Badgers assistant coach Dean Oliver will not return to the Badgers bench for an eighth season, he announced on Twitter Wednesday evening. A source close to the men’s basketball program told BadgerExtra that Oliver’s contract was not being renewed.
Author: gbump
Wisconsin ‘uninstructed’ vote more than double Biden’s 2020 margin
“This is not really going to cost him the ability to be the Democratic nominee pretty easily, but it will be something that he and his campaign will have to pay attention to,” Barry Burden, a political science professor at UW-Madison and director of the campus’ Elections Research Center, told the Cap Times last month.
Total solar eclipse: What to know if you’re viewing from Madison
The total eclipse — which occurs when the moon aligns entirely in its orbit between the sun and the Earth — will begin to be visible in Madison at 12:50 p.m. but will be at maximum coverage at 2:05 p.m., said James Lattis, the director of the University of Wisconsin Space Place.
“The basic astronomy of the eclipse is that the moon comes between us and the sun, and blocks part of the disk or all of the disk of the sun,” Lattis explained. “So if you’re at the right place, that path of totality where the alignment is right for the moon to completely cover the disk of the sun, you get the sight of the total eclipse.”
Erik Iverson: Biden administration patent policy would hurt Wisconsin tech sector
Column by Erik Iverson, chief executive officer of the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation.
How sheep could be a key to Wisconsin’s solar energy future
This spring Alliant Energy and the University of Wisconsin-Madison will break ground on a 2.25 megawatt, roughly 15-acre solar array that will be used to study agrivoltaics at the university’s Kegonsa Research Campus 10 miles southeast of Madison.
Researchers will study the soil and water quality of the solar site, its effect on wildlife, and the feasibility of grazing animals and growing crops among the array, said Josh Arnold, UW-Madison campus energy adviser.
Voting hours extended on UW campus due to poll site issue
Voting hours have been extended from 8 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at Memorial Union on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus due to a management issue at the polling place earlier Tuesday. The extension was opposed by a lawyer who represents the Wisconsin Republican Party, according to court filing.
UW women’s basketball team deserves cheerleaders too — Linda Eisele
Letter to the editor: The Wisconsin women’s basketball team was fantastic Thursday night in their first postseason game in 13 years, but where were the Wisconsin cheerleaders?
Yet another error with the new financial aid form is forcing students to delay college acceptance
Up to 20% of students applying for federal financial aid may have to wait even longer to be awarded financial assistance, forcing many to hold off deciding where to attend college next year until they know which schools they can afford.
Madison consumer rewards startup Fetch gets $50 million in funding
Founded in 2013 by CEO Wes Schroll and fellow UW-Madison student Tyler Kennedy, Fetch users scan shopping receipts and can earn points based on the items purchased. Those points are converted into redeemable awards, which include gift certificates, charitable donations or contest entries.
Letter | GOP lawmakers aim to deny opportunities at UW
Letter to the editor: Wisconsin Republican legislators, with one exception, deny the University of Wisconsin staff and programs that help individuals whose economic, cultural, historical and educational backgrounds did not give them the preparations for higher education (“DEI deal votes lead senators to reject two Evers Regent appointees,” March 12).
Universities of Wisconsin, UW-Madison to offer paid parental leave
The new policies give eligible employees six weeks of paid time off following the birth or adoption of a child. The change comes after UW-Madison faculty and staff lobbied administrators to implement such a policy.
“I’m really happy that we’re in a position to be able to announce this,” Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin told faculty at a meeting Monday. “This has been something I’ve wanted to bring to conclusion, and there’s been interest in this for a very long time.”
UW-Madison, UW system propose 6-week paid parental leave policies
UW-Madison and the Universities of Wisconsin are each proposing a paid parental leave policy granting six weeks of leave for the birth or adoption of a child, following more than a decade of studying its feasibility and increasing pressure from faculty and staff.
UW-Madison Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin said Monday that adding paid parental leave allows the university to stay competitive in recruiting graduate students and employees, and catch up to other local private businesses and governmental agencies that already offer it.
Rock-picking ritual in Wisconsin farm field turns up 109.5-pound meteorite. Here’s how to see it
Experts at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have verified it as a meteorite made of iron and nickel, created in the solar system’s earliest days. It likely started out as part of an asteroid or protoplanet, says Richard Slaughter, director of University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Geology Museum.
Inches are the difference on great scoring chances in Wisconsin men’s hockey’s NCAA loss
The Badgers were close but not quite close enough. That’s the way the game went Friday and the way the season went down the stretch; they went 7-8-2 after a 10-game winning streak that covered parts of November, December and January.
