Posted 4:25 p.m. Monday, March 4, 2013
UW-L again made Kiplinger's list of best values, received a national green building certification on two campus buildings and is making state and national news in many more ways. Find out why.
One of two Wisconsin public colleges to make Kiplinger’s list
UW-La Crosse is again listed among the top 100 colleges and universities in the country that deliver academic quality and affordability. UW-L is one of only two public colleges in Wisconsin to make “Kiplinger’s Personal Finance” magazine’s list of top 100 values in public education. UW-Madison was the other. From large flagship universities to small liberal arts colleges, Kiplinger’s ranks the top 100 four-year schools according to specific criteria for quality and affordability such as student-faculty ratios, admission rates, on-time graduation rate, sticker price and financial aid.
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Centennial Hall is 189,000-square-foot academic building with 44 classrooms and two auditoriums. Photo by Mark Fei.[/caption]
Two campus buildings awarded prestigious green building certification
UW-La Crosse’s new residence hall and academic building have both received prestigious national awards for their sustainable and energy-efficient designs. Eagle Hall and Centennial Hall opened in fall 2011 and recently received LEED® Gold certification. LEED, or Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, is a national green building certification system. It provides third-party verification that a building was designed and built using strategies aimed at increasing performance, reducing waste and improving quality of life. Sustainable strategies are incorporated in energy use, lighting, water and material use and more. >Read more [caption id="attachment_3260" align="alignright" width="550"]
MVAC staff as well as student crew members pitched in to keep the project moving along Hwy. 35 in Onalaska. City archaeological sites are sometimes better preserved than sites in the country, says Wendy Holtz-Leith, MVAC research archaeologist. Most Oneota sites are in cultivated fields, and a lot of information is lost because of plowing.[/caption]
MVAC awarded for Hwy. 35 collaboration
When the UW-La Crosse Mississippi Valley Archaeology Center archaeologists encountered an ancient Oneota village in the middle of an Onalaska highway reconstruction project, they knew they had a lot of work and collaboration ahead. For MVAC’s commitment and dedication to the project, the team was recognized with the 2012 Wisconsin Department of Transportation Tribal Excellence Award. The award is for providing exemplary contributions and services to building and enhancing partnerships with WisDOT and Wisconsin Tribal communities. >Read more [caption id="attachment_3266" align="alignright" width="688"]
Assistant Professor of Marketing Ryan White leads a class in Centennial Hall.[/caption]
UW-L College of Business Administration earns national award
UW-La Crosse business students can rest assured they have the right business plan for college and their career. The UW-L College of Business Administration is the first university or college in the state — and only the second business school in the nation — to receive the Council for Higher Education Accreditation Award for Outstanding Institutional Practice in Student Learning Outcomes. The award recognizes the university’s college “for its use of outcomes assessment to improve student learning in its undergraduate program, using a faculty-driven team that directs a strong assessment culture.” >Read more [caption id="attachment_3272" align="alignright" width="288"]
Adam Hoffer, assistant professor of economics[/caption]
Economics professor questions taxing ‘sinful’ products
Should the government continue to generate revenue by finding more sinful things to tax? Sin taxes are taxes on items deemed bad for the public — such as cigarettes, alcohol and gambling. However, in recent years the scope of what is considered a sin tax is expanding, says Adam Hoffer, UW-L assistant professor of economics. Hoffer wrote an opinion article in U.S. News & World Report on how these taxes are growing in the wake of a weak economy to encompass items not necessarily sinful such as candy bars, soda or a deck of playing cards. In the article, Hoffer cites some of the negative consequences of sin taxes such as the millions of dollars spent on lobbying by corporations who don’t want increased taxes on their products. >Read more [caption id="attachment_3277" align="alignright" width="346"]
Ryan McKelley, assistant professor of psychology[/caption]