WSU student named to state college board
ST. PAUL, Minn., June 30, 2008 -- A Winona State University biology student, Allyson Lueneburg, has been appointed by Gov. Tim Pawlenty to the state college system governing board. Lueneburg will represent students from the six four-year institutions in the MnSCU system. Lueneberg's term that expires next June. She replaces another student representative, Michael Boulton, on the board.| MORE |
Gov. Pawlenty reappointed trustees Cheryl Dickson, who is president of the Minnesota Humanities Commission; Clarence Hightower, until recently president of the Minneapolis Urban League; and David Paskach, who owns Pasko Investments.
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Other new appointees, besides Lueneburg, are Jacob Englund, a student senator at Normandale Community College; Louise Sundin, former president of the Minneapolis Federation of Teachers; and Terri Thomas, student vice president Rochester Community and Technical College.
Bad smoke detector at Maria draws firefighters
WINONA, Minn., June 30, 2008 -- Firefighters who responded to a smoke alarm at the Maria dorm of Winona State University at 9:08 p.m. determined that the alarm had malfunctioned. A new battery was placed in the unit, but it would not work.| WSU SECURITY REPORT JUNE 30, 2008 Firefighters responded to an alarm in Prentiss-Lucas dorm at 4:04 p.m. A burning belt began smoking and set off the alarm. A trouble alarm went off in Wabasha Hall at 7:53 a.m. An electrician was notified. A faulty smoke detector went off in the Maria dorm t 9:05 p.m. No fire or smoke. |
R.I.P.: Leonard Engnar Sholing
CRAWFORD, Colo., June 30, 2008 -- A Winona State University grad, Leonard Sholing, a property developer in this Western Slope community, died in a two-car collision. He was 60. Sholing's degree was in industrial arts. For more than 30 years Sholing operated a construction company in St. Cloud, Minn.Surplus funds to club lockers, printer
WINONA, Minn., June 30, 2008 -- The Winona State University Student Senate summer leadership used $5,500 in left-over fiscal 2008 funds to buy lockers for student clubs and a computer printer. David Obray, student president, said that a email check with senators, most of whom are away for the summer, was a "resounding "go-ahead" for the purchases. Twenty-four lockers for will go in the Kryzsko Commons office for clubs, Obray said. When fall semester begins, the Alliance of Student Organizations will assign the lockers, he said. The new printer, Obray said, will be the first in Kryzsko with double-side printing capability. Noting that double-side printing can conserve paper, Obray said: "We felt that it was time for Senate to promote responsible printing practices." The printer will be networked so all students will have access, he said.Background: $5,500 question: Spend it or lose it
Fired scientist wins anthrax terror settlement
WASHINGTON, June 29, 2008 -- A former Army biodefense researcher, Steven Hatfield, fingered by the U.S. Justice Department as a "person of interest" in a 2001 anthrax scare, has settled his lawsuit against the government for $4.6 million. Hatfield claimed the allegations, which were never proven, ruined his career. He was fired as associate director at Louisiana State University's National Center for Biomedical Research and Training.| WSU SECURITY REPORT JUNE 29, 2008 Firefighters responded to an alarm in the Lourdes form at 4:13 p.m. Apparently someone cooking in the kitchen set the alarm off. No fire. |
Former Alabama college director guilty in $1.5 million thefts
TUSCALOOSA, Ala., June 29, 2008 -- A former director of the Alabama Fire College was found guilty of using his position to steal more than $1.5 million. Prosecutors argued that W.L. Langston, 66, had used the money to build himself a home and to employ relatives in nonexistent jobs. The federal jury returned verdicts of guilty on 36 felony counts. Langston's sentence could be 20 years. The trial was the latest installment in Alabama higher-ed scandals. At Langston's trial, the former chancellor of state's two-year colleges, Roy Johnson, testified that he and Langston had a pact to "look after" each other's children and even give them fictional campus jobs. In January, Johnson agreed to plead guilty to numerous counts of conspiracy, money laundering, and bribery.R.I.P.: Albert E. King Jr.
WINONA, Minn., June 28, 2008 -- A retired Winona Vocational and TEchnical School instructor, Albert King, died at home at age 92. He was a Winona State College alum and also attended the University of Minnesota. King retired from Tech in 1981. He was on the faculty 22 years. He had served as president of the Cotter High School Home School Association.| WSU SECURITY REPORT JUNE 28, 2008 A drunk was reported lying near the Phelps classroom building at 4:15 a.m. Security guards, who identified the person as a non-student, sent him on his way. |
Mystery fire alarm sounds ay Lores
WINONA, Minn., June 28, 2008 -- A kitchen fire alarm sounded at the Lourdes dorm of Winona State Unversity at 3:15 p.m. Firefighters could not determine what set off the alarm.| COURT CONVICTONS WEEK ENDING JUNE 28, 2008 IN WINONA COUNTY DISTRICT COURT UNDERAGE BOOZING David A. Wilwert, 20, 573 W. Broadway, $177.
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Can't hold it forever, occifer
WINONA, Minn., June 27, 2008 -- Police ticketed a 21-year-old Winona State University student for public urination. An officer said the man, apparently wandering home from the bars, was peeing on the street near Howard and Lafayette at 11:50 p.m.| WSU SECURITY REPORT JUNE 27, 2008 A trouble alarm went off in the Sheehan dorm. The building was checked. An electrician was notified. |
Study: Teacher prep programs' lag with math
WASHINGTON, June 26, 2008 -- College teacher-training programs are failing to prepare teachers to teach elementary and middle-school math, according to report from the National Council on Teacher Quality. The Council based its report on a study the curriculums, textbooks and assessment methods at 77 undergrad programs. Most programs, the Council said, have low standards of math knowledge required for entry and graduation.Noon prayers at Naval academy under fire
ANNAPOLIS, Md., June 25, 2008 -- A tradition that all Naval Academy midshipmen attend prayers at noon meals has been challenged as unconstitutional by the American Civil Liberties Union. In a complaint to the academy commander, the Maryland ACLU chapter said that the requirement academy's practice violates students' religious freedom and rights of conscience.| WSU SECURITY REPORT JUNE 25, 2008 A complaint that marijuana could be detected in a Conway dorm hallway was investigated. None was found. A 911 hang up call was reported at the facilities building at 9:57 p.m. Everything was found to be OK. Security responded to an alarm went off at the East Lake dorm at 8:27 p.m. A power outage of the Winona East side was blamed Several Winona State University signs were taken from the Garvin Heights lookout. Police were notified. |
WSU alumni chief candidates drops out
WINONA, Minn., June 24, 2008 -- One of the finalists for the alumni director job at Winona State, Amber Evans-Dailey, has withdrawn, search committee Chair JaNell Scott said. Dailey, who holds a grad degree from Winona State, currently is chief recruiter at the University of Minnesota-Crookston. Scott issued this revised schedule for on-campus forums Thursday for the remaining candidates:Christine Humble: 2 p.m., Somsen 110 (Winona) and ST116 via video hookup (Rochester).
