Vol. 39, No. 146, August 5, 2008     /     Log Archive

No confirmation yet on whether, as we speak, the Rubicon is being crossed yet again, but here’s to liberal education and an NFL executive with degrees from Colgate (B.A.), American (MBA) and Georgetown (law) who sprinkles his official statements with the classics. (“Crossing the Rubicon,” of course, means an irrevocable decision, often one that leads to conflict. It’s a reference to ancient Rome and the prohibition against Julius Caesar crossing the river with his provincial legions; he did so anyway, touching off a civil war.) Never mind that you can’t metaphorically “re-cross” the Rubicon any more than you can re-cross a bridge burned behind you. Let the die be cast. Et tu, Brette? In real news today:

University Union grand opening is 4 p.m., Sept. 10
Mark your calendar for the grand opening celebration of the University Union.  “Come celebrate with live music, activities, dessert buffet, and tours of the newly expanded and remodeled Union.  The celebration ceremony begins at 4 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 10. For a complete grand opening celebration event lineup, visit http://www.uwgb.edu/union/expansion. We look forward to celebrating with you!”

Common Grounds brews up free-coffee deal for down days
That popular coffee venue in the University Union — the Common Grounds Coffee House — will be closed until Monday, Aug. 18. (The Garden Café remains open 7:30 a.m. through 1:30 p.m. during that stretch.) Apologizing to Common Grounds fans for the inconvenience, Sodexo is brewing some fresh coffee, regular and decaf, each morning available at no charge to thank its customers and satisfy their coffee needs from the Union. The free java is located outside the Common Grounds Coffeehouse serving area and will be available until “poured out” each weekday.  Common Grounds will resume its summer hours (7:45 a.m. until 1:30 p.m. daily) from the 18th until the start of the fall semester.

Toning up: CSAC recycles
In the spirit of going green on the UW-Green Bay campus, the Classified Staff Advisory Council will be collecting ink cartridges and toner packs for eco-friendly disposal.  All manufacturers — HP, Canon, Panasonic, Sharp, Lexmark/IBM, Dell, Samsung, and Xerox — will be accepted (original cartridges only; no remanufactured/refills).  Feel free to bring used cartridges from home too! The CSAS encourage everyone to participate.  Look for labeled collection boxes throughout campus.  Boxes have already been placed in ES 317, LS 455, SS 1300, TH 331, MAC C310, UU 122. Visit http://www.uwgb.edu/classified/recycling.htm for details.

Snapshots: Clerks, Treasurers enjoy educational week in Green Bay
Outreach program director Kassie Van Remortel reports more than 400 municipal officials took part in the annual Municipal Clerks and Treasurers Institute and the Administrators and Master Academies.  For a look-see at the internationally recognized training program (Van Remortel, you will remember, won a prestigious award earlier this year), click to http://www.uwgb.edu/univcomm/news/PHOTOARCH/events/080713-18_clerkstreasurers.htm.

A testimonial from a satisfied customer
Teresa Groves, municipal treasurer for the city of Lodi, shared the following testimonial with UW-Green Bay staff. It does a great job of capturing the essence of the program for those who might be unfamiliar:

“We live in an ever-changing world and that can be tough to handle sometimes.   In municipal work, we have to keep up with changing laws, changing election processes, the changing economy; it helps to have knowledgeable, trained professionals in those fields that are willing to share their time and talent with others.  Being a well-trained municipal employee means knowing and using resources available to you.  The Municipal Clerks Treasurer Institute helped me grow, in confidence, in knowledge and in resources…”

Registration now open for CSAC Fall Conference
The Classified Staff Advisory Council is happy to announce that registration forms are now available for “Planting the Seed,” the annual Fall conference that CSAC is hosting on Sept. 26 in the Phoenix Rooms.  You can get your form online at http://www.uwgb.edu/classified/fallconference.htm or from the brochure, which will be mailed mid- to late-August.  Questions should be directed to Co-Chairs Amy Ibuaka (ibuakaa@uwgb.edu, x2224) or Jan Snyder (snyderj@uwgb.edu, x2082).

The biggest Book Salespalooza yet!
Time to get crazy: The Cofrin Library is holding its largest Book Salespalooza yet, this week (Aug. 4 through Friday, Aug. 8). “Come check out our selection of fiction, non-fiction, teacher editions, LPs and more.  And the best part is that everything is only $1.00!  The book sale carts will be out on the Plaza level of the library during regular library hours.  All proceeds benefit the Cofrin Library.”

National Railroad Museum exhibit is a Kersten idea, with Taylor tie
A new exhibit at the National Railroad Museum spawned from a suggestion by Prof. Andrew Kersten. Last year, Kersten had his history seminar students help create an educational strategic plan for the museum. While he was meeting with the museum’s executive director, Kersten suggested an exhibit on the Pullman porters, the men who served passengers on trains. There’s also a historic tie with the family of well-known UW-Green Bay alumnus Steve Taylor. Read more at: http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080803/GPG0101/808030669/1207/GPG01.

Kersten will present on railroad porters this Thursday
Kersten will host a film and discussion about the railroad porters at the National Railroad Museum at 7 p.m. Thursday (Aug. 7). Kersten wrote a biography of A. Philip Randolph, an activist who worked to form the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters and was later an organizer of the 1965 Civil Rights March on Washington. http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080803/GPG0101/808030668/1207/GPG01.

