April 14, 2023  |  News & Events, Provost's Updates, Timely Announcements

Good morning, colleagues. Here is this week’s update from Academic Affairs.
UWM Offering Grants and Transfer Support to Cardinal Stritch Students
On Thursday, UWM announced grants and dedicated transfer support for Cardinal Stritch University students who want to enroll in 2023. UWM welcomes Stritch students to apply for free and benefit from a streamlined admissions process. UWM also is actively engaging with Cardinal Stritch colleagues regarding academic program alignment.
UWM is offering Stritch students who enroll in the Summer or Fall 2023 terms the following guarantees: a $1,000 transition grant if they apply by June 1; dedicated admissions advisors; and a streamlined application review and decision process. UWM’s graduate, nursing, business, education and arts programs are particularly well positioned to help Stritch students transfer seamlessly. Undergraduate and graduate students interested in applying should visit uwm.edu/apply.
2030 Feature of the Week
The Aligning and Engaging Workforce Action Team is working on recommendations for further professional development, including supervisor training. Their report, expected out this summer, will provide options for training and development opportunities that could be implemented during the next academic year.
Enrollment Management Feature of the Week
The Office of Undergraduate Admissions continues to host this year’s Admitted Student Days with two more events coming up on April 15 and 21. Please join in celebrating our future Panthers! Each event will host approximately 400 admitted students plus their guests. Share your Panther Pride by wearing UWM apparel and engaging with guests you see around campus. Guests will have name tags and black tote bags. The more welcomed admitted students and their families feel on these days, the more excited they will be to choose UWM and attend orientation. Reach out to ouaevents@uwm.edu with any questions.
Portia Cobb (Film, Video, Animation, and New Genres) has been selected as a Visiting Research Fellow for a residency/symposium with the Center for Arts/Design and Social Research taking place in São Paulo, Brazil between April 23 and May 3. She will be among 75 international scholars, artists, and cultural producers at the Casa do Povo (House of the People), where she will screen and present her work focused on cultures and communities across the Black Diaspora. Congratulations, Portia!
Chris Thompson’s (BFA alum) new film, “We Are Not Ghouls,” is playing in the Milwaukee Film Festival later this month. Ghouls premiered at the SXSW 2022 Film Festival and won the SXSW Audience Award. It also played at the prestigious DOC NYC and Big Sky festivals and has a 9.8 rating on IMDB. Ghouls was acquired for distribution by Gravitas Ventures for commercial release February 28, 2023. Well done, Chris!
Miren Boehm (Philosophy), winner of the UW-System Humanities Fellowship, will be a Fellow at the Institute for Research in the Humanities at UW-Madison in 2023-24. Congratulations, Miren!
Kudos to the 32 UWM students presenting outcomes of their collaborative research at the National Conference on Undergraduate Research at UW-Eau Claire this week!
Congratulations to PIs Karyn Frick (Psychology) and Nigel Rothfels (Letters and Science; Office of Undergraduate Research – OUR), and Co-Investigators Caitlin Bowman (Psychology), Kyla Esguerra (OUR), Tamara McKinney (OUR), and Gabriela Nagy (Psychology) for their $2M National Institute of Aging MSTEM program award. Their program, “The UW-Milwaukee Promoting Equity, Diversity, and Academic Success Through Aging Research Program (UWM STAR),” is designed to reduce health disparities in older adults by getting underrepresented students involved in hands-on aging and health disparities research and providing opportunities that encourage them to pursue advanced degrees in medicine, science, technology, engineering, and math. Faculty engaged in aging and/or health disparities research who might be interested in joining the program as a research mentor should contact Karyn (frickk@uwm.edu) or Nigel (rothfels@uwm.edu).
Winson Chu (History) will participate in the inaugural Summer Institute for Scholars of East Central and Southeastern Europe (SISECSE), convened by the American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) and the Centre for Advanced Study Sofia (CAS). Winson is one of fourteen scholars from Eastern Europe and North America who will convene for a two-week residency from June 1-15, 2023, at the American University in Bulgaria in Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria. Congratulations, Winson!
In the News
On the 100th anniversary of Warner Bros. film studio, Chris Yogerst (Arts & Humanities) wrote an essay for the Hollywood Reporter, “How the Warner Brothers Got Their Film Business Started,” which is adapted from his forthcoming book, The Warner Brothers (University Press of Kentucky, 2023).
Milwaukee Athletics
Adam Thompson has been hired as the Director of Business Operations for the Milwaukee Athletic Department. In his role, Thompson will be responsible for managing all financial operations, including budget projections, planning, developing, and managing all athletic program budgets.
Catch up on all the exciting things happening in Milwaukee Athletics by reading the latest issue of The Roar Report. This spring issue is highlighted with a feature story on Milwaukee men’s basketball head coach Bart Lundy, who has led the charge for the program turnaround over the past 12 months that led to a 22-win campaign this winter, a return to the postseason for the first time since 2014, and a victory in the postseason for the first time since 2006.
The Week in Retrospect
On Monday, I had a good conversation with the new general manager of WUWM, David Lee, as he started his third week on the job. I had a busy afternoon on Tuesday, that included providing updates to the Academic Staff Senate about the Washington County Higher Education Task Force report, and the announcement by Cardinal Stritch University that it was ceasing instruction at the end of the semester. I also participated in an interview with the first Chief Information Officer (CIO) candidate, Beth Schaefer. On Wednesday, I met with Student Association leads and discussed their elections and the transition to the new student government leads. I also learned about their trip to Washington, DC and lobbying efforts there. On Thursday morning, I had my update with the Ombuds Council leads and participated in the interview with Tony Moore, the second CIO candidate. On Friday morning, there was a Town Hall with faculty and staff from our Washington County campus to provide information and to answer questions about the Washington County Board action on the resolution from the Washington County Higher Education Task Force. In the afternoon, I am attending a Provosts Council meeting, which will include planning the Education Committee agenda for the June Board of Regents meeting here in Milwaukee.
Announcements

