But “the 2023 numbers seem to indicate that bump is over and we’re back to the trends we were in before,” said Nicholas Mark, a University of Wisconsin researcher who studies how social policy and other factors influence health and fertility.
Author: gbump
NCAA Tournament game boosts Wisconsin women’s hockey 2023-24 crowd size average
The University of Wisconsin women’s hockey team hosted an NCAA Tournament game for the first time in five years in 2024. As usual, it was among the most attended contests of the season at LaBahn Arena.
UW-Madison ends alumni email accounts, citing cybersecurity risks and financial strain
UW-Madison students will lose access to their wisc.edu email accounts nine months after graduation, according to the UW Division of Information Technology, the last step in a yearslong process of eliminating email accounts connecting alumni with the university.
Madison’s Crazylegs Classic race causes street closures and bus detours
Closures will begin at 9:45 a.m. for the race beginning at 9:50 a.m. on Library Mall at State and North Lake streets. Major streets affected will include West Gilman, Langdon and West Dayton streets, and Old University Avenue.
More than 150 police officers and drones to monitor 55th annual Mifflin Street Block Party
For each of the past 55 years, the 400 and 500 blocks of West Mifflin Street have undergone a one-day transformation. The usually quiet stretch of vintage student rentals becomes a seething mass of humanity, a jungle that officials have tried to weed and tame, often with little success. The will of a 19-year-old business major to get plastered continues to triumph over the best-laid plans of mayors and council members.
More cows are being tested and tracked for bird flu. Here’s what that means
Several experts said the USDA’s plans to require testing in cows are a good start. “We need to be able to do greater surveillance so that we know what’s going on,” said Thomas Friedrich, a virology professor at the University of Wisconsin’s veterinary school.
UW system to vacate Richland Center campus; county warns of ‘economic crisis’
Universities of Wisconsin officials announced Tuesday that UW-Platteville will vacate its Richland County campus on July 1, an unexpected move that local officials say creates a “potential economic crisis” for the county.
Former Wisconsin college chancellor fired over porn career is fighting to keep his faculty post
The University of Wisconsin-La Crosse’s top official has taken the first steps toward removing a faculty member who was earlier fired from his job as chancellor over his fledgling porn career.
Wisconsin fans love to drink, and proved it in first year of alcoholic beverage sales
Sales for the season totaled more than $1.3 million at Wisconsin basketball and hockey home games.
Wisconsin men’s hockey sees record high ticket scans for a home game during 2023-24 season
The Badgers’ success early in Hastings’ first season, however, apparently made a difference in bringing fans back to the Kohl Center. The average number of ticket scans ended at 7,444, the highest figure since 2014-15 and a 58% gain over the previous season.
What to know about Madison’s Crazylegs Classic
The 42nd annual Crazylegs Classic, with a 5-mile run and 2-mile walk, is expected to draw more than 9,500 participants to Downtown Madison on Saturday.
Designers of Cottage Grove’s first dog park hope to capture community’s vibe
James Steiner, a lecturer in UW-Madison’s Department of Planning and Landscape Architecture, collaborated with UW-Madison design students Keegan Ripley and Henry Hinchsliff to design the project, currently dubbed Bark Park. The effort was carried out through UniverCity Alliance, a campus organization that’s part of the Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies and provides students with hands-on experience developing local projects.
Wisconsin men’s basketball adapting to name, image and likeness, transfer portal challenges
And Wednesday, Gard seemed calm amid the seeming firestorm, acknowledging there being no shortage of short-term options into the transfer portal while also emphasizing heavily into a long-term vision of how the Badgers can adapt to a new world dominated by big money.
Find a fix for UW campus closures and Wisconsin’s worker shortage — Andrew Lewis
Letter to the editor: The UW Board of Regents appears to be incapable of creative solutions. The GOP seems committed to a strategy geared toward degrading support for higher education by defunding the UW Extension and our small two- and four-year campuses that serve rural Wisconsin so well.
A conservative quest to limit diversity programs gains momentum in states
University of Wisconsin regents agreed in December to shift at least 43 diversity positions to focus on “student success” and eliminate statements supporting diversity on student applications. The actions were part of a deal with lawmakers to release funding for pay raises and campus construction projects.