Mike Swenson: 3 p.m., Somsen 110 (Winona) and ST116 via video hookup (Rochester).
| WSU SECURITY REPORT JUNE 24, 2008 A trouble alarm went off in the Prentiss-Lucas dorm at 11:40 a.m., apparently a malfunction. |
Illinois survey ranks community colleges high
CHAMPAIGN, Ill., June 24, 2008 -- A survey has found that Illinois residents think better s of their local community colleges than of four-year institutions statewide. Eighteen percent of those surveyed said community college do an "excellent" job. Eleven percent said the same of four-year colleges . The survey, by the Institute of Government and Public Affairs at the University of Illinois, was of a pool of 1,143 people. The survey also found that while 72 percent of respondents strongly believe that any qualified student in the state should be able to go to college. At the same time, o only one-third strongly believe that every student who is motivated actually has the opportunity. Only 8 percent strongly believe that college students are getting their money's worth.Admissions-cheating site fined $2.3 million
RICHMOND, Va,, June 23, 208 -- A federal court awarded the Graduate Management Admission Council, which administers business school entrance exams, $2.3 million in a copyright-infringement lawsuit against a web site that posted real questions and unauthorized study materials. The judge gave the Council control of the ScoreTop.com site. The Council said it would examine the site's hard drive and notify business schools of the site's customers. Also, the scores of the students will b canceled.WSU alumni job search narrows to three
WINONA, Minn., June 23, 2008 -- Three Winona State grads have been scheduled for on-campus interviews for director of university alumni, search chair JaNell Scott said. The position has been open since November. Te candidates' thumbnail bios:Amber Evans-Dailey. Currently admissions director at the University of Minnesota-Crookston. Earlier assistant admissions director and student recruiter at Winona State. Bachelor's in public administration from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse.master's in educational leadership from Winona State ; and doctorate in higher-ed administration from the University of Minnesota.Open forum: 3 p.m., Thursday, June 26; Somsen 110 (Winona) and ST116 via video hookup (Rochester).
Christine Humble. Currently enrollment services director at Southeast Tech. Earlier a student recruiter and off-campus housing coordinator nat Winona State. Bachelor's in school and community health from Winona State. Open forum: 2 p.m., Thursday, June 26, Somsen 110 (Winona) and ST116 via video hookup (Rochester).
Michael Swenson. Currently interim director of alumni relations at Winona State. Earlier associate alumni director, major gifts director and admissions counselor. Bachelor's degree in business and master's in educational leadership from Winona State. Open forum: 4 p.m., Thursday, June 26; Somsen 110 (winona) and ST116 via video hookup (Rochester).
| WSU SECURITY REPORT JUNE 23, 2008 Firefighters responded to an active fire alarm at Wabasha Hall at 11:45 a.m., a false alarm. Firefighters responded to a fire alarm at the John Nett Center at 7:29 a.m., apparently a false alarm. |
University returns donation from swindler's
MURFREESBORO, Tenn., June 23, 2008 -- Middle Tennessee State University will pay $570,000 to the estate of a crook who had given from the university the money from swindling proceeds. The university announced its decision while the courts are unraveling the dealings of Bob McLean, who committed suicide last fall. It is thought that McLean, a former stockbroker, had taken in $67 million in criminal wrong-doing. I n all,he gave nearly $1 million to the university. Other charities were also beneficiaries.Revelers heist parade street barricade
WINONA, Minn., June 21, 2008 -- Four drunk hooligans from neighboring Fillmore County stole a portable street barricade used for the Steamboat Days parade at King and Center streets, police said. The foursome took the barricade to an apartment in West Ninth, where police caught them at 11:58 p.m. The hooligans, all men, age 19 and 20, from Chatfield and Wykoff, Minn., were issued underage boozing citations.Laptop theft jeopardizes Stanford data
PALO ALTO, Calif., June 20, 2008 -- A Stanford University laptop with personal data on 72,000 current and former employees has been stolen. The university has begun informing the employees how to safeguard their identities. A university vice president, Randy Livingston, believes the thief was after the machine itself, not the data.Southern Miss coaches win discrimination suit
Miss., June 20, 2008 -- A state jury awarded almost $1.2 million to three former soccer coaches at the University of Southern Mississippi, all men, in a sexual discrimination case One coach said a university official had made "sexual advances" toward him and then sought to fire him after he refused. Another coach said a university official had traveled with the team to fish for allegations from his student-athletes.Art pieces from campus theft located
VANCOUVER, B.C., June 20, 2008 -- Some of the art stolen from a University of British Columbia's museum has been recovered at a house in a suburb. The items were reported intact. Meanwhile, it w=has been learned that the museum security staff shut down two cameras after a caller, supposedly from the alarm company, called that there was a malfunction and to ignore any alarms. The thieves then broke in while the guard on duty was taking a break. A backup camera caught some shadowy figures, but the footage was not clear.| WSU SECURITY REPORT JUNE 20, 2008 Electricians working on the system triggered an alarm at Kryzsko Commons at 7:15 a.m. Someone reported smelling marijuana in the Conway dorm at 1 p.m. A janitor reported possibly hearing someone inside the science building at 10:10 p.m.. Security guards were unable to locate anyone. |
| COURT CONVICTIONS WEEK ENDING JUNE 21, 2008 IN WINONA COUNTY DISTRICT COURT UNDERAGE BOOZING Timothy M. Lovas, 19, La Crosse, Wis., 90 days.
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New technology chief named at WSU
WINONA, Minn., June 20, 2008 -- A technology manager at Indiana State University, Ken Janz, has been appointed chief technology officer at Winona State University. Janz' responsibilities make him an associate vice president. Janz has been at Indiana State, enrollment 12,000, for 10 years. Since 2003 he has been director of the Center of Instruction, Research and Technology at Indiana State Janz holds an Indiana State doctorate in higher-ed administration. He also holds a master's in higher-ed administration from North Dakota State. In his current role at Indiana State he he works at integrating technology with academics. Janz has authored and managed more than $8 million in awarded grants and contracts at Indiana State.| MORE |
Winona State President Judith Ramaley, who announced the appointment, noted Janz' "significant experience with diversifying revenue streams and developing and enhancing institutional technology and professional development programs."
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At Winona State, Janz succeeds Dave Gresham, who will continue in the information technology office and report to Janz. Ramaley went out of her way to praise Gresham for dedication and enthusiasm. Gresham had served three years in the post, moving up from the ranks after Ramaley fired technology Vice President Joe Whetstone in her first six weeks as president. She then dow downgraded the position to an associate vice presidency reporting to the academic vice president. It was not clear why Ramaley announced the Janz appointment, 9nstead of academic Vice President Sally Johnstone.
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Of the vice presidents that Ramaley inherited in 2005 from Darrell Krueger, when he retired as university president, only Jim Schmidt in fund-raising and public relations remains. Departed: Steve Richardson, academic affairs, a position now held by Sally Johnstone;; Tess Kruger, administrative affairs, a position now held Kurtis Lohide; Cal Winbush, student affairs, a position now held by Connie Gores; and Joe Whetstone, technology.
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As technology officer, Janz begins Aug. 4.
