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Stay connected to your alma mater! The UW-Eau Claire Alumni Association continues to connect with alumni across the country by hosting several alumni events this winter and spring. Here are a few of them (in date order):
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Alumni gathering in Hollywood, Calif.
Alumnus and opera star Greg Fedderly '85 will host a get-together at Off Vine Restaurant, 6263 Leland Way, Hollywood, from 7-9 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 17. Hear the latest UW-Eau Claire news, enjoy terrific food and register to win Blugold door prizes. View invitation.
Alumni gathering on Hilton Head Island
JoAnne Brandes '75 will welcome alumni to her home, 358 Long Cove Drive, Long Cove Plantation, Hilton Head Island, S.C., from 6-7:30 p.m. Monday, Jan. 21. Featuring food, beverages and a chance to win Blugold door prizes. RSVP by Jan. 17. View invitation.
Alumni gathering in New Smyrna Beach, Fla.
Barry Moullet '83 and his wife, Christine, will host an intimate gathering at their home, 4071 S. Atlantic Ave., New Smyrna Beach, from 7-9 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 23. You’ll enjoy food, wine and good old-fashioned Wisconsin hospitality. RSVP by Jan.18. View invitation.
Reception for education alumni
UW-Eau Claire education graduates are invited to a reception in The Dulany Inn of the new W.R. Davies Student Center from 6-7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 29. Enjoy complimentary beverages and appetizers and register for Blugold door prizes. RSVP by Jan. 24. View invitation.
Let's Do Lunch noon-hour lecture series
The Wednesday, Jan. 30, session of the Let's Do Lunch lecture series will feature Dr. James Boulter, associate professor of chemistry and university sustainability fellow, speaking on "Progress Toward a Sustainable UW-Eau Claire." Noon-1 p.m., Fanny Hill Restaurant, Eau Claire. More information.
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National Presidents Day Choral Festival
UW-Eau Claire's Concert Choir will perform at the National Presidents Day Choral Festival at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., at 1 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 3. An herb-roasted chicken dinner follows the concert at 3 p.m. RSVP by Jan. 21. View invitation.
For more information or to register for any of these events, call 715-836-3266 or email alumni@uwec.edu. 
Martin Luther King Jr. remembrance event set for Jan. 21
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A ceremony to commemorate the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. will begin at 6 p.m. Jan. 21 at St. James the Greater Catholic Church in Eau Claire.
More than 58 youth from Lakeshore, Locust Lane and Putnam elementary schools and DeLong Middle School in Eau Claire, along with UW-Eau Claire students and community members, will participate in the remembrance ceremony.
"This is going to be a wonderful celebration that brings together people of all ages from throughout the community and the campus," said Dr. Selika Ducksworth-Lawton, UW-Eau Claire associate professor of history and coordinator of the event. "The messages shared through song, Dr. King's speeches, videos and photographs will be powerful." Full story.
Chancellor search continues to progress
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UW-Eau Claire's chancellor search is progressing on schedule.
The search and screen committee has completed its initial review of applicants and has identified a group of candidates to be interviewed confidentially by the committee at a neutral site in the coming weeks, said committee chair Dr. Rama Yelkur, a faculty member in the university's College of Business.
The committee will then determine five finalists to recommend to UW System President Kevin Reilly and a special committee of the UW System Board of Regents for further consideration, Yelkur said. Full story.
Max Garland named Wisconsin poet laureate
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Max Garland (Photo by Juanita Brunk) |
Max Garland, UW-Eau Claire professor of English and widely published, award-winning poet, essayist and fiction writer, has been named the 2013-2014 Wisconsin poet laureate by the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts & Letters.
During his two-year term, Garland will promote poetry and creativity among all ages, and act as an advocate for imaginative engagement in poetry and the other arts in Wisconsin.
"Max Garland is an excellent poet and teacher," said Dr. Carmen Manning, associate professor and chair of UW-Eau Claire's department of English. "He is able to take what seems to be an ordinary image or event, and through poetry, elevate that moment into a thoughtful reflection on the human experience. He cares deeply about poetry and the value of poetry in our everyday lives, and he will be an outstanding advocate for poetry as poet laureate of Wisconsin." Full story.
Mickey Kolis writes practical classroom guide for teachers
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Dr. Mickey Kolis |
According to the National Education Association, the current average elementary school class in Wisconsin contains almost 21 students. With such large classes it's important for teachers to have resources available to help them provide effective learning environments. Dr. Mickey Kolis, associate professor of education studies at UW-Eau Claire, and co-author Emily Bright Krusack provide that resource with their newly published book, "Powerful Ideas in Teaching: Creating Environments in which Students Want to Learn."
"Teaching is a skills-based profession, and today's time-crunched teachers don't have the ability to theorize about one classroom issue at a time," Kolis said. "This book is really classroom based in that concepts described will work in a class today. Teachers can read a chapter and know that they can implement the concept in their classroom immediately. It emphasizes the practice of teaching, not just the theory of teaching." Full story.
