Featured Alumni
Stephen Hawk and Frank Graner
Bullish on Investment Frank Graner PhD1948’s dream of allowing UW–Madison business students to work the levers of Wall Street — with all of the markets’ real-time rewards and consequences — came to life under his... Read more »
Students for a Democratic Society
Campus Activism The nation experienced a great divide in the 1960s and early 1970s, and college campuses were often at the epicenter of discontent. Students became involved with civil rights activities, joining the Freedom Riders... Read more »
Sunburst Chair
Perhaps no shape is more closely connected to UW–Madison than the sunburst pattern on the back of the chairs on Memorial Union’s Terrace. But the chairs are hardly a Terrace original. The first “Terrace chairs”... Read more »
Sunset on the pier
On a warm, summer night, the Memorial Union Terrace may easily be the busiest place in town, overflowing with Madisonians relaxing after the workday, families of past and future Badgers visiting campus, and students reveling... Read more »
Tamara Grigsby
Change Agent The UW inspired Tamara Grigsby MS2000 to become an agent for social change. “I became angry as I learned the full extent of injustice in our world,” she said. But thanks to the... Read more »
Tammy Baldwin
U.S. Senator from Wisconsin Breaking barriers is stock-in-trade for Tammy Baldwin JD1989; it’s part of her makeup, her identity, and her legacy. One of the first hurdles Baldwin needed to overcome was when the 24-year-old... Read more »
The 1967 Music Festival
In Residence: The 1967 UW Music Festival Over six mostly-sunny summer days in June 1967, the University of Wisconsin campus welcomed the Chicago Symphony Orchestra — and hundreds of students, faculty and staff, and community... Read more »
The Badger, 1890
Badger Yearbook: UW Student Snapshot For more than a century, the Badger yearbook has played a critical role in preserving University of Wisconsin history by compiling a year-in-the-life snapshot of campus. Its staff is responsible for documenting... Read more »
The Daily Cardinal
Sifting and Winnowing Since 1892 Horseback: it really was the best way to deliver the first edition of the Daily Cardinal. Founded April 4, 1892, the Daily Cardinal is the nation’s sixth-oldest independent daily student newspaper. Named by... Read more »
The Gumbo Diplomat
Inspired by Southern cooking, Linda Thomas-Greenfield MA1975 approaches diplomacy with a blend of personal connection and improvisation.... Read more »
The Gymnasium and Armory (Red Gym)
One of UW–Madison’s most recognizable buildings, the Gymnasium and Armory (or Red Gym) packs more irony per square foot than almost any other structure on campus. The Red Gym was not initially intended to be... Read more »
The Octopus
Origins of the Octopus In November 1919, an odd new publication began to circulate around campus. Called the Octopus, the 30-page rag cost 20 cents and was printed on seafoam-green paper. It included lengthy articles, including “A... Read more »
The Onion Newspaper
Founded by Tim Keck (attended 1985–90) and Christopher Johnson BA1989, the Onion published its first issue on August 29, 1988, amusing (or possibly frightening) UW–Madison students with “news” that a monster had been sighted in... Read more »
The Pro Arte Quartet
The Quartet in Residence The classical music Quatuor Pro Arte was once the court quartet to the Queen of Belgium. But thanks to the spirit of the Wisconsin Idea and a moment of triumph over a dark... Read more »
The Role of Chance
William Campbell MS1954, PhD1957 never meant to come to Wisconsin. In fact, much of his life seemed unintended — he hadn’t really meant to study parasites, to work in tropical illness, to seek out discoveries... Read more »
The Sphinx
UW Humor Magazine Nearly a century before the Onion started making its readers laugh in 1988, a different group of enterprising students at the University of Wisconsin showed a deft hand at creating a humor publication. The Sphinx launched in... Read more »
The Wheat and the Chaff
A UW Handbook for the Ages Every generation of Badgers has its campus compass. In the university’s quasquicentennial year of 1974–75, the UW debuted a campus beacon in the form of a handbook, The Wheat and... Read more »
The Wisconsin Statue: Miss Forward
Standing atop Wisconsin’s State Capitol dome is the gilded form of a lady pointing her arm toward the south. Often misidentified as “Miss Forward,” the statue is actually named Wisconsin. She stands 15 feet, 5... Read more »
Thomas Vonder Haar
Climate Scientist Thomas Vonder Haar MS1964, PhD1968’s distinguished career as a climate scientist began with his head in the clouds. While pursuing his pilot’s license at age 19, Vonder Haar developed a fascination with the... Read more »
Tim Keck and Christopher Johnson
The Onion: Area men ignore homework, say college newspaper will lead to fame The Onion launched on August 29, 1988, with an alarmingly alliterative headline: “Mendota Monster Mauls Madison.” But the real story behind the... Read more »
Tom Koch
The King of Corn As vice president of research at AgReliant Genetics, Tom Koch PhD2005 is helping to change the face of agriculture around the globe. Koch, who is a 2014 recipient of the Wisconsin... Read more »
Tom Loftus
Lessons of State Politics Go Global The phone rang in Tom Loftus MA1972’s office at the U.S. Embassy in Norway, and South Africa’s Nelson Mandela was on the line. Mandela, who received the 1993 Nobel... Read more »
Tommy Thompson
Tommy Thompson BS1963, JD1966 helped pay undergraduate and law school tuition as a bouncer, bartender, and manager at the Varsity Bar on State Street in the 1960s. He joked with “Var Bar” patrons, greeting them... Read more »
U Rah-Rah
Our College Yell In 1898, a young professor wrote 21 simple, oft-repeated words and set them to an old Latin hymn, crafting one of our most treasured Badger traditions: “Varsity.” We might never know exactly... Read more »
U-Rah-Rah
U-Rah-Rah has been a UW cheer since before Henry Dyke Sleeper wrote the lyrics for “Varsity” (or “Varisty Toast,” as it was originally titled) in 1898. Sleeper was an instructor in the School of Music.... Read more »