Eight UW–Madison Graduate Students Receive Scott Kloeck-Jenson Travel Award

Global Studies at the University of Wisconsin–Madison has awarded the Scott Kloeck Jenson Award to eight outstanding graduate students whose work will deepen international understanding and global social justice concerns.

The grants given to the eight students are in memory of Scott Kloeck-Jenson and his family. Scott was completing doctoral work on rural poverty in Mozambique province of Zambezia with his family on a Fulbright scholarship. There, he was also the field director for the Land Tenure Center’s Mozambique project. He was due to return to the United States in January 2000 to complete his dissertation with UW–Madison but, tragically, on June 23, 1999, Scott, his wife, Barbara, and their two children, Zoe and Noah, were killed in a car accident in South Africa.

Upon his death in 1999, his remaining fellowship funds and contributions from Scott’s family and friends were pooled to support UW–Madison graduate students. That same year, Global Studies named its annual Summer Travel Grants Program in memory of Scott and has since diligently worked to raise appropriate funds for graduate students competing for the Scott Kloeck-Jenson Award.

To date, 65 UW–Madison students have received the Scott Kloeck-Jenson award.

The following graduate students will conduct their studies in the memory of Scott and his family with their work on social justice issues around the world this summer: Catherine Sikubwabo Honeyman (Educational Policy Studies), Erika Robb (Anthropology), Huai-Hsuan Chen, (Cultural Anthropology), Joseph Harris (Sociology), Karin Butterworth (Cultural Anthropology), Kristen Molyneaux (Educational Policy Studies), Özlem Altiok, Sociology and Rural sociology), and Sarbani Chakraborty (Curriculum and Instruction).

For more information on the Scott Kloeck-Jenson Fellowships please visit global.wisc.edu/skj/

Contact: Steve Smith, Global Studies, University of Wisconsin–Madison, (608) 262-0646, sksmith@wisc.edu

Doctoral student shares experiences from Nobel laureates meeting

by Renee Meiller, UW Communications

From June 29-July 4, UW-Madison nuclear engineering doctoral student Rachel Slaybaugh was among nearly 500 young researchers from around the world to attend the Lindau Meeting, a unique event in Lindau, Germany, that draws 25 Nobel laureates for lectures, panel and roundtable discussions, and social and networking events.

Slaybaugh, who also is pursuing a Ph.D. minor in energy analysis and policy, is studying the total statistical error present in computer simulations of nuclear systems. (The U.S. Department of Energy Office of Fusion Energy Sciences funds her research via the UW-Madison Fusion Technology Institute.) She currently is conducting Ph.D.-related research at Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe, a research laboratory in Karlsruhe, Germany. Here, Slaybaugh talks about her experiences at the Lindau Meeting.

Q: How, generally, was each day of the meeting structured?
A: Each morning, beginning at 9 a.m., we had three 30-minute lectures from different laureates. Then we had a 15-minute coffee break and usually three more 30-minute lectures. The speakers tended to be at least loosely grouped by topic. On one day there was a panel on climate change and energy during the second portion of the morning. Next we had about two hours for lunch. Every day, the United States had a lunch arranged with other countries that some of the U.S. students could attend. For example, I got to go to lunch with the Chinese delegation, and my roommates got to go with India.

In the afternoon, there was a two-hour discussion session with the laureates. Each person who had spoken in the morning had a discussion section, and we got to choose which one we wanted to go to. Some evenings we had events, and some nights we were free. There was dinner and a dance on the first night; the United States hosted dinner with some laureates on the second night; there was a symphony on the third night; and a traditional Bavarian get-together on the fourth night.

UW-Madison grad student to meet with Nobel laureates

by Renee Meiller, UW-Madison Communications

University of Wisconsin-Madison nuclear engineering doctoral student Rachel Slaybaugh never dreamed she’d have the opportunity to chat with a Nobel Prize-winning physicist — much less several of them.

Yet, from June 29 through July 4, Slaybaugh will join nearly 500 young researchers from around the world at a unique meeting in Lindau, Germany, that draws 25 Nobel laureates for lectures, panel and roundtable discussions, and social and networking events.

Since 1951, the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting has created a forum for dialogue and scientific collaboration among participants from more than 60 countries.

Led by UW-Madison Engineering Physics Assistant Professor Paul Wilson, Slaybaugh’s research group nominated her to attend the meeting. The selection process included application screenings at the university, national and international levels. The U.S. Department of Energy is sponsoring Slaybaugh, who, coincidentally, is in Germany to conduct Ph.D.-related research at Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe, a research laboratory in Karlsruhe.

