News - The Daily Cardinal

CEO Elizabeth Donley founded Stemina Biomarker Discovery in 2006 with then-UW-Madison professor Gabriela Cezar.

CAMPUS NEWS

UW-Madison spin-off company studies potential autism identifiers

By Peter Coutu | Feb. 29, 2016

UW-Madison spin-off organization Stemina Biomarker Discovery is attempting to create a biological method to diagnose autism by screening blood samples. CEO Elizabeth Donley and UW-Madison professor in the Department of Animal Sciences Gabriela Cezar founded the company in 2006, according to a university release. The company received $2.7 million from the National Institute of Mental Health in August 2015 to fund the study, which is titled the Children’s Autism Metabolome Project.

CAMPUS NEWS

Washburn Observatory to reopen Wednesday

By Peter Coutu | Feb. 29, 2016

UW-Madison’s 135-year-old Washburn Observatory will reopen for free public viewings Wednesday night after being closed for nearly two years due to repairs. The observatory closed in April 2014 due to an unexpected malfunction in the sliding door on the dome of the observatory, according to a university release.

In 2015, Madison Police Department Chief Mike Koval called for more sworn officers to account for a population increase.

CITY NEWS

Madison Police Department recruits to start field training in March

By Miller Jozwiak | Feb. 29, 2016

The streets of Madison will see 23 new police recruits in early March for field training, after more than five months and nearly 900 hours of training, according to a Madison Police Department statement. The state requires 720 hours of training before recruits can begin field training, which MPD exceeds.

NEWS

Memorial Union Rathskeller, Subskeller close temporarily

By Madeline Heim | Feb. 29, 2016

The Rathskeller dining room and Subskeller station in Memorial Union closed Feb. 28 for further renovation, according to a press release from the Wisconsin Union. The closing is part of a larger, ongoing construction project that began in 2012.

STATE NEWS

Walker signs bill creating mental health pilot programs

By Andrew Bahl | Feb. 28, 2016

Gov. Scott Walker signed a bill Friday that would streamline bureaucratic hurdles for Medicaid patients with chronic mental illness and create pilot programs for alternate mental health care. The bill, authored by state Sens.

Assembly Session, Right to work, Budget 2015

CITY NEWS

Madison police name only suspect in Calypso Road homicide

By Miller Jozwiak | Feb. 28, 2016

Jose L. Vasquez-Garcia, 39, is the only suspect in last Wednesday’s homicide of his girlfriend Christina A.

STATE NEWS

Ron Johnson announces bill to track Guantanamo prisoners

By Katie Moakley | Feb. 28, 2016

U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., proposed a bill Thursday requiring the U.S. State Department to inform Congress on Guantanamo Bay prisoners being transferred.

The 2016 Administrative Improvement Award acknowledges those who perform exceptionally in administrative roles, which Chancellor Rebecca Blank said is vital to the success of UW-Madison.

CAMPUS NEWS

UW-Madison accepting nominations for 2016 Administrative Improvement Award

By Peter Coutu | Feb. 27, 2016

UW-Madison is seeking nominations for the 2016 Administrative Improvement Award. The award acknowledges candidates who have performed exceptionally “in administrative roles that support academics, research, student services, outreach and administration,” according to a university release. Chancellor Rebecca Blank, Provost Sarah Mangelsdorf and Vice Chancellor for Finance and Administration Darrell Bazzell said administrative work is vital to the continued success of the university. “This Administrative Improvement Award program acknowledges that our students’ success is supported by the operations and administration of the university,” they said in a joint statement.

Poverty rates in Wisconsin are at their highest level since 1984, according to a study from UW-Madison’s Applied Population Laboratory.

CAMPUS NEWS

Wisconsin poverty rates rise to highest level in 30 years, study shows

By Ben Golden | Feb. 27, 2016

Wisconsin’s poverty rate is the highest it has been in three decades, according to a recent study from UW-Madison’s Applied Population Laboratory. The study retrieved data from 2005-’09 and 2010-’14 and demonstrated that poverty levels are the highest they have been since 1984.

