UW-Madison joins hurricane relief efforts

The university is taking steps to assist Wisconsin residents studying at colleges and universities closed by the catastrophic damage from Hurricane Katrina.

And Badger football fans donated nearly $25,000 to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund before the season-opening game on Sept. 3. The UW Athletic Department and the National W-Club also joined to donate 10 percent of the day‘s concession sales to the relief effort.

The university is working with UW–Madison students from the damaged areas and those who have been called up to Wisconsin National Guard duty to join relief efforts.

The university will attempt to accommodate students from institutions that have been officially closed by hurricane damage, should they want to study in Madison. The university will assist students in several sets of distinct circumstances. Among them:

• Wisconsin residents who are freshmen at other institutions (closed by storm damage) who had previously been accepted to UW–Madison.A student in this situation would be enrolled as a UW–Madison undergraduate. The student would be encouraged to return to his or her original institution after the end of the semester, or whenever the original institution reopens.
• Wisconsin upperclassmen and freshmen not previously admitted and attending other institutions closed by hurricane damage. Students in this situation will be able to continue their education through the UW–Madison Division of Continuing Studies.
• Nonresident students. UW–Madison is working with other higher education associations such as the Association of American Universities and the Committee for Institutional Cooperation to facilitate options for nonresident students from closed institutions in the affected areas.

Students need to enroll as soon as possible, with a final deadline of Friday, Sept. 23.

Students or families interested in pursuing these options should contact Tom Reason in the Office of Admissions at 262-3961, or treason@admissions.wisc.edu.

Once students make their way to Madison, the university will assist with their housing search through the services of University Housing, private residence halls or Madison-area apartments.

The Offices of the Dean of Students (ODOS) has made an effort to contact the more than 60 UW–Madison students who list Louisiana or Mississippi home addresses.

Any returning UW–Madison student affected by the hurricane and in need of any campus assistance should contact ODOS at 263-5700 or dos@bascom.wisc.edu. Among the services available are crisis loans, assistance with coursework and excused absences from classes.

The Registrar’s Office will facilitate the departure of any student called up by the Wisconsin National Guard in the wake of the storm. For more information, call 265-4628.

Faculty or staff members called to active duty should work with their dean or unit director.

Badger fans who were unable to attend Saturday‘s game who would like to contribute to the American Red Cross relief efforts may do so by calling 1-800-HELP-NOW or visiting http://www.redcross.org.

Donations also can be sent to: American Red Cross, 28 Bascom Hall, 500 Lincoln Drive, Madison, WI 53706. Please include “Hurricane Relief” in the memo section of the check.