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University of Wisconsin-Madison
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Monday, March 2, 2009
UW employees seek domestic partner benefits By Melanie Teachout THE DAILY CARDINAL
Several students and university officials are stressing the need for UWMadison to join other Big Ten schools in providing domestic partner benefits to employees. Gov. Jim Doyle included domestic partner benefits in his proposal for the 2009-’11 budget cycle Feb. 17. Benefits would provide partners in Wisconsin the right to property inheritance, hospital visitation rights and health insurance, which would specifically affect UW-Madison employees. UW-Madison is currently the only university in the Big Ten that does not provide domestic partner health benefits to faculty and staff. The health benefit plan proposed in previous budget cycles was dropped each time by the Joint Finance Committee. In 2006, the Wisconsin Legislative Fiscal Bureau estimated the plan’s cost between $7.6 million and $15.2 million per year. According to Chris Daniels, founder of the coalition for the United Council of UW Students, the plan has been treated as an expendable bargaining chip and is an issue the university
has faced for a decade. “Every single program is examined and cuts are made across the board,” Daniels said. “When [people] say we should implement these benefits which are already a little controversial, and it costs a certain amount to implement them, [legislators] then use the budget deficit as an excuse to not implement it.” According to Steve Stern, vice provost for faculty and staff services, the absence of domestic partner health benefits caused UW-Madison faculty and employees to look for career opportunities elsewhere. According to Stern, a former physics and nanotechnology professor left UW-Madison in 2006 to teach at Pennsylvania State. His research and millions of dollars in grants were lost with his move. Stern said other professors left UW-Madison for universities including Cornell and New York University due do the lack of domestic health partner benefits in the UW System. “Not having the benefits hurts benefits page 3
LORENZO ZEMELLA/THE DAILY CARDINAL
LORENZO ZEMELLA/THE DAILY CARDINAL
Hundreds of UW-Madison students gathered at the Shell Friday night for the UW Dance Marathon. The event raised almost $57,000 for the American Family Children’s Hospital.
Students turn out to participate in first campus-wide Dance Marathon By Kelsey Gunderson THE DAILY CARDINAL
The Wisconsin Dance Marathon raised almost $57,000 for the American Family Children’s Hospital Friday and Saturday during the overnight dance marathon event at the Shell. The American Family Children’s Hospital, completed in August 2007, is a medical care facility specifically designed for children in Madison. Meghan Marostica, Dance Marathon executive chair, said the Wisconsin Dance Marathon has a specific fund in its name, and the money goes to the patients and family branch of the hospital. Organizers said they are pleased with the outcome of the event, which was the first dance marathon at UW-Madison. According to Marostica, UW-Madison set the
record among all Big Ten schools for the amount raised. “It was everything that we as an organization were hoping for and more,” Dance Marathon Public Relations Chair Ellen Vanden Branden said. “We laid a solid foundation for future dance marathons.” Registered dance teams, who raised $100 per team member before the event, participated for 12 hours beginning Friday night at 9 p.m. and ending at 9 a.m. Saturday morning. Guests who paid a fee at the door were allowed to visit with the participants for two hours and join in the entertainment. “We had great attendance,” Marostica said. “And a lot of people stayed the whole time.” Vanden Branden said participants did a great job staying awake and motivated.
“The campus group 80s Dance Zone, performed around 3:30 a.m. and really motivated people,” she said. “Also, our morale captain did a fabulous job keeping everyone energetic.” Adam Wallenfang, Dance Marathon Secretary, said though it was tough to stay focused during the marathon, it was rewarding to see the results of their hard work. “It was hard and grueling at times,” he said. “But it was so worth it at the end when we held up that final amount.” According to Vanden Branden, at the event’s peak, approximately 300 attendees were there, including volunteers, guests and team members. “It was unbelievable,” Marostica said. “It was almost flawless, and everyone had a great time.”
A private donation will bring back the late-night taxi stand located in front of Brothers bar. The stand plans to operate for the rest of the year.
Students receive tips on handling future financial issues
Taxi stand will open outside Brothers bar after a donation
By Grace Kim
By Abby Sears THE DAILY CARDINAL
A downtown taxi stand will be up and running again Friday night after securing money from a private donor to keep the stand operating for the rest of the year. The late-night weekend stand uses cabs from Madison Taxi, Badger Cab and Union Cab companies to pick up customers at a common meeting spot on the 600 block of University Avenue. Madison’s Alcohol Policy Coordinator Katherine Plominski
said the stand served as many as 700 riders per weekend when it began as a pilot program last April. Despite the initial success of the pilot, the taxi stand struggled to find financial support needed to continue operating. After a summer hiatus, the stand returned in late August with help from a $1,000 donation from Madison’s Central Business Improvement District, but was forced to shut down when the money ran taxi page 3
THE DAILY CARDINAL
Hundreds of students attended the annual Financial Independence Seminar Saturday to acquaint themselves with pertinent financial information. The seminar, held in Grainger Hall, consisted of lectures focusing on financial management after graduation, credit card debt, the current economic crisis and the economy’s impact on students’ futures. The seminar also provided an opportunity for students to schedule free personal financial consultations with financial experts. According to Wisconsin
School of Business lecturer Ron Smith, the goal of the seminar was to provide financial guidelines to students, especially those who are graduating in the next two years. “We know that [students] are smart as they can be, but they don’t really understand financial kinds of issues,” Smith said. “We are trying to help them so when they end up here they know how to get rid of their debts, how to start saving money and investing their money.” John Benjamin, vice president and portfolio manager of
Financial tips for students • Try to pay off debts right after graduation • Manage incoming cash flow • Develop a financial plan • Learn bookkeeping basics • Keep a financial journal • Operate under a budget
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“…the great state University of Wisconsin should ever encourage that continual and fearless sifting and winnowing by which alone the truth can be found.”