New renderings of Wisconsin football practice facility show updated plans
Work to replace the Camp Randall Sports Center — more commonly known as the Shell — and the McClain Center is scheduled to begin later this year. Wisconsin officials are planning to give an informational presentation about the project to the Joint Campus Area Committee on Thursday.
End of Wisconsin football assistant’s tenure detailed in separation agreement
Jack Bicknell Jr. was the team’s offensive line coach last season but was reassigned in the program following the bowl-game loss to LSU. But Bicknell’s new role as the program’s executive director of football operations has already ended, according to a separation agreement turned over to BadgerExtra.
UW attributes voting issue to miscommunication, ‘technology error’
Miscommunication and “a technology error” led to a polling place issue earlier this month that created a brief controversy over extending voting hours at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, a campus spokesperson said.
More tickets used for Wisconsin men’s basketball home games in 2023-24
Badgers home games averaged 11,705 tickets scanned, a 15% increase over 2022-23. The average, however, ranked 15th out of 17 available seasons of data, ahead of only 2021-22 (11,335) and 2022-23 (10,205).
UW-Madison extends financial support for education students who stay in Wisconsin to teach
The program supports students going into teaching by paying the equivalent of in-state tuition and fees, testing and licensing if the student, once graduated, spends four years teaching in a Wisconsin school district. The extension was made possible by $8 million in donations, according to a statement from the school.
UW extends free teaching degrees for grads who stay in state
The University of Wisconsin-Madison’s education school is extending its Wisconsin Teacher Pledge for a third time in an aim to address teacher shortages across the state.
UW-Madison College of Engineering dean to step down after 11-year tenure
UW-Madison’s College of Engineering expects to grow significantly in the coming years, and it’ll do so under new leadership. Dean Ian Robertson announced Monday morning that he would step down once his successor has been chosen.
Madison isn’t famous for fashion, but UW-Madison student designers make their mark
UW-Madison’s aspiring fashion designers are far from fashion industry epicenters like New York City and Paris, but they are, nevertheless, undeterred.
Professor John (Jack) E. Johnson
After spending a short time in industry, he joined the Civil Engineering Department at the University of Wisconsin in 1965 and retired in 1990. While at the University of Wisconsin-Madison he taught many different courses in the area of structural engineering and developed special courses in thin shell structures.
Beatrice Ann (DeHaven) “Bea” Fruth
Upon graduation, she worked at the University of Wisconsin – Madison Memorial Union.
Greg Gard among Wisconsin coaches getting routine contract extensions
Greg Gard (men’s basketball), Marisa Moseley (women’s basketball), Mike Hastings (men’s hockey), Mark Johnson (women’s hockey), Chris Bono (wrestling) and Yuri Suguiyama (men’s and women’s swimming and diving) have five-year contracts that now run through the 2028-29 season.
Wisconsin athletics expenses projected to reach record high in 2024-25 budget
The Athletic Board on Friday unanimously approved a recommendation for a budget that includes $170.942 million in expenses and $170.952 million in revenue. Both were the highest ever presented to the board, and the expenses line was 63% higher than the budget from 10 years earlier.
Madison residents threw away over 6,121 tons of plastic in 2023
The city doesn’t collect trash or recyclables from metal dumpsters, and this doesn’t include UW-Madison, which has its own system for waste collection.
Tom Still: Fusion energy is a nascent ‘hot spot’ for Wisconsin economy’
The UW-Madison’s Fusion Technology Institute lists 167 Ph.D. graduates and is the largest program in the United States for advanced degrees in fusion engineering. Since 1965, the university has produced more than 400 graduates overall in fields such as plasma experimental, plasma theory and fusion technology.
“I came to Madison because of its nuclear energy programs,” said Oliver Schmitz, a Germany native who is the associate dean of research innovation in the UW-Madison College of Engineering. “Whenever I travel to fusion events elsewhere, it seems like 80% of the participants are UW-Madison graduates.”
