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By Ashley Davis THE DAILY CARDINAL
KYLE BURSAW/THE DAILY CARDINAL
Adonis of the Chosen Few raps at Memorial Union Thursday night as part of the Homegrown Hip-Hop Festival. The festival’s headlining act, Kid Sister, will perform Saturday night.
Police release sketch of Langdon mugging suspect THE DAILY CARDINAL
Police released a suspect sketch Thursday in the search for a man who robbed a UW-Madison junior at gunpoint outside her sorority house earlier in the week. The incident occurred Monday at about 11:10 p.m. outside the Kappa Alpha Theta house at 108 Langdon St. According to a Madison Police Department report, the 20-year-old victim was walking in a parking lot near the sorority house when two men approached her. The pair demanded money as one of the men pointed a gun before making off with the victim’s cash and laptop computer. Police described the first perpetrator as a black male in his early to mid 20s, 5'10" with a large build, wearing a black sweatshirt with the hood up and dark pants.
The second perpetrator, who is depicted in the sketch, is described as a black male, 18 to 20 years old, 5'6" with an average build with small- to medium-sized Afro-style hair. He was last seen wearing a black zip-up hooded sweatshirt and dark pants. The incident follows a string of recent armed robberies plaguing the downtown area, which police believe to be targeted at UWMadison students, faculty and staff. MPD public information officer Joel DeSpain acknowledged that police are investigating similarities between the Langdon Street incident and other robberies, but said there is currently not enough information to connect the crimes. Amid calls from students’ concerned parents, DeSpain said the MPD is working vigorously to find the perpetrators responsible for the robberies. He said a veteran
COURTESY MADISON POLICE DEPARTMENT
Central District detective is handling the Langdon case and a number of other detectives continue to investigate the other robberies. “This is a priority for us to figure out who’s committing these robberies downtown,” DeSpain said. The recent robbery prompted the Offices of the Dean of Students to urge students to use SAFE Nighttime Services for late-night transportation and to give up valuables if confronted by a robber.
Jewish community to construct new synagogue on Gilman By Andrea Carlson THE DAILY CARDINAL
Plans for a new synagogue on West Gilman Street are underway for the Jewish student community at UW-Madison. Chabad-Lubavitch is a philosophy, movement and organization that provides a base for some Hasidic Jews. The movement was first established in the late 18th century. According to the UW Chabad website, rabbi Yona Matusof
and his wife, Faygie Matusof, launched a branch for religious practices on Gilman Street in 2005, providing a more accessible location for UW-Madison students. The pair held services in their Gilman Street apartment and it soon flourished, bringing in as many as 30 students in the first three weeks. The increase of student worshippers forced the Matusofs to move to a larger, more spacious apartment.
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Weekend, November 7-9, 2008
Regents battle with UW facultyretention rates
Rapper’s delight
By Abby Sears
SPORTS
“We weren’t really able to fit much more, and for larger things we had to rent space out of our apartment,” said rabbi Mendel Matusof, Yona Matusof ’s son. To accommodate the more than 1,000 current members, the Matusofs recently purchased a house at 223 W. Gilman St. with the goal of completing construction by September 2009. The house will provide a new opportunity for synagogue page 3
The UW System Board of Regents held a meeting Thursday to discuss the recruitment and retention challenges of the academic workforce. According to Mark Bradley, president of the UW System Board of Regents, the current economic crisis plaguing the nation is hitting home at all UW System schools, which are trying to attract and retain faculty of the highest caliber. Regents in the meeting said talented and educated people at the doctoral level are being offered higher salaries in careers outside of teaching, a major factor contributing to lower UW System faculty-retention rates. Although colleges across the nation face faculty retention problems, UW System schools have had particular challenges keeping professors, according to Chris Sadler, professor and faculty senate chair at UW-Stevens Point. Sadler said as a professor at UWStevens Point for 22 years, he still makes $10,000 per year less than the average full-time professor at the University of Minnesota and $15,000 less than full-time professors at the University of Illinois. Members of the board said the
financial system for public higher education is at a standstill around the country and it is an issue too large to be handled within the state. Regents discussed diversity among faculty and said it is essential for yielding research breakthroughs. However, board members said maintaining diversity at UW System schools has been problematic because the system lacks the desirable benefits and competitive salaries to sustain top-notch faculty. At the board meeting last month, regents explicitly stated they did not want faculty salary increases to affect student tuition. According to Regent Michael Spector, UW System schools require more than a short-term influx of money to recruit the top academic workforce. Spector suggested a new approach, including opportunities to work with colleagues and chances for travel to attract faculty members. Patrick Farrell, UW-Madison provost, proposed solutions toward recruitment and retention, including a substantial merit pay plan, graduate student funding and offering domestic partner benefits. Farrell said he hopes to show prospective faculty members that, salary aside, the UW System schools are a great place to work.
Admissions office finds new freshman-class stats Over the past three years, the UW-Madison Office of Admissions has accepted many freshman students with first-generation status or whose parents did not earn a college degree, according to university officials. The admissions office not only takes test scores and course rigor into account, but also factors in the importance of the diversity that a first-generation status provides to each freshman class. Rob Seltzer, director of admissions, said the office has an interest in the success of first-generation students because it affects the stability and strength of the freshman class as a whole. Out of 5,774 students in this year’s class, 1,170 are first-generation students. According to university officials, about 20 percent of each freshman class has consisted of these students since 2005. “Building a strong cohort of first-generation students shows this university’s commitment to ensuring that all residents have an equal opportunity to get an education here, even when their parents
may not have had the chance to attend college,” Seltzer said. Many first-generation students said they have felt a sense of success at UW-Madison and have taken advantage of resources on campus like the Pre-College Enrichment Opportunity for Learning and Summer College Experience. “Building a strong cohort of first-generation students shows this university’s commitment to ensuring that all residents have an equal opportunity.” Rob Seltzer director of admissions UW-Madison
Precious Woodley, a UWMadison first-generation freshman, said such programs have given her a clear idea of the true college experience and have helped her navigate the campus. People with questions can contact the Office of Admissions at (608) 263-2400. —Erin Banco
“…the great state University of Wisconsin should ever encourage that continual and fearless sifting and winnowing by which alone the truth can be found.”