News in brief
COMMUNITY
Diversity forum planners focus on Plan 2008
The first Diversity Plan 2008 Campus Forum will be held Tuesday, April 10, from 8:15 a.m.-4:15 p.m. in the Pyle Center. Faculty, staff and students are invited to attend the event, which will focus on the university’s response to Plan 2008, the UW System’s initiative to increase faculty, staff and student diversity on all UW campuses.
In the morning, the forum will include panel discussions with deans and directors about diversity plans and challenges in schools, colleges and administrative divisions. The afternoon will feature a resource fair of UW–Madison programs and initiatives modeling best practices for achieving Plan 2008 goals.
Registration is encouraged, but not required. Visit:: http://www.wisc.edu/ studentaffairs/forum/.
A free box lunch will be served at 12:30 p.m. to all those who request it, but advance reservations are required. Information: Ruby Paredes, 262-5175, rparedes@mail.bascom.wisc.edu. For resource fair information: Becky Ryan, 262-5460, rjryan@facstaff.wisc.edu.
TECHNOLOGY
Survey: Faculty, staff ahead of the computing curve
Faculty and staff are becoming more technology savvy. Not only do 98 percent of faculty and 90 percent of staff own computers but more are using laptops, using the campus network for instructional purposes and making purchases online.
These results are drawn from the sixth annual faculty/staff computing survey conducted by the Division of Information Technology last fall. The survey garnered a 48 percent response rate, collecting results from 475 respondents.
“We’ve always been ahead of the curve on computer ownership,” says DoIT researcher Barry Radler, who conducted the survey. “But some of these results suggest that faculty and staff here have increasing skills and understanding.” Those results include:
- Laptop ownership is up to about 29 percent of faculty and staff.
- Almost 10 percent of faculty and staff own handheld devices such as PalmPilot, Handspring, etc.
- Weekly Internet time increased from about eight hours to more than 10 hours.
- Frequency of online purchasing is skyrocketing. Those purchasing at least one item online in the last year has grown from 35 percent in 1999 to 57 percent in 2000 to 75 percent in 2001. Those concerned about the security of online transactions has decreased from 66 percent to 55 percent.
“It looks like people are more comfortable with online commerce,” said Radler.
The survey also indicates that about half of faculty and instructional staff use instructional technology, mostly to keep students informed electronically (78 percent), to provide access to online resources (77 percent) and to enhance lectures (68 percent).
The 2001 Faculty/Staff Computing Survey was mailed to 1,000 randomly selected UW–Madison faculty and staff. The survey’s margin of error is plus or minus 4.5 percent.
ON CAMPUS
Oliveros premieres new work
As part of her spring residency, composer Pauline Oliveros will present the Madison premiere of her new dance-opera, “Io and Her and the Trouble with Him” at 8 p.m. Friday, April 13, at the Wisconsin Union Theater.
The dance-opera is a collaborative venture among artists of all types. The performance features a multimedia panorama of experimental theater and technical virtuosity that includes aerial ballet; masks; video projection; a sinister, thousand-eyed monster and a highly imaginative electronic soundscape.
The one-act story, set in primeval time, retells the myth of Io, Argivian priestess. Transformed by a terrible spell, she roams the world, becomes trapped by Argus the monster and is befriended by the brilliant Bird, who helps her begin to understand the true mystery of what her journey has been about.
Tickets: $15 general admission, $10 students, Union Theater box office, 262-2201.
Library director to unveil UW’s 6 millionth book
UW–Madison’s 6 millionth book will be presented as part of the Friends of the UW–Madison Libraries annual lecture at 5:30 p.m., Wednesday, April 18, in the Howard Auditorium of the Fluno Center.
Ken Frazier, director of the libraries, will give the annual lecture and reveal the book as part of his talk, “The Golden Age of the Research Library.” The illustrated lecture, which is open to the public at no charge, is part of Celebrating Books, a series of events that commemorates the acquisition of the 6 millionth book.
The lecture will be followed by the Friends annual dinner at 7 p.m. Reservations are due by Thursday, April 12. Cost: $35 per person. To sign up: http://www.library.wisc.edu/libraries/News/ReplyCard.pdf
NOTABLE
Swiss ambassador to be visiting professor
Alfred Defago, Switzerland’s ambassador to the United States, will be a visiting professor for the 2001-02 academic year.
“It is indeed a rare and exciting opportunity to have an ambassador teach at the UW–Madison for two full semesters,” says David M. Trubek, dean of International Studies. “I know our students and the entire university community will be enriched by Ambassador Defago’s distinguished background and experience, and join me in welcoming him here.”
“I greatly look forward to this new experience in my professional life,” says Defago, who will complete his term as ambassador in August. “To teach in the field of international relations at one of the country’s finest universities is not only an honor, but also an exciting challenge.”
Defago, who visited Wisconsin last November to promote state trade with Switzerland, will speak in Madison Tuesday, April 10. His free public lecture at 3:30 p.m. in the Fluno Center auditorium is “The United States and Europe: Two Worlds Drifting Apart? An Ambassador’s Perspective.”
Although Defago’s schedule is being finalized, plans are for him to teach an upper-level course on European-American relations that will be open to undergraduate and graduate students. Defago is also expected to teach a capstone seminar in international studies on contemporary diplomatic practice in spring 2002. A special program on contemporary Switzerland, featuring outside guest speakers, is being developed. The program will be directed toward the general public as well as the university community.
