Building Partnerships
UW reception celebrates alumni in Washington, D.C.

By Kate Kail

U.S. Rep. Tammy Baldwin of Madison and Milton Coleman, deputy managing editor of The Washington Post, get acquainted at UW Day. Baldwin is a UW-Madison law school graduate and Coleman is a graduate of UW-Milwaukee. (UW System/Margaret Lewis)

More than 200 attendees braved a major snowstorm in February to celebrate the University of Wisconsin System and its alumni at a reception on Capitol Hill.

The reception brought individuals interested in building better partnerships for the UW System, including Wisconsin's congressional delegation and their staffs, friends in the Bush Administration and agencies and UW alumni in the private sector.

Attendees included U.S. Sen. Herb Kohl (D-Wis.), U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.), U.S. Rep. Tammy Baldwin (D-Madison), U.S. Rep. Ron Kind (D-La Crosse), U.S. Rep. Mark Green (R-Green Bay), and U.S. Rep. James Sensenbrenner (R-Menomonee Falls), as well as many others with an interest in Wisconsin's university system and the future of higher education.

Distinguished guests at the reception included: Thomas Loftus; former U.S. ambassador to Norway and graduate of UW-Madison and UW-Whitewater; Milton Coleman, deputy managing editor of the Washington Post and a UW-Milwaukee alum; Lisa Roth, special assistant to the secretary, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and a graduate of UW-La Crosse; and

UW System President Katharine C. Lyall and U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold of Wisconsin share a smile. (UW System/Margaret Lewis)

Bill Murat, chief of staff to Congresswoman Baldwin and a UW-Madison alum; Jerry Marty, National Science Foundation construction project manager at the South Pole station and a UW-Platteville graduate, Stephen T'Kach, director of the Federal Witness Security Program for the U.S. Department of Justice and a graduate of UW-River Falls; and Brigadier General Sandra A. Gregory, U.S. Air Force, a graduate of UW-Superior; among others.

UW System President Katharine C. Lyall thanked Wisconsin's congressional delegation for admirably representing the vital interests of the state and its colleges and universities.

"From support for student financial aid and major research funding for programs like NIH and NSF, to agricultural stewardship and environmental education; from neutrino and asthma research to transportation logistics and distance education—and much more—we say thank you for what you do for our great public UW System," Lyall said.

Distinguished UW alumni Mary Boyle, Eleanor Wilson and Camille Haney, a special assistant to U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson, enjoy a moment at the reception. (UW System/Margaret Lewis)

Kohl, who addressed the reception on behalf of the delegation, thanked UW alumni for their positive contributions and commended Lyall and the UW System for providing excellent communications with his office.

The reception also included a ceremony honoring U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson with the National 4-H Alumni Award, in recognition of his exceptional citizenship and exemplary service to the people of his state and his nation.

A full photo gallery is available online.