Blog
Day of the Badger Goal Surpassed in Less than 24 Hours
In our last newsletter issue, we asked for your help in supporting the Student Leadership Endowment Fund on Day of the Badger through giving and spreading the word about giving. Past student leaders Iffat Bhuiyan and Nick Munce We, at the Wisconsin Union, are grateful for every tweet, Facebook post, email, conversation and gift that helped us reach our goal of raising $4,000. By noon, we had surpassed our goal. Combined with a generous matching gift from the Wisconsin Union Association of $4,000, we raised $12,600.00. These dollars will...
read moreBonding through Basecamp
From choosing classes to moving into a dorm, freshman year may seem intimidating. But, imagine if a student could go into freshman year with their questions about their university answered already by other students and a bunch of new friends on campus. Enter: Basecamp. Basecamp is a wilderness adventure that provides incoming freshmen and transfer students with a unique experience to become one with the outdoors. On these trips, students can go backpacking, canoeing or even rock climbing. Students enjoy hiking at Devil’s Lake State Park...
read moreMadison Artist’s New Mural Celebrates Wisconsin Union Experiences
From gnomes in Der Rathskeller to Paul Bunyan and his Blue Ox, art has been an integral part of the Wisconsin Union’s Memorial Union since it opened in 1928. University of Wisconsin-Madison alumna and artist Emily Balsley recently furthered that tradition of immersive art at the Memorial Union with a new mural on a Memorial Union wall. The vibrant painting in the stairwell near Peet’s Coffee depicts some of the adventures the Wisconsin Union offers. The eye-catching mural includes a Terrace-inspired color scheme; bold,...
read moreSocial Cinema: WUD Film and Havens Wright Center for Social Justice Join Forces
Many know the University of Wisconsin-Madison as a major research institution, boasting countless labs and lecture halls from the biological sciences to the liberal arts. But UW also provides social and cultural learning opportunities beyond the classroom that partnerships across campus help make possible. The Wisconsin Union Directorate (WUD) Film Committee and the Havens Wright Center for Social Justice’s partnership has flourished since 2012, resulting in the production of the Social Cinema film series. The series began this year on Feb....
read moreAn Underwater Look at Hoofer Scuba
Founded in 1976, Hoofer Scuba Club celebrated its 40th anniversary just three seasons ago, and middle-age has never looked so good. From clean-up dives to remote trips in Florida, many communities benefit from Hoofer Scuba’s charitable actions, and anyone can join. This past January, Scuba Club members drove to Miami, Fla. to participate in the “Rescue a Reef” program. Members completed six dives, four of which were recreational and highlighted different sites, animals and structures in the area. The other two dives focused on helping to...
read moreCelebrating Day of the Badger
Calling all Badgers and Badgers-at-heart! We need your help to continue to provide student leadership opportunities, top-notch facilities and world-class programming. On April 9, Badgers will come together to make a difference. Join us during this day-long rally, called Day of the Badger, to make a difference through giving and sharing the call for others to give to the Union’s Student Leadership Endowment Fund. Your Day of the Badger support of this fund will help students lead the way at the Wisconsin Union, as they have done for more than...
read moreBehind the Art of the 91st Annual Student Art Show
To view some of the best art created by UW-Madison students, there is no better place to look than the 91st Annual Student Art Show. Located in the Memorial Union’s Main Gallery and Class of 1925 Gallery, the art show presents fantastic, thought-provoking pieces, all curated by the Wisconsin Union Directorate (WUD) Art Committee. Just as each piece of artwork has its own story, the artists behind the art have their own tale to tell as well. Josh Stolen, an art major in his last semester at UW-Madison, started his art career through others...
read moreGovernor’s Chief of Staff Brings Wisconsin Union Skills to the Capitol
Ten years ago, Maggie Gau ‘09 spent many mornings opening the doors to the Memorial Union as it welcomed its first guests of the day. Now, she arrives at the Wisconsin State Capitol each day as the chief of staff for Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers. Growing up in Wausau, Wis., Maggie knew she was going to be a Badger from a young age. But, she also knew that, to make this dream possible, she would need to work while she pursued her higher education at the college of her dreams. This need led her to her first job at the Wisconsin Union:...
read moreA Partnership to Reduce Homelessness in the Madison Community
The Willis L. Jones Leadership Center (JLC) team aims to inspire and prepare students to work in partnership with others to positively transform themselves, their peers and their communities. While learning about leadership, the Center’s team and student leaders often find themselves inspired by heroic change-makers and brave community members with whom they come into contact. This can certainly be said of those the team and leaders have met through the Center’s partnership with Porchlight, a Madison-based, nonprofit agency that strives to...
read moreStaff Picks for Spring Creative Exploration at Wheelhouse
Just steps away from the iconic der Rathskeller in Memorial Union, Wheelhouse Studios serves as a sanctuary of creative exploration on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus. This open arts studio provides everything from drop-in art opportunities to instructor-led classes. In this article, Wheelhouse team members share their picks for upcoming Wheelhouse classes that they recommend you check out! Mini-Comics Drawing Lab – March 4-8 $59.50 for Wisconsin Union members (including UW-Madison students), $69.50 for non-members Comics is...
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