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12/21/2022

Op-Ed: THE VALUE IS IN THE DEGREE

By Chancellor Ford

One of the very important reasons that I am so proud to lead the University of Wisconsin-Parkside – and there are many – is because we TRANSFORM LIVES. This past weekend, we transformed another record number of lives – 513 graduates received their associate, bachelor’s or master’s degree.

As part of our record class, we awarded 207 master’s degrees – almost double the amount from just two years ago. UW-Parkside is recognized as having one of the nation’s fastest growing master's populations among small colleges and universities.

We are well on our way to meeting our 2025 Strategic Framework bold goal of increasing the number of graduates by 50 percent. We are meeting the needs of current and future students, and the talent demands of our region, our state, our nation and our world.

The Value is in the Degree

Not only does a UW-Parkside degree create the opportunity for higher income and sustained employability, it also translates to increased community and civic engagement. Employers see a university degree as evidence that the career candidate will bring critical-thinking skills to the organization along with the ability to manage and complete complex projects.



It’s my job and the job of each member of our dedicated faculty and staff, to strengthen the value of a UW-Parkside degree. The degree our graduates earn today will open the doors of opportunity and will continue to open those doors as they advance in their professional careers.

More than 50 percent of our winter 2022 graduates are the first in their families to earn a university degree and 31 percent represent minority populations. To help answer the challenge of better serving all students, UW-Parkside joined Moonshot for Equity, the nation’s first public-private consortium to eliminate graduation gaps among students of color and white students. And, we’re a proud member of the Higher Education Regional Alliance, an 18-institution collaborative in southeast Wisconsin to improve student success and employer access to talent.

During my commencement remarks, I often remind graduates that there is a catch. The UW-Parkside degree will open doors. However, as individuals they must commit to their success by being lifelong learners and dedicate themselves as engaged citizens. The fact that they earned the degree and completed the rigorous academic requirements is evidence that UW-Parkside graduates are ready!

UW-Parkside is Transforming Lives

Earlier this year, UW-Parkside was recognized by US News and World Report for transforming lives. We are the fourth-ranked public higher education institution across 12 Midwestern states, and tops among UW comprehensives, for increasing social mobility. This important category measures the extent to which schools elevate the standard of living for low-income students.

Additionally, US News and World Report ranked us fifth in the 12-state Midwest region for diversity, and first among UW comprehensives.

Last month, I was honored to attend the American Association of State Colleges and Universities annual conference. I was there to receive the organization’s Excellence and Innovation Award for Student Success and College Completion. The award recognized the amazing work being done at UW-Parkside by our incredible faculty and staff to help more students succeed, including those who have been historically underserved by higher education.

Parkside Graduates are Ready

UW-Parkside graduates are ready to take on the challenges of today and tomorrow. They are ready to continue the partnerships and community connections that began here at UW-Parkside. I see leaders, and I see people who understand what it means to help others. A UW-Parkside education has transformed their lives and prepared our graduates to inspire the world. 

To our record-setting UW-Parkside Class of 2022 I say, “Congratulations Graduates!” I am so proud of their accomplishments and the value they will bring to our society.

UW-Parkside Commencement Fall 2022: Marta McAllister

Fall 2022 commencement will mark the culmination of academic journeys for many UW-Parkside students. But Kenosha native Marta McAllister’s 43-year journey is definitely one of the longest and most rewarding. McAllister is earning her degree with a major in Liberal Studies with a concentration in Sociology and Interdisciplinary Studies and a Certificate in Leadership.



McAllister’s journey at UW-Parkside began in the Fall of 1979. She has seen a lot of change and progress over the years at UW-Parkside. McAllister says, “I am so pleased with the diversity and inclusion of the University System. We are ALL Rangers.” Despite the extended timeline, her goal has always been the same: to help people. McAllister also works as the Agribusiness Specialist for the Kenosha Achievement Center and works with adults with special needs.

Fall 2022 Outstanding Graduates

Fall 2022 Chancellor's Award

Let us know: Communications Needs

Effective immediately, please send any requests or inquiries about stories, press releases, social media posts, or other communication needs to university.relations@uwp.edu and we will respond as soon as possible. Thank you for understanding!

