The discord may be especially thorny in towns that are home to land-grant universities such as Georgia and the University of Wisconsin, which view themselves as having a responsibility to the entire state, not just the locality where they sit, said Stephen Gavazzi, an Ohio State University professor who wrote a book about town-gown relations.
Category: Top Stories
Soccer star Rose Lavelle to speak at UW-Madison’s online winter commencement ceremony
Soccer star and Badger alumna Rose Lavelle will deliver the keynote address at UW-Madison’s winter commencement ceremony, which will be held online because of COVID-19.
UW-Madison sees steady enrollment numbers, but increased housing cancellations
Two hundred and fifty students have withdrawn from the University of Wisconsin-Madison so far this fall, a number not substantially larger than the 208 withdrawals at the same point in the fall semester a year ago. The number makes up about 0.5% of the student body.
‘We are facing three crises:’ UW chancellor reflects on COVID-19, BIPOC student needs, upcoming football season
UW will not remove Abe Lincoln statue or defund UWPD, chancellor says.
Chancellor Blank speaks on ‘crises’ facing UW
UW-Madison Chancellor Rebecca Blank met with representatives of the school’s two student newspapers Tuesday afternoon to answer questions and share her views on the current semester. “We’re in the midst of three crises,” the Chancellor told the Daily Cardinal and Badger Herald, referring to the COVID-19 pandemic, the university’s financial woes and the “social revolution” brought on by the killing of George Floyd and enduring cycles of racial injustice.
Finish in sight for new Badgers pool construction, Field House exterior renovation
The Nicholas Recreation Center is scheduled to open Monday with limited capacity on the site of the former Southeast Recreational Facility near the Kohl Center and LaBahn Arena. The University Recreation and Wellbeing building includes the Soderholm Family Aquatic Center that will be home to the Badgers swimming and diving teams.
UW-Madison to gradually lift campus lockdown, resume in-person classes with changes
University of Wisconsin-Madison Chancellor Rebecca Blank says the campus will begin to reopen Saturday following a two-week lockdown to curb the spread of COVID-19 among undergraduate students.
UW to end quarantine at Witte, Sellery residence halls, plans return to in-person classes
The University of Wisconsin-Madison is slowly phasing back to in-person classes and activities after two weeks of online learning and quarantines in two residence halls.
UW-Madison lifts dorm quarantine, will resume some in-person classes
UW-Madison lifted quarantine orders for two of its largest dorms on Wednesday and will soon phase in some face-to-face classes, the first easing of restrictions since COVID-19 cases spiked on campus about two weeks ago.
Fall 2020 student enrollment largest in UW-Madison history despite COVID-19
UW-Madison posted its official enrollment numbers for the fall of 2020 on Tuesday, revealing that the student body has grown to an unprecedented size with its second largest class of first-year students in university history despite complications posed by the coronavirus pandemic.
UW-Madison posts strong fall first-year enrollment numbers despite pandemic
The University of Wisconsin-Madison published its official enrollment numbers Tuesday, touting record-breaking total enrollment and its second-largest freshman class in history despite the challenges of opening a campus during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Two leaders urge colleges to encourage student voting
Chancellor Blank and Harvard University President Lawrence S. Bacow: If you are leading a college or university right now — or if you are making the academic year possible as a member of the faculty or staff at any one of our nation’s institutions of higher education — asking something more of your students in the midst of a global pandemic may seem impractical. But one assignment cannot wait. We urge you to encourage your students to register to vote, to become informed of the issues and the candidates, and to cast a ballot
UW College of Engineering gets $32 million to expand student body, add scholarships
UW-Madison’s College of Engineering received its largest donation in the college’s history that will start a new scholarship program, help expand the undergraduate student body and create several professorships to keep top talent in Madison.
Eight Wisconsin cities make New York Times’ list of areas with fastest growing COVID-19 cases
Eight Wisconsin cities that are home to University of Wisconsin System schools made the New York Times’ list of metro areas with the fastest growing COVID-19 cases this week.
$32 million donation strives to expand College of Engineering programs
The UW-Madison College of Engineering received a $32 million donation pledge from The Grainger Foundation of Lake Forest, Illinois — the largest donation in the College’s history.
