University of Wisconsin–Madison

Category: Learning Connections

‘Part of the Wisconsin Idea’

Teachers help Field Day Lab build out latest educational video game By Laurel White Ben Stern is stymied. His submarine is stuck. The sub’s engine isn’t strong enough to overcome a strong ocean current in an area he wants to explore, and his typically trusty vehicle keeps getting pushed off course. Shaking his fists at the …

Fulbright program brings visiting teachers from across Eastern Europe, Central Asia to School of Education

During a six-week stretch in the fall semester, the UW–Madison School of Education hosted 22 teachers from 12 different countries across Eastern Europe and Central Asia as part of the Fulbright Teaching Excellence and Achievement (Fulbright TEA) program, which is funded by the U.S. Department of State and administered by IREX. The visiting educators were …

New Faculty Focus: Q&A with Aly Renee Amidei

Aly Renee Amidei is one of 13 new faculty members who started with the School of Education this past fall. Here is a Q&A she completed as we introduced her to our campus and School communities. Title: Assistant professor of design in the Department of Theatre and Drama Hometown: Streamwood, Illinois Educational/professional background: BA in …

Winter 2022 graduates share their perspectives

UW–Madison held its 2022 winter commencement ceremony at the Kohl Center on Sunday, Dec. 18. Prior to the campuswide event for those earning bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees, the School of Education celebrated with its latest cohort of graduates with a Pre-Commencement Celebration at the Gordon Dining & Event Center. Before the big celebration, we …

Neon – it’s not just for making signs

In addition to the Glass Lab, UW–Madison is one of only a handful of schools in the U.S. that has a full service facility for creating neon art. Tom Zickuhr is a lecturer in the Art Department who teaches a popular neon course titled, “Neon: Light as Sculpture,” every semester. It regularly fills up and …

‘Teaching was their calling’

By Sarah Fuelleman When the worst news of his life hit, Jerome Koch made a decision that will benefit future teachers for years to come. His beloved wife Jean was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease) in 2019 and lived with progressively deteriorating physical health until October 2021. To honor Jean …

Message from the Dean

As you sit down — hopefully somewhere warm and comfy — with this winter edition of Learning Connections, I hope you get the same sense of possibility I felt when revisiting the rich history and reading about new directions we’re taking across the School of Education. Embarking on our School’s 93rd year, I’ve been reflecting …

‘Nothing static’ about glass

Helen Lee wants to ‘capture the exploratory spirit’ of the UW–Madison Glass Lab’s historic past — and help build an exciting, innovative, and more inclusive future for glass artists. By Kari Dickinson Helen Lee first discovered glass at a summer arts camp in high school. “It was the first time that I learned that one …

Next-gen glass

Alumni of UW–Madison’s Glass Lab are on the leading edge, forging new directions in the field. They are building notable careers as artists, scientific glassmakers, executive directors, and more. In addition, they are receiving prestigious awards, fellowships, and grants to further their work. Here is what just a few alumni who have graduated in the …

Class notes: Winter 2022-23 Learning Connections

1950s Constance FriedBS 1953 — Physical EducationConstance reports that 16 women graduated in 1953 from the Department of Women’s Physical Education. She writes that “five of us are still alive and meet once a month on Zoom to compare the activities of the previous month.” Constance adds: “We are from the days of Ruth Glassow, …