CAMPUS NEWS

2016 UW-Madison Distinguished Teaching Award announced

By Peter Coutu | Feb. 27, 2016

Twelve UW-Madison faculty members have been announced as winners of the 2016 Distinguished Teaching Award. The award, created in 1953, aims to recognize UW-Madison “faculty members whose teaching is of such quality that it merits recognition and award,” according to a university release.

UW-Madison professor of applied economics Corbett Grainger stressed the importance of a global carbon tax to address climate change.

CAMPUS NEWS

UW-Madison Q&A session addresses climate change

By Hannah Malone | Feb. 26, 2016

350 Madison Climate Action Team joined with the UW-Madison campus branch of 350 UW in Varsity Hall at Union South to address topics on climate change in a joint Q&A session, called “Rising to the Challenge of the Climate Crisis.” The event targeted questions surrounding progress made at the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference held in Paris and how that progress translates to the United States. Lauren Peretz, leader of 350 UW and a UW-Madison student, and Erik Anderson, member of 350 Madison and UW-Madison student, relayed questions from the audience to the two expert panelists.

CITY NEWS

Disability Rights Commission pushes for accessible taxis

By Ellie Borstad | Feb. 26, 2016

The Disability Rights Commission renewed its commitment to improving the accessibility of Madison taxi cab services at a meeting Thursday night.

CAMPUS NEWS

Sims stresses continuing diversity conversations at Faculty of Color Reception

By Madeline Heim | Feb. 26, 2016

Almost 70 years after UW-Madison hired its first professor of color, members of the campus community gathered at the Pyle Center to acknowledge faculty from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds.

Madison Police officers were able to identify who to arrest by watching a Facebook video of the incident.

CITY NEWS

Madison police arrest three 14-year-old girls for battery

By Miller Jozwiak | Feb. 25, 2016

The Madison Police Department use a video from a Facebook page to arrest three 14-year-old girls on battery charges Tuesday, according to an incident report. The 34-year-old mother of one of the girls was among those battered in the fight.

The fire occurred on the west side of town and was put out safely, with no injuries.

CITY NEWS

Madison Fire Department fights Shorewood Hills home fire

By Miller Jozwiak | Feb. 25, 2016

Madison firefighters put out a fire on the 3500 block of Blackhawk Drive early Thursday morning, after a neighbor reported seeing bright lights in the basement they said they thought to be flames. After completing an exterior examination of the house around 6 a.m., firefighters determined the fire was on the first and second floor, according to a Madison Fire Department daily report. Firefighters entered the house to find thick black smoke and zero visibility.

STATE NEWS

New poll finds Sanders leading in Wisconsin

By Alanna Conley | Feb. 25, 2016

A new Marquette Law School poll released Thursday reported a tightened Democratic race between Hillary Clinton and U.S.

State Sen. Nikiya Harris Dodd, D-Milwaukee, announced Thursday that she will not seek re-election in the fall.

STATE NEWS

Milwaukee senator announces she won’t seek re-election

By Lilly Price | Feb. 25, 2016

State Sen. Nikiya Harris Dodd, D-Milwaukee, announced Thursday that she will not seek re-election in 2016.

UW System Board of Regents have donated over $258,000 to political candidates, Gov. Scott Walker.

STATE NEWS

UW System Board of Regents rack up campaign donations

By Andrew Bahl | Feb. 25, 2016

Current members of the UW System Board of Regents have given more than $245,000 to political candidates over the past 25 years, according to campaign finance documents. The issue has come to light after it was reported that one of the most recent appointments to the 18-member board was a campaign contributor to Gov.

Several consultants detailed the plan’s focus on green spaces, increased sustainability and easy access for commuters on campus.

CAMPUS NEWS

Campus Master Plan consultants update community on sustainability, commuter access

By Nina Bertelsen | Feb. 25, 2016

UW-Madison students, faculty and community members gathered Wednesday at the Gordon Dining and Event Center to hear updates on the 2015 Campus Master Plan and ask questions of lead consultants.

STATE NEWS

Tammy Baldwin introduces bill to combat opioid addiction

By Yifan Yu | Feb. 25, 2016

Due to rising numbers of drug overdose deaths in Wisconsin, U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., introduced a new bill Wednesday to tackle the problem from prevention to recovery.