UW-Parkside Police Part of Drive Sober Campaign

During the holiday season, social gatherings with family and friends appear on everyone’s calendar. Each year, however, the good times at these events have the potential to become devastating times for families and communities.

To help keep the upcoming holiday season safe on our roadways, officers from the UW-Parkside Police and Public Safety Department are part of the state-wide traffic safety Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign from Dec. 16 to Jan 1. UW-Parkside police officers and officers across the state will be patrolling in greater numbers, and for longer hours, to keep impaired drivers off the road and to enforce the safety-belt law.

Applications Open for OMSA Mural

In honor of the 40-Year Anniversary of the Office of Multicultural Student Affairs (OMSA), our office is looking for a UW-Parkside student or alumnus to design and paint a mural that will become an integral part of our physical space within the University of Wisconsin-Parkside.

The mural should embody the office’s mission, “to holistically support underrepresented students in their success while fostering a culture of belonging, recognition, and equity at UW-Parkside”. The mural should also incorporate the office’s values of Advocacy, Belonging, Development, and Recognition.

Nominations Open for the 2022-2023 UW-Parkside Teaching Excellence Award

Nomination Windows: Dec. 8-21, 2022 and March 13-April 3, 2023

The Committee on Teaching and Learning is soliciting nominations for the 2022-2023 University of Wisconsin-Parkside Teaching Excellence Awards. All members of the faculty and teaching academic staff who have taught courses at UW-Parkside in the 2022-2023 academic year are eligible to receive this award. Students may nominate as many instructors as they like during nomination windows in the fall and spring semesters. In the spring semester students may nominate instructors from any point in the 2022-2023 academic year.

Two awards are available: the Stella Gray Teaching Excellence Award is for instructors who have been at the university for more than five years, and the Early Career Teaching Excellence Award is for instructors who have been at the university for five years or fewer. Recipients of the award in the last seven years are not eligible to receive the award this year. 

 The following criteria will be used to help select an award winner:

• Ability to support, inspire, and challenge students
• Ability to make course material accessible to students and to help students in thinking critically and independently
• Personal impact on students in an academic and/or professional context

Incomplete nominations will not be considered. Students may choose to have their name withheld from the nominee. For questions about these awards or this form, please contact Dr. Amber Handy at handy@uwp.edu.

Watch the Administrative Transformation Program (ATP) Readiness Workshop #1: “Introduction to Workday”

ATP will conduct Readiness Workshops on a variety of topics, monthly through go-live in July 2024. Recordings will be available to anyone with a UW login. The “Introduction to Workday” Readiness Workshop provides a first look at the Workday landing page and some of the employee self-service features. You can learn more about this workshop on the ATP website.

Readiness Workshop 1: Intro to Workday

This workshop introduces the Workday landing page and a few of the employee self-service features. It also provides an overview of the roles of the Readiness Team members and Change Ambassadors.

Key Takeaways:

• Employee self-service (ESS) refers to personal information that employees can view or change on their own. With Workday’s employee self-service features, you can:

• Change your legal or preferred name

• Update contact information

• Set up or change payment elections in existing or new accounts

• View and download your pay slips

• Tasks are clearly labeled in Workday – or you can use the Search Bar to bring up a task quickly when you type its name.

UW-Parkside to Offer Crime Scene Investigation Course

The University of Wisconsin-Parkside Criminal Justice Department will offer the “Critical Thinking in Death Scene Investigation” course from Jan. 9-15 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. for the Winterim 2023 semester. This course is a collaborative concept created by Dr. Janamarie Truesdell, Ph.D., College of Social Sciences and Professional Studies Dean Peggy James, and the Theatre Department.  



Offered each Winterim, the “Critical Thinking in Death Scene Investigation” course seeks to challenge students’ investigative skills through critical thinking and attention to detail. This six-day workshop walks through the five manners of death (natural, accidental, suicide, homicide, and undetermined), with lecture-style presentations from local experts in the morning and group work in the afternoon. A “life-sized” recreation of one of the “Nutshells” will then be presented for students to put their skills to the test on the final day of class.

Save 50% on purchases in the Brickstone Grill & Eatery!

A commuter dining plan can be used to pay for purchased in all campus dining locations.

Sign up for a Commuter Plan November 28 through March 24, 2023

Sign up and more information at uwp.edu/diningplans or stop by the Campus Concierge.