Slaybaugh, who also is pursuing a Ph.D. minor in energy analysis and policy, is studying the total statistical error present in computer simulations of nuclear systems. She says she is excited about the number of opportunities she will have to talk with the Nobel laureates.

“I hope to expand my perspective and reexamine my focus,” she says. “I hope to learn things that I am not anticipating I will learn — really new and interesting ideas. I also hope to come away with some new friends and contacts within my own scientific peer group.”

Into Africa: Holmen grad embarks on medical journey to test skills and help

By JO ANNE KILLEEN for Onalaska Community Life

Natalie Ammerman, a 2004 graduate of Holmen High School, has been accepted as part of a group of professional students to tour Uganda and help in hospitals, medical clinics and pharmacies.

Ammerman, 22, is a doctor of pharmacy candidate at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Pharmacy. The university has an ongoing project in Uganda for pharmacy, medical and nursing students and sends students for three weeks each summer. Ammerman and 15 other UW students will travel to Kampala, the capital of Uganda, on May 24.

“I’m really excited,” Ammerman said. “I’ve never been outside of North America. Even though we’re prepared, we really don’t know what to expect. I don’t think I’ll be ready emotionally for what I’ll see. In America, we don’t see emaciated people sitting on the side of the road. It’ll be a culture shock.”

This semester she’s been in a special, for-credit class focusing on Uganda and its culture. “It gets you in the mood. You learn about different aspects of the country, what it has gone through,” Ammerman said. “After many hours of reading texts and discussing the frustrating injustices of life in developing countries, I am eager to offer my knowledge and skills to those who are greatly in need.”

Ammerman has learned Uganda is a country home to many diverse cultures and problems. “Abducted children are forced to fight as soldiers and are powering a rebel movement to overthrow the government in the northern part of the country,” she said. “The urban settings in Uganda have become crowded with displaced children who have fled their homes to escape abduction. The AIDS pandemic has also left many children without parents or a place to live. Most Ugandans live in extreme poverty and do not have access to the basics standards of living such as food, clean water and health care.”

Souvenirs: A Collection of International Experiences

Souvenirs: A Collection of International Experiences is a brand-new publication on UW campus this year, sponsored by the Wisconsin Union Directorate Global Connections and Publications Committees. Souvenirs features stories from students’ experiences studying, traveling and volunteering abroad, a message from U.S. Senator Russ Feingold, and travel tips and advice. Pick up a free copy around campus today. Locations include Memorial Union, Union South, Morgridge Center for Public Service, Study Abroad Office and more!

US Council of Graduate Schools survey reports overseas student applications slow to 3% [Global Higher Ed]

by Susan Robertson at Global Higher Ed

A US Council of Graduate Schools (CGS) survey out this week paints what must be a worrying picture for all countries dependent on income generated by transborder higher education, whether dependent directly on the fees income, or on the brain-power that these students contribute to R&D in the host economy. As we know, many graduate students, particularly from India and China, stay on in their host country once completing their graduate studies, and make important contributions to economic productivity.

The picture painted by this 2008 CGS survey is that the number of foreign students applying to American graduate schools increased by only 3 per cent from 2007 to 2008, following growth of 9 per cent last year and 12 per cent in 2006. This is despite considerable efforts over the past couple of years in reviewing the visa restrictions imposed after 9/11. This had not only discouraged potential applicants, but very lengthy processing times created a disincentive to potential applicants. Other efforts have included more funding for international students and attention to recruitment. What, then, is going on? Let’s first look at the pattern reported in the CGS 2008 Survey.

While the US still has the lion’s share of the global graduate market (65% of graduate students studying abroad study in the US), the CGS report (see table below) shows that while there was strong growth – 12 per cent - in applications from both China and the Middle East, these have to be compared to gains of 19 per cent and 17 per cent last year, respectively. There was no growth in applications from India after a 12 per cent increase last year. China and India are the two countries that annually send the most graduate students to the US.

How an International Approach Can Help Your Degree [US News & World Reports]

by Diane Cole, U.S. News and World Report
Posted March 26, 2008

Graduate schools are going global—that is, if they haven’t done so already. These days, not only do students from around the world come to the United States for grad school (numbers have rebounded since 9/11). American students themselves are increasingly searching out research opportunities abroad—and using the experience to compete for jobs both in and out of academe. Maresi Nerad, director of the Center for Innovation and Research in Graduate Education at the University of Washington, says it’s a two-way street: “Our social and environmental problems do not know national boundaries.” And more graduate programs reflect that.