UW-Madison orders replacement Terrace pier as new report explains why the last one collapsed
Anumber of factors contributed to the collapse of a swim pier last fall at Union Terrace, including too many people and unruly behavior on the structure, a lack of inspections to determine the condition of the pier, and breakdowns in communication between staff and lifeguards, according to a report issued Friday by UW-Madison.
Wisconsin chancellor sees intersection of transfer portal, NIL as ‘challenge’
The timing of Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin’s yearly appearance in front of the University of Wisconsin Athletic Board left the intersection of the transfer portal and name, image and likeness deals as a central theme.
UW system calls tuition hike ‘reasonable.’ How did it decide rate?
When in-state undergraduates start classes this fall, they’ll pay more to attend the Universities of Wisconsin. That extra money will go toward rising health care costs and pay increases for university employees and financial aid for students, among other things.
Sauk County approves $390K for each of next 2 years for UW Baraboo campus
The Sauk County Board has approved $390,000 in funding for UW-Platteville Baraboo Sauk County in each of the next two years in an effort to keep the campus open amid the closings of several other branch campuses in the Universities of Wisconsin system.
UW-Madison police start offering free repair vouchers instead of fines for some car violations
Got a busted taillight? Maybe a burned-out turn signal? The UW-Madison Police want to help. The department has partnered with Lights On!, a Michigan-based organization that pairs up with police and auto shops, to replace tickets for mechanical violations such as broken taillights or turn signals with vouchers to get them fixed.
Wisconsin volleyball keeping a close eye on the Caitlin Clark phenomenon
Kelly Sheffield, like seemingly most everybody else in the country, watched the Caitlin Clark phenomenon and the accompanying booming interest in college women’s basketball with great interest.
Anne Mary Donnellan
At a time when autistic children were denied admission to public school, her founding of Los Niños, an early haven of acceptance for autistic children, was a testament to both her empathy and her drive for practical solutions. This same blend fueled her academic achievements – a PhD from the University of California at Santa Barbara and a position as a beloved professor and lecturer at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Who was Carson Gulley, the Madison chef who inspired a ‘Top Chef’ challenge?
Gulley was the head chef for UW-Madison for 27 years. Gulley was viewed by many as Madison’s first celebrity chef and had a cooking show, radio show and culinary business. Despite his success, Gulley faced significant racial discrimination in Madison, especially when it came to housing, according to Wisconsin State Journal archives.
Wisconsin women’s hockey player ‘going to be an absolute star’ after World Championship debut
A reflection on the personal goals that Laila Edwards took into her first World Championship reveals a simplicity that’s striking when compared to the reality that she lived.
Wisconsin women’s soccer defender honored to represent U.S. at Under-19 national team training camp
Hailey Baumann is coming off of a strong freshman season with the University of Wisconsin women’s soccer team, but she knows she’ll have her work cut out for her when she takes the pitch with the nation’s top players in her age group starting Sunday in West Palm Beach, Florida.
Wisconsin men’s basketball loses key support staff member to head coaching role
Kyle Blackbourn, the Badgers’ director of recruiting and scouting, announced Wednesday morning that he has been named the head coach of the Rockhurst University men’s basketball team, a Division II program in Kansas City, Missouri.
UW law professor: Crumbley parents’ conviction in school shooting ignored 3 principles of criminal law
Column by John P. Gross, a clinical associate professor at University of Wisconsin Law School and director of the Public Defender Project.
Doulas helping Black births in Dane County, but infant mortality still high
“The early and consistent wins we are witnessing demonstrate that we can disrupt Black maternal and child health disparities by creating solutions with, rather than for, our community,” said Robin Lankton, vice president of Population Health at UW Health, a member of the health council.
Wisconsin worst in nation in fatal crashes involving wrong-way drivers
Partial cloverleaf interchanges, with on and off ramps next to each other, are the highway intersection most susceptible to drivers mistakenly entering on exit ramps, experts say. At such interchanges, “it’s hard to know which is the correct ramp,” said Andrea Bill, a traffic safety research project manager at UW-Madison’s Traffic Operations and Safety Laboratory. “Here in Wisconsin, especially in our urban areas, we have a fair amount of them.”