UW-Madison graduate student caught lying about racial identity, resigns from TAA
A UW-Madison graduate student resigned from their co-presidency of the Teachers Assistant Association after coming under fire for misrepresenting their racial identity.
8 Wisconsin cities have some of the fastest case growth in US, per a New York Times analysis. Seven of them have UW campuses.
Eight Wisconsin metro areas have landed on the New York Times’ list of places across the country where new cases of COVID-19 are rising the fastest.
La Crosse is number one on the New York Times’ list, which was updated Thursday afternoon. In third is Whitewater, and the Oshkosh-Neenah area is in eighth. Stevens Point, Appleton, Platteville, Madison and Green Bay take up the 15th through 19th spots of the list, respectively.
With the exception of Appleton, all the Wisconsin cities on the list are home to a University of Wisconsin System campus.
Dane County add 210 new coronavirus cases; second consecutive day over 200
Dane County confirmed 210 new coronavirus cases this morning, as yesterday’s Data Snapshot from Public Health Madison Dane County (PHMDC) reported 72 percent of all new cases the September 1-14 were from UW students and staff. Today’s new cases bring the total for the county to 8,461 as of this morning. There are 6,548 recovered cases while 1,872 are currently active. This brings the percentage of active cases to 22 percent.
Dane Co. average COVID-19 cases per day nearly doubles since last week
Noted: Just over three-quarters of those recent cases were found in University of Wisconsin-Madison students and staff, with students making up the vast majority, 1,808 to 10 for the UW staff, PHMDC data notes indicate. Nearly 1,400 of the total cases were linked to college-age housing clusters, such as forms, apartment complexes with 10 or more cases, and fraternities and sororities.
UW Madison COVID-19 dashboard gets a B+ grade in transparency
Ajay Sethi, a UW Madison associate professor in population sciences who works on the dashboard, said while universities do not have to report the information, they know it is important to do so.“Dashboards are common, and I think transparency is paramount right now during our pandemic,” he said.
42 UW-Madison players, staff have tested positive for COVID-19 as Big Ten prepares to resume play
Health officials in Madison and Dane County are urging fans not to gather to watch football games when the University of Wisconsin Badgers begin their season next month.
Coronavirus in Wisconsin: State reports more than 1,400 new cases as seven-day case average continues to rise
Noted: The new cases come as colleges and universities across the state continue to grapple with outbreaks of the virus on and around their campuses.
Nearly 90% of University of Wisconsin-Madison students who have tested positive for COVID-19 have exhibited symptoms, public health officials said Wednesday.
Town-gown connections strained amid University of Wisconsin reopening in Madison
At the end of August, nine days before students started class at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, more than two dozen local elected officials sent a letter to university administrators urging them to significantly alter their plan to bring students back to campus in the fall.
UW students finish one week of quarantine in much emptier Witte, Sellery residence halls
Significant numbers of freshmen have temporarily left or are considering moving out of Witte and Sellery residence halls, while those who remain are now halfway through a mandatory two-week quarantine.
UW-Madison extends tuition refund to Friday as student hospitalized for COVID-19
UW-Madison on Wednesday extended its tuition refund deadline for students impacted by COVID-19 until Friday, as officials said at least one student has been hospitalized with coronavirus complications.
UW-Madison Wastewater Surveillance Program Begins Statewide Sampling
In March, Martin Shafer, a scientist at the Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene (WSLH) and UW-Madison College of Engineering, noticed a trend in COVID-19 testing techniques.
UW-Madison tuition refund deadline extended for students affected by COVID-19
The University of Wisconsin-Madison is adjusting tuition refund deadlines to help students and families cope with challenges related to COVID-19.
Big Ten announces plan to start the 2020 football season the weekend of Oct. 23-24
As expected, Big Ten officials are determined to play football this fall.
The league announced Wednesday morning the 2020 season is scheduled to begin the weekend of Oct. 23-24.
Big Ten Reverses Course and Will Bring Football Back in Late October
As late as Tuesday morning, University of Wisconsin-Madison chancellor Rebecca Blank said that uncertainty over cardiac complications had driven the August decision to nix fall football, and could still lead the Big Ten to sit out.
“Until we have answers to that, we’re going to keep our season postponed,” she testified before the U.S. Senate’s health committee.
