Learning about the state we serve
Beth Fields, an associate professor of occupational therapy in the School of Education’s Department of Kinesiology and an alum of the 2023 Wisconsin Idea Seminar, has received a Fulbright U.S. Scholar award. The Fulbright Program, the U.S. government’s flagship international exchange initiative, supports scholars and professionals in advancing knowledge, addressing global challenges, and fostering mutual …
A dugout canoe made from a cottonwood tree in McDaniel Park by Bill Quackenbush, tribal historic preservation officer of the Ho-Chunk Nation, was donated to Dane County Parks in June of 2026. The 22-foot canoe had been used for an annual educational voyage organized by Quackenbush that retraced ancestral Ho-Chunk water routes in Wisconsin. It …
If, on a hungry afternoon, you’ve been eager to discover a forgotten protein bar tucked in your backpack, only to find it’s become hard and unappetizing after weeks of neglect, food scientist Audrey Girard’s research is for you. Girard recently led a study into chemical changes that occur in protein bars over time, making them …
The Wisconsin Idea Seminar’s Forest + River experience started under a canopy of centuries-old bur oaks alongside mounds in Willow Creek Woods near the shore of Lake Mendota. A group of 39 faculty and staff became students of Wisconsin life and learned from folks who are deeply committed to the place where they live and …