Background: Three in running for WSU tech chief
Survey: Clean campus linked to good grades
ALEXANDRIA, Va., June 19, 2008 -- A nationwide survey has found a connection between a clean college environment and good grades. Eighty-eight percent of students are distracted from learning in even casually or moderately messy environments, according to the Association of Physical Plant Administrators and the International Sanitary Supply Association. The poll sample was 1,481 students. The survey sponsors said the lesson from the survey is that cleanliness dependent on maintaining the size of janitorial staffs: "In this day and age, when services are cut in order to save dollars, this study shows that cutting cleaning services could have a detrimental impact on our primary customers, the students,"| WSU SECURITY REPORT JUNE 19, 2008 Firefighters responded to a fire alarm a Wabasha Hall at 2:45 p.m. A worker was sawing had set off the alarm. |
Cop averts smashup; finds boozed-up driver
WINONA, Minn., JUne 19, 2008 -- A Jeep driver who pulled out in front of a police patrol car near Third and Market streets is facing underage boozing and marijuana-related charges. An officers said he screeched to a halt to avoid hitting the Jeep about 1 a.m. A field sobriety test found the driver's blood was 0.09 percent alcohol, police said. The allowable max is 0.08 max. Also, a marijuana pipe was found aboard, police said.Court limits bosses' e-snooping
SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., June 18, 2008 -- Employers who snoop wantonly into workers' e-mails are violating employee privacy rights unless the messages are stored on an employer-controlled server, a federal appeals court ruled. The ruling, breaking new ground on online issues, seems to mean that employee e-messages sent through outsider servers cannot be accessed by employers, even if the server is contracted by the employer. The Electronic Frontier Foundation, which advocates civil liberties, called the ruling a "tremendous victory." The foundation said the ruling applies the Fourth Amendment to employee communications online just as as it does to packages and letters. The Fourth Amendment protects citizens from unreasonable search and seizure.| MORE |
There were, however, less than enthusiastic interpretations of the ruling. The judge who wrote the ruling for a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Kim Wordllaw, was cautious about the extent of Fourth Amendment protection. It is "an open question," Wordlaw said. Dimitrios Rinos, an attorney for the city of Ontario, Calif., the defendant in the suit, said he expects to appeal the ruling. Even so, the ruling, although directly applicably only in western states within the 9th Circuit, is expected to be a beacon in virgin constitutional territory.
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The case originated from a lawsuit by Ontario police officers who sued after the city's server provider, Arch Wireless, turned over officers' messages to their supervisors. The supervisors said they were monitoring the messages to determine whether department-issued pagers were being used solely for work purposes. About the ruling, Arch attorney John Horowitz now expects service providers to be "a little leery" about providing anything to the subscribers.
| WSU SECURITY REPORT JUNE 18, 2008 Firefighters responded to a fire alarm the John Nett Center on at 8:48 p.m. Nothing found. During a recruiting presentation for prospective students in the Stark nursing and engineering building, a member in the audience was slightly injured when her chair broke. A carpet-layer in the Sheehan dorm cut himself and went to the hospital at 3 p.m. A complaint was received about noise outside the Prentiss-Lucas dorm at 12:45 a.m. Security guards were unable to locate anything. |
WSU education major new Miss Winona
WINONA, Minn., June 17, 2008 -- A Winona State University sophomore who aspires to be a teacher, Danielle Tamke of Arcadia, Wis., was crowned Miss Winona in the 63rd annual pageant. Tamke, 19, will represent Winona in the Miss Minnesota pageant.| WSU SECURITY REPORT JUNE 16, 2008 Firefighters responded to a fire alarm at Wabasha Hall at 7:51 a.m., a false alarm. |
City picks Wapasha for field upgrade
WINONA Minn., June 16, 2008 -- The City Council unanimously approved a $454,000 contract for improvements to Bambenek softball field No. 1, where Winona State University plays varsity games to Wapasha Construction. Renovations include new bleachers and scoreboard.Background: City, WSU split softball upgrade costs
16 buildings flooded at Iowa
IOWA CITY, Iowa, June 16, 2008 -- The swollen Iowa River flooded more than a dozen buildings at the University of Iowa and more remained in jeopardy. The good news from the weekend was that thousands of volunteers successfully moved special-collection books and paintings from a library basement to a second floor. Meanwhile, the river that cuts through campus, continued rising against hastily piled sandbag barriers. Much of campus was already flooded by up to four feet of water. Flooding forced a shut-down of the campus electrical and steam plant early Saturday. The only power from emergency generators.| MORE |
Among hard-hit buildings the new $22 million Art Building West, a striking structure into which water poured. Only the top half of an adjacent art building was above water. Also flooded were a dorm, student union, and the Iowa architecturally distinctive Advanced Technology Laboratories.
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Summer classes and freshman orientation have been canceled, resuming June 23, at the soonest. All but essential workers have been told to stay home until further notified.
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The river crested at 31.5 feet Sunday afternoon, 1-1/2 times higher than the 22-foot flood stage. Hydrologists said it could be at least a week before the river level drops because water from a swollen upstream reservoir will need to be drained gradually.
ASSESSING STUDENT HEALTH
 | Three Winona State University students presented research, assessing college health, at the annual meeting of the American College Health Association in Orlando, Fla. Their project title: "Health Promotion Needs Assessment for a Combined Community and Technical College and Four-Year College Satellite Campus." The students: Jessica Brickner, Katie Speckan, Laura Congdon |
Flooding disrupts Cedar Rapids campus life
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa, June 15, 2008 -- Because Mount Mercy College sits on a hill, the campus escaped the flooding that submerged downtown buildings when Cedar River burst out its banks. The college canceled classes so its 100 staff and profs could help as needed to serve food, clean rooms and otherwise run the campus. The campus served as a staging area for Air and Army National Guard members called up for rescue and recovery. About 400 National Guard members were housed on the campus. Across town, Coe College closed because of a power outage. About 50 students and staff members were relocated to Cornell College in Mount Vernon.Multiple charges follow hit-run
WINONA, Minn., June 15, 2008 -- Police responded to a witness' call at 12:39 a.m. that a black pickup truck had hit a parked car near Fifth and Harriet streets and that the driver kept going. Police spotted the truck near Wabasha and Wilson streets. The driver fled on foot, but the cops gave chase. When stopped, the 24-year-old man explained he was drunk, which a field sobriety test confirmed. His blood was 0.16 percent alcohol, twice the allowable max for driving. The man was also cited for drunken driving and leaving an accident -- and marijuana possession Police said they found pot in the cab of the truck.Drake other Des Moines campuses spared
DES MOINES, Iowa, June 14, 2008 -- Even though much of Des Moines was flooded, Drake University was not directly affected. Classes and also orientations for new students were proceeding as scheduled. Grand View College and Des Moines Area Community College also operated as usual.| WSU SECURITY REPORT JUNE 14, 2008 Several juveniles attempting to climb the fence at the football stadium at 8:49 p.m. They were told to leave. An alarm went off in Kryzsko Commons at 7:10 a.m. An electrician was notified. |
WSU dean's goals: Collaborative projects
WINONA, Minn., June 14, 2008 -- The new interim liberal arts dean at Winona State University, Peter Henderson, would like to see a more engaged community, in which faculty and students interact. Henderson points to the university's Common Book project, which originated in the liberal arts college. The project, now in its second year, builds courses, projects and activities around a core work. This coming year the book is "The Blue Death." in which environmental epidemiologist Robert Morris examines water-borne pathogens. Not only will campus people learn about the usage from "Blue Death" but also students and faculty will become more involved with one another, said Henderson.
The book ties into another campus project, "Our Fountain, Our Water," which is directed by prof Joan Francioni. The project, said Francioni, is to deepen understandings of issues related to water quality, conservation and ownership.
In a wide-ranging interview about the deanship, Henderson said that as a professor he will miss the interaction with his students this coming year. He admitted to having a predilection of being a professor rather than a dean. His year as interim dean, which begins June 1, means he won't be teaching history. Henderson knows the new job. He was dean for five years previous to Troy Paino, who has been named vice provost at Truman State University in Kirksville, Mo.
