Steve Watson writes, “On my morning walk on April 16, I was watching these three swans on Cravath Lake. An eagle appeared and circled over and landed in a tree overlooking the swans and geese.”
Three swans and geese on Cravath Lake.Bald eagle at Cravath LakeBald eagle in upper left corner with swans below
Our thanks to Steve Watson for sharing more interesting nature photos.
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Roger Pulliam (UW-Whitewater Photo/Craig Schreiner)
Readers driving by Starin Road and Prince Street recently have probably noticed a new sign on the residence hall that has been known as Starin Hall since 2010.
According to an article in the Royal Purple, “On Saturday, April 2 the UW-Whitewater community gathered in the University Center to celebrate the life and work of Dr. Roger Pulliam through the renaming of Starin Hall to Pulliam Hall. “His influence stretched well beyond the Whitewater community and touched the lives of students of color in this state,” said Vice-Chancellor of Student Affairs Artanya Wesley. “He uses an expansive network to expose Black students to high standards of academic excellence, professionalism and giving students critical life skills to lead successful lives. Dr. Pulliam exemplified Black excellence long before it became a hashtag and was popular on social media.”
Opened in 2010, Starin Hall is a 207,900-square-foot residence hall located near the central academic zone of UW-Whitewater’s 400-acre campus. The building holds suite-style units with a 446-bed capacity, two staff offices, one faculty office, and a common kitchen, laundry room and computer lab. It was the first state-owned LEED-certified residence hall in Wisconsin.
The UW System Board of Regents approved the naming resolution at its meeting Thursday, July 8, 2021. The request was previously approved by all of UW-Whitewater’s shared governance groups — Academic Staff Assembly, Faculty Senate, University Staff Council, and Whitewater Student Government.
Pulliam, who passed away in February 2020, had a 60-year career in education in which he showed an unrelenting devotion to representing, including, and advocating for diverse students and educators and promoting the success of his students and community. At UW-Whitewater, he worked in various roles from 1989 to 2018. During his tenure, he served as assistant vice chancellor of academic support services, director of advancement and, most recently, interim chief diversity officer.
Further information regarding Pulliam may be found in an article that was published on The Banner on July 20, 2021.
By Lynn Binnie Whitewater Banner volunteer staff whitewaterbanner@gmail.com
Congressional Districts: Whitewater Shifts Again
Voters who have lived in Whitewater since at least 2001 have lived through a minimum of three changes of congressional district. The history of those changes and the representatives for those districts are shown below.
The 1990 census redistricting left Whitewater in District 1, where it had been located for decades. The most recent representatives were: Les Aspin (D) 1971-93 Peter Barca (D) 1993-95 Mark Neumann (R) 1995-99 Paul Ryan (R) 1999-2002
The 2000 census placed the city in District 2, a consistently Democratic district. Tammy Baldwin (D) 2002-2012
The 2010 census moved Whitewater to District 5, a reliably Republican district. Jim Sensenbrenner (R) 2012-21 Scott Fitzgerald (R) 2021 – present
The 2020 census has resulted in Whitewater returning to District 1, a right-leaning district where Bryan Steil (R) is serving his second term. Although Steil does not appear to have announced that he is running for re-election, his early fundraising was reported to be strong. Democrat Ann Roe of Janesville announced in July, 2021 that she would be running for the seat. Whitewater is depicted in blue in the upper left corner of Walworth County in the map below.
Depicted are the additions (blue) and subtractions (red) to existing District 1 (lavender)
A decision by the U.S. Supreme Court has resulted in Whitewater moving back to Congressional District 1 effective January, 2023. It’s the district that represented the city’s citizens for decades until 2002. Since that time the city was in District 2 until 2012, and then until next January, in District 5. The decision will move the city from a district that’s represented by Scott Fitzgerald to one currently served by Bryan Steil. The November election will determine who represents the district for the next two years. Some experts believe that Whitewater’s repositioning could contribute to making District 1 more competitive.