Now on Amazon!

Support Parkside Athletics! Grab the gear on Amazon!

OPID Spring Conference: April 20-21, 2023

Memorial Union, Madison | In-Person and via Zoom

The University of Wisconsin System’s Office of Professional and Instructional Development (OPID) is seeking proposals for the 2023 Spring Conference on Teaching and Learning. Online Form. Deadline: January 9, 2023.

Theme : The Joys of Teaching and Learning : Centering Students 

From the classroom to department meetings and from learning management systems to addressing mental health and wellbeing, students are the focus of our professional lives. In the past few years, we have increased our attention to centering our teaching practices around the “whole student.” Re-examining assessment strategies, updating curriculum, exploring teaching methods and modalities while increasing flexibility and compassionate responses to students’ needs are just a few examples.

Centering Students is what we do as educators and is tied to our goals, challenges and the rewards of teaching and learning. As we deal with the lingering effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, we have an opportunity to explore what we have learned, and what we still need to learn, about connecting with and supporting students. How might we consider what we need in terms of self-care and care for colleagues so we can feel a sense of well-being and enable us to better care for others around us? How do we cultivate relationships and create a sense of community with our students? How do we bring student voices into our face-to-face, online, and blended learning environments? What opportunities are there to cultivate connections both within and external to our class environments? How can we meet students where they are, while advising and mentoring them to succeed beyond our learning contexts?



We invite you to contribute to the conversation about centering students by presenting at OPID’s 2023 Spring Conference. Please share your experiences, ideas, insights, questions, failures, and accomplishments so we can collaborate and learn together to explore possibilities for centering students in our teaching/learning contexts. 

Winterim Dining Service Hours

Brickstone Grill & Eatery:

• MON-TUE, DEC 19-20
• 10 AM-3 PM

• WED-THU, DEC 21-22
• 10 AM-1 PM

• FRI-MON, DEC 23-26
• CLOSED

• TUE-FRI, DEC 27-30
• 11 AM-6 PM

• SAT, DEC 31-MON, JAN 2
• CLOSED

• TUE-FRI, JAN 3-27
• 11 AM-6 PM

• SAT, JAN 28
• 10 AM-1 PM and 5-7 PM

• SUN, JAN 29
• 10 AM-1 PM and 5-8 PM

• MON, JAN 30
• SEMESTER HOURS RESUME

Paws to You

Paws to You is an employee appreciation program designed to offer gratitude to a fellow coworker. Maybe they helped you complete a task or project and it made a large impact on the outcome. You can show them thanks and appreciation by sending them a Paw they are able to display for all to see in their email signature, and a running total of all Paws will be displayed here on the Paws to You website. So what are you waiting for?

Save Clam Shell Containers for Parkside Community Garden!

Help our community gardeners feed food insecure students and community members by saving your clam shell containers. Bring saved containers to Alex Hobbs in the Student Success and Learning Commons. Thank you!

2022 Winter Holiday Office Hours

Christmas Holiday



Beginning Dec. 27 through Dec. 30, 2022 university offices will be closed to the public. Employees may choose to take vacation time, work from home (if the job is conducive and with approval from the supervisor), or come into the office and work as normal. 



There are some exceptions to this notice for areas that support 24-hour, 7 days-a-week operations such as the police department, heating plant, housing services, and other essential student-facing departments. Other less-than-essential student-facing departments should make sure students are able to reach someone in the department, if needed, via call forwarding or email.

Because Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve fall on Saturdays this year, eligible employees will receive floating holidays for both days. Christmas Day and New Year’s Day both fall on Sundays, and therefore the holidays are observed on Monday, December 26, and Monday, January 2, respectively. 

Below is an outline of how the floating holiday may be used: 

• An eligible employee may use floating legal holiday hours prior to the date on which the holiday occurs. 
• Floating legal holidays (for eligible employees) must be used by the end of the year in which it was granted.
• University staff must use the hours on or before December 31 of the calendar year granted.
• Academic, and Limited staff must use it on or before June 30 of the fiscal year granted.
• If the hours are not used by the end of the designated year, the hours are lost and cannot be carried into the following year (calendar or fiscal).

The full policy may be found here.

If you have any questions, please contact Human Resources at 262-595-2204 or Aaron at shanahaa@uwp.edu.