Student NewsLink
April 29, 2009
The News
UW-Madison officials monitoring swine flu
University officials are actively monitoring reports of swine flu affecting Mexico, with additional cases in a handful of U.S. states, though not Wisconsin so far.
Stay safe on Mifflin Street this Saturday
The Offices of the Dean of Students offers safety tips ahead of the Mifflin Street Block Party on May 2.
UW-Madison graduate programs ranked in latest U.S. News and World Report
Several of the university's graduate programs are ranked among the nation's best in the 2010 edition of U.S. News and World Report's "Best Graduate Schools."
Living & Learning
Big Ten Network show analyzes Obama’s first 100 days
The seventh episode of “Office Hours,” a half-hour weekly talk show on the Big Ten Network, brings nationally recognized experts from the UW-Madison campus together in a discussion of President Barack Obama’s first 100 days in office.
Oral History Program preserves, promotes recorded memories
As head of the Oral History Program, Troy Reeves is the campus's go-to guy for the kind of in-depth conversations contained in more than 3,500 hours of audio interviews that preserve a substantial slice of the university's past.
As insects expand, new areas may become prone to Lyme disease
After returning home from a walk in Madison's Dudgeon-Monroe neighborhood last summer, Susan Paskewitz was astonished to find a deer tick crawling up her dog's hind leg. It was the first time Paskewitz, a UW-Madison entomologist, had collected a tick in the city. Within the month, she learned of two other such cases.
Course adds to environmental awareness
Todd Goddard, a doctoral student in literary studies, has found a way to unite his concern for the environment with his teaching. In his section of English 201, he provides 16 students with real-world communications experience while giving 11 local nonprofits some much-needed help. In the process, he helps increase environmental awareness among his students and the audiences they serve.
Slide show: The Making of "Hair"
UW-Madison's production of "Hair", which will close University Theatre's season, has entailed 24 undergraduate cast members, a guest director, a grueling rehearsal schedule and an ambitious goal of being as authentic as possible.
Around Campus
Poet, alumnus returns to campus for landmark reading
Martin Espada is winner of the Paterson Award for Sustained Literary Achievement, Pulitzer Prize finalist in 2007 and UW-Madison alumnus. Espada's politics of poetry, rebellion and laughter will take you on an unforgettable voyage of passion, edge, humor and social conscience, from Puerto Rico and Chile to New York and Wisconsin. 7 p.m. on Thursday, April 30, Pyle Center.
Weeklong celebration marks opening of UW-Madison's Art Lofts facility
Facing the Kohl Center across Frances Street, the tower of bright red steel girders marks the main entrance to the Art Lofts, the new state-of-the-art facility for the Department of Art. The facility houses the department's glass lab, metal sculpture foundry, ceramics, graduate darkroom and digital facilities, and papermaking areas, along with studio spaces for more than 60 faculty and graduate students, and spaces for the display of student and faculty artwork. The community will celebrate the opening of the Art Lofts with a series of events the week of May 5-9, all free and open to the public. These will include tours, demonstrations and student art sales from 1:30-5 p.m. on Wednesday, May 6, and from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. on Saturday, May 9.
Chazen groundbreaking ceremony planned for May 1
The Chazen Museum of Art will celebrate the beginning of construction on its expansion with a groundbreaking ceremony at noon on Friday, May 1, on the building site at 750 University Ave.
Conference examines ethical journalism at a time of change
Leading journalists, scholars and media experts will gather on campus to assess the future of ethical journalism in the public interest. Sponsored by the Center for Journalism Ethics at the School of Journalism and Mass Communication, the conference will look at ethics and the future of an industry facing economic cutbacks and uncertainty. The event runs from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. on Friday, May 1, at the Pyle Center. Registration online is free but required. A pre-conference reception will be held from 6-8 p.m. on Thursday, April 30, at the University Club.
World Stage series hosts Acoustic Africa star
The female star of Acoustic Africa is back. Dobet Gnahore's socially conscious lyrics deal with subjects such as the AIDS pandemic, the importance of family, village life and remembering your roots. 8 p.m. on Friday, May 1, Wisconsin Union Theater. Cost: $28 general, $10 UW-Madison students with ID.
Meeting the plug-in hybrid electric vehicle challenge
The major automakers have stated commitments to bring plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) to market by 2010. This program will discuss the current state of PHEVs, what impacts mass market deployment will have on the electric industry, and strategies to prepare Wisconsin and the electric industry for PHEVs. 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m., Tong Auditorium, Engineering Centers. Cost: varies; see Web site for details.
Notable
Student Personnel Association honors nine for service, dedication
The Student Personnel Association honored nine university staff members at its Outstanding Achievement Awards luncheon on April 15.
WAA honors food science professor with Outreach Excellence Award
The Wisconsin Alumni Association has selected food science professor Richard Hartel as the 2009 recipient of the Ken and Linda Ciriacks Alumni Outreach Excellence Award.
Opportunities
Donate hair, watch special performance of 'Hair' on the Terrace
Come out to the Terrace to donate hair to "Locks of Love" at 4 p.m. on Wednesday (today), April 29, Memorial Union Terrace. Members of the cast of "Hair," which is playing at University Theatre, will perform some of the tunes from the hit musical. "Locks of Love" provides hairpieces to financially disadvantaged children in the United States and Canada who have suffered from long-term medical hair loss from any diagnosis.
Contest: What does a new student need to know?
UW-Madison is again asking students to write an essay about the things they've learned about life at the university. The winner will be given the honor of addressing 5,500 new students from the floor of the Kohl Center at the Chancellor's Convocation for New Students on Tuesday, Sept. 1. The winner will also receive a $100 gift certificate to University Book Store. The submission deadline is Friday, May 8.