P-G revisits Xiong case, one year later
It's been more than a year since UW-Green Bay student Mahalia Xiong disappeared after leaving an Ashwaubenon bowling alley parking lot, and authorities have little new information about her death, though it remains an open investigation, according to Tuesday’s Green Bay Press-Gazette. Her death was ruled an accident and traffic fatality after her rental car was found submerged in the Fox River. Her family believes Xiong died before she ended up in the water, the paper reports. See http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080805/GPG0101/808050553/1207/GPG01.

Small Business Development Center client wins Governor’s award in contest
A client of UW-Green Bay’s Small Business Development Center won a division in the Wisconsin Governor’s Business Plan Contest in June. PeaPod Homes of Sturgeon Bay won the business services division of the contest, which encourages and educates entrepreneurs on the creation, startup and early-growth stages of high-tech, high-growth businesses. SBDC staff member Chuck Brys advised PeaPod — a design company that develops plans for energy-efficient housing — on its business plan and launch. Says Mark Rittle, a partner in the new venture, “The SBDC provided great insight and assistance. It’s a fantastic resource for any new business.”  For more, click http://www.uwgb.edu/univcomm/news/archive/2008/08-166.htm.

SBDC classes offer training for entrepreneurs
A 10-week program designed to help entrepreneurs prepare a business plan for better management, or to apply for financing, will be offered starting Wednesday, Sept. 17. To learn more about the Entrepreneurship Training Program hosted by the UW-Green Bay Small Business Development Center, click http://www.uwgb.edu/univcomm/news/archive/2008/08-167.htm.

National Campus Safety Awareness Month gains traction
A grassroots effort that began at UW-Green Bay is still gaining momentum and nation attention. Last week, the U.S. House of Representatives unanimously approved a resolution supporting the designation of September as National Campus Safety Awareness Month by Security On Campus, a national non-profit based in Pennsylvania. The movement to designate September as National Campus Safety Awareness Month was started in 2004 by then-UW-Green Bay junior Mitch Bruckert. The bill supports the goals and ideals of National Campus Safety Awareness Month and encourages colleges and universities to provide campus safety and other crime awareness and prevention programs to all students throughout the year.

Read more at: http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS145186+01-Aug-2008+PRN20080801. For the original news of Bruckert’s idea see: http://www.uwgb.edu/univcomm/news/inthenewsarchive/2005/safety2-05.htm.

Personal safety has gotta have attitude
UW-Green Bay and the Green Bay Police Department teamed up last week to show students how to protect themselves, including tips on watching for possible predators, keeping personal information safe both physically and in Cyberspace, and self-defense moves. "Anticipating the threat is usually the best way to go," Green Bay Police Capt. Bill Galvin told the Press-Gazette. "You've got to have attitude. You have to portray the image that you can take care of yourself." http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080805/GPG0101/808050556/1207/GPG01  

News on a bayshore neighbor
Today’s Green Bay Press-Gazette business page reports that Patrick's on the Bay, 2607 Nicolet Drive, is closed. Adjacent to the campus’s Communiversity Park, the restaurant located in the supper club building occupied over the years by others including the Carlton East, Willie Wood’s and The Phoenix Inn. See http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080805/GPG03/808050540/1247.

Space Experience camp at UW-Green Bay is one-of-a-kind
More from the Press-Gazette… a co-worker on the eighth floor has come to calling the newspaper the “Brett-Gazette” but we think she’s being unfair… there’s a lot of non-Favre content these days… including a story that notes “There's nothing else like this in the upper Midwest…” That’s one way to describe the Space Experience camp held on campus last week. See what the kids learned about and did here at: http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080803/GPG0101/808030665/1207/GPG01.

Tallant leaves Eau Claire for Texas
A top UW-Eau Claire official appears to be heading to Texas A&M University-Kingsville as its president. Steven Tallant, provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs since 2007, is the sole finalist for the president's job: http://www.leadertelegram.com/story-news_local.asp?id=BHC3M1MKEL2.

TAUWP sues UW-Platteville over retention fund plan
    If you’re a newcomer to the issue, be careful about the wording of the original AP report — TAUWP may be a union advocating for UW faculty and academic staff but the UW System doesn’t formally recognize collective bargaining for these employee groups — yet the news story does decribe how the group is suing the University of Wisconsin-Platteville over the way its chancellor wants to award merit pay increases. See http://www.wiba.com/cc-common/news/sections/newsarticle.html?feed=118857&article=4040809.

No coal for U, at least in Dane County
Gov. Jim Doyle announced Friday that the state will not permit construction of a new coal-fired heating plant for government and university buildings in downtown Madison. See http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=779071.

Portch returns to review UW System's hiring process
Former University of Wisconsin System official Stephen Portch has been retained to assess the hiring process that almost put Robert Felner into the chancellor’s office at UW-Parkside. See http://www.journaltimes.com/articles/2008/07/31/local_news/doc489277346c1c1303624911.txt.

Will will come to Green Bay
Last year it was Dick Morris. This year it’s George Will. The Green Bay Area Chamber of Commerce has booked for its annual dinner another nationally prominent political analyst, this one known for his ornately acerbic and sharply conservative/libertarian writings. Will, a Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist and Newsweek essayist, will deliver the keynote Monday night, Oct. 20, at the Hotel Sierra/KI Convention Center. Details to come.

Reminder: Phoenix Bookstore is closed Wednesday
All day. Regular hours will be in effect the remainder of the week.

‘Shelter from the Storm’ airs Thursday on WPT
The half-hour documentary that raises issues and possible solutions related to the problem of women and children in poverty, was produced by NEWIST/CESA 7 in cooperation with Educational Television Productions of N.E. Wisconsin, with offices at UW-Green Bay. See http://www.uwgb.edu/univcomm/news/logarchive/logarchive39/2008july31.htm#documentary.

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