January 1999

UW-Green Bay students offer free Income Tax Assistance

GREEN BAY -- A free service targeted at low-income, elderly or disabled people who desire help in preparing their income tax forms is offered through the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program.

Providing the assistance are 37 upper-level accounting students from the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay who donate their time to VITA. Pheng Xiong, a UW-Green Bay accounting major, will also serve as a Hmong translator at one of the four locations. The UW-Green Bay students complete training sessions conducted by the IRS and the State Department of Revenue.

The free, walk-in service is available at several city locations Feb. 8 through April 15. Places and times for the VITA service are as follows:

* Fort Howard School Neighborhood Resource Center, 5:30-7:30 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays through March 31. (Hmong translation will be available on Mondays at this location.)

* UW-Green Bay Cofrin Library, first floor alcove, noon-2 p.m. Tuesdays, 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Wednesdays, through April 15

* Nicolet Elementary School, 4-6 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays, 4-8 p.m. Tuesdays, through March 31

* Salvation Army Center, noon-2 p.m. Mondays and 5:00-7:00 p.m. Wednesdays, through April 15

VITA volunteers can help with state and federal forms, Homestead Earned Income Credit, Child Care Credits and many others. Individuals who file federal form 1040A or 1040EZ may bring copies of their income statements and other tax-related material to any of the sites and have their returns prepared on the spot. A copy of last year's return is helpful. Answers to frequently asked questions and guidance to other tax-information services will also be available. There will be no VITA service March 15-19, the week of UW-Green Bay spring break.

Call 920-465-2051 for more information.

GREEN BAY - University of Wisconsin-Green Bay senior Emily Branden will direct the Sam Shepard-Joseph Chaikin play, Savage/Love, at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, Feb. 12 and 13 in the Acting Studio in Theatre Hall Room 212 on the UW-Green Bay campus. The event is free and open to the public.

The play is a collection of poems based on the human experience of love, and this performance includes African-based choreography and percussion, says Branden.

Cast members are Peres Owino, who will portray the title role of Lysistrata in the Theater Department's production in April; Jennifer L. Strosin, a December graduate majoring in technical theater , who is making her acting debut; and freshman Sarah Olson, who also will perform in Lysistrata.

Percussion will be provided by senior music major Zac Schroeder, who has performed in Percussion, Hand-Drumming, and other UW-Green Bay ensembles.

Owino also is the choreographer. Lisa Weigt, who has a long list of technical theater credits at UW-Green Bay, is the stage manager.

Branden says her direction of the play was influenced by the collaborative and experimental theater she saw in New York last summer while interning with Blue Man Group. Directing Savage/Love is Branden's project for graduating with distinction in her theater major. Branden has roles in upcoming UW-Green Bay theatre productions of Pirates of Penzance and Lysistrata, and will graduate in May.

GREEN BAY - The University of Wisconsin-Green Bay will sponsor a workshop entitled "The Lighter Side of Life... Diversity," from 8 to 10 p.m., Tuesday, Jan. 26, in the Phoenix Room of the University Union. The public is invited to attend and participate.

The purpose of the free workshop is to address issues of diversity on the UW-Green Bay campus as well as in the larger community. The evening includes an appearance by the Comedy Sportz improvisational troupe.

The event is a cooperative effort of UW-Green Bay Athletics, Student Life, Good Times Programming, Affirmative Action, the University Union and the Ecumenical Center.

James Felton, coordinator of the UW-Green Bay American Intercultural Center, is the contact for more information at 920-465-2720.

GREEN BAY -- The University of Wisconsin-Green Bay Office of Outreach and Extension has received funding which will directly and immediately benefit residents of two downtown Green Bay neighborhoods.

The initiative, "Empowering the Underserved through Technology," will bring no-cost training in basic job skills and computer know-how to residents in the Fort Howard Elementary and Howe Elementary School areas beginning in February. The project is supported by $50,000 in funding from UW-Extension.

The project targets K-12 youth, older adults, English and non-English speaking individuals and W-2 recipients living in the two central Green Bay neighborhoods. The project will work in conjunction with the established and successful Fort Howard/Jefferson and East Central Family Resource Centers, which are already instrumental in providing social services and educational opportunities to residents living in their neighborhoods. Partners are the UW-Green Bay Office of Outreach and Extension, Brown County Extension and Wisconsin Public Television, with assistance from the Green Bay Area Public Schools, Fort Howard Apartments' Housing for Elderly and UW-Green Bay's Professional Program in Education.