Henderson said his agenda is dan includes preparation for the university's major accrediting review, which occurs every 10 years. Without accreditation, federal financial aid for students could be in jeopardy, among other problems, Henderson said. He noted that the review is separate from accreditation visits for individual programs, like teaching and nursing. The university as a whole must also be accredited, he said. The goal of accreditation is to ensure that the education provided by institutions of higher education meets acceptable levels of quality, he said. |  PETER HENDERSON Interim liberal arts dean |
Reporter: Alicia Werdel
Background: Former dean back heading WSU liberal arts
Background: "Blue Death" to stir talk on water
Lots of issues: Speeding, boozing, puffing
WINONA, Minn., June 14, 2008 -- A 23-year-old motorist, whom police stopped for speeding at 4 a.m. near Mark and Baker streets, has more than a speeding ticket to take to the judge. Police reported the man's blood-alcohol level at 0.14 percent, almost double the permissible level. Also, police said they found 2.8 grams of marijuana inside a plastic bag stashed in the center console. Too, police said, there was a glass pipe of a sort designed for smoking weed.Low profile for SMU memorial unveiling
WINONA, Minn., June 14, 2008 -- The public will not be invited, nor will peace peace demonstrators, when a memorial honoring war veterans is unveiled at St. Mary's University. The dedication will be for members of the campus community during the annual summer homecoming for alumni, said Bob Conover, the university's vice president for image. The ceremony will be private, Conover said. During construction in recent weeks a group of peace demonstrators, usually five to seven, have carried signs and read at the site.| MORE |
Plans for the memorial split the campus. The original design was scuttled after three years of debate. Critics said the design, with features for each of five military branches exalted the armed forces. The issue was mired in Catholic theology, with teachings that emphasize peace.
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The redesign is dominated by a clear slab of glass, poured in Louisiana and trucked three weeks ago to the Terrace Heights campus. Art prof Preston Lawing has etched an olive branch into the glass with the words "Peace through Service." Five pedestals include a list of St. Mary;s alums from World War II. During the war St. Mary's was home to a V-12 Navy officer training program, Thirty-two alums died in the war.
Background: Judge to war protester: Guilty
Background: Memorial to carry peace theme
WSU to seek interim nursing dean
WINONA, Minn., June 13, 2008 -- An internal candidate will be sought to fill in as Winona State nursing dean this coming year, the president of the university, Judith Ramaley, said. The position is being vacated by Tim Gaspar, who has accepted a deanship at the University of Toledo. Ramaley said a national search for a successor will begin in the fall for appointment for the Fall 2009 semester. About Gaspar's departure, which was announced June 2, in Toledo, Ramaley acknowledged his years of service. Ramaley said she was proud of Gaspar's accomplishments. She noted that Gaspar's career in academic nursing has spanned almost 30 years. He has been at Winona State since 1995.
Gaspar's departure marks a complete turnover of deans at Winona State since Ramaley became president three years ago. The university's five colleges each have a dean -- business, education, liberal arts, nursing and sciences. |  TIM GASPAR Departing WSU nursing dean |
Background: Ohio nursing college taps WSU dean
| COURT CONVICTONS WEEK ENDING JUNE 13, 2008 IN WINONA COUNTY DISTRICT COURT UNDERAGE BOOZING Patrick R. Davies, 20, 729-1/2 E. Fourth $177. |
WSU gymnast to all-America team
| NOTRE DAME, Ind., June 13, 2008 -- A junior gymnast at Winona State University, Alexandra Nugent, has been named to ESPN magazine's at-large academic all-America second team. Selections were by the national sports publicists organization. At the national championships Nugent was named to the all-America team for both the vault and balance beam and to the second team in the floor exercise and all-around gymnast categories. |  ALEXANDRA NUGENT Vault, balance beam competitor |
R.I.P.: Susan Marie Martin
WINONA, Minn., June 13, 2008 -- A Winona Area Vocational Technical College grad, Susan Martin,, died at age 50 at a Rochester, Minn., hospital. She had two Tech degrees, in microcomputers and in electronics. She had worked most recently Winona Pattern & Mold. She was a transplant recipient in 1999 and upon her death an organ donor.| WSU SECURITY REPORT JUNE 13, 2008 A trouble alarm went off in the Maria dorm at 1:57 p.m. An electrician was called. |
Burglar found under bed to plead guilty
WINONA, Minn., June 12, 2008 -- A Winona man caught hiding under a bed in an apartment he burglarized in January pleaded guilty. The original charges of first-degree and second-degree burglary against Brent James Ingham, 28, were reduced to third-degree burglary in exchange for his plea. Ingham is scheduled to be sentenced July 24. He is expected to be sentenced to probation because of his lack of a criminal history.| MORE |
Ingham admitted to entering the apartment in the 200 block of East Sanborn Street Jan. 4 to steal items to sell for drug money. Since then he has completed alcohol abuse treatment. Police, responding to a break-in at an apartment, found Ingham hiding under a bed. In a neary laundry basket was the loot -- a cell phone, a camera, $26 in quarters, strawberry-flavored liquor, prescription medications, a butterfly wind chime,DVDs, and a bunny Christmas tree ornament, police said.
Background: Felony charges in WSU-area burglary
High bridge to reopen, kinda, sorta
WINONA, Minn., June 12, 2008 -- The span over the Mississippi River at Winona, the only highway connection with Wisconsin in a 60-mile river stretch, will reopen Saturday -- even as engineers consider how to remedy rusting sections that forced a closure 10 days earlier. Traffic will be limited to cars and light trucks and at times be only one lane to make room for repair work. The state transportation department announced the reopening after engineers calculated the weakened bridge's load-carrying capacity.| MORE |
The bridge, now 67 years old, will be patched together with eight to 16 reinforced gusset plates in coming weeks even as traffic moves across the high span. It was rusted gussets that led to the closing.
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The bridge will remain closed for the time being to pedestrians and bicyclists because of the crumbling sidewalk alongside the right-of-way.
Background: Columnist: T-Paw chose safe flight plan
Court leaves college liable in dorm murder
SPRINGFIELD, Ill., June 12, 2008 -- The Illinois Supreme Court has declined to review a jury's award of $1 million to the family of a Knox College student who was bludgeoned to death in a dorm stairwell in 1998. The Supreme Court decision lets the award stand. The victim, Andrea Racibozynski, died after another student, Clyde Best, knocked her down a stairwell and beat her with a brick. Best is serving 60 years in prison. In a civil suit against the college Racibozynski's family claimed negligence for inadequate lighting and security in the stairwell. College attorneys countered that the murder could not have been prevented.Journalist back to teach WSU photo courses
WINONA, Minn., June 12, 2008 -- A former member of the Winona Daily News editorial board, Jim Bowey, who has been editor of the Dekalb, Ill., Daily Chronicle since May 2007, has been appointed to the Winona State University masscom faculty. Bowey begins teaching in August, mostly in photojournalism. Those course had been taught by Terry Schwarze, who has retired.| MORE |
Before Dekalb, where his staff covered the Northern Illinois massacre this winter, Bowey was photo editor at the Winona Daily News for three years. During that time Bowey taught part-time at Winona State. Before that Bowey spent 12 years as a photojournalist based in Chicago. He traveled nationally and internationally FPR stories as diverse as the war in Bosnia and the Hurricane Katrina aftermath.