Big Ten football, pandemic and politics collide as UW’s Blank testifies before Congress
University of Wisconsin-Madison Chancellor Rebecca Blank testified before a Senate committee Tuesday as speculation swirled all the way up to the Oval Office about the fate of the Big Ten’s football season. President Donald Trump has tried to pressure the conference — the home of several key Midwestern battleground states in the November election — to reschedule the football season this fall.
Evers: UW reopening was right call despite virus surge
University of Wisconsin-Madison officials made the right decision to reopen the campus even though there’s been a surge of COVID-19 cases among students and university employees, Gov. Tony Evers said Tuesday.
Big Ten announces football returning Oct. 23-24
The Big Ten Conference announced Wednesday morning that football will return the weekend of Oct. 23-24.
UW considers later tuition refund deadline, sees minimal housing cancellations
After moving all classes online for at least two weeks, the University of Wisconsin-Madison may push back its tuition refund deadline and continue to offer housing refunds to students who choose to leave their residence halls.
‘We’re Not Running Sports to Primarily Make Money’: NIL Hearing to Put Collegiate Revenues in Spotlight
Sports Illustrated obtained the 1,700-word testimony that Blank submitted ahead of a hearing Tuesday on name, image and likeness before the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions. While she agrees that NIL reform is needed, Blank plans to tell senators that an unchecked athlete-compensation model could adversely impact Olympic sports and that athletes are already given a “generous package” of benefits that includes thousands of dollars in education, unlimited meals, state-of-the-art medical care and other on-campus resources—many of which normal students do not receive, she notes in the testimony. According to her written testimony, a full scholarship package at Wisconsin is nearly $87,000 for out-of-state students and more than $59,000 for those in state.
UW-Madison: Spring break canceled and 300 students are being investigated for violating COVID-19 policies
The University of Wisconsin-Madison’s coronavirus crisis hit a new phase Monday with the faculty senate voting to cancel spring break and the school investigating 300 students for violating policies related to COVID-19.
UW-Madison chancellor defends decision to bring students back
University of Wisconsin-Madison chancellor Rebecca Blank gave an update on the school’s response to COVID-19 concerns during a news conference Monday afternoon and defended the decision to bring students back to campus for the fall semester amid the pandemic.
UW to eliminate spring break, lengthen winter break to prevent COVID-19 spread
The University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Faculty Senate voted Monday to lengthen winter break and remove spring break next semester, in attempts to discourage travel that might facilitate the spread of COVID-19.
UW Chancellor Rebecca Blank on football’s return: ‘We’re all going to move together in the Big Ten’
Fans and players across the Big Ten Conference’s landscape await a vote on a potential start of the conference football season.
UW-Madison chancellor on campus reopening: ‘I’d make same decision again’
UW-Madison Chancellor Rebecca Blank on Monday defended reopening the university this fall, even as criticism mounted, the Faculty Senate scrapped spring break and the number of reported COVID-19 cases on campus exceeded 2,000 infections.
‘Frustrated and overwhelmed’: Quarantined UW-Madison students weigh being ‘stuck,’ going home
Less than a day after UW-Madison abruptly ordered a two-week quarantine for students in Witte and Sellery residence halls, students Thursday were weighing whether to pack up and head home or hold out hope for a more normal semester while “stuck in the dorms.”
UW students describe chaos as COVID-19 raged through residence halls, leading to lockdown
As she climbed down nine flights of stairs and stepped into the dark night in the pouring rain outside Sellery Hall, Lauren Tamborino described the scene as “apocalyptic.”
Here’s how the University of Wisconsin-Madison is limiting in-person interactions on campus in the next two weeks
In response to spiking COVID-19 cases, the University of Wisconsin-Madison decided to make classes virtual, restrict other in-person activities and quarantine students living in two residence halls, Sellery and Witte. The decision was made Wednesday and most restrictions will be in place until at least Sept. 25.
‘Steeper and faster than we expected’: UW chancellor addresses campus COVID cases
In an interview with PBS Wisconsin, University of Wisconsin-Madison Chancellor Rebecca Blank defended on Friday the decision to offer a mixture of in-person and online classes, saying the university is taking steps to address the campus’ record-breaking COVID-19 test numbers.
