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May 3 , 2007
In this Issue:
- College of Business and Economics Earns International Accreditation
- UWRF Launches St. Croix Institute for Sustainability Challenges
- Professor to Research Artificial Tissue Therapeutics
- Wisconsin Students Offered New Path to Bachelor's Degree
- SciTAC Helps Foster High-Tech Businesses in Region
- Continued Spanish studies in May
- Register for Discover U!
- St. Croix Institute Explores Lavas, Springs, Glaciers, Deltas
- Hook 'Em! Fly Fishing for Adults and Kids
- River Canoeing on the St. Croix
- Key Business Contacts
1. College of Business and Economics Earns International Accreditation
UWRF’s College of Business and Economics successfully received accreditation through the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business.
Chancellor Don Betz praised the college for its successful effort as it pursued the five-year process simultaneously to restructuring from a school to a college, while also taking on the additional obligation of initiating the Master of Management program, with its research requirement.
"I am delighted to receive the official notification that the College of Business and Economics has been formally inducted into the association," said Betz. "This 900-member international accrediting agency for colleges of business is well-respected and includes the most well-known colleges in the world.”
Dean Barb Nemecek also expressed her delight at the announcement. "We are indeed proud of our AACSB International accreditation--a hallmark of excellence in business education. This honor recognizes the quality programs in the college, and challenges us to continue providing high level educational experiences for future business leaders. I greatly appreciate the university-wide support of UWRF administrators, faculty and staff in accomplishing this goal."
In making the announcement, UWRF becomes part of an elite group that makes up less than 10 percent of the world's business schools that have achieved business and/or accounting accreditation from AACSB.
Earning accreditation is a three- to seven-year process where a business school undergoes meticulous internal review, evaluation and adjustment. During this period, schools develop and implement a plan to help them meet the 21 AACSB standards that require highly qualified faculty, as well as a commitment to continuous improvement and keeping curricula responsive to the needs of business. Accounting accreditation further requires the satisfaction of an additional set of 15 standards that are specific to the discipline and profession of accounting.
Twenty-eight universities also received re-accreditation, including UW-Madison, UC-Berkeley, University of Colorado, Brigham Young University and Boston University.
2. UWRF Launches St. Croix Institute for Sustainability Challenges
Confronted by sustainability issues of growth and change, communities in the St. Croix Valley and the University of Wisconsin-River Falls campus now have a formal institute through the University to assist them to address those challenges.
The St. Croix Institute for Sustainable Community Development has been created at the University to address sustainability in the broadest approaches, according to Chancellor Don Betz.
"The institute represents our commitment to responding to the many calls for assistance from local governments and non-profit organizations that have been increasing every year, as well as our initiatives in our own campus community," Betz said.
"We will partner with those communities to address issues of sustainability in the environment, in economic development, and in social issues as the unprecedented expansion of the Twin Cities into west-central Wisconsin changes our community and personal landscapes," Betz explained.
The institute also will coordinate the efforts across campus as it implements a major institutional initiative to become an energy sustainable, self-sufficient campus.
Named to head the institute as its director is environmental sciences Professor Kelly Cain. He will begin his duties on May 15. A faculty member since 1986, Cain has assisted numerous communities in the region and internationally in addressing land use and sustainability issues. He also is co-coordinator of the UWRF Sustainable Community Development master's degree program and coordinator of the Wildlife Recreation and Nature Tourism graduate certificate program.
The institute's response to issues of community growth is the outcome of public meetings and subsequent collaborations initiated by the University in 2004. During town hall discussions community leaders identified more than 110 issues of common concern as a result of growth.
In response UWRF facilitated the incorporation of the Western Wisconsin Intergovernmental Collaborative, which is open to all 99 village, town, city and county governments in Pierce, Polk and St. Croix counties. WWIC meets quarterly and has explored such topics as smart growth, methamphetamine trafficking, regional traffic and highway development projects, tourism as economic development, and wastewater treatment options.
According to Cain, the institute will work through the WWIC and other partners to identify community problems and regional concerns in which UWRF can provide assistance. It will help communities to prioritize growth issues and then work with UWRF faculty to build interdisciplinary teams of students who can identify the best solutions to those problems. Cain said UWRF also will collaborate with other agencies to help communities to solve their growth problems.
The institute will follow procedures that have worked well in recent years as UWRF has responded to requests for community assistance, Cain said. Among those helped include Amery, Osceola, St. Croix Falls, Hudson, River Falls and numerous townships. The projects have ranged from revitalizing downtown areas to reclaiming brown spaces to exploring "green" industrial parks to reviewing model ordinances.
The new director also will coordinate UWRF's numerous internal initiatives to implement sustainability issues across campus. In its recently adopted strategic plan, the campus identified sustainability as an institutional priority.