Training sessions in reading and math skills, job skills, and basic computer skills will be offered beginning the week of Feb. 8 and continuing through late April. The sessions will be repeated and additional topics - such as electronic mail and internet use - could be addressed in subsequent semesters in summer and fall of 1999 and spring of 2000.

Openings in the courses will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis through advance registration. Sessions will take place in the computer labs at the two schools. In conjunction with the program, Fort Howard Apartments Housing for the Elderly will be developing a computer lab for their residents and will begin programming in March.

"A project such as this helps achieve our mission for serving all areas of our community, particularly a population that we wouldn't normally be able to serve," said Jan Thornton, director of UW-Green Bay's Office of Outreach and Extension. "Typically we would have to charge our audience for workshops such as these, but the funding makes it possible to offer free workshops to many, who in this case, may not be in a position to otherwise afford it."

UW-Extension funded the project to create new programming opportunities across divisional lines within UW-Extension and provide UW-Green Bay and UW-Extension with a better understanding of diverse populations residing in Green Bay's downtown neighborhood. It will call on UW-Green Bay's Office of Outreach and Extension to design and deliver continuing education through training and programming.

Principals of the two neighborhood schools have expressed interest in opening the doors of their schools beyond regular hours, allowing neighborhood residents access to their facilities. Informal surveys found residents interested in learning about technology.

Wisconsin Public Television will create a video presentation that will publicize and promote the training to be offered. The video will inform residents of downtown neighborhoods of the need for learning how to use technology. Further, it will demonstrate what can be done with the internet, e-mail, and with word processing; as well as describe programs that can help residents read and understand English, do math and learn more about the world around them. Presentations will be available in Hmong, Spanish and English, with copies made available free of charge in neighborhood rental outlets, grocery stores, through home visitors, churches and civic groups.

Day-to-day project coordination for the "Empowering the Underserved through Technology" initiative will be conducted by Terri VanDenHeuvel, director of the Fort Howard/Jefferson Neighborhood Family Resource Center. Staff members from CESA #7's Interactive League and Northeast Wisconsin In-School Telecommunications (NEWIST) are organizers of the workshop.

Residents can contact Terri VanDenHeuvel at 920-448-2256 for more information or to register.

GREEN BAY -- A pair of get-acquainted open house sessions and the first schedule of courses have been announced for the new "Empowering the Underserved through Technology" initiative for two central city Green Bay neighborhoods.

The open house events invite residents to learn more about the program, to meet organizers and instructors and to explore technology/instruction facilities at Fort Howard and Howe schools.

Open House and Welcome, Fort Howard Elementary School
5:30-7 p.m., Monday, Feb. 1
520 Dousman St

Open House and Welcome, Howe Elementary School
3:30-5 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 3
525 S. Madison St.

The training sessions will meet weekly Feb. 8 through April 30. Interpreters will be available, in Hmong and Spanish, if needed. There are no fees for the courses, but advance registration is requested. Residents can contact Terri VanDenHeuvel, director of the Fort Howard/Jefferson Neighborhood Family Resource Center, at 920-448-2256 for more information or to register.

Courses at Fort Howard Elementary School
Monday 5-7 p.m. - Job Skills and Computing
Wednesday 5-7 p.m. - Basic Reading and Math Computer Skills
Monday 11 a.m. -1 p.m. - Independent Practice and Individual Help
Friday 11 a.m. -1 p.m. - Basic Word Processing and Computer Skills

Courses at Howe Elementary School
Monday 3:30-5 p.m. - Job Skills and Computing
Wednesday 3:30-5:15 p.m. - Basic Reading and Math Computer Skills

MADISON - An architectural design which will make a new $17 million academic building a model of energy efficiency for the state of Wisconsin has been approved by the Wisconsin State Building Commission.

The Commission, chaired by Gov. Tommy Thompson, gave its unanimous approval today (Wednesday, Jan. 20) to the design report for the new academic building at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay.

The Commission's approval, following approval of the report by the UW System Board of Regents in December, authorizes the architect/engineer team to begin final construction drawings. Completion of those drawings is expected to be followed by bidding in late spring, the start of construction in late summer, and occupancy by January of 2001.

The 120,000-square-foot building, the first new academic building on campus since 1974 , will become the University's primary classroom facility. The two- and three-story building will enclose a courtyard and connect to both the Cofrin Library and the University Union below ground, thereby creating a pedestrian circle and a new quad at the center of campus. Twenty classrooms, a variety of special computer-based instruction spaces, and academic program offices will occupy most of the facility. It will also house the Richter Collection, University Herbarium, Wisconsin Society for Ornithology breeding bird atlas, and the headquarters offices of the Cofrin Memorial Arboretum.