UW-Madison retains rank as 13th best public college in America, report says
UW-Madison retained its national rank as the 13th-best public college or university in the country, according to this year’s edition of U.S. News & World Report.
UW-Madison considers cutting spring break from 2021 calendar to curb COVID-19 spread
UW-Madison may scrap spring break from next semester’s calendar to curb the spread of COVID-19.
One week into the school year, COVID-19 spread pauses in-person classes at UW-Madison
Citing rapidly rising COVID-19 cases including two straight days in which one in five student tests came back positive, University of Wisconsin-Madison Chancellor Rebecca Blank locked down the state’s largest university campus for two weeks.
University of Wisconsin-Madison directed nine sororities and fraternities to quarantine due to Covid-19
The University of Wisconsin-Madison says it has directed nine off-campus sororities and fraternities to quarantine for 14 day
Dane County Urges UW-Madison To Send Dorm Residents Home To Slow COVID-19 Outbreaks
Dane County Executive Joe Parisi is asking the University of Wisconsin-Madison to send students living in residence halls home after the campus has reported more than 1,000 positive cases of COVID-19.
University of Wisconsin-Madison Switches to Online Learning, Orders 2 Residence Halls to Quarantine
Due to a recent upward trend in positivity rates and coronavirus cases, students at the University of Wisconsin-Madison will switch to remote learning for at least two weeks, effective immediately, and residents at two different dormitories will be required to quarantine during that time.
UW-Madison Temporarily Moves Classes Online After Spike In Positive COVID-19 Tests
The University of Wisconsin-Madison is moving all classes online and quarantining two residence halls due to a spike in positive cases of COVID-19, just one week after students returned to campus.
University of Wisconsin-Madison moves classes online, quarantines students in two dorms as coronavirus cases spike on campus
The University of Wisconsin-Madison is moving all classes online and quarantining students in two of its largest dorms as it deals with rising cases of COVID-19.
UW announces two weeks of online courses, two dorms quarantined
Students scrambled in and out of Witte Residence Hall on Wednesday night with their arms full of Ian’s Pizza boxes, panic-bought groceries and bags full of trash. One student entered the building announcing, “Goodbye, rain! Goodbye, fresh air!” as he prepared to enter two weeks of quarantine announced by the University of Wisconsin-Madison less than two hours earlier.
UW-Madison moves to all-online classes amid growing COVID-19 case count
UW-Madison is moving all classes online and quarantining students in two of its largest dorms for at least the next two weeks, the most significant step by the university to curb a COVID-19 outbreak that has surpassed 1,000 infections in mere days.
UW-Madison facility starts manufacturing COVID-19 treatment drug
Alab at UW-Madison’s Waisman Center started manufacturing a new drug to treat COVID-19 patients, the university announced Wednesday.
UW-Madison Students Cope With The Pandemic
With a growing number of COVID-19 cases confirmed at UW Madison, Chancellor Rebecca Blank directed students to restrict their movements. We speak with the chair of the Associated Students of Madison about how students are coping with the pandemic and what they think of the university’s restart plan.
UW-Madison Reports More Than 1,000 COVID-19 Cases, As Students Told To ‘Severely Limit’ Interactions
University of Wisconsin-Madison officials are attempting to get a handle on the spread of the coronavirus amidst a recent spike of cases on campus.
UW sets, breaks coronavirus records over holiday weekend, forcing stay-at-home order
Sunday marked the highest number of cases for both Dane County and University of Wisconsin-Madison on-campus testing since the pandemic started in March, breaking the previous record set only one day prior on Saturday.
Nine UW-Madison fraternities and sororities ordered to quarantine due to COVID-19 spread
The members of nine fraternities and sororities at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have been directed to quarantine themselves after 38 students tested positive for COVID-19, the university confirmed Friday.
UW-Madison chancellor orders all undergrads to restrict activities to stem increase in COVID cases
Alarmed by a rise in coronavirus cases on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus, Chancellor Rebecca Blank on Monday ordered all undergraduates to restrict their movements for the next two weeks.
UW-Madison Black Student Union Calls For Boulder Removal
Black students at the University of Wisconsin-Madison want the school to remove a 70-ton boulder from campus because its nickname is a racial slur.