Volume 16, Number 1
- What can you do with an urban studies major?Every year, graduates from the College of Letters & Science enter the workforce and begin to contribute thousands of dollars to their local, state, and national economies. They bring the skills and knowledge they gained …
- A family philosophy at UWMProfessor Joshua Spencer had an unusual student in his “Philosophy 358: Action, Will, and Freedom” class this semester: His mother. Spencer has frequently welcomed senior auditors in his classes over his years at UWM. Wisconsin …
- Serving with Spanish: New service-learning course connects students to Milwaukee community¿Cómo puedo ayudar? How can I help? Allison Libbey’s Spanish students asked that question a lot this semester. Libbey, a senior teaching faculty member in UWM’s Spanish Programt, is the creator of the special topics …
- Congratulations, graduates!It’s the most wonderful time of year at a university: Graduation! UWM doled out more than 1,500 degrees at fall graduation on Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025, collected by happy graduates under the proud watch of …
- UWM Planetarium has 60 reasons to celebrateUWM has something to celebrate in 2026: The UWM Planetarium turns 60! Often recognized as a hidden gem on campus, the UWM Planetarium has been projecting the stars and planets onto its 30-foot dome since …
- New math research opportunity trains mentors and mentees alikeUW-Milwaukee has a phenomenal undergraduate research program where students can learn from faculty and graduate student mentors. But how does a graduate student learn how to be a mentor? A new program in the Mathematical …
- Department UpdateUWM hosts GIS Day The GIS (Geographic Information Systems) Council hosted GIS Day @UWM at the American Geographical Society Library (AGSL) on Nov. 21. One hundred people attended the keynote event, a panel on ‘Careers in GIS’ featuring four UWM …
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Alumni Accomplishments
Joe Lamers (‘24, Masters of Public Administration) was appointed the new director of Milwaukee County’s Department of Transportation. He takes over at a challenging time when the department has a projected $10.9 million budget deficit. Lamers will face that challenge with eight years of previous experience as the director of the Milwaukee County Office of Strategy, Budget and Performance. Lamers was appointed by Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley.
Lisa Mydy (‘10, BS Biochemistry; ‘16, PhD Biochemistry) joined the faculty of Purdue University as an assistant professor of biochemistry. Her research focuses on exploring plant peptide cyclases for antimicrobials and other disease therapies. Mydy previously worked as a senior scientist for Abbott.
Laurels & Accolades
Academic Staff Robert “Biko” Baker (African & African Diaspora Studies) has been tapped to manage operations of the progressive talk radio network WNOV 860 AM/106.5 FM and the Milwaukee Courier newspaper after both outlets were acquired by Civic Media in December. Baker, in addition to teaching, is a noted writer and journalist. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported the story.
Associate Professor Ivan Ascher (Political Science) and Assistant Professor Srishti Meera Sardana (Psychological & Brain Sciences) were nominated for the Andrew Carnegie Fellows Program, and Associate Professor Derek G. Handley (English) was nominated for the Mellon Foundation’s New Directions Fellowship. These nominations for prestigious national fellowships recognize each scholar’s remarkable contributions to UWM and their disciplines, and their potential to shape broader conversations in the academy and beyond.
In the Media and around the Community
It was cold, but the UWM Planetarium was practically tropical as it hosted a “Storytime in the Caribbean” show in conjunction with UWM’s Center for Latin American & Caribbean Studies in December.
Before the VHS, there was Sony’s Betamax. Smithsonian Magazine consulted Professor Michael Newman (English) to learn about shifting mediums in the home entertainment industry and the impact of the Betamax.
Vodou is a rich religious tradition in Haiti, but its history is steeped in mystery and controversy. Professor emeritus Patrick Bellegarde-Smith (African & African Diaspora Studies), himself a vodou priest, spoke about vodou’s cultural impact on the podcast “The Vodou Project,” as reported by The Haitian Times. The Times also spoke to Bellegarde-Smith about 10 things you should know about vodou.
PBS Wisconsin interviewed both Professor Anne Bonds (Geography) and Associate Professor Derek Handley (English) about their “Mapping Racism and Resistance in Milwaukee County Project” documenting the widespread use of racial covenants in Milwaukee’s past real estate market.