The U.S. Constitution requires congressional districts to be redrawn after each census, and, as usual, Wisconsin’s redistricting following the 2020 census has been controversial. The Republican majority legislature proposed one set of maps, and the Democratic governor ultimately proposed two different ones, with the decision then being placed in the hands of the state Supreme Court. On March 3 that court initially chose Gov. Evers’ proposal, indicating that it met most closely the court’s directive that redistricting should result in as little change as possible. That decision was appealed by GOP leaders to the U.S. Supreme Court, which on March 23 approved the governor’s proposed congressional districts, but sent the state legislative map back to the state court for further review. On April 15 the Wisconsin Supreme Court reversed itself and adopted the legislature’s proposed maps. It was just in time, as candidates for offices that are on the November ballot were able to circulate nominating petitions beginning that very date. Partisan primaries will be held Aug. 9, 2022. The election is on Nov. 8, 2022. It is anticipated that the maps may still be subject to appeal, but it appears that the districts are all settled at least for this year.
This November, Whitewater will be voting for the U.S. Representative in District 1, which has leaned Republican for over twenty years. As shown in the illustration above, however, the new boundaries of District 1 included some significant changes. Additions are Democratic leaning areas around Beloit and Janesville, as well as Whitewater. At the same time, the new district is losing a portion of Waukesha County, a Republican stronghold.
J. Miles Coleman, the associate editor for Sabato’s Crystal Ball at the University of Virginia’s Center for Politics, said both changes benefit Democrats. Former Republican President Donald Trump carried the 1st by about nine percentage points in 2020, but Coleman said Trump’s margin in the new district would have been just two points.
“That could be maybe the most competitive district in the state over the next decade,” Coleman said. “I know that Steil seems to be pretty well entrenched. He fits the area well. But you never know.”
UPDATE: Sources currently available do not appear to indicate whether the entire city of Whitewater will be part of Congressional District 1. It appears that the Jefferson County portion may remain in District 5. Clarification will be provided as soon as available.
This article addresses the impact of redistricting on our Congressional District assignment; changes are also occurring to our state legislative districts, which will be addressed in a future article.
Irvin L. Young Memorial Library Board of Trustees – Monday @ 6:30 p.m. Agenda This will be a hybrid In-person/virtual meeting. Community Room, 431 W. Center Street Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84354623827?pwd=WXMvVjY0L0ptZlNvSmp3VGZhV2xaUT09 Meeting ID: 843 5462 3827 Passcode: 5ENyBBqE Or dial 1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago) Meeting ID: 843 5462 3827 Passcode: 41732047
City of Whitewater Common Council – Tuesday @ 6:30 p.m. Agenda includes swearing in of new council members, election of president, appointment to boards and commissions, Update on 2022 Management Plan and Report on 2021 Annual Report, Resolution Providing for the Sale of Approximately $8,350,000 Waterworks System and Sewer System Revenue Bonds, Series 2022B. This will be an IN PERSON and a VIRTUAL MEETING. Citizens are welcome (and encouraged) to join us via computer, smart phone, or telephone. Citizen participation is welcome during topic discussion periods. You are invited to a Zoom webinar. Please click the link below to join the webinar: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/85882556626?pwd=OFZjd1ZJNnlkaUwvTjNMdWFtSVlmUT09 Passcode: 119984 Or Telephone: Dial 1 929 205 6099
City of Whitewater Community Involvement & Cable TV Commission (Virtual Meeting) – Wednesday @ 5:00 p.m. Agenda Please join my meeting from your computer, tablet or smartphone. https://meet.goto.com/186872301 You can also dial in using your phone. 1 (571) 317-3122 Access Code: 186-872-301
City of Whitewater Parks & Recreation Board – Wednesday @ 5:30 p.m. Agenda Cravath Lakefront Room- 2nd Floor 312 W. Whitewater St. or Zoom meeting. https://us02web.zoom.us/j/8543908321 Meeting ID: 854 390 8321 Dial 1 312 626 6799 Meeting ID: 854 390 8321
Editor’s note: The following was provided by the Whitewater Unified School District. Photos are courtesy of Hogan Alexander.