Instructor's book serves as guide to fun reading for kids
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Rob Reid, a senior lecturer of education studies at the UW-Eau Claire, provides a guide for parents, teachers and librarians to share humorous picture books, easy readers, chapter books, poetry collections and graphic novels with preschool through middle school-age children in his newly published book, "Silly Books to Read Aloud."
"My literature background is in humor," Reid said. "I read and reread hundreds and hundreds of humor books for children to locate the funniest ones to introduce to parents and their kids with the goal of getting kids interested in reading. The key element in these books is humor, and humor is equated with fun." Full story.
Alumnus finds his 'Edge' in Web application design
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Chad Wittman |
Businesses using Facebook to market and advertise their goods and services now have a way to gauge and improve their EdgeRank thanks to UW-Eau Claire alumnus Chad Wittman and his colleagues at Applum, a Web application design firm in Chicago.
Wittman, a 2008 business management graduate, created EdgeRank Checker in 2010 while working as vice president of social media for an advertising agency in Daytona Beach, Fla. EdgeRank is an algorithm developed by Facebook that ranks activity in the news feed. Facebook pages with high EdgeRank scores are more likely to show up in the news feed than are pages with low scores.
"I really dedicated myself to researching and understanding EdgeRank," Wittman said. "I founded EdgeRank Checker in 2010 and in 2011 teamed up with two of my co-workers at the ad agency to further develop the tool. We developed our own EdgeRank algorithm to help page administrators understand how their Facebook page interacts with the news feed. We left the ad agency, started Applum and launched the app out on the Internet. Full story.
Journalism major awarded Dow Jones internship
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Taylor Kuether |
UW-Eau Claire journalism major Taylor Kuether, Grafton, is among fewer than 50 people across the nation to receive an internship award from the Dow Jones News Fund Inc. Her three-month-long editing internship at the Star Tribune in Minneapolis will begin in June.
Kuether applied for the internship in October by taking an editing test created by the Dow Jones News Fund. The test challenged applicants in such areas as grammar, Associated Press style, geography and knowledge of current events, and knowledge of celebrity news. Fifty percent of the test focused on proofreading and headline writing. Full story.
Six students receive Gilman scholarships
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Michael Fiori |
Natasha Fuller |
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Emma Heaton |
Sara Schultz |
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Michael Gherke |
Alicia Hooker |
Six UW-Eau Claire students have been awarded scholarships through the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program to study abroad during the spring 2013 semester.
Michael Fiori, Green Bay, was awarded $4,500 to study in Spain; junior Natasha Fuller, Ogilvie, Minn., was awarded $4,500 to study in Austria; junior Emma Heaton, Maple Grove, Minn., received $3,000 to study in the United Kingdom; Sara Schultz, Muskego, was awarded $4,500 to study in Botswana; and Michael Gehrke, Eau Claire, and Alicia Hooker, Mukwonago, received scholarships to study in Japan. Gehrke was awarded $4,000, and Hooker was awarded $5,000.
Fiori, a mathematics education major and Spanish minor, will study in Valladolid, Spain. Fuller, a German major working on a bachelor of fine arts degree in illustration, will study at the Karl-Franzens Universitaet in Graz, Austria. Heaton, a sociology major, will attend Harlaxton College in England. Schultz, a sophomore public history major and global studies minor, will study at the University of Botswana. Gehrke, a sophomore art major specializing in illustration, will study in Nagasaki, Japan. Hooker, a junior computer science major with a minor in Japanese, will study in Hirakata City, Japan. Full story.
Information systems program helps fill industry need
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Project-based courses using community partners as clients are an integral part of UW-Eau Claire's information systems curriculum. Above, UW-Eau Claire students Shane Meunier, Kristine Berger and Tzyy Ren Wong worked on an information systems class project during the fall semester developing a scheduling system for the Children’s Museum of Eau Claire. |
Since UW-Eau Claire's information systems department revamped its academic programs in 2006, it has become a leader in the Upper Midwest in supplying IS graduates to companies in the region and beyond.
The demand for qualified candidates in the information systems field is growing at a rapid pace, and businesses and organizations in Wisconsin and around the country are looking to colleges to provide them with well-trained and well-rounded IS graduates, said Dr. Thomas Hilton, chair of UW-Eau Claire's information systems department.
"IS-related jobs are, and will continue to be for the foreseeable future, among the most in-demand in the U.S. economy," Hilton said. "Companies are so desperate for talent that they've begun to ship IS jobs overseas and import international information workers." Full story.
Tickets for Cabaret XXXV still available
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Tickets for the UW-Eau Claire music and theatre arts department's production of Cabaret XXXV are still available.
Performances are scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Jan. 17-19 and Jan. 24-26, with matinee performances at 2 p.m. Jan. 19 and 26. Seats are available for all shows.
Cabaret is an annual show that supports ongoing scholarships for music students at UW-Eau Claire. Since it began in 1978, Cabaret has raised more than $325,000 in scholarship funds. The show also provides students in the music and theatre arts department with an opportunity to practice arranging and staging a variety show similar to what they might encounter in a professional career. Full story. 