Background: Terminal cancer chronicle wins award
Background: Upward, onward for News photo chief
| WSU SECURITY REPORT JUNE 12, 2008 A fire alarm went off in Wabasha Hall at 1:50 a.m., a false alarm A trouble fire alarm went off in e Lourdes dorm at 7:52 p.m., a false alarm. |
Tornado damages Kansas State; nuclear reactor OK
MANHATTAN, Kan., June 12, 2008 -- A tornado ravaged Kansas State University, damaging buildings and leaving downed power lines. A structure building that houses the university's nuclear research reactor was damaged, but the reactor was unaffected. Ironic as it might seem, the university's Wind Erosion Laboratory was flattened. Classes were cancelled, but registration and orientation wen on as scheduled for new students. Two people died elsewhere in Kansas for storms overnight. No one was injured at Kansas State, but campus damage was estimated at $20 million.WSU business due lead simulation
WINONA, Minn., June 11, 2008 -- Two Winona State University students, Mitch Clingman and David Dippmann were members of a team that won first place in an international business strategy competition in simulation. Clingman is studying business and Dippmann accounting. Their prof, Dan Sauers, was inducted into a Master professors hall of fame from simulation sponsor Glo-Bus Software. Also, a team with Winona State grad Marcus LaBadie came in second in a different category ranked ninth out of 64 teams.Columnist sees agency in cover-up mode
| WINONA, Minn., June 11, 2008 -- Anybody who heroizes the state Department of Transportation for closing the WInona bridge to protect public safety is letting the agency off too easy, wrote columnist Jim Galewski in the Winona Daily News. Galewski characterized the closing as a smoke screen for bureaucratic ineptness. "When a 60-year-old bridge is closed because of rust and corrosion, it means it wasn't maintained properly," Galewski said. "That lays the blame squarely on MnDOT's shoulders." |  JIM GALEWSKI Daily News columnist |
Background: Engineers ponder short-term fix possibilities
Canada examines Facebook privacy compliance
TORONTO, Ont., June 11, 208 -- The Canadian Privacy Commission, responding to complaints from law school students, has begun an investigation of whether Facebook has disclosed personal information to advertisers without the consent of individual Facebook users. The students, at the University of Ottawa, alleged 22 violations of a Canadian law that requires express consent to share a person's address, sexual preference, birth date and school. As Facebook is set up, users can protect such information only by specifically change their settings. Facebook's privacy officer, Chris Kelly, is dismissive of the complaint, saying it os loaded with serious factual errors.| WSU SECURITY REPORT JUNE 11, 2008 A trouble alarm went off in the Prentiss-Lucas dorm at 6:10 a.m. Maintenance workers were notified. |
Workshop goal: Help school kids succeed
WINONA, Minn., June 11, 2008 -- The president-elect of the American School Counselor Association, Jim Bierma, will discuss a wide range of public education issues, i including crisis counseling, at a workshop sponsored by the Winona State University special education department. Bierma's presentation is a part of a two-day workshop.Date: Tuesday, June 17, and Wednesday, June 18
Time: 7 p.m.
Place: Riverport Inn, 900 Bruski Drive
Cost: $75
Pre-registration: RecommendedContact: WSU Counselor Ed Department at 800-242-8978
Columnist: T-Paw chose safe flight plan
WINONA, Minn., June 11, 2008 -- The irony of Gov. Tim Pawlenty flying down to Houston County to see the latest flood ravages for himself and sideslipping Winona, which has its own disaster with the closing of the Mississippi river bridge, was not lost on Winona Daily News columnist Jerome Christenson. Noting that Pawlenty has been blamed for starving the highway department of funds and the collapse of an I-35W Minneapolis bridge, which took 13 lives, and now the closing of three other crumbling bridges, including Winona's, Christenson noted that it was politically safe for Pawlenty to visit Houston County. "Nobody's going to stand up and blame the governor for a flood," he wrote. "A closed--down, rusted-out bridge might well be a different story."
Winona, Christenson pointed out, would have been a mere hopscotch skip away for Pawlenty. The counties border,. Christenson broached the issue of how the highway and bridge funding issue could affect the long-rumored vice presidential chances of T-Paw, as Christenson calls him, on the McCain presidential ticket. |
JEROME CHRISTENSON Commentator T-PAW AKA Gov. Tim Pawlenty |
Background: Engineers ponder short-term fix possibilities
College president fired after 11 years
POPLAR BLUFF, Mo,, June 10, 2008 -- The governing board of Three Rivers Community College has fired John Cooper as president, a year short of his announced retirement. The board issued no explanation. Cooper has been president since 1997.Engineers ponder short-term fix possibilities
WINONA, Minn., June 9, 2008 -- In a best-case scenario, short-term fixes to make the Mississippi River bridge safe enough to reopen could be completed within weeks, state highway engineer Nelrae Succio said. More long-term repairs could then be completed with the bridge carrying its usual traffic, Succio said. Engineers are working through possibilities, Succio said. The bridge, built in 1941, was barricaded June 3 after an inspector, checking the integrity of bridge components, pounded a hammer against one of the metal plates that hold he bridge together and the hammer went through the plate. Since Monday commuters have been ferried across the river on a Prairie du Chien, Wis.-based sightseeing boat.Background: WSU dorms open to stranded Wisconsinites
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RECENT DAYS IN THE CITY POSTED JUNE 10, 2008 ONE LESS USED-CAR LOT. Rochester-based used car dealer Keuhn Motors is closing its Winona shop after 15 years. Manager Dar Halvorson blamed the sagging economy. The Kuehn lot, at Highways 61 and 14, is for sale. The property includes the adjacent Tequila Mexican restaurant.
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Frosh to fill pitching vacancies
WINONA, Minn., June 9, 2008 -- The Winona State University baseball team, going into the new year shy of pitchers, has signed five high school pitchers for next season. including two from La Crosse, Wis. Among seven new players committed to play for the Warriors are Zack Rickaway of Aquinas High and Tony Mueller of Logan High in La Crosse. Said coach Kyle Poock: "We have filled our need to replace five seniors pitchers, who completed their eligibility." Poock said eh expects Winona State to be contention for conference and regional titles the next four years.| MORE |
The signees:
• Cole Brocker, of Kimberly, Wis., a right-handed pitcher who bats right.
• Tyler Payne, if Gays Mills, Wis., a right-handed pitcher who bats right. High school: Seneca.
• Andy Fagely, of Mahtomedi, Minn., a right-handed pitcher who bats right.
• Zack Rickaway of La Crosse, Wis., a first base player and a left-handed pitcher who bats left. High school: Aquinas.
• Evan Aber of Bloomington, Wis., a left-handed pitcher who bats left. High school: Kennedy.
• Tony Mueller of La Crosse, WIs., an outfielder who throws right and bats right. High school: Logan.
• Zach Carpenter, Crystal Lake, Ill., an outfielder who throws right and bats right. High school: South.
Reception for new SMU president
WINONA, Minn., June 9, 2008 -- The new president of St. Mary's University, William Mann, a Christian Brother who has served on the university's governing board, will be honored at a campus reception. Mann took office June 1, succeeding interim Presidency Louis DeThomasis, who continues as chancellor.Date: Wednesday, June 18Background: Former board member to presidency |  WILLIAM MANN In office since June 1 |
WSU dorms open to stranded Wisconsinites
WINONA, Minn., June 9, 2008 -- Winona State University has made campus housing available for Wisconsin people isolated by the Highway 43 bridge closure. The director of the Quad dorms, Xavier Wilson, said that rooms will be available to students, employees and members of the general population through Aug. 10.Contact: Xavier Wilson at 507-457-5495
Background: Bridge shut down; safety in question
| WSU SECURITY REPORT JUNE 9, 2008 Firefighters responded to a fire alarm sounded in Kryzsko Commons at 11:05 a.m., a false alarm. |
$5,500 question: Spend it or lose it
WINONA, Minn., June 9, 2008 -- The Winona State University Student Senate, although not in session for the summer, needs to vote on a surplus balance of $5,500 in its account or the money will be lost to a reserve fund, student President David Obray said. Obray asked senators to vote online to authorize the Senate Summer Consultation Committee to spend the money. Possibilities, he said, are a new computer for the Senate office and on-campus lockers for clubs. "To be sure, we are not looking to waste these funds," Obray said. "We are looking for items that need replacing." He asked senators for suggestions and promised "strict scrutiny" on purchases.
