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UWRF to Receive Re-Accreditation Recommendation UWRF will be recommended for the 10-year maximum re-accreditation to the Higher Learning Commission.
A seven-member site visit team informed Chancellor Don Betz on April 23 of its conclusion following a three-day visit. The full commission is expected to act on extending accreditation within several months.
Betz said that an exit meeting with the team was brief but highly complimentary of UWRF.
"The team cited eight strengths: the high quality of an institutional self-study and the process that created it; that UWRF is truly a student-centered institution; Living the Promise--UWRF's strategic plan--is widely accepted and effective; the 'motivated, dedicated and highly competent faculty, staff and administration;' the clear dedication of UWRF to serving the St. Croix Valley; the institution's focus on sustainability; and the university's commitment to shared governance.
"They especially cited the outstanding enthusiasm in the turnouts of individual meetings with students, faculty, staff and community members," Betz said.
Betz, who has served as a consultant-evaluator on review teams and has experienced five reviews at higher education institutions, added, "This is a superior outcome. The team clearly recognized the quality, talent, commitment and passion for teaching and learning here. Our faculty and staff impressed them with what they do and why they do it."
The site team recognized four areas of concern outside of the University's control: an increasing backlog of deferred building maintenance; non-competitive salaries for faculty and staff recruitment and retention; inadequate instructional space to keep pace with the region's growth; and "economic challenges into the foreseeable future" based on the state's weak economy.
UWRF has been continuously accredited since 1935. Accreditation is key to the perceived quality of degrees that are awarded, and it is a requirement to receive federal funding for student aid and grants for research.
During the current visit, UWRF responded to significantly revised accreditation criteria adopted by the commission. In preparation for the visit, a team comprised of university faculty, staff, student and community members worked for nearly two years to research and write a 276-page Self-Study Report. The report documented the university's actions to meet the criteria over the last decade and describes its future activities.
Betz noted that several members of the site team indicated they will share UWRF's report with their campus as a model to prepare for their own reviews.
2. New Master of Arts in TESOL offered at UWR
UW-River Falls is now offering a new Master of Arts degree for those interested in teaching English to speakers of other languages (TESOL).
There are growing numbers of English language learners in west central Wisconsin, the Twin Cities, and the world. More and more, teachers and business professionals who work with students or employees with limited proficiency in English feel that their own training and education is inadequate to meet this challenge.
The new degree is approved by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI) to meet licensure for teaching English as a Second Language (ESL). Individuals can chose to take the courses to gain an addition certification in this area, earn their initial teaching certification or earn an advanced degree.
Who Should Enroll
Practicing teachers who want to improve their expertise in working with limited English proficiency (LEP) students or add licensure in ESL.
ESL or bilingual education professionals who want to teach in countries around the world or in Adult
Basic Education (ABE) positions in Wisconsin and Minnesota.
Individuals with a baccalaureate degree from an accredited institution who are seeking an initial teaching license in ESL.
International students who are seeking a master's degree in TESOL and an opportunity to improve their English skills while studying in the United States.
Key Features
Meets requirements for certification to teach English as a Second Language (ESL) or English as a Foreign Language (EFL) in Wisconsin. May meet requirements in other states.
May be combined with undergraduate degree to earn an initial teaching license.
Learn ways to adapt current teaching practices and techniques to suit ESL learners from different cultural backgrounds, age groups, and language backgrounds.
Increase sensitivity and respect for non-native cultural and language groups.
Interact with non-native speakers in an instructional setting.
Individuals may learn more about the degree by visiting the www.uwrf.edu/educator/tesol or contact the Graduate Studies office by email or by phone, 800-228-5607, for application instructions.
3. Registration Open for UWRF Summer Youth Program
There’s still time to register for Discover U, a summer program open to all youth entering grades 4-9 in the fall of 2008. Discover U classes run July 7-11 and July 14-18 from 9 am to 12 noon.
