UW-La Crosse

  1. A sound creator: Justin Schmitz is a fast-rising star in theatrical hotbed of D.C.

    Photo of Justin Schmitz, ’11, is the recipient of the 2020 Rada Distinguished Alumni Award. Schmitz has established himself as a leading innovator in theatrical sound design, particularly when it comes to deaf theater.

    May 20, 2022

    Editor’s note: This is the second of a series of five articles introducing recipients of the UW-La Crosse Alumni Association’s Distinguished Alumni Awards. See all 2022 award recipients. He’s impressive with his creative, cutting-edge sound design for theater. In fact, he’s so creative that he’s even making waves with those who are deaf, allowing them […]

  2. Prairie preservation: UW-La Crosse alum Taylor Prill puts her degree to work through restoration project

    Photo of Taylor Prill, '20, who is restoring a retired, three-acre hayfield near her hometown of Clintonville, Wisconsin, into native prairie. “I am very passionate about the restoration of native environments and am thrilled to be involved in a project like this,” she says.

    May 5, 2022

    UW-La Crosse alum Taylor Prill has returned to her hometown to make her geography degree flourish. Prill is working with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to restore a retired, three-acre hayfield in Clintonville, Wisconsin, into a native prairie. It will have a public walkway where people can learn more about the plant and animal […]

  3. Leader of the Pack: Brian Gutekunst’s path from UW-La Crosse to general manager in Titletown

    Photo of UW-La Crosse alum Brian Gutekunst, who is entering his fifth season as general manager of the Green Bay Packers. His time at UWL, including a stint as a student assistant football coach, was crucial to his development as a talent evaluator. PHOTO CREDIT: Evan Siegle, packers.com

    May 3, 2022

    In 1994, a shoulder injury seemed to spell the end of Brian Gutekunst’s time with the UW-La Crosse football team.  Coach Roger Harring had other ideas.  “It was evident my career as a player was over. I was thinking about transferring to a school in North Carolina, so I could be closer to family,” Gutekunst […]

  4. UW-La Crosse’s Susan Crutchfield shares expertise on Helen Keller with popular radio show

    Photo of UW-La Crosse Associate Professor of English Susan Crutchfield, who in 2005, published an article about Helen Keller's short-lived career in vaudeville. Surprisingly, Crutchfield was contacted this spring by one of the most popular radio shows in America — Radiolab, which wanted to interview her for an upcoming episode.

    April 22, 2022

    In 2005, Susan Crutchfield used a UW-La Crosse research grant to produce and publish an article about Helen Keller’s short-lived career in vaudeville. The article generated some initial buzz, but in the 17 years since, Crutchfield assumed it had gone to rest in a quiet, mostly forgotten corner of the internet. Then she received a […]

  5. Help on the way: UW-La Crosse to offer unique program to grow state’s school psychologists

    Photo of Rob Dixon, director of the UW-La Crosse school psychology program, who says the university’s new online program addresses Wisconsin’s extreme shortage of school psychologists. It’s the first in the state — and one of only three in the country — to offer online studies in school psychology designed for full-time teachers.

    April 5, 2022

    A new online program at UW-La Crosse aims to help address Wisconsin’s extreme shortage of school psychologists. Working with the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction and Department of Education on the School Based Mental Health Professionals Grant, UWL is adding an online program to its esteemed traditional program that will allow current teachers to become […]

  6. Reimagining law enforcement: UWL human rights policing course building compassion among officers

    Photo of UW-La Crosse Associate Professor Peter Marina, who teaches a course with his father, longtime New Orleans Police Officer Pedro Marina, designed to teach law enforcement to uphold each person's human rights.

    April 3, 2022

    When Wisconsin Capitol Police Officer Andrew Hyatt crosses paths with someone who is homeless, he doesn’t see a person who is a problem. He sees a person who has a story. “Maybe some police officers are used to looking the other way when it comes to a problem that may be difficult to deal with, […]

  7. Exploring Egypt: UWL professor, alums creating 3D database of ancient statues

    Photo of UWL Professor Dave Anderson and alums Nicolette Pegarsch (upper right) and Shannon Casey, who spent January 2022 scanning statues of the goddess Sekhmet at the Mut Temple in Luxor, Egypt. Pegarsch and Casey described it as the trip of a lifetime.

    March 29, 2022

    Imagine walking around an ancient Egyptian temple or holding a 4,000-year-old artifact in the palm of your hand. UWL’s David Anderson is bringing people as close to that experience as possible through photogrammetry — the science of using photographs to produce 3D immersive models. Anderson and two of his former students spent January 2022 working on […]

  8. UW-La Crosse youth camp offers crash course in STEM fields

    Photo: UWL's Hands-On Science camp June 22 and 23 will expose middle school students to a wide range of activities related to science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

    March 4, 2022

    From making bouncy balls to solving a kidnapping, middle school students can gain hands-on experiences in the STEM fields during UW-La Crosse’s Hands-On Science camp June 22 and 23. The camp, intended for those entering grades 6-8 in fall 2022, offers a range of activities for students of all interests and knowledge levels. It can serve as […]

  9. Insect inspiration: For UWL’s Barrett Klein, there’s beauty in every bug

    Photo of UW-La Crosse Professor of Biology Barrett Klein who has over the years helped thousands of students appreciate the diversity, beauty and ecological impact of insects.

    February 8, 2022

    Klein will present during the next TEDx event on the UW-La Crosse campus. Klein will explore and reveal cultural connections people have with the ten quintillion insects with whom we share the planet at 4 p.m. Tuesday, April 19, in The Bluffs, UWL Student Union. Learn more on the TEDx website. Growing up on the outskirts […]

  10. New collaboration to boost La Crosse as river studies leader

    Photo of student on river: UWL students and faculty will soon head out on the Upper Mississippi River in a new vessel. The Prairie Springs: Paul Fleckenstein Trust has funded a state-of-the-art vessel equipped to expand research in the river while training the next generation of water professionals in science, technology, engineering and math.

    January 27, 2022

    A new partnership means full steam ahead for the UW-La Crosse River Studies Center and water research. The Mississippi River holds the answers to numerous questions about freshwater bodies, invasive species, even climate change. But a lack of proper equipment and funding has hindered scientists’ abilities to research those answers. But a new community partnership […]

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