The Senate account has a balance of $7,000, of which $1,500 can be rolled over into next year's budget. The remaining $5,500 will go to what's called the "student life reserve" on June 20 unless it's spent.
Two years ago President Carl Soderberg, urged by Kryzsko Commons manager Joe Reed, spent leftover funds to buy a purple couch from Slumberland for the Senate office. Everybody thought the couch was lovely, but when students realized that Soderberg had acted without consulting the Senate on the highly visible purchase, the Warrior Purple couch became a laughing stock issue. Soderberg never recovered politically. |  DAVID OBRAY Seeks Senate OK to use surplus |
Warrior grad joins Arena League club
| PEORIA, Ill., June 8, 2008 -- A former Winona State University running back, Alex Wiese of LaCrescent, Minn., has signed to play with the Peoria Pirates of the Arena Football League 2. Last year in his final Winona State season Wiese rushed for 1,458 and scored 18 touchdowns. The Peoria Pirates are members of the Midwest Division of the American Conference. |  AEX WIESE Now with Peoria |
Scandal-scarred West Virginia president quits
MORGANTOWN, W.Va., June 8, 2008 -- Rocked by a scandal of a fraudulent degree to the daughter of the governor, President Michael Garrison of West Virginia University is resigning, effective Sept. 1. Garrison has borne continuing criticism for what happened on his watch. "In the last several weeks, there has been far too much talk about this issue, and far too much talk about my own future at this university," Garrison said in a prepared statement. "After careful reflection I have determined I am the one person who is uniquely situated to stop this dialogue."
The scandal followed a revelation in November in the Pittsburgh, Pa., Post-Gazette that the university had conferred an unearned master's degree on the daughter of the state's governor. The daughter, Heather Bresch, was a friend of Garrison and worked for a pharmaceutical company that was a major donor to the university. Two of Garrison's administrators resigned this spring, but Garrison, who is well-connected politically, stayed on. From 2001 to 2003, he was chief of staff to the governor at the time, then became one of the state's most powerful lobbyists. Although sparse with academic credentials, Garrison was appointed president of the university a year ago April.
Garrison has been steadfast that he had no role in Heather Bresch's executive M.B.A. His connections with her, however, gave continuing fuel to critics. Garrison had worked directly with Bresch when he was a lobbyist for Mylan, the pharmaceutical company at which she was an executive. Telephone records show that on the day that the Post-Gazette began inquiring about her degree, Bresch called Garrison again and again.
This spring, the scandal not diminishing, the Faculty Senate voted 77-19 for Garrison to resign, then the faculty as a whole did so 565-39. Last week a group from the university's Academy of Distinguished Alumni sent an open letter calling for Garrison to resign. Also last week, the law school faculty did the same. |  MICHAEL GARRISON Bids to end controversy |
Background: West Virginia profs reaffirm ouster demand
WSU players to play Olympic squad
STEVENS POINT, Wis., June 8, 2008 -- Winona State University players Amanda Wilhelm and Katie Maultra have been selected to play as part of of the Wisconsin College All-Stars.against the the United States Olympic national softball team June 17 in Stevens Point. Wilhelm and Maultra will be joined with Chelsey Rosenow, who finished her collegiate career this spring at Winona State. The game is part of the Olympic team as part of its Bound 4 Beijing Tour that will lead up to the Summer Olympics.| WSU SECURITY REPORT JUNE 8, 2008 A tenant at the East Lake dorm reported at 2:03 a.m. that she invited three man back to her apartment and that after they left noticed that her computer was missing. The woman did not identify the men. Police were notified. A trouble alarm went off at Wabasha Hall at 5:49 a.m.. An engineer was calleed. A trouble alarm went off at Somsen Hall at 1:01 a.m. Maintenance was notified. A fire alarm went off at Wabasha Hall at 10:07 a.m., a false alarm. |
Boy-actors rehearsing Bard music
| WINONA, Minn., June 8, 2008 -- Three 13-year-old Winona lads playing servants in "The Merchant of Venice" in the Great River Shakespeare Festival are getting down the original music for the production. Orion McCullough-Smith told reporter Kari Knutson of the Winona Daily News that the trio was horrible to begin with. Now, after a moth of rehearsal, said it's "a lot better." McCulloch-Smith and Chris Bernard and Mitchell Essar are working with composer Dan Kallman Northfield, Minn. Background: Shakespeare props coming along |  "Taming of the Shrew" June 27 through July 27 Performing Arts Center Winona State University |
Overdose blamed for student death at prof's home
PHOENIX, Ariz., June 8, 2008 -- A Paradise Valley Community College student found dead at a professor's house in April died from a cocaine overdose, am autopsy concluded. Andria Ziegler, 19,, died while visiting her psychology professor, Michael Todd, 51. Todd is be being dismissed from the faculty because of rules that romantic relationships with students. With the death ruled accidental, no criminal charges are expected.Background: Student dies after coma at prof's home
| NEWS
AND COMMENT WINONA MEDIA WATCH |
LAUDED FOR PUBLIC SERVICE
A Winona Daily News chronicle of the final months of a Fountain City, Wis,, woman, terminally ill with cancer, won the Minnesota Associated Press annual public service award. Judges called the series "absolutely captivating." The series, by Brian Voerding and Jim Bowey, was at the suggestion of the woman, Norene Oppeicht. Said the judges: "The storytelling put the readers in the shoes of the family and made us ask the important question: 'What would I do if I were in her shoes?'"
Democrats endorse Franken on first ballot
ROCHESTER, Minn., June 7, 2008 -- Minnesota Democrats formally endorsed comedian and author Al Franken for the U.S. Senate to take on one-term incumbent Norm Coleman, who himself once was a Democrat. Franken was endorsed by unanimous consent on a motion by his opponent, college prof Jack Nelson- Pallmeyer, after moving past the 60 percent majority on the first ballot. The next step for Franken is the state's Democratic senatorial primary election on Sept. 9. Minneapolis trial lawyer Mike Ciresi has talked of renewing his bid for the nomination in the primary.Background: Campaigns that campus people are watching
| COURT CONVICTONS WEEK ENDING JUNE 7, 2008 IN WINONA COUNTY DISTRICT COURT UNDERAGE BOOZING Jorge H. Rojas, 20, St. Charles, Minn., $177. Jenna M.Ihrke, 20, St. Charles, Minn., $177. Jack L. Sullivan, 18, Chicago, Ill., $277. |
| WSU SECURITY REPORT JUNE 77, 2008 A trouble alarm went off in the Sheehan dorm at 7 p.m. An electrician was contacted. |
Turkey court OKs head scarf ban
ISTANBUL, Turkey, June 6, 2008 -- On a 9-2 vote the highest court in Turkey has scotched a movement to permit religiously observant Muslim women to wear head scarves at universities. The court gave no explanation, except that it agreed with the argruments based on three articles of the Constitution that guarantee the secular nature of the Turkish republic. Head scarves have been forbidden as a religious display at universities at least since the 1980s, although some institutions have been more tolerant than others.Background Turkey moves reinforcing scarf ban
 | WINONA COLISEUM? |  |
ARTS COMUNITY STILL WARY
AT BEING LEFT OUT
WINONA, Minn., June 5, 2008 -- The summer Shakespeare festival needs significant space for pre-production work in the new multi-purpose coliseum that a partnership committee of Winona State University and the city are planning, said Jeff Stevenson, the festival's general manager. Stevenson said schedule conflicts at the campus theater have forced rehearsals into the showroom of the former Chrysler dealership at Fourth and Main streets. The Winona State theater which seats 400, is well-sized for the plays themselves, he said.
| MORE |
Stevenson told fellow members of a reconstituted coliseum planning committee that he has no problem with some spaces in the coliseum serving both theater, athletic and other needs. These, he said, could be entrances, parking and storage. Stevenson repeated long-standing concerns from the Winona arts community that a multi-use facility could squeeze out theater as a priority. Theater has unique needs, he said: "If you accommodate everyone with a single space, you end up accommodating no one." At worst, critics of the combined facility have opined for months, would be performing Shakespeare in a 4,000-seat basketball arena.
