Stronger Businesses
In addition to producing a bigger supply of college-prepared workers, the university must do more to boost the creation of well-paying jobs. By supporting business development, linking academic programs to entrepreneurship, and expanding research, the UW will help make Wisconsin a better place to do business. This will require stronger connections that link UW System talent and research activities with established businesses, entrepreneurs, economic development agencies, as well as new efforts to accelerate investment in UW-generated innovations to develop ideas, build new businesses, enhance existing industries, and create jobs.
- Office of Economic Development: This new office is a partnership between the UW System and the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC) to better coordinate economic development activities throughout the state. It is facilitating collaborative grants and incentive programs to foster applied research and technology transfer, including developing Regional Economic Development Partnerships.
- Wisconsin Economic Development Portal: This searchable web-based resource links economic development and commerce initiatives statewide. It provides an integrated, system-wide, resource-rich database that showcases faculty expertise in specific areas related to industry needs, such as health, water, biotechnology, and manufacturing.
- Helping businesses work better and grow: The Wisconsin Entrepreneurs’ Network and 13 Small Business Development Centers support new and established businesses, and provide patent and trademark services.
- Transforming research into well-paying jobs: Using recommendations from the UW System’s Research to Jobs task force, the UW is stepping up efforts to connect academic research with the private sector to help businesses be more competitive and create new businesses that will employ more Wisconsinites.
- Entrepreneurial opportunities for students: Entrepreneurial ideas are by nature free flowing and ambitious, and often require assistance developing operational and financial plans. By encouraging real-time and virtual opportunities for students to pitch ideas and seek seed funding, UW System campuses can increase the interest and energy surrounding business start-ups and development.
UW-Stout earns national honors in design arena
MENOMONIE – Two UW-Stout undergraduate programs are receiving national recognition. In March, the Princeton Review announced its 2013 rankings of the top game design programs at U.S. colleges. The list included the top 15 programs while another 15 programs, including UW-Stout’s, received honorable mention. UW-Stout’s program is the only one in Wisconsin or Minnesota ranked in the top 30. A total of 150 programs were surveyed in the U.S. and Canada. “This is a great acknowledgement of the quality of the program and...
read moreUW Sustainable Management alumnus helps American Family Insurance work toward a zero waste future
MADISON, Wis. – Maggie Layden is changing the world one vegetable peel at a time. Maggie is the project leader for the American Family Insurance initiative, “Our Dream of a Zero Waste Future.” By diverting the corporate cafeteria’s pre-consumer food waste from landfills, she is helping the Fortune 500 insurance company move closer to its goal of a zero waste future. A 2012 alumnus, Maggie credits the University of Wisconsin online Sustainable Management degree for her success today. With a strong focus on the intersections between...
read moreCommencement: UW-Stout online master’s students see campus, meet for first time
Menomonie, Wis. — For most of the 1,382 students graduating from University of Wisconsin-Stout, commencement ceremonies Friday and Saturday were a goodbye. Commencement is a formal farewell to the campus where they’ve spent years rushing to classes, hanging out with friends and living in the residence halls. They may return someday but probably not to eat pizza with friends at midnight or to pull an all-nighter studying for a final exam. Commencement day has a much different feel, however, for some graduates. For online students it’s...
read more$10 million UW–Madison-led project will adapt dairying to climate change
MADISON — Agricultural scientists from across the nation are embarking on a new five-year, $10 million, USDA-funded effort to identify dairy production practices that minimize the emission of greenhouse gasses (GHG) and will be more resilient to the effects of a changing climate. The project is led by the University of Wisconsin-Madison and involves researchers and extension staff from seven universities, five federal labs of the U.S. Departments of Agriculture and Energy, and the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy. U.S. Secretary of...
read moreMaking global connections in the business of water
Business students and faculty members are immersing themselves in water activities as the UW-Whitewater College of Business and Economics expands its focus on the business of water. As Milwaukee positions itself as a world water hub, UW-Whitewater is providing innovative and creative contributions to the growing regional cluster of freshwater businesses. From the new water business minor to the combined science-business degree with a water emphasis, the university is educating the future water workforce. Students are busy with internships in...
read moreA pioneering public-private partnership is a roadmap for nursing’s future
UW-Eau Claire-Ministry Saint Joseph’s celebrate 25th anniversary of nursing partnership EAU CLAIRE — Brian Tessmer is eager to earn his bachelor’s degree in nursing but with a job in Marshfield and wife who teaches in Wisconsin Rapids, the central Wisconsin native has little interest in relocating to attend college. Earning an associate degree from a two-year campus and then pursuing a completion degree at another institution also is not appealing to him. Fortunately for Tessmer and other talented students with strong ties to central...
read moreArtful collaboration provides educational and business opportunity
Stevens Point, Wis. — A problem has turned into an opportunity – and produced a new, economical art paper for student and faculty use – thanks to a unique collaboration between departments at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. Visual arts students in UW-Stevens Point’s College of Fine Arts and Communication require a special art paper to handle the inks and processes they use, and the art paper is expensive. Meanwhile, the university is home to the fastest student-run pilot paper plant in the country, used for classes in the...
read moreUW-Parkside Cyber Security Lab preps info guardians
Every day brings fresh revelations about sophisticated cyber criminals shutting down vast computer networks, hacking computers from half a world away to probe files, and stealing proprietary information. UW-Parkside faculty and students are using dedicated facilities to understand cybercrime and prevent it. Find out how… UW-Parkside educating cyber security sentinels The headlines are global and Dr. Susan Lincke, computer science professor and certified systems information auditor at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside, knows all too well...
read moreUW-Stevens Point student researcher helping to develop new state crop
Stevens Point, Wis. – Working in a fourth-floor lab in the Dan Trainer College of Natural Resources (CNR) Building, Heath Brandner deftly plucks a tiny American hazelnut plant from its growth medium. The robust little seedling, three weeks old, is ready for division and transplanting. Brandner carefully records information about the plant’s condition and marks and dates the transplant. Brandner, a University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point forestry major, is working with Professor Mike Demchik on a research project that ultimately aims to...
read moreUW-Stout graduates find success in workplace at 97 percent pace
Menomonie, Wis. — Elected officials from President Obama to Gov. Scott Walker have called on U.S. colleges and universities to work harder to prepare graduates for careers upon graduation. A recent report shows University of Wisconsin-Stout continues to excel in workforce preparation. The UW-Stout Career Services office new employment report showed that 97 percent of the graduates from 2011-2012 had either found positions or were furthering their education. The rate is similar to last year and continues a trend of more than a decade with...
read more