News

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CITY NEWS

Madison public schools add two days, extend hours to make up for weather cancellations

By Jon Brockman | Feb. 15, 2019

Madison area students are not off the hook for the cancelled school days this semester, as the Madison Metropolitan School District unveiled plans Tuesday add two days to the school calendar in order to make up for the lost time.  Six days of class have been cancelled so far this year in response to “extraordinary winter weather,” leading to the district’s decision to extend instruction hours. 

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STATE NEWS

Report shows increasing special needs education funding benefits all students

By Elizabeth Parker | Feb. 14, 2019

Known as the “education governor,” Gov. Tony Evers is expected to respond to the increased demand for K-12 special education programs in his upcoming biennial budget. 

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STATE NEWS

Culver’s v. In-N-Out: Survey ends meaty debate

By Jessica Lipaz | Feb. 14, 2019

Culver’s grills In-N-Out by 0.4 points in a new restaurant business survey aimed at determining the most popular fast food chains in the country. 

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IN-DEPTH

‘We are not for sale:' Students say activism could save the Wisconsin Idea from Foxconn

By Sydney Widell | Feb. 14, 2019

Less than a minute after student protesters draped their hand-painted banners over the second floor railing at Union South, campus security forced the small group to roll up their flags and issued some of them warnings. 

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NEWS

Middle class tax cut bill passes in Assembly, moves to Senate for second vote

By Michael Makowski | Feb. 13, 2019

Before moving to the Assembly Chamber, Democratic legislators previewed the Assembly floor session with a media availability to express their concerns about the Republican-sponsored bill.

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STATE NEWS

Evers commits to multi-state governor alliance in favor of Paris Agreement

By Jessica Lipaz and Saya Inoue | Feb. 12, 2019

Today Gov. Tony Evers announced his commitment to join the U.S. Climate Alliance to include Wisconsin in the fight for sustainability and against the implications of climate change.

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CITY NEWS

Snow emergency declared for Madison, schools close as flurries continue

By Jon Brockman | Feb. 12, 2019

Following a night that brought more than half a foot of snow to Madison, the city declared a snow emergency Tuesday in anticipation of more accumulation and anticipated plowing difficulties.  The snow emergency, Madison’s second in the past two weeks, will remain in effect until at least Thursday morning as plowing crews continue to clear the streets. To make plowing easier, all cars parked on the street overnight will have to move to the odd-numbered side or run the risk of receiving a ticket or being towed.

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STATE NEWS

Proposal to roll back tax on unmarried pregnant women creates controversy

By Kylie Ver Kuilen | Feb. 11, 2019

Monday at the Capitol the Legislative Council on Child Support Placement discussed a proposal to repeal a bill requiring unmarried pregnant women who are insured under BadgerCare to pay a birth cost recovery tax.

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CITY NEWS

Judge determines Cephus case ‘not ripe,’ delays trial

By Jon Brockman | Feb. 11, 2019

On the day it was scheduled to begin, the trial of suspended Badgers football player Quintez Cephus was suspended Monday after the judge determined it was “not ripe for trial.”  Dane County Circuit Court Judge William Hanrahan, who was to preside over the trial, chose to allow Cephus to remain out on bail while the trial dates are reset. 

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CITY NEWS

Madison to salt all residential roads in preparation for winter storm

By J. Adam Wigger | Feb. 11, 2019

In preparation for a snowstorm Monday night, the City of Madison announced that throughout the day the Streets Division will be salting all residential roads, an announcement breaking with the usual protocol of using a salt-and-sand mixture on most streets. The National Weather Service declared a winter storm warning for Dane County Monday, expecting between 6 and 10 inches of snowfall between 6 p.m. and midnight.

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CITY NEWS

Woman robbed on Dayton Street

By Jon Brockman | Feb. 11, 2019

A woman lost her purse to a mugger downtown Sunday night, Madison police said. The 58-year-old woman was walking on West Dayton Street, about two blocks from the Capitol, when she was accosted by an “aggressive panhandler” who proceeded to follow her. When she pulled out her phone and threatened to call the police, the man stole her purse and ran away. 

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STATE NEWS

Wisconsin Republicans speak out against abortion policy across the country

By Jessica Lipaz | Feb. 10, 2019

Over the past week, U.S. Rep. Glenn Grothman, R-Wisconsin, released a statement addressing new federal legislation, and Republican assembly members held a press conference to publicly voice concern and lack of support toward pro-choice abortion policies. 

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CITY NEWS

Madison’s mayoral candidates meet for forum in Humanities building

By Griffin Blue Emerson | Feb. 10, 2019

Four of the five candidates for Madison’s mayor answered questions about the city’s future at a mayoral forum in UW-Madison’s Humanities building Thursday. The Feb. 19 primary is quickly approaching, putting pressure on the candidates to get their message across.

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CITY NEWS

Sexual assault trial against Quintez Cephus set to begin this week: What you need to know

By Jon Brockman | Feb. 10, 2019

The trial of Quintez Cephus, the former Badgers wide receiver suspended from the team after being charged with sexual assault, is scheduled to begin Monday with jury selection and opening statements. Cephus, 20, was suspended indefinitely by the team in August after the District Attorney announced charges would be filed against him.

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CITY NEWS

Police arrest suspect connected with ‘horrendous’ Langdon Street assault

By Jon Brockman | Feb. 8, 2019

Four days after a brutal assault against a UW-Madison student on Langdon Street shocked and frightened the campus community, Madison Police Department Chief Mike Koval announced his department had taken the suspect into custody. 

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STATE NEWS

Proposal to terminate dark store loophole taxation circulates

By Elizabeth Parker | Feb. 7, 2019

Wednesday, Gov. Tony Evers proposed a new addition to the state 2019-’21 biennial budget that would eliminate the the Dark Store Loophole. 

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NEWS

Evers questions Foxconn water, air quality permits

By Ben Brod | Feb. 7, 2019

Gov. Tony Evers announced Tuesday he is directing Wisconsin environmental officials to review the air-quality and water permits issued to Foxconn Technology Group. The permits in question were granted last year to allow construction of the $10 billion Foxconn campus in Mount Pleasant.

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IN-DEPTH

More counselors of color, increased mental health support for students of color

By Benita Mathew | Feb. 7, 2019

Students of color lack mental health support, but new counselors of color offer understanding and assistance. 

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CAMPUS NEWS

Flood insurance won’t cover professors' personal losses, university says

By Sydney Widell | Feb. 6, 2019

Plastic mugs, cds, business cards and post-it notes were floating in a foot of standing water inside Sue Robinson’s desk drawer when she was finally able to visit her flooded fifth floor Vilas Hall office earlier this week. 

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CITY NEWS

Arrests, shots fired down in last quarter of 2018, police say

By Jon Brockman | Feb. 6, 2019

In his quarterly update presented to the Madison city council Tuesday, police chief Mike Koval reported a drop in arrests and shots fired in the last four months of 2018. Arrests in the fourth quarter of 2018 dropped by a count of 100 when compared to the same period in 2017, a decrease of about 5 percent. The number of shots fired incidents also decreased, with police reporting 42 in the last quarter of the year, down from 53.