Amandeep Sandhu, for instance, who is completing a Ph.D. in sociology with an emphasis on global studies at the University of California-Santa Barbara, is writing his dissertation on the impact on workers in India of outsourcing by U.S. companies. As part of his research, he observed workers at a call center in Bangalore and shared a house with them. Listening to the complaints of the desperate American callers who had maxed out on their credit and then seeing the effect on the stressed-out call-center workers gave Sandhu a double perspective on a social, cultural, and economic phenomenon that cuts across continents. “Exposure to globalization should not be abstract,” he says. “Going overseas and living and experiencing another culture makes it reality.”

Deadline extended for the UW-Madison/University of Bonn graduate fellowship

The deadline for the UW-Madison/University of Bonn graduate fellowship program has been extended. The new deadline is Noon on MONDAY, APRIL 14, 2008.

There are two types of awards available: one academic year award; several short term awards for research of 1-2 months or one semester in duration, depending on the needs of the research. Research on the short term award must be initiated and completed sometime between September 2008 and August 2009 and must be carried out in consecutive weeks.

Read more about the Bonn fellowship here.

Scott Kloeck-Jenson International Internship and Pre-Dissertation Travel Grants

Applications are now being accepted for two graduate fellowships: Global Studies awards Scott Kloeck-Jenson International Internship Grants to doctoral students interested in undertaking practitioner internships on social justice issues and Scott Kloeck-Jenson International Pre-Dissertation Travel Grants to support summer travel for doctoral students exploring potential field research sites.

Deadline for applications is Friday, February 22, 2008. The program is open to students of any nationality who are enrolled in a doctoral program at UW-Madison. Projects which are related to Global Studies themes will receive particular attention. Specific requirements for each fellowship, further details, and application materials are available here. The entire application package (including application forms, letters and transcripts) must be received no later than Friday, February 22, 2008 at 4:00 PM. All application materials should be sent or delivered to Global Studies, 301 Ingraham Hall.

Graduate Student International Field Research Awards

An Initiative of the Division of International Studies

The Division of International Studies is pleased to announce a competition for graduate student international field research awards. These awards would enable Ph.D. students to conduct exploratory research abroad in order to develop their dissertation topics and be more competitive for extramural fellowships.

A two-step application procedure will take place. Students will apply to one of the International Institute’s area studies/member programs: African Studies, East Asian Studies, The European Studies Alliance, Global Studies, Latin American, Caribbean, and Iberian Studies, Middle East Studies, Russian, East European, and Central Asian Studies, South Asian Studies, South East Asian Studies, and The Center for World Affairs and the Global Economy. Member programs will review their applications and nominate up to two finalists for consideration by the Division of International Studies selection committee.

Graduate applicants should submit a two page research proposal, budget, and a letter of support from his or her advisor to the appropriate member program. Application materials should be submitted by noon on Friday, February 22^nd 2008. It is the responsibility of the applicant to obtain a copy of their advisor’s letter of support and to deliver all application materials to the appropriate member program. Applications will not be accepted after the deadline. Incomplete applications will not be considered.

UW–Madison a top producer of U.S. Fulbright students

UW-Madison students fared well in landing international fellowships with The Fulbright Program, which announced its 2007-2008 fellows list in this week’s Chronicle of Higher Education.

In all, 24 UW-Madison students from UW-Madison won Fulbright awards for 2007-2008, of which 18 accepted.

“Fellowships like these equip our students with the skills they need to thrive in an increasingly global environment,” says Gilles Bousquet, dean of the Division of International Studies and director of the International Institute. “We are proud that UW-Madison’s students are on the forefront of global competence and engagement; it is testimony to the strength of our area and international programs.”

WAGE offers fall courses related to globalization and the international economy

WAGE Senior Fellows and Affiliates regularly offer graduate and undergraduate courses related to globalization and the international economy. The Center for World Affairs and the Global Economy encourages students to review the below list of courses offered this fall. Please note that enrollment is at the discretion of the individual professor and a number of the undergraduate courses allow for graduate enrollment.

For further information about the courses or to view syllabi, please visit the WAGE courses website at http://wage.wisc.edu/students/courses/.

