School of Human Ecology recognizes excellence in outreach

The School of Human Ecology at the University of Wisconsin–Madison presented its 2006 Excellence in Outreach Awards today (Aug. 30), recognizing four projects that impact significant numbers of people, demonstrate innovative designs or processes and showcase sustained effort. Each award carries a $500 professional development account.

The awards selection committee included Human Ecology faculty and staff; Howard Martin, UW–Madison associate vice chancellor for extended programs; Randy Wallar, associate director of the Morgridge Center for Community Service; and Ann Neviaser, a member of the Human Ecology board of visitors.

“These awards confirm that the tradition of the university serving the needs of people beyond the walls of the university is very much alive in the School of Human Ecology, and that they embody the time-honored Wisconsin Idea,” Martin says.

The four award winners ensure that “the people who pay for university scholarship get some benefits of it,” says David Riley, Human Ecology associate dean of outreach and extension. “I’m not talking here about students, but rather the average taxpayer. Projects like these make sure they get some payback — not eventually, but this year.”

The award recipients are:

Virginia (Terry) Boyd, professor of environment, textiles and design, was recognized for exemplary service through curating exhibitions, giving presentations and contributing to historic preservation projects.

Her most recent exhibition, “Frank Lloyd Wright and the House Beautiful,” opened earlier this year in Naples, Fla. It will also travel to Boise, Idaho; Portland, Maine; Midland, Michigan; and Columbia, South Carolina. Boyd co-authored the exhibition’s 168-page, four-color guidebook.

Boyd previously curated two exhibitions at the Chazen Museum of Art at UW–Madison, “The House Beautiful: Frank Lloyd Wright for Everyone” in 1988 and as co-curator for “Contemporary Studio Case Furniture: The Inside Story in 2002.”

“For the first, she revealed a little-known aspect of Wright, his desire that the middle class could have good design (his) through lines of furniture, textiles and paint,” says Anne Lambert, Chazen curator of education. “Terry’s knowledge, contacts and graceful manner have made her an outstanding colleague and advocate for design and material culture on the campus and the wider community.”

Boyd has served on the state’s Historic Preservation Review Board and the Percent for Art Program of the Wisconsin Arts Board. She currently serves on the Olin House Advisory Council.

Roberta Riportella, professor of consumer science, and her staff, including Michael Jacob, Allisson Espeseth and Johanna Schmitz, provide leadership to the Covering Kids and Families-Wisconsin program. This statewide coalition of more than 65 organizations is funded by a nearly $1 million gift from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and an additional $227,000 from the federal government. The program aims to ensure all children and families who are eligible for Family Medicaid programs are aware of those programs and can easily enroll.

An array of outreach events and publications have reached tens of thousands of Wisconsin families. These include county-specific brochures, as well as maps and data to aid local professionals in targeting outreach to individuals most in need.

“We have repeatedly heard from county residents and leaders the need to address affordable health care for our families,” says Karen Dickrell, professor of family development, UW-Extension Outagamie County. “I found that by working with the Covering Kids and Families program, I have been able to sharpen my own skills in understanding what is available and have thus been better equipped to work with county families in helping them realize what is available to them.”

Anna Stevens and Marian Lichtenwalner, senior lecturers in environment, textiles and design, developed the Threads of Remembrance project in partnership with Meriter Hospital and the Textile and Apparel Students Association. This program creates infant bereavement gowns for the parents of infants who have not survived. The garments are designed to fit tiny, premature infants and be easy to use, in addition to providing a concrete remembrance to a grieving family.

After working with the student organization for two years to fine-tune the patterns, Stevens also taught a service-learning course in which students produced a prototype packet of patterns in multiple sizes, along with an educational video and other resources. All are now available through a Meriter Hospital Web page.

“The Threads patterns are on their way to becoming a standard for hospital pregnancy and infant-loss programs,” says Sally Evans, women’s health administrator at Meriter. “We have received requests for the patterns from hospitals all over the United States and a few in Canada.”

Lydia Zepeda, professor of consumer science, directs the Huitlacoche Project for the Friends of Troy Gardens. This tract on Madison’s north side contains 26 acres, which are being developed for multiple-purpose use, including a community garden, community farm and prairie restoration.

The Huitlacoche Project involves raising a corn mushroom that has been eaten as a delicacy in Mexico for centuries and has recently gained mention in Bon Appetit and other food publications. In addition to helping to support the farm through huitlacoche sales, the production of this crop reaches out to the city’s Hispanic population.

The project entailed investigating sustainable production methods and researching propagation methods. It also involved market research, with the result that huitlacoche is now primarily sold fresh at farm markets and frozen. During the past three years, nearly 2,000 individuals have been introduced to the corn product through festivals, tasting events and cooking demonstrations.