Hate crimes, though unreported, have increased on the UW-Madison campus since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, UW Chancellor John Wiley announced Friday at a press conference.
“Today I’ve heard of maybe a few more than fifteen incidents that vary in severity,” Wiley said. “They range from things that simply made individuals uncomfortable — the feeling that maybe they were being targeted because of the way they appear — to out-and-out physical beatings.”
Wiley would not be specific about the incidents, only saying students and student organizations have been making him aware of the problem.
According to UW Police Chief Susan Riseling, officially there have been no reports of hate crimes on campus since the attacks.
Wiley said it is important that students who feel harassed or targeted report these incidents to UW Police or the Dean of Students office.
“There’s very little that I or the students or anyone else can do to combat specific acts of hate and racism if they’re not reported,” Wiley said.
In recent weeks Wiley bought full-page advertisements in local newspapers condemning racial tensions on campus and in the community, and organized a three-part listening session series. The first session was held last week, and the second and third, hosted by Wiley and Provost Peter Spear, are scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday evening, respectively.
“Out of this we hope to find ways to take more concrete action to address the concerns that are revealed,” Wiley said.
Wiley also used his platform to update the campus on the E. coli outbreak, new grants and new campus programs.
Last week UW reported 26 cases of E. coli, believed to be linked to an Oct. 6 tailgate party at the UW Stock Pavilion. Wiley said this incident was isolated, and that UW is devising a plan to ensure it will not happen again.
“University Health Services is continuing to work with state and local officials to pinpoint the cause of the E. coli bacteria,” Wiley said. “We believe the incident was isolated, so classes and clubs have been allowed to continue using the Stock Pavilion.”
Wiley also announced that UW has received two major grants, one totaling $21.7 million, the second largest grant the campus has ever seen, and the other boosting gender equality work in UW sciences.
The $21.7 million is from the estate of Ira Balwin, professor emeritus of bacteriology and former dean of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, and his wife, Ineva, a former assistant dean of women for the College of Letters and Science.
The grant will create the Wisconsin Idea Endowment. The Wisconsin Idea, a central theme of UW, focuses on resources serving Madison, Wisconsin and the country.
“It will be used as the Wisconsin Idea Endowment to enhance outreach for the students of Wisconsin about research and activities on campus,” Wiley said.
According to a press release, projects under consideration include community service programs and grants for community service sabbaticals.
The second grant, from the National Science Foundation, will establish the Women in Science and Engineering Leadership Institute, which Wiley said will “serve as a catalyst for initiatives intended to enhance the advancement of women in science and to measure the success of such efforts.”
Wiley also announced the expansion of the UW-Madison Connections Program, which originally allowed a select group of students the opportunity to jointly enroll in one of four UW campuses and the Madison campus. Now, Wiley said, 13 UW schools will be open to the Connections program, giving more students who may be less qualified to receive a degree from UW-Madison.
These students spend their first two years at one of the thirteen other UW schools, and if they succeed academically they may transfer to the Madison campus to complete their degrees.
Finally, Wiley announced the creation of a new infectious disease symposium in response to recent bioterrorism scares. The symposium will be sponsored by the medical school and the School of Veterinary Medicine. The first of these symposiums, on Nov. 13, will focus on the bioterrorism threat.
“It will provide information on such things as anthrax, clinical issues related to anthrax, the potential of other bio-weapons and a plan to address the risks of bioterrorism,” Wiley said.
