Good morning, colleagues. Here is this week’s update from Academic Affairs.
Kudos
Shevaun Watson’s (English) book, “Public Memory, Race, and Heritage Tourism of Early America,” co-edited with Cathy Rex (UW-Eau Claire), was recently published by Routledge. Congratulations, Shevaun!
Margaret Noodin, Patricia Najera, and Maurina Paradise (Electa Quinney Institute) received $1.4M in Department of Education grants to increase the number of licensed American Indian teachers and administrators in Wisconsin schools. The two, separate grants support a five-year partnership between the Indian Community School and Milwaukee Public Schools to recruit and prepare undergraduate, post-baccalaureate, or graduate-level students to build capacity in public and charter schools in Milwaukee and tribal schools in the Great Lakes region. Well done, Margaret, Patricia, and Maurina!
Brenda Cullin (Academic Department Associate in the Department of Economics) has been selected to receive the inaugural Regents University Staff Excellence Award-Individual Category for her 42 yeas of contribution to UWM. The Board of Regents will present her the award during their October 8 meeting at UW-Oshkosh. Congratulations to Brenda for this well-deserved recognition!
Dean Tim Behrens (Health Sciences Dean) received a scholarship to participate in the American Council on Education’s (ACE) Agile Administrators Program. Well done, Tim!
Alexandra Parr Balaram (Communication Ph.D. student) recently received the 2021 James L. Golden Outstanding Student Essay in Rhetoric Award from the National Communication Association (NCA). The award is given annually as part of an essay competition to encourage and support student research on the history, theory, or criticism of rhetoric. Alexandra received the award for the essay, “Rhetorical Altermobilities: Promoting a Framework for the Study of Discourse, Mobility and Resistance,” and will be presented the award on November 20 at NCA’s 107th Annual Convention in Seattle. Congratulations, Alexandra!
Provost’s Office Strategic Update
Last week, I issued my second Provost’s Office Strategic Update (the first of the 21-22 academic year), which provided an update on the challenges and opportunities in meeting our research mission during the pandemic. We will periodically provide Strategic Updates to communicate key details about ongoing and new initiatives in Academic Affairs.
Milwaukee Athletics
Jelena Sever of the Milwaukee women’s soccer team has garnered national attention by breaking the NCAA record for the quickest goal to open a game when she found the back of the net off the opening kickoff – just 3.2 seconds into the victory over Youngstown State on September 26. Her quick strike was featured on ESPN’s Top 10 on SportsCenter and has accumulated more than a million likes and views on ESPN’s Twitter and Instagram platforms. It is worth watching!
The Milwaukee Athletic Department has announced that two different mini-plan options have now been released for the upcoming Milwaukee men’s basketball campaign. Fans can choose between the pair of four-game selections, choosing either the “Pounce Plan” or the “Panther Plan.” In addition, full-season ticket memberships remain available and tickets for single game purchase will get underway on October 5. Full-season plans start at just $99.
The Week
Monday
I start the week with my standing meeting with Robin Van Harpen, followed by a meeting with Phyllis King, the Chancellor’s Executive Cabinet meeting, my monthly meeting with Nancy Frank, my weekly staff meeting, and a Campus Budget Planning meeting.
Tuesday
In the morning, I have a Coronavirus Management Team (CMT) Leadership meeting, the quarterly TechEd Frontiers Executive briefing, my standing meeting with Jennifer Abele, my bi-weekly meeting with Paul Klajbor, my one-on-one with Brett Peters, and a meeting with Chief of Police finalist Heather Wurth. In the afternoon, I meet with the University Committee, followed by my monthly meetings with Kim Litwack and Jason Puskar, my weekly meeting with Chancellor Mone, and a meeting with Chief of Police finalist Dave Salazar. I end the day with a Freshwater Collaborate meeting.
Wednesday
Today, I have the Deans Morning Meeting and then I’ll travel to UW-Oshkosh for the UW System Provost’s Council meeting.
Thursday and Friday
I’ll be in Oshkosh for the Board of Regents meeting.
Saturday
Today, I am participating in the Panther Prowl.
Announcements
Cafecitos
UWM graduate students across the humanities are invited to a series of informal coffee hours, called Cafecitos, to discuss and learn more about community-engaged research. The cafecitos will be held in the Digital Humanities Lab on October 13, November 10, and December 15 from 2-3 p.m. Interested students can sign up for more information.
Pitch In At Light Speed
New business pitch competition for first timers and experienced students for a chance to earn several prizes. Information and registration. Deadline is October 13.
UWM Planetarium
Experience stars, stories, and cultural perspectives throughout Latin America with a different guest speaker every Friday night from October 8-29. Register for this virtual series.
Graduate School Virtual Open House
The Graduate School looks forward to hosting our Graduate School Virtual Open House on Thursday, October 28 from 6 to 8 p.m. CDT through CareerEco. Prospective graduate students can meet with UWM faculty, staff, and in some cases, current graduate students from our over 150 master’s, doctoral and graduate certificate programs with both online and on-campus options. BONUS: The Graduate School will pay the application fee for all applicants who register for, attend the virtual Open House, and begin their application on or after October 28, 2021. Please see the Graduate School Open House website for complete details.
Research Assistance Fund
The Office of Research is very pleased to announce the Research Assistance Fund, which provides small awards (up to $5,000) to UWM faculty and staff for conducting and disseminating research and creative work. See the internal funding programs page for more information.
Teaching and Learning Symposium
Submit a proposal and register for the 7th Annual Teaching and Learning Symposium, which will be held virtually on January 13, 2022.
Campus Connect Suicide Gatekeeper Training
Fall 2021 Campus Connect Gatekeeper Trainings are available. Help to strengthen our network of UWM faculty, staff, and students prepared to reach out to students in crisis. Booster sessions are also available for those who have already completed the initial training. More information and registration.
Wisconsin Women in Higher Education Leadership Podcast
The latest podcast is now available from UWM’s Wisconsin Women in Higher Education Leadership (WWHEL). Episode 3: “Steering UWM’s Leadership WWHEL” discusses the importance of self-care, a safe space for BIPOC students, faculty, and staff, and includes Anika Wilson (African and African Diaspora Studies) and Sara Benesh (Political Science) discussing the importance of safe space, creating a holistic teaching environment, and how they came together to collaborate on an idea that turned into needed space for our BIPOC students. Collaboratively working with internal and external talent in Milwaukee, they created “The Self-Care Club.”
Pounce on FAFSA!
2022-23 FAFSA filing has just begun! Are you meeting with students? If so, please help us spread the word and encourage students to submit the FAFSA. The 2022-23 FAFSA became available October 1. It’s important to complete the FAFSA NOW as some programs have limited funds. We do not want students to miss out on funding opportunities!
National Voter Education Week is October 4-8
Many people who don’t vote say no one ever asked them to. We’re asking you to help students be #VoteReady and encourage students you interact with to register to vote. Together we can help voters in the UWM community feel confident and vote stress-free this election season.
Other
Remember to check out Jelena’s 3.2-second goal and another cricket record.
Take care,
Johannes
Johannes Britz