Sunburst chairs return to UW-Madison. Here are some fun facts
The vibrant, colorful and iconic sunburst chairs that signal warmth and summer in Madison will once again return to UW-Madison’s Memorial Union Terrace on Wednesday morning.
Farmers find many opportunities with grasses but don’t forget the benefits of alfalfa
Authored by Matt Lippert, the dairy educator for Wood and Clark County with the UW-Madison Division of Extension.
UW system President Jay Rothman fiddles while Wisconsin’s campuses burn — John Finkler
Letter to the editor: It is time for Rothman to stop fiddling and finally join Evers in forcefully saying: “Enough is enough!” UW schools are not a political threat. They are a precious statewide resource and should be treated as such.
Ag Briefs: Worried about bird flu? UW educators can help protect your livestock
The University of Wisconsin Division of Extension Dairy Program Area educators have created an HPAI factsheet with pertinent information and helpful resources outlining key action steps to help dairy farmers protect their animals from Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI).
Gov. Tony Evers urges increased funding for UW system after audits show fiscal strains
Gov. Tony Evers is calling on the GOP-led Legislature to increase funding for the Universities of Wisconsin after the system’s leaders released a slate of third-party financial audits that showed half of its schools are in financial trouble.
Wisconsin volleyball schedules perennial powers for nonconference matches
The University of Wisconsin volleyball team will face at least six teams that were in last season’s NCAA Tournament during this season’s nonconference portion of the schedule.
Robert Allen Rancourt
Robert worked at Ray-O-Vac for 12 years; and later as an Administrator with the UW – School of Medicine and Public Health’s Center for Health Policy and Program Evaluation (CHPPE) and the Wisconsin Alzheimer’s Institute. He retired from the University after more than 30 years in 2009.
Mary Alma Pankratz
For more than 30 years, Mary worked for the State of Wisconsin finishing her career as a program assistant at the UW Carbone Cancer Center where she often joked that she started at the Cancer Center BC (before Carbone).
White House photographer Pete Souza revisits Madison for exhibit
The University of Wisconsin-Madison hosted a panel discussion about his work in Marquee Cinema at Union South Tuesday evening and a gallery opening of Souza’s photographs in the Education Building Wednesday morning. Souza’s photographs will be on display in the gallery until May 17.
UW-Madison’s class of 2024 recreates the senior prom it never got to celebrate
UW-Madison’s class of 2024 is reclaiming a bit of what it lost to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Sauk County to consider covering UW-Baraboo deficit, explores sole ownership of campus
In a dramatic bid to keep the campus open and preserve a key driver of the local economy, the Sauk County Board plans to vote next week on a proposal to cover maintenance costs at UW-Platteville Baraboo Sauk County.
Albert “Al” Harlan Ellingboe
In 1983, he joined the faculty at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, as a Professor in the Department of Plant Pathology with a joint appointment in the Department of Genetics. Al was an international recognized authority on the genetics of host-pathogen interactions.
Demolished UW dorms honored strong women leaders — Lynne Watrous Eich
Letter to the editor: Readers who travel east on Johnson Street toward North Park Street in Madison may be interested in this: On the south side of the corridor, two former residence halls built in 1962 adjacent to each other — Susan Burdick Davis House and Zoe Bayliss House — have recently been demolished.
UW-Madison entrepreneurs compete for $50,000 prize for job search app
A team of University of Wisconsin-Madison students is heading to Minneaoplis next week for a national competition they hope could net $50,000 for their startup, SideShift. Like a dating app for jobs, the social media-inspired tool is designed to make it easier for small businesses to hire college students.
David George Hinds
He joined University of Wisconsin Madison-Extension as an Assistant Professor and Community Development Educator in Sauk, Kenosha and Racine counties. He was promoted to Professor and named Director of UW-Extension Local Government Center in Madison, WI.
Wisconsin footballs adds Sun Belt opponent to 2028 schedule
The University of Wisconsin football team will host Marshall to kick off the 2028 season.
UW-Madison names new $260M computer sciences building after Morgridges
UW-Madison is naming its new School of Computer, Data and Information Sciences building Morgridge Hall, in honor of the family that was instrumental in making the project happen.