Artists Series reschedules 'The Kite Runner' for Jan. 29
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American Place Theatre's Sorab Wadia |
American Place Theatre will perform its Literature to Life stage presentation of "The Kite Runner" Jan. 29 at UW-Eau Claire. The Artists Series program will begin at 7:30 p.m. in Schofield Auditorium.
"The Kite Runner" was rescheduled due to the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. Those holding tickets for the Nov. 1, 2012, performance may present those tickets on the revised show date.
The adaptation of Khaled Hosseini's 2003 novel is a story of guilt and redemption, brutality and kindness, sin and forgiveness. It portrays the relationship of two boys, a privileged Pashtun and a Hazara servant — one rich, one poor, one flawed, the other pure. Full story.
Foster Gallery exhibit to feature John Rieben's award-winning graphic designs
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| John Rieben's poster for a stage production of Alfred Hitchcock's "The 39 Steps," created for a preparatory school in England. |
An exhibit titled "Design with Intent: Five Decades of Design for Communication," a retrospective of award-winning designs by graphic designer John Rieben, will be on display from Jan. 24-Feb. 14 in the Foster Gallery of the Haas Fine Arts Center at UW-Eau Claire. An opening reception will be held from 7:30-9 p.m. Jan. 24 in the gallery.
The exhibition will feature more than 50 posters as well as 70 trademarks and logos that were created for national and international companies and institutions, many of which will be instantly recognizable to the viewer.
Rieben, a Wisconsin native and professor emeritus of design at UW-Madison, was a professional designer for many years before joining the university faculty. He served as manager of design at Container Corporation of America, design director at Unimark International, director of communications at Raychem Corp. and vice president and creative director at Mobium/RR Donnelley. Full story.
Continuing Education to offer community classes for adults
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Registration is now open for UW-Eau Claire Continuing Education/UW-Extension's Community Classes for Adults. The classes, which will meet on the UW-Eau Claire campus in the spring of 2013, are:
- The Amish in America
- Beginning Bird Identification
- Digital Photography: Intermediate
- Drawing for the Absolute Beginner
- Drawing with Colored Pencils
- Introduction to Painting with Watercolors
- Explorations in Genealogy
- Music History: American Folk Music and 1960s Folk Rock
Blugold Minute returns to the airwaves Jan. 22
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Stay up to date on campus happenings by tuning in to the weekly Blugold Minute.
The first update of the spring semester will be posted on UW-Eau Claire's website Tuesday, Jan. 22, and subsequent programs will be made available every Monday morning during the academic year. Two UW-Eau Claire students deliver the news and provide information about upcoming events, campus programs, building projects, student and faculty accomplishments, and much more.
Keep informed by making the Blugold Minute a part of your weekly routine.
Alumni success stories
In addition to the alumni below, you can read about the accomplishments of other UW-Eau Claire alumni on the Alumni Success Stories Web pages:
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Matt Winarski '12, a UW-Eau Claire music education graduate, spent last summer teaching middle school band in Bagaces, Costa Rica. Full story. |
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Nick Robertson '04, a UW-Eau Claire chemistry graduate, has received a grant from the American Chemical Society to conduct plastics recycling research with students at Northland College, where he's an assistant professor. Full story. |
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Elizabeth O'Brien '04, a UW-Eau Claire elementary education graduate, and her husband, David O'Brien '03, a UW-Eau Claire philosophy graduate, are making a documentary about grammar. Full story. |
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Tim Walsh '11, a UW-Eau Claire computer science graduate, has developed a component that is intended to keep the individual tiles for the board game The Settlers of Catan orderly. Full story. |
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Julia Van Loo '00, a UW-Eau Claire nursing graduate, has been named director of quality resources at Sacred Heart Hospital in Eau Claire. Full story. |
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Dan Monfre '06, a UW-Eau Claire marketing graduate, and his wife, Alissa Monfre '07, a UW-Eau Claire information systems graduate, have quit their jobs to travel the world for 18 months. Visit their blog. |
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Dave Johnson '82, a UW-Eau Claire criminal justice graduate, has been named emergency management specialist at St. Joseph's Hospital in Chippew Falls. (Photo by Chris Vetter of the Eau Claire Leader-Telegram) Full story. |
Show how much you know about UW-Eau Claire — AND win great Blugold prizes! Email your answer to this month's question to the Blugold Trivia mailbox (trivia@uwec.edu). Those sending correct responses to this month's question will be entered in a drawing for a Blugold beanie and scarf. The name of this month's Blugold Trivia winner will be published in the February 2013 issue of e-View.
January Blugold Trivia question:
UW-Eau Claire English professor Max Garland has been named the 2013-2014 Wisconsin poet laureate by the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts & Letters. What is the title of his first book of poems?
Know the answer? Email it, along with your name and class year, to trivia@uwec.edu. You'll be notified by email if you are this month's winner!
December's winner:
Congratulations to John Aponte, a 1981 UW-Eau Claire marketing graduate and winner of the December Blugold Trivia prize! John's name was drawn from among those who correctly answered that the name of the company co-founded by alumni award winner Carson Kipfer is TST Media.
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Last Updated:
January 15, 2013
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