Defago intends to do research work for a study of European-American relations during his appointment at the institute.
Defago has a Ph.D. in history and German literature from the University of Bern, Switzerland. He has also studied at the University of Vienna, the German Institute in Rome and the Vatican Library. He spent a sabbatical year in Berkeley, Calif., in 1983.
Information: Ronnie Hess, 262-5590, rlhess@facstaff.wisc.edu.
Brownlee selected as science writer-in-residence
Shannon Brownlee, an award-winning science journalist, will be the science writer in residence for spring 2001.
Brownlee is a freelance writer whose stories and essays have appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, New Republic, Atlantic Monthly, Time, Business Week and Salon.
As a part of her visit, Brownlee will deliver a free public lecture, “Bad Medicine, Bad Press: How Bone Marrow Transplant Came to Be Seen as a Cure,” on Tuesday, April 17, at 4 p.m. The lecture will be held in the Nafziger Room on the fifth floor of Vilas Hall.
Brownlee is a former senior writer for U.S. News & World Report, where she focused on cancer research, infectious disease, neurobiology and health policy. She has won several awards, including the 1998 Society of Professional Journalists Sigma Delta Chi Award for “The Quality of Mercy,” a story about inadequate pain treatment that appeared in U.S. News & World Report.
Brownlee will begin her week on the UW–Madison campus Monday, April 16. She will spend most of her time in the classroom, working with students, faculty and staff interested in science writing.
The Science Writer-in-Residence Program, now in its 15th year, was established with the support of the Brittingham Trust. It continues with support from the UW Foundation and has brought to campus many of the nation’s leading science writers, including three whose work subsequently earned them the Pulitzer Prize, journalism’s most coveted award.
The program is sponsored by the School of Journalism and Mass Communication and University Communications.
Campus police to honor citizen crime-solvers
The Police Department’s 10th annual awards ceremony Thursday, April 12, will honor civilians who have assisted the department in solving crimes or who have performed other commendable acts such as life-saving.
This year, five individuals will be honored at 3:30 p.m. in the Lee Lounge at the Pyle Center. A reception will be held immediately following the ceremony in the Alumni Lounge.
In addition, the department will honor several of its own employees with commendations.
Freshman like it here
Nearly three out of four new first-year students at UW System campuses are enjoying the experience of campus life, and 80 percent would attend the same institution if they had it to do over again.
These are some of the findings of a survey conducted in October and released this week by the UW System Market Research Unit. Approximately one-third of the more than 23,000 new freshmen responded to the survey, which was administered by an online questionnaire. Freshmen at the freshman-sophomore UW Colleges were not included in the survey.
The typical respondent was a “traditional” student: age 18, attending full time, living in a residence hall. Highlights of the report include the following:
- 73 percent of freshmen are “very” or “extremely satisfied” with their experience at the UW System institution they attend.
- 41 percent are first-generation college students, i.e., neither parent graduated from college.
- 88 percent of freshmen reported a high school grade point average of 3.0 or better.
- 72 percent own a personal computer, and 53 percent report spending seven or more hours online per week.
- 22 percent applied for admission to only one institution, while 22 percent applied to three or more.
- 19 percent of all respondents applied for admission electronically.
- 91 percent of those who applied to more than one institution enrolled at their first (65 percent) or second (26 percent) choice of campus.
- Among “intended majors,” after “undecided” (24 percent), the most popular choices were business (15 percent), education (12 percent), engineering (7 percent), health-related (6 percent), and biology (5 percent).
U.S. News ranks grad programs
The university earned several high rankings in the 2001 rating of graduate programs by U.S. News & World Report. The magazine does not survey all disciplines every year, but the following rankings were drawn from new data.
The School of Education ranked ninth, based on research mission. Specialty ratings included first in administration and supervision as well as curriculum/instruction; second in educational psychology and elementary education; third in education policy and secondary education; sixth in special education; eighth in counseling/ personnel services; and ninth in vocational/technical.
In public affairs UW–Madison ranked 11th, including 10th in the public-policy analysis specialty.
The College of Engineering ranked 14th, with ratings of seventh in chemical engineering and 10th in industrial/manufacturing engineering.
Within health disciplines, UW–Madison rated second in clinical psychology. The Medical School finished 14th in primary care and 30th in research.
Within social sciences and humanities, UW–Madison was ranked first in sociology (tied with University of California-Berkeley), including first in social stratification, fourth in economic sociology and seventh in social psychology; ninth in psychology, including seventh in experimental psychology; 10th in economics, including eighth in public finance and ninth in industrial organization; 10th in history, including second in women’s history, fifth in Latin American history; seventh in modern U.S. history, 10th in African-American history; 11th in political science; and 17th in English.
The Business School ranked 35th, and the Law School ranked 36th.
“Graduate education continues to be a major strength of UW–Madison, as indicated by many measures,” says Virginia Hinshaw, dean of the Graduate School. “Our graduate students are impressive and make major contributions to our research and education mission. We believe that prospective graduate students should consider many factors, not just rankings, in selecting the program that best fits their goals. UW–Madison is a great choice.”