We had nearly 300 people in attendance at the WUSD Art Walk on April 12!! Thank you to our amazing art and music staff for all your hard work and extra hours you put into this event to make it such a huge success! A big shout out to Sara Houwers Sixel for coordinating with the art staff and Christine C. Hayes for coordinating with the music staff to figure out schedules and spaces! Also thank you to Justin Mane for setting up the rock painting station. We had nine companies participate. Thank you to The Hamilton House, First Citizens State Bank, The Book Teller, Dale’s Bootery, State Farm with Jennifer Visser, ARANDA – Be Unique, The Whitewater Chamber of Commerce, Rosa’s Pizza, and Jessica’s Family Restaurant for letting us display our students’ talents in your store fronts and inside your establishments. We are happy to announce that with the success of this year, we will be making the WUSD Art Walk an annual event! We have extremely talented students and we can’t wait to showcase them at this event every year!!
Tech Savvy is a one-day STEM workshop tailored for girls in grades 6 to 9 attending with or without a parent, designed to inspire and encourage them in STEM fields. Registration is also open to interested boys. The students who attend Tech Savvy will experience exciting hands-on activities led by professional women in STEM field. (More information on workshops and sessions)
Tech Savvy will be held Saturday, April 30, in-person in Upham Science Hall on the UW-Whitewater campus.
The cost for the workshop is $10 per person which includes lunch. More information and online registration can be found at Tech Savvy (uww.edu).
Workshops include Encryption with Secret Codes, Surgical Intern for a Day, An Underground Search for Antibiotics, DNA Extraction, Designing a Cell Phone Stand, What it Takes to Make a Star in a Jar (plasma physics), and several others. There will be a program for adults to learn more about working in the STEM fields, encouraging their children in STEM, and helping them to prepare for college or technical school.
The keynote speaker is Ruth Conrad-Proulx from the Theatre and Dance Dept., UW-Whitewater. She will speak on the Intersection of Science and Art.
The cost for the workshop is $10 per person which includes lunch. More information and online registration can be found at Tech Savvy (uww.edu)
The registration deadline is April 24. Tech Savvy is co-sponsored by UW-Whitewater and AAUW (American Association of University Women) Fort Atkinson & Janesville branches. Several local companies are supporting this work with generous sponsorships.
Editor’s note: The following information was provided by the Whitewater Arts Alliance.
SUMMER 2022 13TH ANNUAL FRAN ACHEN COMPETITION CALL FOR ART Sponsored by Whitewater Arts Alliance Information at: www.whitewaterarts.org/fran-achen-2022
We are pleased to announce that the 2022 Fran Achen Photography Competition will return to the Cultural Arts Center in both its traditional in-gallery display format and online virtual show. In-person opening reception and award announcement will be Sunday, July 3 at 1 p.m. in the CAC.
The 2021 Fran Achen Show saw a number of changes. Some of these were improvements and some were precautionary measures made necessary by the pandemic. With local mandates of masking lifted, we hope to see participants in-person once more. Precautions are on an individual basis: masks are not required but are not frowned upon either.
ON WITH THE SHOW! Open to all photographers, from amateur to professional artists of all ages are invited to exhibit their photography at the 13th Annual Fran Achen Photography Competition to be displayed in July. Jeff McDonald, chair of the show and Whitewater Arts Alliance board member, said, “The Fran Achen show is truly one of the highlights of the year. Fran Achen was an exceptional photographer and his catalog of images continues to inspire. This show, organized in his honor, is an excellent opportunity to showcase the outstanding work created by both established and aspiring area photographers. I am always excited to see the many ways these artists interpret the world through their images. Viewing each year’s collection is a real treat. ”
AWARDS Best of Show Award: ($125) Second Place Award: ($100) Third Place Award: ($75) Outstanding Youth Award: ($50) Viewers’ Choice Award: ($50)
KEY DATES Entries & Fees Due: Thursday, June 16 by 11:59 p.m. Awards Announcement: Sunday, July 3 at CAC Gallery 2 p.m. Viewers’ Choice Award Announcement: Sunday, July 31 Photo Drop-Off: Monday, June 27 and Tuesday June 28 from 4:00 – 6:00 p.m. Photo Pick-Up: Sunday, July 31 from 3:00 – 5:00 p.m.
Whitewater Arts Alliance 13th Annual Fran Achen Photography Competition July 1 – 31, 2022 Cultural Arts Center 402 West Main Street Whitewater WI 53190
Full information including rules and entry forms available at: www.whitewaterarts.org/fran-achen-2022 For other questions please contact the event’s chairperson, Jeff McDonald, at waa.franachen@gmail.com
Big thanks to our sponsor, First Citizens State Bank.
