| WAUKESHA — University of Wisconsin faculty, staff, students, and supporters will join more than 1,500 friends of the University of Wisconsin System to celebrate public higher education on March 7.
The one-day celebration, called “UW-Day: Building Wisconsin’s Future,” will involve each of the UW System’s 15 institutions, the Board of Regents, local community leaders, and alumni and friends of each institution, said Katharine Lyall, UW System President. A large turnout of legislators and other public officials is also expected, she added.
Those who will attend on behalf of UW-Waukesha include UW-Waukesha campus Dean Brad Stewart; Foundation Board President Russ Launder; campus alumna and member of the Friends & Alumni Board of Directors Mary Winze; faculty Margaret Hirschberg (political science), Steven Leahy and Jane Crisler (history), Cecilia Rodriguez (Spanish), and Elizabeth Zanichkowsky (English); staff Penny Kelsey (University Relations) and Barb Kauth and Lori Turner (Student Services); and students Dan Polley, who is editor of the student newspaper, The Observer, and Juan Marchan, president of Student Government.
The focus of the celebration, which is funded using private contributions, will be the many ways in which the UW System benefits students, the general public and the Wisconsin economy. That afternoon, guests of each institution will have the opportunity to meet with their local legislators in the Capitol to discuss the value of the university in their communities and its impact on the state.
At an evening reception from 5 to 8:30 p.m. at the Monona Terrace Community and Convention Center, a brief program at 6:30 p.m. will feature remarks by Lyall, Board of Regents President Jay L. Smith and Governor Scott McCallum.
Music groups from throughout the UW System will perform continuously during the evening festivities. Major UW institutional exhibits demonstrating cutting edge technology and educational partnerships will be displayed at the Center.
"This will be a great opportunity for our institutions to show off a little," said Lyall, "and to interact with legislators, alumni and friends of the UW System. We've never hosted this kind of celebration of the university system before. We're hoping it will be both fun and informative."
Additional information about UW Day will be posted on the UW System Web site (www.wisconsin.edu) as the date approaches. |