Humanities scholars earn fellowships for international research

Four scholars in the College of Letters and Science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison were named recipients of the 2006-2007 American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) fellowships.

The ACLS is a private, non-profit federation that supports studies in humanities and social sciences. Each year, the ACLS awards fellowships and grants to researchers working in humanities fields. This year, the organization awarded more than $8.3 million to 232 U.S.-based scholars.

Winners include:

• Jue Guo, a graduate student of East Asian language and literature, received a Henry Luce Foundation/ACLS grant for scholars focused on East Asian archeology and early history.
• Julia K. Murray, an art history professor, was named an ACLS International and Area Studies fellow. Murray researches various art forms of Confucius created at the now-destroyed ancient shrine of Kongzhai and their importance to Confucianism and other religions.

Read more here.

New certificate prepares students for global change

Graduate students intrigued by large-scale environmental challenges like climate change will have a new opportunity this fall at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

The Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies will introduce a graduate-level Certificate on Humans and the Global Environment (CHANGE) that prepares students to tackle global environmental problems. The certificate program will be open to any graduate student at UW-Madison, regardless of major.

“Today’s global environmental crises demand problem-solvers who can benefit from multiple perspectives on sustainable solutions,” says CHANGE director Jonathan Patz, an associate professor in the Nelson Institute and the Department of Population Health Sciences. “Our students must be fully equipped with the leadership skills and transdisciplinary orientation needed to take on these concerns — CHANGE students will ultimately become change agents.”

A $3 million grant last year from the National Science Foundation’s Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeships (IGERT) program made creation of the CHANGE program possible. Supplemented by $400,000 from the UW-Madison Graduate School, the IGERT grant also will support two to three new Ph.D. students in the area of sustainability each year for one to two years.

UW Fulbrighter to study in China

By Karen Faster, La Follette School

La Follette School student Allison Quatrini is off to China for 14 months, thanks to a Fulbright scholarship.

The international public affairs scholar also won the Critical Language Enhancement Award, a new part of the Fulbright program to increase the number of Americans learning needed languages. It is affiliated with the National Security Language Initiative.

“My language program is in Harbin in Heilongjiang Province in northeastern China,” says Quatrini, who is from Downers Grove, Illinois. “I’ll be taking two introductory courses, one in newspaper reading and another in classical Chinese.”

“The program lets me select the topic of my one-on-one tutorial, so I’ll be learning about the contemporary applications of Confucian philosophy,” she adds.

After spending almost four months in Harbin, Quatrini will head for Beijing, where she will commence research at Peking University’s Chinese Local Government and Local Administration Research Center.

The Fulbright program administered by the Institute of International Education sends more than 1,000 students and professionals abroad every year. For the 2006-07 school year, 15 University of Wisconsin-Madison students received Fulbrights.

UW Grad’s Project Portraits for World’s Orphans

by GAYLE WORLAND, Wisconsin State Journal

Ben Schumaker’s “Memory Project” already connects the lives of thousands of American high schoolers with children living in orphanages in some of the world’s poorest countries.

Tonight, it could grab the attention of millions of television viewers worldwide.

Click below to read the full story…
http://www.madison.com/wsj/mad/top/index.php?ntid=97491&ntpid=1

NSF Gants Bolster Integrative Graduate Study

Twin grants from the National Science Foundation (NSF), coupled with matching institutional funds, will give a $6.8 million boost to innovative graduate study and research in global sustainability, development, and the environment at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

http://www.news.wisc.edu/12602.html

UW MBA Students Win International Competitition

http://www.news.wisc.edu/12436.html

WUN Grants for UW Scholars

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

DATE: Monday, February 19, 2007

CONTACT: Ronnie Hess, Director of Communications, Division of International Studies, UW-Madison, (608) 262-5590, rlhess@wisc.edu

Worldwide Universities grants announced for UW scholars

MADISON — Worldwide Universities Network (WUN) and the Division of International Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have awarded UW-Madison and other WUN participating scholars nearly $40,000 in grants for international graduate and research partnerships. A second call for proposals, for similar levels of support for WUN-related collaborations involving UW-Madison, will be issued later this year.

“WUN is an exciting international network of research universities that are tackling major research challenges and delivering instruction in areas that no one member could address alone,” says UW-Madison Chancellor John Wiley. “WUN is helping to keep UW-Madison and Wisconsin at the leading edges of research and teaching.”