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Several committee members echoed Stevenson's concern. Said Margaret Johnson, the retired judge: "I'm afraid the arts people are never going to get a chance." Those concerns stem from what the arts people see as an under-the-table betrayal engineered by Winona State fundraiser Carl Miller to pre-empt their plans for s stand-along facility for the five-year-old summer Great River Shakespeare Festival and the more recent;y established Minnesota Beethoven Festival. Miller claims to have lined up deep-pocket donors who have promised to raise $5 million toward a coliseum that would accommodate conventions and trade shows, varsity athletic events and rock concerts, as well as Shakespeare and Beethoven performances. Those backers have never been publicly identified, but Miller brought Mayor Miller (no relation) into the broadened concept, In December, Mayor Miller made part of what had been going in behind closed doors public, then, with City Council consent, went to the Legislature to transfer a state pre-design budget from the theater-recital hall project to the larger endeavor.
| MORE |
City Manager Eric Sorensen tried again o assuage the concerns of the arts community, noting that a majority of 17 members of the planning committee represent the arts. New members of the committee include both basketball coach Mike Leaf and music prof Rich MacDonald. The committee has until December to lay out its ideas so an architect can begin pre-design. The Legislature has provided $250,000 for pre-design to get the revised and expanded $30 million project started.
Background: WSU basketball, music gain coliseum voice
Background: New planning group to be appointed
Background: Repurposed coliseum planning funds OK'd
Guilty plea entered in WSU-area burglary
WINONA, Minn., June 5, 2008 -- A man accused of helping burgle an apartment near Winona State University, Steven Edward Miller, 21, pleaded guilty in a plea-bargaining deal that, if approved by the judge, will put him in jail for 30 days. Miller also would need to make restitution for his share of $4,000 in loot. Miller was among three men charged with stealing two laptop computers, a flat-screen television receiver and an Xbox game station from an apartment in the 150 block of East King street on Oct 27. Police said the burglars gained access by cutting a screen out of a back window. Sentencing was scheduled or Aug. 7.| MORE |
A warrant has been issued for Gary Skaags, 20, who failed to show up in court as directed. Marius Lamont Weston, 27, is scheduled back in court June 18. Miller said his share of the take was a subwoofer.
Wisconsin tuition up 5.5%
MADISON, Wis., June 5, 2008 -- Regents of the University of Wisconsin system approved a 5.5 percent tuition increase, putting the core cost of college at at an additional $265 a year for undergrads at UW-La Crosse, UW-Eau Claire and nine other our-year campuses. UW-Madison undergrads face a stuffer increase, $350, and at UW-Milwaukee $340. About half of the increase is to cover free tuition for veterans, which had been ordered by the Legislature but not funded. Tuition at two-year campuses will remain frozen for a second year at $4,270.Background: WSU students to see 3% tuition rise
New name for WSU stadium again?
WINONA, Minn., June 5, 2008 -- The question for Winona State sports fans is whether the university can ever stay atop of the fast-changing world of corporate take-overs and mergers that are promising to keep painters busy at the football field. First, in 2004, it was Midwest Wireless Stadium, named for the Mankato, MInn.-based communications company that, that leased rights to name the stadium. The cost: $250,000 for 10 years. Within a year Midwest was acquired by Alltel, another wireless phone company. The stadium took on the new name, Alltel paying the painters to cover up the Midwest Cellular name, Now, pending government approval, Alltel will disappear from the corporate landscape and become part of Verizon Wireless.
The long-rumored Verizon-Alltel deal, announced Thursday, would create the largest cellular carrier in the nation. Who will pay the painters this time? For Verizon it would be small change. The company is paying $28.1 billion for Alltel, leapfrogging ahead of AT&T to become the largest U.S. cellphone carrier. Alltel had been the fifth largest. Background: WSU sets stadium grand-opening set Midwest Wireless not in Alltel deal WIll Maxwell heritage by subsumed? Ceremony marks Maxwell renaming Mankato firm jumped at chance |
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Bridge shut down; safety in question
WINONA, Minn. June 3, 2008 -- The Mississippi River bridge that connects Winona with Wisconsin has been blocked off because inspectors found rusty plates whose bolts hold the structure together. Affected are an estimate 2,800 people who commute daily, including Winona campus people who have chosen to live on the Wisconsin side of the river. The bridge, on the Highway 35 thoroughfare, also carries grain, poultry and other agricultural products, as well as Ashley furniture from western Wisconsin to Winona and points west.| MORE |
The bridge will be closed at least two weeks while engineers scramble for a solution, state Transportation Commissioner Tom Sorel said. Sorel called the closure precautionary. The rusty plates were found in a routine inspection, he said. The Minnesota transportation department is erring on the side of safety, Sorel said. It also was rusty plates that were a factor in the Interstate 35-W bridge collapse in Minneapolis that killed 12 motorists last spring.
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Commuters who rely on the Interstate Bridge at Winona have few alternatives, besides swimming the main shipping channel of the Mississippi. The river has bridges roughly every 30 miles, one upstream at Wabasha, Minn., and two downstream at La Crosse, Wis.
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The bridge was built 67 years ago. A routine inspection in 2007 found no problems, but the inspection was less thorough than the new check. The new inspection was among 23 ordered by Gov. Tim Pawlenty on instructions from the federal government after the I-35W collapse. Two other bridges, in St. Cloud and Duluth, have also been closed because of gusset plates.
Background: Bridge in replacement schedule
Steamboat Days event for WSU alums
WINONA, Minn., June 3, 2008 -- A gathering of Winona State University alumni, who number 4,000 in the Winona area, has been scheduled at Lake Park during the annual Steamboat Days celebration. The band Hodgepodge, with alums Steve Davern, Jason Fladager, TC Collins, Kurt Evinger and Bob Molitor will play, organizers said. The event also features musician Tony Brown.Date: Saturday, June 21
Time: 3 p.m.
Place: Steamboat Days beverage tent
Contact: Alumni Office at 507-457-5027
Obama wins delegates he needs
PIERRE, S.D.., June 3, 2008 -- South Dakota Democrats favored Sen, Hillary Clinton for the Democratic presidential nomination but enough of them voted for Sen. Barack Obama to give him the delegates he needs for the nomination. Obama this is the first black American to win a ballot spot for president from a major political party. The "coronation" will be in August at the Democratic coronation. At an exuberant rally in St. Paul, Minn., with 17,000 people inside and arena and a similar number outside, Obama praised Clinton as a highly motivated public servant who had campaigned tirelessly. Obama said Clinton and other Democratic contenders had made a strong field and also made him a better candidate as the months went on.| MORE |
In New York, Clinton told her own enthusiastic crowd that she will take a few days to assess her future. She did not concede for formally, although multiple sources said she is open to the vice presidential nomination. In New Orleans, presumptive Republican nominee John McCain said that Obama's campaign theme for change is hollow. The issue, said McCain, is good change vs. bad change. He said that he too is an agent of change but the good kind.