Campus sustainability activities can be found online at http://www.uwrf.edu/sustain/.
3. Professor to Research Artificial Tissue Therapeutics
A research project to explore innovative new ways of generating artificial tissues will be pursued at thUWRF as a result of a state grant.
WiSys granted $72,896 funding for the first 18 months of a three-year project to biology Professor Timothy Lyden for his proposal on "Development of Artificial-Tissue Methods." Lyden is the founding director of the UWRF Cellular Imaging and Analysis Center.
WiSys Inc. identifies innovative technologies developed throughout the University of Wisconsin System and brings them to the marketplace for the benefit of the inventors, their colleges, Wisconsin's economy and society as a whole.
Lyden's research will further the development of artificial tissues through laboratory research. Commercially, he will work toward potentially producing new tissue engineering products, and scientifically his main focus will be to evaluate the characteristics of primary artificial tissue characteristics and their pharmaceutical applications.
For the past two years, Lyden has been conducting preliminary research on artificial tissue production. His success led to the WiSys grant to further explore the potential.
The research method opens several new approaches to streamlining biomaterials manufacturing problems for industry. Should his research under the WiSys grant advance his preliminary results, it could potentially revolutionize certain aspects of the pharmaceutical industry by replacing inefficient or ineffective processes currently in use.
Using these methods, Lyden's research team has already addressed generating artificial tissues for the brain, heart, lung, liver, bone and cartilage from primary tissues.
There also is a significant possibility of developing a new biotechnology start-up company in west-central Wisconsin. The product focus of such a company would be development of research-related reagents. Such a company could generate up to 40 new mid- to high-level biotechnology jobs within the next decade, Lyden said.
4. Wisconsin Students Offered New Path to Bachelor's Degree
Students from technical colleges in Wisconsin will soon be able to pursue a bachelor's degree in early childhood education with ease thanks to a grant administered by UW-River Falls and Wisconsin Indianhead Technical College.
The University of Wisconsin System PK-16 Waisman Center: DPI State Improvement with TEACH Early Childhood Wisconsin Scholar Program has provided program development funds to Gay Ward, associate professor of early childhood education and literacy at UWRF, and Mary Williams-Greene, instructor of early childhood education at WITC in New Richmond, to establish the pathway they're creating for students with a two-year degree to receive a four-year degree.
The fully funded program received $30,000, which will go toward further developing articulation between the schools so that student attending technical colleges will be able to finish their degree at UWRF if they so desire.
The idea was that the WITC students in its early childhood education associate's degree program should be able to apply their degree toward a bachelor's degree. In some situations, bachelor's degrees are becoming mandatory for teachers interested in pursuing a career in early childhood education.
UWRF and WITC have a history of working together. The two schools share textbooks, and Williams-Greene is on the curriculum advisory council for the CHILD Care center at UWRF. Ward and UWRF Preschool Director Angela Kaiser are on the WITC advisory board, and Williams-Greene is also an adjunct lecturer and guest facilitator at UWRF.
5. SciTAC Helps Foster High-Tech Businesses in Region
Nestled on the edge of River Falls in the Whitetail Ridge Corporate Park is a relatively new enterprise that hopes to greatly enhance the economies of the St. Croix Valley and surrounding areas.
The Science and Technology Accelerator Corporation is a private, non-profit corporation responsible for attracting high quality, proven science and technology-based growth companies.
Formed in the spring of 2004 by St. Croix Valley River Falls businesses, government, and higher education leaders, SciTAC acts as a business incubator providing management guidance, technical assistance, and consulting tailored to young, growing technology companies.
The corporation offers perfect opportunities for development stage companies to launch and introduce their products and services to the marketplace while helping them to grow in SciTAC's accelerator facility, according to SciTAC President Jim Letourneau, who is also president of Foley-United Inc. in River Falls.
When partnered with SciTAC, companies' opportunities for success are greatly increased as they have access to building sites, office space, industrial parks, capital funds, a network of business resources, and access to research and educational facilities such as the University of Wisconsin-River Falls, Chippewa Valley Technical College, and Wisconsin Indianhead Technical College.
SciTAC looks for companies that already have a marketable product or service, have some existing financial resources, have a business and marketing plan in place, and possess the capacity to employ a highly skilled, professional and technical workforce.
Typically, types of businesses that SciTAC would serve, says Letourneau, include: bio-agriculture, biotechnology, medical, pharmaceutical, healthcare, scientific instrumentation, information technology, software, telecommunications, electronic and microelectronics, environmental technologies, materials technologies, automation and precision fabrication, advanced machining and manufacturing applications, and advanced research and development.
Currently there are three companies in the River Falls incubator facility; however, the building has a total of six cubicles available in single or multiple combinations to any eligible business.