Marjorie “Margie” Flagel
Later in her career she worked both at the UW Medical School and the UW School of Veterinary Medicine doing medical transcription.
Patricia Coffey is a forensic psychologist who loves learning about what makes you tick
The forensic psychologist is a faculty member in the UW-Madison Department of Psychology. She not only teaches UW-Madison students pursuing their graduate degrees how to conduct court-ordered psychological evaluations or forensic assessments for those who have been charged with crimes — at times quite violent crimes; she also teaches an introductory psychology course at Oakhill Correctional Institution near Oregon, for which incarcerated people can obtain college credit.
Shelley M. Lagally
She believed that further education would offer new opportunities and so she earned, with honors, an MA in Public Policy and Administration with a concentration in bioethics from The LaFollette Institute at UW and immediately accepted a position as a staff member in the office of the Health Sciences Institutional Review Board (IRB) at the University. Shelley’s charm often won the day in vital ethics deliberations.
Around the world in 95 years, refugee from Nazi Germany celebrates with fundraiser
By Emily Auerbach, executive director of UW Odyssey at UW-Madison and a professor of English who co-hosts “University of the Air” on Wisconsin Public Radio.
Next week ‘critical’ for Northland College’s hopes to stay open
With just days to go before its self-imposed deadline to raise $12 million, the Northland College Board of Trustees said the coming week will be “critical” to the survival of the small liberal arts college in Ashland.
UW president proposes 3.75% hike in resident tuition next school year
Resident undergraduate tuition rates would rise 3.75% for the 2024-25 academic year, without including fees or room and board. Seven universities in the UW system are proposing even higher increases on top of the 3.75%, Rothman told reporters Thursday morning.
UW system looks to raise in-state tuition for second year in a row, citing inflationary pressures
Universities of Wisconsin President Jay Rothman on Thursday announced the intent to raise tuition by 3.75%, saying the increase is in line with inflation and is necessary to maintain the UW system’s educational quality.
Latino Chamber’s new training center gets $5 million in federal budget
The University of Wisconsin-Madison, which received $2 million to “establish a regional center to combat the fentanyl crisis” and $1 million to improve agriculture research facilities.
UW-Madison police launching new one-button alert for ‘active, deadly threats’ with test today
UW-Madison police are launching a new one-button alert for “active, deadly threats” they will test at 11 a.m. Wednesday.
Wisconsin football sets up another West Coast trip with home-and-home series
The program announced Tuesday that the Badgers will take on the University of California in a home-and-home series in 2029 and 2030. Wisconsin will head to Berkley to face the Golden Bears on Sept. 1, 2029, and Cal will play at Camp Randall Stadium on Aug. 31, 2030. These dates were originally set for matchups against UCLA, but those games were nixed after the Bruins joined the Big Ten.
‘Sense of peace.’ Badgers women lose hockey title but not confidence
University of Wisconsin women’s hockey coach Mark Johnson has always been inquisitive about what goes into winning, what goes into building and sustaining a championship culture.
Madison Plan Commission again denies State Street development
The Plan Commission voted 5-3 to stop the demolition of three buildings along the 400 block of State Street which used to house B-Side Records and Freedom Skate Shop, locally owned businesses that had been staples on the block since the mid-1970s.
As winters warm, Wisconsin fruit growers brace for the worst
“The colder it is during the winter, the more cold hardy they’re going to get and the more heat they’re going to need in the spring to be able to wake up,” said Amaya Atucha, a fruit crop specialist with University of Wisconsin Extension.
UW-Madison sees student interest in public policy skyrocket
Leaders in the La Follette School of Public Affairs at UW-Madison are crafting an undergraduate major in public policy due to increasing student interest, at a time when the general public is polarized or largely turned off by the tenor of politics and government.
How Wisconsin wrestlers fared at the NCAA Championships
Along with being named an All-American in 2021 and 2022, Barnett finished with a 106-41 career record. He also is one of only nine Badgers wrestlers at 118, 126 or 125 pounds to finish fourth or higher at the NCAAs.
Share right-sizing plan to close Wisconsin’s superfluous campuses — Tim Haering
Letter to the editor: Rothman might do us a favor by openly owning his right-sizing plan, instead of shocking us with out-of-the-blue campus closures.
This Wisconsin swimmer stands tallest again at NCAA swimming and diving championships
Phoebe Bacon is a national champion once again. The University of Wisconsin senior on Saturday won her second career NCAA title in the 200-yard backstroke at the national swimming and diving meet in Athens, Georgia.