Each classroom is designed with future instructional technology in mind, incorporating a variety of conventional and computer-based graphic and video capabilities including possible future use of computers at each student seat. Classrooms are designed to accommodate both lecture and small breakout and discussion group formats for teaching.

As designed, the building qualifies for the highest rating for an environmentally responsible building, using the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design rating system developed by the U.S. Green Building Council. Environmentally friendly building materials include recycled-content carpet, fabric panels, furniture and tiles; low volatile organic compound paints and adhesives; and sustainable floor finishes such as pressed bamboo boards, sealed concrete, and real linoleum.

The building design is projected to result in less than half the energy cost of a comparable building designed to meet the Wisconsin Department of Commerce Building Energy Code. Major energy-saving features include daylighting, high-efficiency lighting, passive solar collectors, and building-integrated photovoltaic panels. The design provides daylighting for almost all classrooms, offices and public spaces, allowing electric lights to be turned off for much of the day. A variety of special window glazings maximize light while helping to control solar heat gain in the summer and heat loss in the winter. High-efficiency lighting complements the daylighting, and is controlled by photosensitive dimming systems. On the building's south side, 2,300 square feet of passive solar collectors absorb heat from the sun; the heated air is added to the building's ventilation system, reducing heating costs much of the year. Photovoltaic panels integrated into the roofing materials will serve as a demonstration and research project designed and funded by Wisconsin Public Service Corp.

The design team is headed by Somerville Inc. of Green Bay and includes architects from Hellmuth, Obata and Kassabaum, St. Louis; energy design by Architectural Energy Corporation, Boulder, Colo.; classroom technology design by Kvernstoen and Kehl of Star Prairie, Wis.; electrical engineering by Arnold & O'Sheridan, Madison; plumbing design by PSJ Engineering, Milwaukee; and photovoltaic design by Solar Design Associates, Harvard, Mass.

The project is being managed by staff from the state Division of Facilities Development, the University of Wisconsin System Office of Capital Planning and Budget, and the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay.

GREEN BAY - Applications are now being accepted from educators interested in pursuing a new master's degree - the Master of Science in Applied Leadership for Teaching and Learning - at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay.

The program, now in its first year, is screening applications for the cohort of students who will begin coursework in fall 1999. Because the program is designed for educators who are actively employed in K-16 classroom settings or business and industry training, most courses are offered on the weekends and during the summer.

The deadline for initial application is Feb. 12. To allow for notification of acceptance in April, applicants are asked to provide the UW-Green Bay application form, a letter of interest and other support material in February and March.

The new degree is the first in the state built specifically upon the competencies outlined by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. The state of Wisconsin offers financial incentives to reward teachers who obtain certification via the rigorous NBPTS criteria.

The two-year, 30-credit program includes requirements for a competency-based portfolio and learning-based master's thesis. Goals are to foster each teacher's ability to provide leadership in the improvement of learning for students; prepare the teacher to design, implement and evaluate school-based and learner-focused research; and integrate the teacher's own classroom experiences into the course of study.

Individuals interested in more information about the program and admission requirements should call the UW-Green Bay Office of Education at 920-465-2137.

GREEN BAY - The great-great grandson of the slave who led the revolt aboard the ship Amistad that inspired Steven Spielberg's movie of that title will speak at 7 p.m. Monday, Feb. 1, in the Phoenix Room of University Union at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay.

The speaker, Samuel H. Pieh is a descendant of Sengbeh Pieh, known as Joseph Cinque, leader of the rebellion that ultimately won freedom for himself and for other mutineers. The free event will be followed by a reception.

Pieh, through his position as executive director of Mid South/Africa Link, and through leadership in charities and relief organizations working in Africa and in the American south, works to develop stronger ties between the African Continent and the United States.

Pieh served as a language coach and portrayed one of the captives in the film, Amistad,at the invitation of director Spielberg. In his UW-Green Bay presentation, Pieh will talk about the historical legacy of the Amistad trial and why it is that many Americans had never heard the story before the movie's release, despite its influence on the early abolitionist movement. He also will speak about the importance of forging economic and cultural bonds between Africa and America.

Pieh is a professor of biology at the State Technical Institute at Memphis, Tenn. A native of Sierra Leone, West Africa, he received his higher education in the United States at the University of Michigan, Butler University, and the University of Indianapolis. Before joining the faculty at Memphis, Pieh was at Mississippi Valley State University, Miss., where he developed an accredited environmental health curriculum.

The University of Wisconsin-Green Bay Office of Student Life sponsors the event. The number for information is 920-465-2400.

