News & Events

Editor’s note: The following information was provided by Sustainability at UW-W.

One of the best things about the Halloween season is pumpkins! From pumpkin picking and painting to pumpkin seeds and pies, these festive fruits are beautiful, tasty, and versatile.

You may have collected some pumpkins whose lives are coming to an end. If you’re looking for a place to dispose of your pumpkins after Halloween, look no further. Come and compost your pumpkins and jack-o-lanterns in the Campus Garden!!

Location of the Compost Site: https://goo.gl/maps/YAA99db1HaB13m386

On Wednesday, November 3rd from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m., our interns are hosting an event open to both the campus and the community. Whitewater residents are welcome to bring their old pumpkins to the compost site at our Campus Garden. We’ll have interns stationed at our compost site to explain the benefits of composting and give you a chance to smash your pumpkin!

Why Compost?
Composting is nature’s way of recycling organic materials. It is a process that allows organic matter to decompose and form compost—a nutrient-rich soil amendment (said more plainly, a fabulous natural fertilizer).

Composting organic materials provides many environmental benefits including: (1) reduces waste sent to landfills
(2) reduces greenhouse gas emissions
(3) reduces the amount of water in landfills, where it must be monitored to avoid groundwater contamination.

Photo Credit: UW-WHITEWATER PHOTO/TEAGAN TRUSKOWSKI

Editor’s note: The following information was provided by Walworth County.

The Walworth County Board of Supervisors will conduct a Public Hearing on the 2021 Redistricting Plan for Walworth County on Tuesday, November 9^th at 3:30 p.m. in the County Board Room of the Walworth County Government Center, 100 West Walworth Street, Elkhorn, Wisconsin.

An informational presentation and general discussion of the 2021 Redistricting Plan will occur at this meeting and public input will be accepted at this time.

The business meeting of the County Board of Supervisors will also be conducted and the Board will discuss and possibly act on the Plan.

Banner note: The agenda is available here. The county indicates that due to the continuing public health emergency “all individuals are strongly encouraged to watch the meeting streaming live.” Individuals wanting to provide a Public Comment can do so remotely by telephone, but must contact the County Administrator’s Office at 262-741-4357 on the day of the meeting and at least 15 minutes prior to the start of the meeting to obtain instructions.

Editor’s note: The following information was provided by UW-Whitewater.

Pilar Melero, professor of Spanish at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, will receive the 2021 University Lifetime of Service Award from the State Council on Affirmative Action on Friday, Oct. 29, at the annual diversity awards program at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison. Recipients include state agencies, educators and other individuals whose efforts resulted in more inclusive workplaces, equity in healthcare, community-building and mentoring for young people.

According to an announcement from the state Department of Administration, Melero was chosen “for dedicating her more than 20-year career in education, educating and advocating for the LatinX, Chicano, Hispanic and LGBTQ+ communities as well as serving as a mentor, resource and ally to all students and staff around equity and gender issues.”

Melero, a UW-Whitewater alum from the Class of 1988, double-majored in Spanish and journalism, then embarked on a journalism career at newspapers in Waukesha, Milwaukee and El Paso, Texas. As a journalist, Melero wrote bilingual articles, wrote for an African American newspaper and covered women’s issues and Latino issues.

“It was a milestone the first time I got published in an English-language newspaper,” she said. “English is my second language. I used to cover school districts. I had to read a lot of documents. I did a lot of asking. I was prepared for the writing but not for the reporting itself.”

She became a writer and columnist for her hometown newspaper, the Waukesha Freeman and for the Milwaukee Journal. From covering smalltown school districts, she went on to write about issues as diverse as unequal access to housing and organic farming. In a reporting project on women in Waukesha, Melero interviewed the director of the local women’s center. The interview stuck with Melero.

“She told me her dream would be that every women’s center in the world would be closed because they were no longer necessary,” said Melero. “That was the most beautiful statement I had ever heard.”

In Texas, Melero was asked to teach a Spanish course, and noticed how much she loved working with the students. She attended the University of Texas-El Paso for her master’s degree and then UW-Madison for her Ph.D. before returning “home” in 2003 to teach at UW-Whitewater and to build upon the legacy of courses in diversity she had found there as an undergraduate.

Along with her teaching duties, Melero and her colleagues developed new programs in diversity studies, renovated others and created curriculum. Like the foundation of a building, this work is almost invisible, but everything rests upon it. She credits the teams of curriculum builders she worked with saying, “They did their own mentoring with me. They mentored me with collegiality and support.”

“The biggest milestone workwise is with my team in Race and Ethnic Studies,” said Melero. “We developed minors in Asian/Asian American Studies, African American Studies, Latinx/Latin American Studies and American Indian Studies.”

“We did it all as a team,” she added. “(A milestone was) coming back to my alma mater where I first got exposed to diversity courses and to be able to continue that evolution and the legacy of all of these people (faculty).”