Pain from championship loss hits Wisconsin women’s hockey players hard
A 1-0 loss to the Buckeyes was a cruel way for the Badgers to have to pack things for the season and fly home Sunday night. But turnabout was fair play: Ohio State had to do the same a year earlier, wondering about all the things that could have been different in a one-game championship decided by one goal.
Wisconsin’s presidential primary has already been decided, but it’s not the only thing on the ballot April 2
Without a competitive Republican primary spurring conservative voters to the polls, “turnout will be lower and more balanced between the parties,” predicted UW-Madison political science professor Barry Burden.
Richard Davis film looks at the teacher behind the jazz master
Davis, who moved to Madison in 1977, never rested on his laurels, and didn’t talk much in interviews about a career that included collaborations with Sarah Vaughan, Van Morrison and Bruce Springsteen. Never one to look backwards, Davis preferred to look ahead. He loved to talk about his career in Madison as an educator, a University of Wisconsin-Madison professor who founded the Richard Davis Foundation for Young Bassists to inspire future generations of musicians.
Robert A. Herbsleb
He was employed by the University of Wisconsin Madison Space Science and Engineering Center for over 30 years. Robert received Emeritus status July 20, 2001.
5 UW campuses are gone, showing lapse in public duty, trust
From the UW Board of Regents to the Legislature and governor, those chargedg with the care and preservation of the public’s investment in higher education watch idly by while UW system President Jay Rothman wields his ax to make the system’s budgetary ends meet.
A small, northern Wisconsin college must raise $12 million in 3½ weeks — or face closure
Raising the money by the board’s April 3 deadline would give leadership the fiscal stability for the 2024-25 school year to reimagine a “new” Northland with a yet-to-be-seen sustainable model. Without the infusion of cash, the 132-year-old college will be forced to close at the end of the year, displacing hundreds of students and dozens of faculty and staff.
UW’s Tandem Press director is retiring after leading it for 30 years
Paula Panczenko, director of the UW-Madison’s Tandem Press for more than 30 years, will retire this summer, the university announced this week.
West Madison plan sparks outrage over city’s answers to big question
To Kurt Paulsen, a professor of urban planning at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, there’s no question the city faces a critical shortage of housing to meet the needs. Paulsen’s research focuses on housing and land use.
“It absolutely is accurate to call it a crisis,” he said. “It’s the basic facts: Jobs are growing really quickly. Lots of young people are moving here. All those things mean housing demand is off the charts.”
DEI deal votes lead senators to reject two Evers Regent appointees
Lawmakers rejected two of Gov. Tony Evers’ appointees to the University of Wisconsin Board of Regents Tuesday after the regents voted against a deal to freeze positions related to diversity, equity and inclusion in exchange for funding for the UW.
Wisconsin Senate approves bills restricting transgender athletes, giving Legislature control over federal funds
The Senate also for the first time passed Assembly Joint Resolution 109, a constitutional amendment that’s Wisconsin Republicans’ latest step in their fight against government-run diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. Republican lawmakers last year struck a deal requiring the Universities of Wisconsin to restructure its DEI programs, and GOP legislative leaders have said they plan to scrutinize similar programs in state agencies.
Wisconsin football’s latest assistant coach’s salary revealed
E.J. Whitlow’s contract to be the University of Wisconsin defensive line coach includes a raise and two bonuses in the second year that boost the overall value of the deal to $650,000 over two years.
Sophomore guard headlines Wisconsin men’s basketball’s group of All-Big Ten honorees
Four players on the University of Wisconsin men’s basketball team earned All-Big Ten honors following a fifth-place finish in the conference standings, the Big Ten announced Tuesday.
Wisconsin Republicans fire 8 more Evers appointees, including regents and judicial watchdogs
Republicans who control the state Senate fired eight more of Democratic Gov. Tony Evers’ appointees Tuesday, including two Universities of Wisconsin regents who voted against a deal that limited campus diversity and four judicial watchdogs who wouldn’t commit to punishing liberal state Supreme Court Justice Janet Protasiewicz.
Senate rejects 8 of Gov. Tony Evers’ appointees, including 2 from the UW Board of Regents
The Republican-controlled Wisconsin Senate on Tuesday fired eight of Democratic Gov. Tony Evers’ appointees, including two on the UW Board of Regents whose rejection came after they voted last year against a divisive deal that gives the UW system additional state funding in exchange for scaling back diversity efforts.
Barry Alvarez outlives rumor mill, and has lots of thoughts
Maybe Alvarez has never even been in a position to quote Twain. Until now, that is, when Alvarez states, “The reports of my death are greatly exaggerated.’’
