Campus Connection

• Alumnus Troy Richter earns UWL Academic Staff Excellence Award
• UWL ranked No. 4 among Midwestern public universities
• First-year student enrollment is highest in nearly three decades
• Library starting new fund, sets celebration
• Two free public lectures coming up in October

Academic staff honor UWL Alum Troy Richter [caption id="attachment_5838" align="alignleft" width="288"] Troy Richter earned a bachelor’s degree from UWL in 1989.[/caption] Troy Richter, ’89, UWL assistant director of Residence Life, received the 2016 Academic Staff Excellence Award during the annual Academic Staff Council Kickoff Meeting Monday, Sept. 19, at UWL. The UW-La Crosse Academic Staff Excellence Award is given to an academic staff member who has excelled in performance and service. Recipients are selected by a committee of peers. Richter, who earned a UWL bachelor’s degree in 1989, has held six positions on campus. Working directly with students gives him the most satisfaction, he says. “There’s a high energy level there and it’s rewarding to be a part of it,” says Richter. Read the full story on Troy Richter. ----- UWL ranked No. 4 among Midwestern public universities U.S. News & World Report’s 2017 America’s Best Colleges ranks UW-La Crosse as the state’s best and the No. 4 public university in its list of Best Regional Universities in the Midwest. It’s the 16th year in a row that UWL has remained the state’s top-ranked in the UW System and among the top 4 in the Midwest. Read more about the ranking. ----- First-year student enrollment is highest in nearly three decades UW-La Crosse has the largest group of new first-year students on campus in nearly three decades. The campus has 2,086 new first-year students this fall — the largest class since fall 1987. The total number of first-year students is up 1.6 percent from 2,054 in fall 2015. This is also the most diverse first-year freshman class, notes Corey Sjoquist, UWL director of admissions. U.S. students of color comprise 11.3 percent of the incoming first-year class, compared to 10.4 percent last year. Read more about UWL enrollment. ----- Library starting new fund, sets celebration The switch to more online publications doesn’t mean libraries are history. Actually, it’s the opposite. Academic libraries have transformed for several decades. While many collections are now digital, print remains, says UWL Murphy Library Director Catherine Lavallée-Welch. “The impetus, though, is to move from being a book warehouse to being a true and central academic hub on campus,” she explains. “Libraries are a central place on campus, serving all, where the atmosphere is conducive to learning and students are serious about working.” Libraries have transformed from silent spaces into environments where student-centered work of all types happens, says Lavallée-Welch. “You'll find groups working together in collaborative spaces as well as individuals working in quiet spaces." Students have responded positively to this transformation with more than 630,000 visits to Murphy Library last year. Lavallée-Welch says Murphy faces fee increases averaging 5-8 percent annually for electronic subscriptions. UW System has not increased acquisitions funding since 1999-2000, while the campus has provided minimal increases. Programming, professional development and facility improvements have been cut to maintain subscriptions. To help curb funding issues, the library has set up a new fund, the Murphy Library Florence Wing Restricted Fund, named for the prior and current buildings. The library also has an endowment fund. Both seek to raise money to improve and enhance collections, facilities improvement, programming and more. The library will launch The Murphy Million campaign during a gala Thursday, Oct. 27. There are several naming opportunities, ranging from "adopting" a book, journal or furniture, to specialized equipment for scanning and digitization, along with room naming. What: Murphy Library Gala Reception - hors d'oeuvres, beverages, music When: 5 p.m. social; 6 p.m. program, Thursday, Oct. 27 Where: Murphy Library Atrium, 1631 Pine St. Admission: Free Recognize and celebrate:

• honor the 2016 Eugene W. Murphy Library Special Recognition Award winner
• recognize the first Gilkey Scholarship recipient
• launch the new Murphy Million Fundraising Campaign

----- [caption id="attachment_5829" align="alignright" width="149"] Harry Blount, ’86, CBA alumnus, is the special guest speaker of the CBA 2016 Executive Lecture Series.[/caption] First in a series of College of Business Administration Executive Lectures Oct. 7 A UWL College of Business Administration alumnus will return to share financial insights. Investment research industry veteran Harry Blount will speak on “$150 Trillion Financial Disruption: The End of Index Funds and Spreadsheets?” at 3:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 7, in 1400 Centennial Hall. It is the first presentation of the CBA’s 2016 Executive Lecture Series. The presentation is free and open to the public. A reception will follow. Learn more about the lecture. ----- Nobel Prize Winner in Physics gives UWL public lecture Oct. 13 A Nobel Prize Winner in Physics who helped revolutionize the way people light their world will give a public lecture at 5 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 13, at UWL. [caption id="attachment_5836" align="alignleft" width="197"] Shuji Nakamura, co-winner of the 2014 Nobel Prize in Physics.[/caption] Shuji Nakamura, who was co-winner of the 2014 Nobel Prize in Physics, will speak at 5 p.m. in Skogen Auditorium, 1400 Centennial Hall. He’ll also give a physics seminar at 3:20 p.m. Friday, Oct. 14. His visit is part of a UWL Distinguished Lecture Series in Physics. Nakamura won the prize with two others for the invention of the blue-light emitting diode, which led to the creation of white light used in LED (light emitting diode) lamps. During his public lecture, Nakamura will discuss the history of the invention of blue LED, which proved much more difficult for scientists to create than red and green diodes. He’ll also discuss future uses of LED lighting. Nakamura will be the 17th Nobel laureate to visit La Crosse as part of a Distinguished Lecture Series in Physics.  Learn more about the lecture.