way it’s said, you get the idea the State Fair is an event some people wouldn’t even consider. Or maybe they would go if there was nothing else to do or if it had an entertainment value similar to watching grass grow or paint dry.

….The UW-Madison College of Agriculture exhibit features a simple farm product question and answer game. It serves as a gathering spot for alumni and potential students. It also allows old grads – who are recruited to man the booth – to be the experts and talk to the uninformed and to friends.

(The School of Veterinary Medicine is also mentioned in this story.)