Background: Campaigns that campus people are watching
MCCAIN VS. OBAMA FOR PRESIDENT
WINONA, Minn., June 3, 2008 -- Important dates leading up to the November 2008 elections:
Aug. 25-28: Democratic national convention, Denver
Sept. 1-4: Republican national convention, St. Paul
Sept. 9: Local primaries to reduce races to two candidate
Nov. 4: The big day
| MORE |
Races that Winona campus people are watching:
U.S. PRESIDENCY
John McCain (Republican): Arizona senator
Barack Obama (Democrat): Illinois senator
| MORE |
U.S. SENATE
Minnesota
Norm Coleman (Republican): Has party nominatio for second term
Al Franken (Democrat): Former Air America host
Jack Nelson-Pallmeyer (Democrat): University of St. Thomas prof
U.S. HOUSE
District 1
Dick Day(Republican): State senator from Owatonna
Brian Davis (Republican): Mayo Clinic physician
Randy Demmer (Republican): State representative from Hayfield
Tim Walz (Democrat): Expected to seek second term
| MORE |
MINNESOTA HOUSE
District 28-B
Mostly Wabasha County
Steve Drazkowski, Wabasha (Republican): Has announced candidacy
Linda Pfeilsticker, Wabasha (Democrat): Has won paryy's district endorsement
Distict 31-A
Mostly Winona County
Gene Pelowski, Winona (Democrat): Expected to seek 12th term
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MAYOR
Jim Galewski: Retired newspaper editor says no
Jerry Miller (incumbent): Expected to seek re-election
Todd Ouellette: Former City Council candidate has expressed interest
CITY COUNCIL
1st Ward (Far West End)
Al Thurley (incumbent): Expected to seek re-election
CITY COUNCIL
3rd Ward (Central city, including WSU)
Deb Salyards (incumbent): Expected to seek second term
CITY COUNCIL
At-large
Debbie White (incumbent): Expected to seek second term
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COUNTY COMMISSION
2nd District
Dwayne Voegeli (incumbent): Expected to seek re-election
Wayne Valentine: Retired newscaster has considered running
COUNTY COMMISSION
3rd District (western townships, Altura, Elba, Rollingstone, St. Charles)
Rudie Spitzer: Has announced his candidacy
Jerry Heim (incumbent): Decided against seeking re-election
Mara Kaehler: Has announced her candidacy
Greg Kuehntopp: Has announced his candidacy
Steve Herrick: Has announced his candidacy
Bernie Siebenalrk: Has announced his candidacy
COUNTY COMMISSION
4th District (downtown, West End)
Dave Stoltman (incumbent): Has announced for re-election
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SCHOOL BOARD
Vicki Englich (incumbent): Expected to seek re-election
Kelly Herold (incumbent): Expected to seek re-election
Fred Peterson (incumbent): Expected to seek re-election
Background: Campaigns that campus people are watching
Ohio nursing college hires WSU dean
TOLEDO, Ohio, June 2, 2008 -- The nursing dean at Winona State University the past 13 years, Tim Gaspar, has been named nursing dean at the University of Toledo College of Nursing. Pending approval by the university's governing board, Gaspar will succeed Jeri Milstead, who retires this summer. The Toledo program has a full-time faculty of 30. At Winona State, Gaspar had headed a more comprehensive program, the College of Nursing and Health Sciences, which enrolls more than 1,200 students in nursing, athletic training, health promotion and exercise, and rehabilitative sciences.
The University of Toledo health sciences provost, Jeffrey Gold, to whom Gaspar will report, called Gaspar "an experienced nursing teacher, researcher and administrator who will be an an outstanding leader for the school as it educates future entry-level nurses, nurse educators, nurse researchers and nurse leaders."
Gaspar holds a 1977 bachelor's degree in nursing from South Dakota State University, a 1981 masters in nursing from the University of Nebraska Medical Center, and a 1990 doctorate in nursing from the University of Utah. He spent 11 years on the nursing faculties, including five years as department chair at South Dakota State. In July, Gaspar begins a two-year term on the governing board o of the American Association of Colleges of Nursing.
At Winona State, Gaspar worked with Metro State; Minnesota State-Mankato; and Minnesota State-Moorhead top develop a new doctor of nursing practice program to allow individuals with a master's degree in nursing to gain advanced clinical, organizational, economic and leadership competencies. Gaspar already has explored cooperative initiatives for the Toledo program with the university's pharmacy college and the health science and human service college. Said Gaspar: "I want to see the school develop new levels of partnerships with governmental, philanthropic and other agencies. I also want to capitalize on the internal synergies that exist with the University's other colleges."
Gaspar is co-principal investigator for the Center for Integrated Health Science Education and Practice, multi-campus collaborative partnership to improve health-care education and delivery across Minnesota. He also has been involved in the Minnesota Partnerships for Training program aimed at meeting the primary health-care needs in rural and urban areas through community-based nurse practitioner, certified nurse midwife and physician assistant programs.
Gaspar's wife Phyllis, an authority on gerontological nursing, is on the Winona State nursing faculty. | TIM GASPAR Departing WSU nursing dean |
Shakespeare briefings begin on WSU boat
WINONA, Minn., June 2, 2008 -- Two day-long programs tying into the Great River Shakespeare festival, both aboard the WInona State University launch River Explorer, have been scheduled. Organizers said the program includes a historical introduction to the context of William Shakespeare's plays, discussion with the director of the play, lunch with members of the acting company, ticket for the Front Porch Conversation series, behind the scenes with production staff, snacks, a ticket to the 4:30 p.m. matinee and conversation with the acting company following the performance. One program, July 13, is on "The Taming of the Shrew." The second, on July 20,is on "The Merchant of Venice."Date: Sunday, July 13, and Sunday, July 20
Place: Performing Arts Center
Cost: $8
Registration: Recommended in advance
Contact WSU Outreach Office at 507-474-2963
| WSU SECURITY REPORT JUNE 2, 2008 A fire alarm went off in Kryzsko Commons at 9:03 a.m. due to an employee error. Three trouble alarms went off at Wabasha Hall for no apparent reason. An electrician was called. |
Quiet demonstration greets Bush at Furman
GREENVILLE, S.C., June 1, 2008 -- Protests to the presence of President George Bush as commencement speaker at Furman University were silent. A few graduating seniors and profs wore white armbands as signs of protest. Several faculty members did not stand when Bush was introduced. About 14, standing behind their seated colleagues, wore white "We Object" T-shirts. The crowd, however, was loud in its applause when Bush arrived. His message, in an 18-minute address, was a call for the grads to adopt "a culture of responsibility" toward civic life, their families and themselves. Bush acknowledged that his policies have critics but said: "No criticism can overcome the satisfaction of serving your fellow citizens and pursuing great goals for your country."Background: Furman urged to require profs to attend
| NEWS
AND COMMENT WINONA MEDIA WATCH |
FROM WINONA RADIO
After decades of blighting the bluffs overlooking Winona with a beacon-studded radio transmission mast, the plans of KAGE owner Jerry Papenfuss to take it down the tower and move it to Wisconsin are indeed welcome. But wait one moment. There can be no enthusiasm for Papenfuss' plan to sell the blufftop land for upscale housing that will continue the visual blight and probably worsen it. Nor can there be enthusiasm for Mayor Jerry Miller's solution. The mayor wants the city to buy the land, letting Papenfuss pocket $500,000 for not selling the lots to a developer. The mayor's scheme has been likened, accurately, to a ransom payment.
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Is there