by Chrissy Widmayer | Apr 1, 2020 | Magazine Article
On a warm fall day in September 1973, James Batt watched as two plaques were affixed to the sandstone entryway of a small office building at 1922 University Avenue in Madison. The squat, cream-colored building was to be the first permanent home of the Wisconsin...
by Jane Elder | Jun 11, 2019 | Magazine Article
As we gear up to celebrate our 150th anniversary in 2020, I’ve been reflecting on the beginnings of the Academy and the ways in which our core values—curiosity, critical thinking, creativity, and civil discourse—have informed our work for nearly a century and half....
by Jason Smith | Jul 20, 2015 | Magazine Article
Now that I am entering my eighth year as editor of Wisconsin People & Ideas, I’d like to take a moment to reflect on what this magazine means to me—and to its readers. One way to think of the magazine is as a bridge to understanding. And I, as editor, am at turns...
by Jason Smith | Apr 1, 2015 | Magazine Article
When Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker put forth his budget for the 2015–17 biennium, it arrived with some dramatic changes to the mission of the University of Wisconsin System. Particularly conspicuous were deletions to language central to the Wisconsin Idea, the...
by Linda Ware | Mar 16, 2015 | Magazine Article
Years ago, a student asked me at orientation what qualities he would need to be successful in my Freshman English class. The question was odd but perhaps useful. I came up with three qualities. First was curiosity: a readiness to learn about things that haven’t...