SciTAC's current board of directors includes representatives of Redmon Law, St. Croix County Economic Development Corp., Citizens Bank, City of River Falls, First National Bank, UWRF, and Xcel Energy.
The St. Croix Valley, including River Falls, New Richmond and Hudson, already have several growing science and technology companies. These include: BioDiagnostics, Inc., E-Science, Inc., ImmunoStar, Inc., Paradigm Diagnostics, Inc., Calyso Control Systems, GaMar Composites, Inc., Interfacial Solutions, and Sajan, Inc.
6. Continued Spanish studies in May
Spanish language classes continue at UW-River Falls with the offering of “Spanish III” from May 8 to June 12. The class is designed for adults who have taken earlier Spanish language courses or have the consent of the instructor.
The noncredit classes are held in the evenings and are designed to expand your skills to successfully communicate and enjoy travel in Spanish-speaking countries. The class fee is $85 plus the cost of books. All classes will take place on the UWRF campus with free parking.
Register online or contact Cynthia Wells-O’Malley at 715/425-3261 or by email for more information. NOTE: Class has been cancelled for this spring.
7. Register for Discover U!
Still looking for something fun and educational for your children to do this summer? Don’t miss the opportunity to enroll them in “Discover U,” the new and improved summer youth program for kids who are entering grades 4 through 9 next fall.
Sample classes include “Ooey, Goey, Slimy” and “Einstein's Laboratory” for the younger kids and “Mathemagic” and “Slam Poetry” and the older set.
Classes are held Monday through Thursday, during the weeks of July 16-19 and July 23-26. Participants can select mornings or afternoons or both sessions. Join us for one or both weeks.
Tuition for each participant in each class is $105 and covers all materials and supplies.
Visit the web site at www.uwrf.edu/discoveru to view a catalog and obtain registration forms, or contact Cynthia Wells-O’Malley at 715/425-3256 or by email.
8. St. Croix Institute Explores Lavas, Springs, Glaciers, Deltas
Amazing physical processes have shaped the St. Croix Valley. See the area with new eyes and discover interesting facts during this two-day field experience. Hike around Interstate Park and the Dalles of the St. Croix River. Then trace the flow of water along the Kinnickinnic River from source to outlet.Class is for adults who are able to hike at low to moderate difficulty levels.
Instructors Michael Middleton, a geologist, and Kerry Keen, a hydrogeologist, are both professors in the geology department of UWRF. They bring enthusiasm, humor and an extensive knowledge of rocks, waters, flora and fauna to the class.
The class meets May 23-24 from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. at a location to be determined in the St. Croix Valley. Register by Monday, May 14, and save $10 off the $99 registration fee. For more information including registration forms, visit the St. Croix River Institute web site.
9. Hook 'Em! Fly Fishing for Adults and Kids
Share your time and interest in fly-fishing at this unique adult/child class. Adults: Pair up with a young person and wet your lines in the Willow River. You are sure to catch some fun on this two-day experience - as well as a few fish!
Instructor Ken Olson, an English lecturer at UWRF, got his first fly rod when he was 9 years old, and started tying flies when he was 10. Ken has taught people of all ages the basics of fly fishing.
This noncredit class meets June 12 and 14 from 6-8 p.m. at Willow River State Park.
The registration fee is $85 per pair (adult/child). Registration forms and more information are available on the St. Croix River Institute web site.
10. River Canoeing on the St. Croix
Increase your enjoyment of the river in a canoe! Build basic skills, practice fundamental strokes and discuss safety.Paddle on Lake of the Dells and then down the river from Interstate Park to the Osceola Landing. Canoes, PFD’s and paddles provided.Participants must be adults in good physical condition and with the ability to swim.
Instructor Charles Rader is a certified river canoe instructor with the American Canoe Association.An avid canoeist and canoe builder, Charlie has paddled the St. Croix extensively. While not paddling, he is a professor of geography at UW-River Falls.
Class is offered either June 16 or June 29 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the National Park Service St. Croix National Scenic Riverway’s Osceola Landing. The registration fee is $105 for each class. Registration forms and more information are available on the St. Croix River Institute web site.
11. Key Business Contacts
Don't know where to start to find help on business matters?
Try these contacts:
Area Resource Center: www.uwrf.edu/current/info/AtoZ.phtml
Career Services: www.uwrf.edu/ccs/
Center For Economic Research: 715/425-3335
Center for Economic Education: 715/425-3269
College of Business and Economics:
www.uwrf.edu/cbe/
Outreach and Graduate Studies: www.uwrf.edu/ogs/
Small Business Development Center:
715/425-0620
Survey Research Center: 715/425-0701
UW-RF BizNews is produced by the College of Business
& Economics, Outreach and Graduate Studies, Career
and Counseling Services, and the Office of Public Affairs.
Questions, comments or suggestions about this BizNews
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