Good afternoon,
I hope you all had a great weekend and enjoyed the extra hour of sleep. I for one had forgotten that it was time to “fall back†and had slept in a bit. When I thought that we had just 45 minutes to get ready for church I rushed around, woke Reagan up and began getting her dressed. Bridget noticed all of the activity, came in and calmly said that she wanted to give Reagan a bath before we got her dressed.  I noted that we now only had 30 minutes. She gave me that “it’s OK — I know you just woke up†look and reminded me that we had plenty of time – crisis averted!
The Board of Regents meeting last Thursday was interesting on several accounts. We had the opportunity to hear from the Governor Elect. As you know, the state must address a substantial budget deficit. Though he did not go into specifics, he did indicate that we would need to be flexible and creative in stretching our budgets to go further.  The Regents also heard a report from UW System on the issue of “brain drainâ€. Though each institution is different, it was reported that contrary to public perception, there is not a significant loss of Wisconsin residents out of state when they graduate from a UW institution. Third, the Regents heard from the Department of Public Instruction on their new common core state standards. As our Department of Educational Leadership and many of our content specialists already know, this project will have a significant impact on teacher preparation programs at UW-Superior.Â
Friday evening was eventful here on campus. Reagan and I took in some of the remarkable performances at Chorfest, an exciting hockey game, and a unique Open Mic Night in the YU. I tried to get Reagan interested in performing “Itsy Bitsy Spider†but she was not quite ready. Maybe next time.Â
This week there are a number of events. Tonight is Hive Night! Reagan and I will be participating in this opportunity to walk through the residence halls and visit with students about their progress and experience. If you are interested in joining us, please meet at the YU a bit before 6:00 pm. Thank you Mickie Finch and our Residence Hall staff for sponsoring this program.  Â
On Wednesday, System Vice President for Academic Affairs Dr. Rebecca Martin will be on campus to hold conversations about our plans and progress toward meeting our Growth Agenda goals. She is traveling to all of the campuses to emphasize the importance of this initiative and to get a first-hand understanding of the plans and approaches each campus is developing. The Provost’s Office is coordinating these meetings.Â
Also on Wednesday, the Multi-cultural center will host a number of high school students of color on campus. This program matches high school students with UW-Superior students and allows them to shadow their mentor (UW-Superior student) in classes and campus activities. Thank you to our Multicultural Center Staff for sponsoring this program since 1999.
On Thursday, the new campus substation transformer will be ready to go live. As a result, there will be a PLANNED campus power outage from 3:00 am – 6:00 am. Please make sure that your electronic equipment is turned off prior to that time. If you have any questions, please contact Facilities Management at facman@uwsuper.edu.Â
I encourage you to attend the WAC Brown Bag at noon on Friday, the Comedy Show Friday night and Cultural Night on Saturday.Â
Thank you all for the hard work and commitment that is evident every day. It is a treat to be able to hear comments from around the community and in Madison about the exceptional work that is being done on this campus. From participant reports about Admissions Preview Days to international comparisons of the ballast water testing site it is clear that UW-Superior is making positive impressions and positive change.
I hope you all enjoy the unseasonably warm weather – is it just me or does it feel like spring?  Have a great week.
Chris Markwood
Interim Chancellor