WUN is an international alliance of 17 leading higher-education institutions, including UW-Madison, that have come together to create a worldwide research and graduate education partnership. These new grants start or expand collaborative research between UW-Madison faculty and faculty at other WUN partner institutions.

“There are few universities that pay more than lip service to supporting faculty in developing innovative, international, interdisciplinary research programs,” says David Pilsbury, WUN’s Chief Executive. “UW-Madison is absolutely key in driving this research forward and I am delighted that together we are able to fund proposals that have attracted some of the best scholars on campus.”

Grants awarded are:

• Philip Farrell (School of Medicine and Public Health/Pediatrics, Population Health Sciences) – The Ancient Origin of Cystic Fibrosis project is an international, interdisciplinary paleoepidemiological investigation of Iron Age Celtic people of central and western Europe. The project will lead to the creation of an international research team and produce new information on ancient DNA and environmental factors of importance in health today, particularly regarding Cystic Fibrosis. Partnering university: York. ($6,000)
• Myra Marx Ferree (Sociology and Women’s Studies) – Promoting Social Scientific and Humanities Driven International Initiatives in Women’s Studies will build on existing contacts to establish a more institutional structure for transatlantic collaboration in women’s studies, including multi-site course offerings and faculty and graduate exchange. Partnering universities: Leeds; Manchester; Sheffield; York; Utrecht; Oslo. ($6,000).
• Heinz Klug (Law) – Planning Workshop for the Law and Society in Developing Countries Project will build on the interests of a wide group of scholars at UW-Madison and WUN partner institutions and bring the insights of the “law and society” tradition to the study of legal processes and institutions in developing countries and/or those in transition to a market economy. Partnering universities: Illinois, Urbana-Champaign; Washington-Seattle; Bristol; Manchester. ($6,000)
• Alfred McCoy (History) - Transitions and Transformations in the U.S. Imperial State will bring together scholars from several WUN universities to engage in interdisciplinary research on global empires, the U.S. imperial state, and the comparative character of these imperial states. Conference papers will be included in a scholarly publication. Partnering universities: Sydney; Washington-Seattle. ($5,000).
• Tejumola Olaniyan (African Languages and Literature, English) – A conference on “Diaspora and Cosmopolitanism” will advance the establishment of a WUN International Network in Colonial and Postcolonial Studies. Papers from the conference will be included in a scholarly book about contemporary discourses and practices of diaspora and cosmopolitanism. Partnering universities: Illinois, Urbana Champaign; Bristol; Leeds; Manchester; Sheffield; Utrecht; Sydney. ($5,000)
• J.M. Pfotenhauer (Mechanical Engineering) – Zhejiang Faculty Visit to UW-Madison will bring Zhejiang faculty to campus, strengthening collaborative research in the field of cryogenics, exploring joint research opportunities in building energy management, and completing preparations for an undergraduate student exchange program between the two universities. Partnering university: Zhejiang. ($4,000)
• Randy Stoecker (Rural Sociology) – Outcomes of Participatory Action Research (PAR) will create a sustainable online database of practitioners and craft a cross-national comparative evaluation protocol that will inform PAR theory and practice. Partnering universities: Illinois, Urbana-Champaign; Washington-Seattle; Leeds; Manchester; Utrecht. ($5,000)

For more information on WUN at UW-Madison, go to http://www.intlstudies.wisc.edu/wun/default.asp

For more information on WUN, go to www.wun.ac.uk/

WUN participating institutions include the University of Bergen (Norway), University of Bristol (UK), University of California-San Diego, University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign, University of Leeds (UK), University of Manchester (UK), University of Nanjing (China), University of Oslo (Norway), Pennsylvania State University, University of Sheffield (UK), University of Southampton (UK), University of Sydney (Australia) University of Utrecht (Netherlands), University of Washington-Seattle, University of Wisconsin-Madison, University of York (England), University of Zhejiang (China).

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UW biz students travel to get world view

By Aaron Nathans The Capital Times

How do you stop a herd of rampaging elephants?

A group of University of Wisconsin-Madison business students recently learned that the answer lies in learning to think from a different point of view.

A group of 10 master’s of business administration students visited the impoverished African nation of Malawi in early January. The journey was one of several trips abroad the MBA program has been adding in an effort to give their students a more worldly outlook.

The delegation spoke to officials from a fishery, which had dug ponds and stocked them with fingerlings, or baby fish. But before the fish could grow, elephants stormed down from the mountains and rolled around in the ponds, killing the fish. Click here to read the full story>.