You may have watched some of your favorite holiday movies over the past month. Professor Elana Levine (English) was a guest on WUWM Radio’s Lake Effect show to talk about why we keep returning to our feel-good films.
MirageNews.com reported on an article co-authored by Assistant Professor Victoria McCoy (Geosciences) that detailed fossilized evidence of animal disease in a prehistoric horseshoe crab.
Associate Professor David DiValerio (History) was a guest on “The Wisdom Podcast” to discuss his new book, Mountain Dharma: Meditative Retreat and the Tibetan Ascetic Self.
Did you meet someone under the mistletoe this season? NPR consulted Professor Bettina Arnold (Anthropology) about the origins of the traditions surrounding this holiday plant. (They date back to the Roman Empire!) Smithsonian Magazine referenced Arnold’s NPR interview in an article about an attempt to break the world record for the number of couples kissing under the mistletoe.
NPR reported on a new study showing that teens who use cannabis do less well in school than teens who do not. Professor Krista Lisdahl (Psychological & Brain Sciences) commented on the study’s findings.
Professor Caroline Seymour-Jorn (World Languages and Cultures) gave an invited lecture, “Magical Realism in Jordan and Egypt: Interrogating Indigeneity, Colonialism and Futurity in the fiction of Samiha Khrais and Hani Abdel Mourid,” at Columbia University in April 2025 and presented a paper, “Cancer as Dispossession, Cancer as Alienation: Diagnosis and Treatment in the Novels of Laila al-Atrash and Nemat el-Behairy,” at the Middle East Studies Association in Washington, D.C. in November.
Professor Jeffrey Sommers (African & African Diaspora Studies and Global Studies program) reacted to news of U.S. actions in Venezuela at the beginning of January in an article published by CounterPunch.
People in Print
Shiri Noy and Associate Professor Timothy L. O’Brien (Sociology). 2026. The Cultural Authority of Science and Religion. Current Opinion in Psychology, 67: 102180.
Associate Professor Timothy L. O’Brien (Sociology) and D.R. Johnson. 2025. U.S. State Lawmaker Support for COVID-19 Vaccine Policies During the Pandemic. Vaccines, 68: 127930
Professor Miren Boehm (Philosophy). 2025. The Inconceivability of Newtonian Space and Time. In Contemporary Perspectives and Historical Dimensions: A Festschrift in Honor of Jani Hakkarainen (J. Forsman and M. Slavov, eds.). Tempere University: Finland.
Professor Miren Boehm (Philosophy). 2025. Experimental Philosophy, Blind Submission, and Hume’s Other “Sceptical Principles.” In Hume’s A Treatise of Human Nature: A Critical Guide (E. Radcliffe, ed.). Cambridge Critical Guides. Cambridge University Press. Online first.
Distinguished Professor John S. Heywood (Economics) and Benjamin Artz. 2025. “Performance Pay and Job Quits,” Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization 239. 107294: 1-15.
Passings
Professor Rodney Swain (Psychological & Brain Sciences), the former dean of the College of Letters & Science, passed away on Christmas day, 2025. He joined the UWM faculty in 1997, serving diligently as a teacher and mentor to students as he explored the effects of exercise on various parts of the brain and what impact those effects have on learning and cognition.
Professor Swain took on a monumental task in 2011 and stepped up to serve as the dean of the College of Letters & Science, a post that he held for six years while helping the college to weather several challenges and celebrate its numerous triumphs. In 2017, he returned to the faculty where he continued to teach and craft valuable research experiences for graduate and undergraduate students.
A full article about Professor Swain’s impact on the College will follow in February’s edition of the In Focus newsletter. Presently, his obituary is available for viewing.
Professor Steven Redd (Political Science) passed away on Dec. 17, 2025, following a courageous battle with pancreatic cancer. Since joining UWM in August 2001, Professor Redd was a dedicated scholar and teacher who gave so much to the field of political science and to his students. His teaching and research centered on two core areas within international relations: foreign policy decision-making—especially through the application of poliheuristic theory of decision making—and experimental methodology. His most recent research focused on substantive and methodological issues related to leadership preferences and artificial intelligence.
View Professor Redd’s full obituary.