University of Wisconsin - Extension

Outreach Scholarship 2003, a national celebration of outreach education and university-community engagement, will be held Oct. 12-14 in Madison, Wis.at the Monona Terrace Community and Convention Center.

More than 400 people are registered for the event, hosted by the University of Wisconsin-Extension. About 150 presentations and workshops at the conference will address a variety of topics dealing with outreach education, applied research and university-community engagement.

Participants will represent 68 universities and colleges from 33 states. They come from a wide variety of academic and professional disciplines.

Major presentations at the conference include:

• A keynote address by Ray Suarez, senior correspondent for public television's "The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer." In his book, "The Old Neighborhood: What We Lost in the Great Suburban Migration: 1966-1999," Suarez makes a compelling case for saving America's urban neighborhoods from decline. Suarez will discuss the role that higher education must play in this effort.
• Four top-level university leaders will discuss the importance of connecting universities with the people and communities they serve. Katharine Lyall, president of the UW System, Karen Holbrook, president of The Ohio State University, and Rod Erickson, executive vice president and provost at The Pennsylvania State University, will share their views. Cora Marrett, senior vice president for academic affairs at the UW System, will moderate this panel discussion.

• James Votruba, president of Northern Kentucky University, will discuss strategies for more integrated and sustained engagement. Votruba chaired the American Association of State Colleges and Universities' Task Force on Public Engagement.

The event provides an opportunity for UW-Extension and the entire University of Wisconsin System to showcase it's longstanding commitment to public service. Using "The Wisconsin Idea" as a framework, UW-Extension expands the university's boundaries to the boundaries of the state, providing lifelong learning opportunities for all Wisconsin residents.

Outreach Scholarship 2003 is a national conference, co-sponsored by The Ohio State University, The Pennsylvania State University and the University of Wisconsin-Extension. Learn more at http://www.uwex.edu/outreach .

# # #