  • HLC Accreditation Time
    UWM is due for a reaffirmation of accreditation this spring. Many stakeholders across campus have already contributed to the nearly 100-page self-study, which was submitted April 7. The entire campus community will have the opportunity to provide input to the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) review team during their site visit in May. UWM users may now read the self-study on the Academic Affairs accreditation website. A detailed itinerary of the May 8-9 site visit, including information on open sessions, will be posted on that webpage in the coming weeks.
  • CIO Finalists
    Senior Vice Chancellor Robin Van Harpen is pleased to announce that UWM is hosting the finalists for the position of Chief Information Officer (CIO) at UWM. Details about the position, the candidates, and the open forums are available online.
  • UW System Awards
    UW System is requesting nominations for Outstanding Women of Color in Education and Dr. P.B. Poorman Award for Outstanding Achievement on Behalf of LGBTQ+ People. UWM will select one honoree for each award to be forwarded to UW System administration. All nominations must be emailed to Vice Chancellor Chia Vang (vangcy@uwm.edu) by 4:30 p.m. on Friday, May 19, 2023. More information and nomination form.
  • UWM DEI Champion Award
    The Division of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion is inviting nominations for the new UWM DEI Champion Award. All current employees are eligible. Nominations are due May 22, 2023. More information.
  • Future U-PASS Changes
    UWM is currently working with the Milwaukee County Transit System (MCTS) on implementing the new WisGo fare management system. Transitioning to WisGo will take place after the conclusion of the Spring semester, and current MCTS transit passes will work until that time. Once launched, UWM students with U-PASSes and faculty/staff with commuter value passes can sign up for the UMO app or use a new physical card to ride the bus. Additional communications will be released to students, faculty, and staff about the transition as summer approaches.
  • Meaning of Work
    Faculty and staff are invited to participate in a focus group study that is exploring the Meaning of Work. Previous UWM research suggested that meaningful work helped to reduce the stress of the pandemic and promote personal well-being. Campus Cares would like to better understand this finding through focus group discussions, with the aim of informing policies, practices, and programs on campus and beyond. Please visit this website for more information and how to sign up to participate.

Campus Events

  • Public Talk on Craft and Globalism
    Deborah Dorotinsky Alperstein (Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México) presents, “Folk-arts for peace: HemisFair ’68 and the Cultural Olympics in México’s 1968 Olympiad during the Global Cold War,” on Tuesday, April 18 at 6 p.m. in Mitchell 191. More information.
  • Classical Guitar Concert Series
    PSOA Music Department presents a Classical Guitar Chamber Music Concert featuring the UWM Guitar Ensemble. Enjoy repertoire from around the world and a broad span of musical history. The free, public concert takes place on Tuesday, April 18 at 7:30 p.m. in the Music Recital Hall.
  • Career Cartography – Session 2
    This in-person follow-up to the April 11 workshop will take place on Wednesday, April 19 at 11 a.m. in Cunningham 795. Participants should have attended or watched the first session and should come prepared for this follow-up event. More information.
  • Live Theatre
    PSOA Theatre Arts Department presents Sweat, a Pulitzer Prize-winning play that examines community, economics, and the struggle for stability in an increasingly unstable world. Performances run April 19-23. Information.
  • Community-Based Learning Workshop
    The Center for Student Experience and Talent (SET) – Community Engagement and Experiential Learning is offering a Community-Based Learning (CBL) workshop on Friday, April 21 from 9-11 a.m. to support faculty and staff who are interested in incorporating CBL into their teaching or looking for a refresher on best practices. All are welcome! RSVP.
  • UW System to Host Panel on Free Speech April 21 at UWM at Waukesha Campus
    “Fostering a Marketplace of Ideas,” a panel discussion on free speech and civil dialogue, will be held Friday, April 21, from 3-4 p.m. at UWM at Waukesha’s Lunt-Fontanne Theater. The event is sponsored by UW System’s Wisconsin Institute for Citizenship and Civil Dialogue.
    The panel will feature:

    • Speaker Robin Vos, State Assembly
    • Sen. Chris Larson, State Senate
    • Joe Cohn, legislative and policy director, Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression
    • Eric Giordano, executive director, Wisconsin Institute for Public Policy and Service

    UW System President Jay Rothman will moderate the discussion. This event is free and open to the public. Event attendees should park in Lot 7. For more details or questions, please email eschuh@uwsa.edu.

  • Spring Stars
    Explore the spring constellations in the night sky and hear their stories, such as the feats of Hercules and the tale of Leo on Friday, April 21 at 7 p.m. at the UWM Planetarium. More information.

Something Different
Talk about long non-stop flights. These birds set records while seeking year-round summers.
Take care,
Scott

Scott GronertInterim Provost