GREEN BAY - An exhibit of work by members of the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay art faculty opens on Tuesday, Jan. 26, with a reception from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. in the Lawton Gallery. The exhibit continues through Feb. 17.

Artists include David Damkoehler, Toni Damkoehler, Jerry Dell, Carol Emmons, Curt Heuer, Jennifer Mokren, Robert Ratajczak, Kristina Rothe, David Sear, Chris Style, Steve Wadzinski, and Karon Winzenz. Their work represents a variety of two- and three-dimensional media.

The show is the 26th consecutive annual exhibit of UW-Green Bay faculty work.

Gallery hours are 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. The Lawton Gallery is located in Theatre Hall just east of the Weidner Center.

GREEN BAY - Nine University of Wisconsin-Green Bay music students will present an honors recital at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 30, in Fort Howard Hall of the Weidner Center for the Performing Arts. Admission is free.

Participants were selected by the music faculty on the basis of their outstanding ratings in juried performances last fall.

Recitalists will be Sarah Danek, flute; Troy Frisque, bass; Erin Miller, clarinet; Kelly Olson, piano; Tim Patterson, percussion; Kyle Swan, percussion; Andy Thiele, saxophone; Angie Buyze Weber, soprano; and Andrea Wiltzius, soprano.

The honors recitalists list permanent home addresses as follows: Danek, 601 Montana Ave., South Milwaukee; Frisque, 2490 Woodington Way, Suamico; Miller, 500 W. Milwaukee St., Mauston; Olson, 3092 Claymore Lane, New Franken; Patterson, 455 Saunders Ave., Park Falls; Swan, 1452 Bruce Lane, Green Bay; Thiele, 2785 Otto Court, Green Bay; Weber, 2605 University Ave., Green Bay; and Wiltzius, 633 Upper Road, Kohler.

GREEN BAY -- Jeffrey Bell, Kate Horkman, and JoAnn Sutton of Green Bay; Matthew Blankschein of Marinette; Mandy Vitale of Oak Creek; and Roy Brodhagen of Bonduel have received scholarships in the Natural and Applied Sciences area at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay.

Jeffrey Bell, 1202 BayDeNoc Court, has been awarded the $500 James Casperson Memorial Scholarship, recognizing outstanding environmental science students. The senior biology major has worked on a number of research projects including a study on the feeding and nesting behaviors of five species of woodpeckers at the Point au Sable Natural Area. He also worked with UW-Green Bay Professor Robert Howe as a field assistant conducting a Brown and Kewaunee county grassland survey of breeding birds and a study on the role of wind turbine towers on bird mortality.

The scholarship was established by the parents of UW-Green Bay student James Casperson, who was an outstanding environmental sciences student at the time of his death in 1977.

Kate Horkman, 900 Phasianus Street, has been awarded the $500 Brad Cook Memorial Scholarship recognizing excellence and career interest in the environmental sciences and biology. The junior majoring in biology, environmental science and Spanish, works at Bay Beach Wildlife Sanctuary, feeding and rehabilitating animals, administering medication and training and working with program animals. In addition, she is the founding member and officer of Students United for Wildlife Research and Awareness (SUFWRA). She hopes to earn a master's degree while serving in the Peace Corps upon graduation in May of 2001.

The scholarship was created by former UW-Green Bay faculty member Robert S. Cook and his wife, Ann of Green Bay, in memory of their son who attended UW-Green Bay.

JoAnn Sutton, of 2775 Gemini Court, was one of two students to earn a $500 Environmental Science Scholarship. The award recognizes academic performance and career goals in environmental sciences. The junior environmental science and ecology major completed a summer project in which she studied monarch butterfly breeding by obtaining nearly 100 eggs and studying their metamorphosis. She also conducted research on food habits of people in the Great Depression era by gathering information through personal interviews with nursing home residents who lived during the Depression. She also presented a six-week course in rocketry at McAuliffe School in Green Bay.

Mandy Vitale, of 575 E. Shepard Hills Drive, Oak Creek, was the other $500 Environmental Science Scholarship recipient. She is a junior majoring in biology and environmental science. Vitale is an active volunteer of the Green Bay Area Humane Society and Animal Shelter and the Brown County Zoo. She is a member of the TriBeta and Phi Eta Sigma National Honor Societies. After graduating, she plans to pursue a career in zoology or wildlife preservation.

Matthew Blankschein, N3069 Woodland Road, Marinette, was awarded the $1,000 Nancy J. Sell Memorial Scholarship. The junior chemistry major plans to pursue career interests in biochemistry and molecular biology after graduating from UW-Green Bay.