Classes meet on the UWRF campus, Monday through Friday, and are taught by university faculty and other specially selected teachers. Costs are $125 for each one-week class.
Visit the web site at www.uwrf.edu/discoveru for course descriptions, program information, online registration and a printable catalog. Or contact the UWRF Outreach office at 715-425-3256 or send an email to outreach@uwrf.edu. 4. Green Communities Energy Conference, May 20
UW-River Falls will host a regional conference to explore a variety of topics related to energy on Tuesday, May 20. Please plan on attending this one-day conference featuring Richard Heinberg, author and Senior Fellow, Post Carbon Institute, and Alexis Karolides from the Rocky Mountain Institute.
The conference will be especially of interest to municipalities, businesses and the public sector agencies such as schools, hospitals and libraries that use large amounts of energy. Visit the website for more information.
5. ‘Green’ Your Tourism Business Informational Luncheon May 14
Sustainability issues for the hospitality and tourism industry in the St. Croix Valley will be explored over a noon luncheon on May 14.
Sponsored by the St. Croix Valley Regional Tourism Alliance, “Greening the Tourism Industry in the St. Croix Valley” is from 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. at Stillwater’s Water Street Inn.
The luncheon will explore such topics as making your business sustainable, tourism state certification programs, and marketing and promoting your green business to visitors.
Presenters include Sarah Pischer, tourism development specialist at the Wisconsin Department of Tourism; Professor Kelly Cain, director of the UWRF St. Croix Institute for Sustainable Community Development and the UWRF Wildlife, Recreation and Nature Tourism certificate program; and Washington County natural resource specialist Rusty Schmitt.
The cost of the luncheon is $20.A registration form can be found online.
6. Institutional Investment Fund Expert to Receive Honorary Doctorate from Alma Mater
An internationally renowned institutional fund investment expert who has managed one of the most successful higher education endowments in the nation is the recipient of an honorary doctorate at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls.
David Swensen, a 1975 economics graduate of UWRF, and the chief investment officer of the Yale Endowment, will be recognized with an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters at Spring Commencement on May 17.
Chancellor Don Betz cited Swensen's extraordinary success in building the Yale Endowment, and sharing his expertise with other educational institutions and his knowledge with students.
"Dr. Swensen is one of UW-River Falls's greatest success stories," Betz said. "Under his leadership, the Yale Endowment has grown from $1.3 billion to more than $22.5 billion and has reaped returns on investments that have outpaced all other Ivy League institutions.
"His dedication to using his exceptional skills to advance the education of students and to address the pressing issues of our day, all for the benefit of society, are a living testimony to the values that we seek to reinforce in our students: a commitment to integrity, personal discipline and continuous improvement."
In 1996, Swensen was named a Distinguished Alumnus of UWRF and hails from a family with exceptional ties to the University. His father, Richard Swensen, is a former dean of the UWRF College of Arts and Sciences; five of his siblings are graduates; and his brother, Stephen, and his uncle, Glen Hartman, also have been recognized as a Distinguished Alumnus.
"He is a member of one of UWRF's extraordinary families," said Betz. "They are amazing people with a rich tapestry of relationships and contributions to our University and our community. In our honoring of Dr. Swensen, we are recognizing the ethos of his family that instilled the values that have contributed to his success."
His investment strategies have been labeled as the "Yale Model," which places an emphasis on broad diversification and unconventional approaches to investment management. At Yale, the endowment return now is the largest income source to that institution.
The director of the Harvard University endowment has described Swensen, who has posted annual returns averaging more than 17 percent over the last decade, and as high as 41 percent in a single year, as "the best in the business."
Swensen has shared his investment expertise with institutional fund managers through frequent lectures and in his best-selling investment strategy book, "Pioneering Portfolio Management: an Unconventional Approach to Institutional Advancement." He shared his strategies for individual investors through "Unconventional Success: A Fundamental Approach to Personal Investment."
7. Key Business Contacts
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