As an undergraduate student at UW-Whitewater, Melero found a home. Her academic family included Carlos de Onis, a professor of Chicano Studies and Spanish; and Spanish instructors Aldo and Adriana Busot. Before that, she remembers Doug Evans, a teacher and advocate at Waukesha South High School. If not for Evans’ early mentoring and guidance, she likely would not have attended college at all.

Evans saw the young Melero’s academic ability when others didn’t, she said. Evans was so tall and lanky that he practically had to fold himself into his tiny office, especially on the day he and Melero’s parents crowded into that office to plan her college application process.

And as Melero walks to the podium of the State Assembly chamber in the Capitol to receive the award for a lifetime of achievement, she will retrace the steps of Roger Pulliam, a beloved mentor who was the first person to receive the award. Pulliam, in multiple roles through decades of service, infused first-generation college students with confidence, and especially those students from underrepresented communities. Pulliam was a mentor for Melero when she was an undergraduate studying Spanish and journalism. He was still there to encourage her to return as a faculty member.

“Whitewater is not a job,” said Melero. “Whitewater is my home.”

Editor’s note: The following was provided by Lori Heidenreich for Delta Kappa Gamma – Whitewater Chapter.

The Delta Kappa Gamma-Whitewater Chapter had a presentation on Thursday, October 21, 2021 from the Ferradermis Robotic Team from Whitewater High School.

Editor’s note: The following information was provided by Dalee Water Conditioning.

Dalee Water Conditioning is proud to announce that it has recently acquired Markee Water Conditioning of Walworth County.

Markee Water owners Frank and Mary Gauger, along with their son Rob, have decided to retire from the water treatment business.

The acquisition reaffirms Dalee Water’s commitment to providing the best service to Walworth County and the surrounding area, where the company has been treating water since 1947.

“We’re looking forward to servicing Markee’s existing customer base in the same professional manner, and also to providing additional services such as rental water softeners, Iron Curtains, RO systems, and automatic salt delivery,” said Dave Kertscher, owner of Dalee Water Conditioning.

Established in Whitewater by the Dalee family in 1947, Dalee Water maintains the region’s most complete and experienced water treatment team, providing expert service and sales to residential and small commercial customers.

Dalee is proud to provide water treatment services with products that are made in the U.S.A., and they offer a variety of water softening and filtration solutions, as well as service and repair to any make or model.

Dalee serves the local communities of Whitewater, Elkhorn, Delavan, Lake Geneva, Fontana, Walworth, Burlington, Palmyra, Eagle, Fort Atkinson, Jefferson, Sullivan, and surrounding areas.

Editor’s note: The following information was provided by the Young Auditorium.

’Letters Home’ Offers A Powerful Portrait of the American Soldier Experience
Young Auditorium – Tuesday, November 9th at 7:30 PM | Tickets $24.25 (12 & under $15.50)

A must see for veterans, military members and supporters, Letters Home is a moving
theatrical production that brings to life actual letters written by soldiers serving in the Middle East. Young
Auditorium presents this highly relevant performance on Tuesday, November 9th at 7:30 pm.
Produced by Chicago’s Griffin Theatre Company, Letters Home puts the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq front and
center, using actual communications from American soldiers as the source material for this eye-opening
performance. Written under the most difficult of circumstances these letters evoke emotional responses
regarding the disorientation of training, deployment day, separation from family and loved ones, as well as
actual combat and occupation duties. Without politicizing, Letters Home gives audiences a powerful portrait of
the true soldier experience. This production is inspired by the New York Times op-ed article, “The Things They
Wrote,” and the subsequent HBO documentary, Last Letters Home.

“Extraordinary, Deeply Moving! The emotional impact of this 90-minute journey is profound.”
—Chicago Sun Times

Tickets for this, and all 2021-2022 Young Auditorium season performances can be purchased online at
http://www.youngauditorium.com, or by connecting with the UW-Whitewater Ticket Services department.

UW-Whitewater Ticket Services
950 West Main Street – Whitewater, WI 53190

• located inside the Greenhill Center of the Arts –
  (262) 472-2222 | Monday – Friday 9:30am – 3pm

*This engagement is supported by the Arts Midwest GIG fund, a program of Arts Midwest that is funded by
the National Endowment for the Arts, with additional contributions from Wisconsin Arts Board.
Masks will be required for attendees of this performance. Please visit the Warhawks Are Back! website, which outlines operating practices for the UW-Whitewater campus. Modifications of these practices should be anticipated. UW-Whitewater will continue to use information provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the State of Wisconsin, county health departments and the University of Wisconsin System to guide the decision-making processes across campuses.

Editor’s note: The following information was provided by Insight FS.

Insight FS recently paid out scholarships to high school seniors and college students for the fall semester. Since 2015, Insight FS and the Insight FS/GROWMARK Foundation have donated over $140,750 to students pursuing a career in agriculture.

“We want to play a vital role in the future of agriculture, and in order to do that we need to support the industry through education and awareness of the diverse career options available,” said Dave Mottet, general manager at Insight FS. “These students are going to support the farmers of the future, a role that continues to shift with more technology, data utilization and changing landscape. We want to be there with them on that journey.”