Last week, there was a rumor on the internet that the 77-year-old Alvarez had died.
Fifth UW campus will close as Waukesha branch faces 2025 shutdown
The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee will close its two-year campus in Waukesha, the fifth UW branch in less than two years to announce it would shutter its doors or move to an online model.
Madison adaptive dance program makes new moves at MYArts
Collaborating with partners such as UW-Madison, Madison Ballet, Wheels & Heels, Barrio Dance, NewBridge and Cycropia Aerial Dance, the program seeks to create a supportive environment where disabled individuals can explore movement, express themselves creatively, and build meaningful connections with their peers.
Nearly 10% of hospital jobs in Wisconsin vacant, report says
WHA has started a So Many Options campaign to boost interest in health care careers. It recommends expanding training opportunities, such as a nurse apprenticeship program started last year by UW Health and Madison Area Technical College.
3 Wisconsin volleyball players training with Olympic gold medalists
National Player of the Year Sarah Franklin, middle blocker Carter Booth and opposite Devyn Robinson are among the 17 collegiate players training in Anaheim, California, through Friday with a scrimmage scheduled for 11:30 a.m. Saturday. They also will get to train with a pair of Olympic gold medalists in outside Jordan Larson, who played at Nebraska, and setter Jordyn Poulter, who played at Illinois.
Wisconsin Senate to vote on regulating AI, giving Legislature control over federal funds
The Senate appears likely to fire John Miller and Dana Wachs, two of the six regents to vote late last year against a sprawling, controversial deal struck by UW system President Jay Rothman and Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, that gives about $800 million in funding to the UW system in exchange for changes to the public university system’s diversity programming.
Dear Black Future asks people to sum up their hopes in just 4 words
Marlon F. Hall, who is an artist-in-residence at UW-Madison, said the idea behind the Dear Black Future project is to collect as many letters as possible, all written with just four words, to detail aspirations for the Black community.
UW-Milwaukee at Waukesha is closing in 2025, the fifth branch campus to close in 18 months
UW-Milwaukee announced the closure Monday, saying it would instead shift to a university center model at Waukesha County Technical College, where UW-Milwaukee will eventually have a physical space on the WCTC campus. UW-Milwaukee will also stop offering associate degrees and end its College of General Studies, the academic department that oversaw both the Waukesha and Washington County campuses.
Class rankings, increasingly on the wane, now required for Wisconsin high schools
The Republican-backed bill, signed by Democratic Gov. Tony Evers on Feb. 20, requires the state’s flagship public university, UW-Madison, to accept all students who rank in the top 5% of their classes at the end of their junior year, and the 12 regional UW campuses to take all those who rank in the top 10%.
Midwest losing soil 10x faster than new soil is being formed. How can we slow it down?
Soil can even be submitted for fertility analysis to estimate the economic impact of erosion. The Agriculture Water Quality Program within UW-Madison Extension has mats available for interested participants.
Alabama court ruling worries Wisconsin IVF patients, providers
A spokesperson for UW Health — which operates multiple hospitals in the Madison area — told the Cap Times that the health group has heard concern from patients who aren’t sure how the ruling in Alabama may affect access to fertility treatment elsewhere in the country.
“According to the medical director of UW Health Generations, patients have been inquiring about any risk to having their embryos stored and potentially losing their ability to choose what to do with them,” Sara Benzel, a spokesperson for UW Health, wrote in an email to the Cap Times.
Polzin: Former Wisconsin women’s basketball coach Edwina Qualls remembered as trailblazer, advocate
Qualls, who coached the Badgers from 1976 to 1986, died unexpectedly last month at the age of 76. She was the first Black women’s basketball coach in the Big Ten, arriving at Wisconsin just as women’s sports were trying to find their footing following the passage of the historic Title IX legislation in 1972.
Wisconsin women’s hockey scores early and often in WCHA championship win over Ohio State
How the University of Wisconsin women’s hockey team handled the opening 10 minutes of Saturday’s WCHA championship game against top-ranked Ohio State was paramount for coach Mark Johnson.
How Wisconsin track and field athletes fared at the NCAA Indoor Championships
The University of Wisconsin men’s and women’s track and field teams turned in some stellar performances at this season’s NCAA Indoor Championships, with 11 of the 12 Badgers athletes competing in Boston securing All-America honors during three days of fierce competition.
Scientists seek to understand impacts of historic lack of Great Lakes ice
Less ice could translate to longer fishing seasons, but winter storms could wreck nets and traps and destroy whitefish eggs that rely on the ice for protection, said Titus Seilheimer, a University of Wisconsin-Madison fisheries specialist.