UW System Clipsheet

May 15, 2009

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On Campus

"UWSP 'ahead of game' in textbook savings push," Marshfield News-Herald, May 15.

In an effort to save students money, the University of Wisconsin Board of Regents passed a set of recommendations last week to help control textbook costs. At the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, most of the changes are old news. "This new latest push is at the federal level, and the Board is encouraging the changes" in Wisconsin, said Bob Tomlinson, UWSP vice chancellor of student affairs. "I think we're well ahead of that game"...

"Finalist for UW-Parkside chancellor's post drops out," Kenosha News, May 15.

A finalist for the University of Wisconsin-Parkside chancellor position has withdrawn for personal reasons, a UW spokesman said. Elizabeth Langland, vice president and dean of the New College of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences at Arizona State University, notified officials Wednesday of her decision, a day after the search committee gave a presentation on the finalists to UW president Kevin Reilly...

"Programs to help young entrepreneurs burgeoning," Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, May 15.

Halfway into a five-year, $5 million grant to spur entrepreneurship, the University of Wisconsin-Madison has started a host of programs designed to help get students into business. The university has used the money to roll out new initiatives, from an arts enterprise club to a specialized dorm community and an event similar to speed dating, only with experienced entrepreneurs, said Charles B. Hoslet, senior special assistant to the chancellor and managing director of UW-Madison's office of corporate relations...

"UW-Madison: Four UW-Madison alumni to receive honorary degrees," WisBusiness.com, May 14.

Four alumni have been selected to receive honorary degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Kyung J. Kwon-Chung, head of the molecular microbiology section at the National Institutes of Health, will be awarded the honorary degree Doctor of Science; Sheldon B. Lubar, business and civic leader, will receive the honorary degree Doctor of Humane Letters; Joan Wallach Scott, Harold F. Linder Professor of Social Science at the Institute for Advanced Studies in Princeton, N.J., will receive the honorary degree Doctor of Humane Letters; and Oliver Smithies, Excellence professor of pathology and laboratory medicine at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, will be awarded the honorary degree Doctor of Science...

"UW-L recognizes distinguished alumni," La Crosse Tribune, May 15.

Five University of Wisconsin-La Crosse graduates will be celebrated as the university’s top alumni for 2009 at an alumni reception today. State Rep. Jennifer Shilling, D-La Crosse, a 1992 graduate, and power soccer coach Christopher Finn, a 1996 graduate, will receive the Rada Distinguished Alumnus Award. Abdi Samatar, a 1978 graduate who now is a University of Minnesota professor and top African scholar, and 1953 graduate Robert Synovitz, a national leader in school health and health education, will receive the Maurice O. Graff Distinguished Alumnus Award...

"Group sues UW Hospital over policy on withholding treatment from disabled patients," Wisconsin State Journal, May 15.

In a case that could have broad legal implications for when some patients are allowed to die, an advocacy group is alleging that doctors at UW Hospital broke the law by withholding treatment from two developmentally disabled patients with apparent cases of pneumonia...

"Green Bay firm bids low on UWS project," Superior Telegram, May 15.

A Green Bay general contracting firm is the apparent low bidder for the construction of the new University of Wisconsin-Superior academic building, while two area firms submitted apparent low bids for electrical and fire protection subcontracts...

"Students' take on rail study adds new data to debate," Superior Telegram, May 15.

When University of Wisconsin-Superior students were handed a class project on a proposed high-speed rail system connecting the Twin Cities and Twin Ports, they didn't realize how much attention it would attract...

State

"Flexible furlough plan under consideration," Blog, WisPolitics.com, May 14.

The Doyle administration is considering ways to soften the blow of 16-day furloughs state employees may take over the next two years. Spokeswomen for the governor and DOA confirmed one option under consideration would spread out the loss of pay so employees wouldn't be hit all at once...

"Starting over on state budget process is a sensible option," Editorial, Green Bay Press-Gazette, May 15.

The latest estimates from the Wisconsin Department of Revenue are that the state's budget hole is $1.6 billion deeper than it projected just a few months ago. Sens. Robert Cowles and Mike Ellis say the numbers Gov. Jim Doyle used to draft the proposed 2009-2011 budget are no longer relevant and we should start over. This makes sense...

National

"Finding help to pay for college: You just need to know where to look," USA Today, May 14.

The staff at Scholarship America, the nation's largest scholarship administrator, fielded more phone calls from families this year and noticed a heightened sense of urgency among callers....And the number of families who filled out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid jumped almost 21% the first three months of 2009. ...Yet when the college scholarship season winds to a close this summer, there will be millions of dollars in scholarships for the fall left unused, says Scholarship America CEO Clifford Stanley...

"Colleges seek new ways to give students a general education," Chronicle of Higher Education, May 15.

A balanced diet of course work -- a mathematics class here, a few history and literature courses there -- may be a fine and healthy thing. But course-distribution requirements probably are not enough to guarantee that undergraduates acquire a broad range of knowledge and skills. At least that is what many American colleges seem to have decided, according to a report scheduled for release today by the Association of American Colleges and Universities... (paid subscription required)

"Redistribution of requirements," Inside Higher Ed, May 15.

A century after Harvard University popularized the idea of combining "depth" (the major) with "breadth" (distribution requirements) in undergraduate education, most colleges are moving past that model, a new survey finds. The survey is being released today by the Association of American Colleges and Universities, an organization that has championed the idea that general education for undergraduates needs to include much more than distribution requirements...

"Small colleges may be at increased risk during recession," USA Today, May 14.

Nationally, the full picture of how the recession is affecting colleges is only starting to emerge, as schools begin to get word this month on how many students to expect in the fall. But it's clear that small colleges like Sterling, without big endowments to support financial aid, are most vulnerable...

"Medical grant requests overwhelm agency," USA Today, May 14.

Scientists from around the country are scrambling to get a share of new federal stimulus funding designed to enhance innovative research. The Challenge Grants, from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), are among the $2 billion in stimulus funds for new research, equipment and construction. NIH officials say they were expecting 10,000 to 15,000 applications. Instead, with the application deadline not until May 29, they are digging through more than 20,000 applications -- with a lot more likely on the way...