Insight FS scholarship applicants are evaluated on academic achievement, active participation in local and state clubs or groups promoting agriculture and environmental stewardship, leadership potential, and essay responses. Ten winners are chosen and awarded $1500 during Fall semester. To be eligible, the student must be the dependent of an employee or patron of Insight FS. Applications for 2022 will be available in December at insightfs.com/scholarship and are accepted through March 15, 2022.

Insight FS also donates $5,000 in scholarships through UW-Platteville each year. Those winners are chosen by UW-Platteville and can be renewed yearly. Winners in 2021 were: Haylee Spence, Jay Long, Austyn Capouch, Jacob Beauchem, Stanlee Rillie, Jason Long, Haylee Spence, Kelsey Carey, Kaitlin Asche and Sydney Van Swol.

2021 Insight FS scholarship recipients included:

Morgyn Haumschild, a sophomore at UW-River Falls, is majoring in Ag Business and Dairy Science. Over the last year, Morgyn expressed interest in pursuing a career in nutrition.

Audrey Pelikan, from Sullivan, is majoring in soil and crop science and environmental horticulture at UW-Platteville. She intends to continue her education to receive a master’s degree and focus on plant breeding and improving seed hybrids.

Elizabeth Katzman, from Whitewater is attending Northeast Technical College in Green Bay and plans to major in entrepreneurship and launch a protein-based product line for her family farm. Elizabeth made significant contributions to the dairy industry in 2020 with her idea to sell “Support Wisconsin Dairy” yard signs during covid. She raised over $10,000 and sold 1,000 signs.

Lindsey Propst, a 2021 graduate from Beaver Dam High School is pursuing a degree in genetics and genomics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Lindsey would like to become a plant geneticist and improve seed varieties.

Tiffany Neuheisel from Spring Green is currently attending Southwest Wisconsin Technical College pursuing a degree in agribusiness management. Tiffany is part of the 6^th generation on her dairy farm and looking to step up and continue to be involved in the agriculture industry. She plans to continue her education at UW-Platteville after achieving her associated degree.

Nicole Plenty, daughter of Agronomy Area Sales Manager, Jeff Plenty, is pursuing a degree in soil and crop sciences from UW-Platteville. Nicole found that her interests may lie in crop science after working in the research lab and taking a plant biotechnology class. When not at school, she resides in Delavan.

Madison Russell, a 2021 graduate from Shullsburg, is attending Oklahoma State University with plans to major in animal science. Madison has an interest in small ruminant reproduction after working as a part-owner in Presidential Livestock, a 100 commercial ewe operation.

Cassandra Wendt, daughter of Daniel Wendt, a propane sales and delivery specialist at Insight FS, is attending UW-Madison Farm and Industry Short Course for meat animal farm management. Her passion for working with animals has led her to plan for a small herd of Simmental cattle in the future.

Matthew Fischer from Owen, Wisconsin is attending UW-River Falls with aspirations to pursue a career as a dairy nutrition specialist. Matt also serves as his church head organist and director of music.

Brenna Murry, from Mosinee, is a college freshman at UW-River Falls. Brenna is passionate about agricultural education and plans to become an ag teacher and FFA advisor.

Insight FS is headquartered in Jefferson, Wis., serving patrons in Wisconsin and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Insight FS is part of the GROWMARK system. GROWMARK is a regional cooperative providing agronomy, energy, feed, facility planning, risk management, and logistics products and services, as well as grain marketing, in more than 40 states and Ontario, Canada. GROWMARK owns the FS trademark, which represents knowledgeable, experienced professionals acting with integrity and dedication to serve more than 250,000 patrons. More information is available at insightfs.com.

Editor’s note: The following information was provided by UW-W.

UW System President Tommy Thompson will visit the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and join students, faculty and staff in a campus-wide celebration to mark the success of the university’s COVID-19 vaccination efforts.

Everyone is welcome to attend the event, which will begin at 5:15 p.m. (NOT 4:45 p.m.) Wednesday, Oct. 27, 2021, outside the Connor University Center on the north Wyman Mall, and will feature performances by the members of the Warhawk Marching Band — including the “Warhawk Strut” — an appearance by Willie Warhawk, remarks from university and student leaders, and light refreshments.

“We’re ecstatic to host this event and to welcome President Thompson to UW-Whitewater,” said Interim Chancellor Jim Henderson. “Our vaccination numbers are the result of a concerted effort to keep our community as safe as possible during the pandemic. Our students, faculty and staff have embraced that goal, and I look forward to celebrating this achievement.”

As of Oct. 18, UW-Whitewater students have reported a 74% COVID-19 vaccination rate. 

Vaccinated students are eligible for the UW System drawing of 70 scholarships valued at $7,000 each that will take place later in the fall. UW-Whitewater students who have not yet been vaccinated or reported their vaccination are still eligible for the scholarship drawing, as long as they complete the vaccination series and report their record by Oct. 31.

The rain location for the event will be in the University Center atrium.