The University of Wisconsin–Madison Division of Extension, in collaboration with OneOp, is helping professionals across the country strengthen support for military families through the 6th Annual Military Family Readiness Academy. The free four-week online series, Building Strong Communities for Military Family Readiness, explores how local communities can build more connected, coordinated systems of support for military families. Through live […]
Small businesses, producers, and communities are faced with economic and financial situations every day. At Extension, we provide education, outreach, applied research, and expertise to support decision-making and finding direction. We lead placemaking and strategic planning processes so local leaders and residents can decide together what they want their future to look like. Then we […]
Learning happens in all kinds of formats and locations. Sharing what you know with peers is a valuable way to pass along information about what works and what does not. More formally, learning from peers enables networking, which cultivates like-minded groups that are able to support one another and thrive. UW-Madison Extension incorporates peer-to-peer learning […]
2026 Final Projects Funded by a 2-year UW-Madison Reilly-Baldwin Wisconsin Idea Grant, 12 Youth in Governance students took part in a pilot program focused on teaching youth how to conduct community-based research and produce videos sharing youth perspectives. Here are there 2026 final projects:
Patrol Captain Mike Kowalski believes in giving teens a second chance. For youth, a citation can have negative impacts on their future. They can find themselves disqualified for military service or have difficulty securing student loans. Disclosing a violation on a job or college application can reduce their chances of success. And that has an […]
Through community-engaged science, UW–Madison Extension is building local capacity so that communities can thrive. By engaging communities in research and scientific inquiry, community members help shape research questions, data collection, and the use of results. That leads communities to have more trust in the findings and more “buy-in” when the findings lead to new procedures […]
Growing up on the Wisconsin River in the 1960s, Arnie DeWitt remembers the not-so-pleasant smell and look of the water. “There would be foam on top of the river, maybe a foot thick,” he said. Now, DeWitt lives in Burnett County near the Yellow River, which currently meets criteria for high-quality water according to the […]
Modern farming utilizes technology and connectivity in ways that shape nearly all daily farm activities, from helping monitor a cow’s eating habits to managing fieldwork down to the inch where a seed is planted. A commissioner and team from the Federal Communications Commission saw precision agriculture firsthand at one of UW–Madison’s agricultural research stations in […]
The University of Wisconsin Center for Cooperatives (UWCC) was awarded $127,000 by the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation to boost cooperative development throughout the state of Wisconsin. The funding will allow UWCC to expand technical assistance for start-ups, conversions, and existing co-ops, and address one of Wisconsin’s pressing concerns: retiring business owners without succession plans. “Like […]
Professor Melissa Kono, a municipal clerk specialist in the Local Government Education program, was named the 2026 recipient of the Wisconsin Idea Teaching Award. Kono was honored for her work to exemplify the guiding philosophy of UW–Madison’s outreach efforts to extend the borders of the university. Kono meets her students where they are — literally. […]
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