Sell Scholarship recipients must demonstrate excellence in science and an interest in applying science to resolving environmental problems. The award honors Professor Nancy J. Sell, who was a member of UW-Green Bay's faculty in Natural and Applied Sciences from 1971 until her death in 1995.

Roy Brodhagen, of W5293 Sunrise Road, Bonduel, has received a $500 scholarship from the Northeast Wisconsin Chapter of Environmental Technologists. The senior was presented with the award at the organization's regional conference in Milwaukee. The Federation awards the scholarships and a one-year membership to students pursuing degrees in environmental fields relating to managing and preventing air, water and solid and hazardous waste pollution.

Brodhagen is majoring in environmental science and environmental policy and planning. His career aspiration is to aid in the development of a sustainable methodology for consumption of dwindling water supplies and management or decreasing agricultural cropland. In the past year he worked with the Shawano County Natural Resources Conservation Service and conducted extensive research on wetland quality and management. Last summer, he organized a project that identified all wetlands in Shawano County and delineated them in relation to Shawano Lake, Wolf River, or Pensaukee River watersheds as part of the Environmental Quality Incentives Program funded by the USDA.

GREEN BAY - Pianist Kenny Werner is the guest artist for the 29th University of Wisconsin-Green Bay Jazz Fest concert at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 16, in the Weidner Center on the campus at 2420 Nicolet Drive.

The annual UW-Green Bay event has evolved into a Weidner Center Jazz Weekend. The Weidner Center has booked Corky Siegel's Chamber Blues and The Siegel-Schwall Band for 7:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 15. A combo of UW-Green Bay jazz musicians will play in the Weidner Center foyer before that concert, and they'll participate in a jam session afterward in the Weidner Center's Signature Lounge. Following will be a late night jam at the Micro Switch on University Ave. with some of the high school ensemble directors participating in Saturday's Jazz Fest.

The Saturday night Jazz Fest performance features Werner, along with the UW-Green Bay Jazz Ensemble I, directed by John Salerno, and the Vocal Jazz Ensemble, directed by Chris Salerno. The concert opens with two jazz ensembles chosen "outstanding" among high schools or junior high schools who participate in the day-long program of clinics and master classes preceding the performance.

The 47-year-old Werner began performing at four. At 11, he recorded a single with a 15-piece orchestra and appeared on television playing stride piano. After attending Manhattan and Berklee Schools of music, he toured South America with Victor Assis Brasil. Werner was still young when he made his first LP recording featuring piano solos of the music of Bix Beiderbecke, Duke Ellington, James P. Johnson and George Gershwin. Soon after, he recorded on "Something Like a Bird" with the great Charles Mingus.

"Beyond the Forest of Mirkwood," recorded in 1981, was Werner's first solo album of original compositions. Since, he has toured with Archie Shepp, joined the Mel Lewis Orchestra, and recorded with many jazz greats. His 1997 book, Effortless Mastery, has influenced many musicians' concepts about how to practice, play, and listen.

In the concert, Werner will be featured on one of his own compositions, "Compensation." He'll also solo on "Big Dipper," by Thad Jones and on his own arrangement of the ballad "Portrait of Jenny."

Werner will present a clinic on the subject of his book for high school and junior high school students participating in the day program. Other clinicians and adjudicators participating include Kurt Dietrich, Ryan Frane, John Harmon, and Gene Aitken, along with Thomas Pfotenhauer of the UW-Green Bay faculty, and retired director of jazz studies Lovell Ives. Aitken is director of jazz activities at Northern Colorado University.

Among high schools participating are Appleton North, Ashwaubenon, Bay Port, Denmark, East De Pere, Eau Claire Memorial, Gale-Ettrick-Trempealeau in Galesville, Green Bay West, Manitowoc Roncalli, Pulaski, Stevens Point, and Watertown. Middle schools include Green Bay Franklin, Fond du Lac Thiessen, and Hortonville.

Tickets for the evening concert are $10 in advance and $12 at the door. Students attending the day program receive special rates. The number for tickets is 920-465-2217 or 1-800-328-TKTS.

GREEN BAY - An observance in memory of Martin Luther King Jr. is scheduled for Tuesday, Jan. 19, at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay.

A program beginning at noon on the Cofrin Library plaza will emphasize Dr. King's work and application of his legacy of nonviolence, human rights, and community service. Chancellor Mark L. Perkins is among the speakers.

Students, faculty, and staff will be challenged to show their support of harmony and unity on campus by signing a "Harmony Zone" banner to be displayed on campus. A reception follows the program, which is sponsored by the Office of Student Life.

The program takes place on the first day of second-semester classes for UW-Green Bay, the day following the federal Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday.