UWSP NEWS: Entrepreneurial Training Programs scheduled for Central Wisconsin

Entrepreneurial Training Programs scheduled for Central Wisconsin

A popular program that assists potential and existing entrepreneurs in preparing a solid business plan will be offered at several area locations this fall through the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.

The Entrepreneurial Training Program (ETP) will be offered in:

· Merrill – Mondays and Wednesdays, Sept. 13–Oct. 13, 11:30 a.m.–1:30 p.m., T. B. Scott Library

· Waupaca E-Seed program – Wednesdays, Sept. 15–Nov. 17, 6–9 p.m., Fox Valley Technical College Waupaca Regional Center

· Wausau – Wednesdays, Sept. 29–Nov. 17, 6–9 p.m., UWSP Center in downtown Wausau

· Stevens Point – Tuesdays and Thursdays, Oct. 5–Nov. 11, 5–7 p.m., Wisconsin Learning Center in the Portage County Business Park.

Vicki Lobermeier, director of entrepreneurship at the SBDC since 1996, says the center is adding these ETPs at different locations and times of day to meet demand. She adds that the time may be right for consideration of the self-employment option.

“Entrepreneurship and self-employment are becoming options for some who have lost their jobs or who are having difficulty securing employment,” she said. “The timing is good for the training as the Department of Commerce funds 75 percent of the cost of the class for those who have approved applications and prepare a formal business plan upon class completion.” With the state subsidy, the class fee is only $250. There may be additional coverage of class costs from the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) through local workforce development offices.

Entrepreneurial training includes information presented by experts in legal structure, personnel, market identification and research, finance sources, cash flow budgeting and recordkeeping. The class assists entrepreneurs in starting new and growing existing businesses. The SBDC’s Entrepreneurial Training Program has quite a success record, says Lobermeier, with over 510 graduates and 280 businesses started or maintained.

Information and registration materials are available online at www.uwsp.edu/conted/sbdc or by calling Dorothy Snyder at 715-346-3838 or 800-898-9472.

Get your feet moving at the Point Tap Festival

Get your feet moving to the rhythm of life at two public events offered as part of the Point Tap Festival at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point on Saturday, August 14.

No experience or special tap shoes are necessary for the Shim Sham Master Class, held Saturday from 3:15–4:30 p.m. in the Noel Fine Arts Center (NFAC) Studio Theatre. Jeannie Hill, a UWSP assistant professor of dance and performer with the Jump Rhythm Jazz Project in Chicago, will teach the class the Shim Sham Shimmy, a traditional tap dance routine from the 20s that is known around the world.

The tap performance will be held Saturday at 8 p.m. in the NFAC Dance Studio, Room 136, and will feature festival faculty members Hill, world-renowned tap artist Josh Hilberman, New York dancer Lynn Schwab, UWSP jazz faculty member Ryan Korb on drums and other special guests. The evening will include improvisation, choreography and a traditional Shim Sham finale.

Each event is $10, which may be paid at the door or at www.uwsp.edu/contec/aco/tapfest.

The Point Tap Festival is being held for the first time to bring tap dancers together with international teaching and performing artists at UWSP for three days of workshops in tap and drumming. For more information, contact hill at jhill@uwsp.edu or call UWSP Continuing Education at 715-346-3838.

Your Health: Why Invest in a Personal Trainer?

Why Invest in a Personal Trainer?
Christopher Rice, Fitness Operations Team Leader

Most gyms, health clubs, and community fitness centers offer some type of personal training service to their members.  Personal training services, at most gyms, are a buy-up service in addition to the monthly health club dues.  In central Wisconsin, most personal training sessions range from $35 to $65 an hour depending on the experience level and education of the trainer.

Personal Trainers are excellent resources to utilize at any point in your journey toward becoming a healthier person.  “I wasn’t getting the results I wanted,” said Lynette Voss, Adventure 212 Fitness member and personal training client, “the same workout I had been doing for years wasn’t getting me where I wanted to be.”  Often times, most gym-goers fall into the situation described by Lynette; performing the same routine week after week despite the lack of results.  “The less I saw results [working on my own] the less I wanted to workout—kind of a vicious cycle.”
Lynette described her experience working with a Personal Trainer as, “Really different than anything I was doing on my own.  I learned how to work my entire body with fewer exercises which ultimately saved me a lot of time at the gym.”  When asked how the intensity and quality of her workouts changed while working with a Personal Trainer Lynette responded, “I worked much harder with a trainer.  Ten minutes into a workout I was sweating more than I would have in a 60-minute workout of my own.”

For many folks, motivation and accountability is a big factor in investing in a Personal Trainer.  “Getting up early to workout or heading to the gym after work can be difficult,” said Lynette.  “It is easy to hit the snooze button or head home after work thinking you will be sure to work out tomorrow.  Having a trainer who is expecting you…well that makes it a lot harder to blow off a workout.”

Investing in a Personal Trainer can be a very difficult decision due to the financial and time commitments required.  However, Lynette has three helpful suggestions for anyone considering investing in a Personal Trainer for the first time:

• First, if your health club offers a free personal training session when you become a member, utilize it!  Remember, when you join a gym you aren’t expected to know anything–that is why there are trainers available.
• Second, if you aren’t sure if you can afford the investment, or will like one-on-one training, try small group training.  Most trainers are willing to train 2 or 3 people at a time with less cost per person.
• Third, if you do hire a trainer, commit to several sessions.  You aren’t going to get instant results, but over time, you definitely will!  Also, be sure to share your goals with your trainer.  Most trainers will ask, but if not, be proactive.  If you want bigger arms, or a leaner backside–tell your trainer.  Different approaches to training will give you different results.
• Lastly, ask, ask, ASK questions.  I constantly ask my trainer questions about diet and overall health–he is very helpful and very positive.

United Way’s Project Fresh Start Registration Deadline Approaches

United Way’s Project Fresh Start Registration Deadline Approaches

With only a few short weeks remaining before students return to class, organizers at United Way’s Project Fresh Start are working hard to ensure that children in Portage County go back to school prepared for success. The August 6^th registration deadline is quickly approaching, and organizers are hoping to serve at least half of the 2,900 eligible children.

“With our program expansion last year to include high school students and the reality that many families are still struggling to find and maintain employment, the need for Project Fresh Start is greater this year than ever before,” said Scott Winn, United Way Volunteer Center Director. Winn continued, “One third of students in Portage County public schools are living in poverty. For these families, the cost of school supplies can be a huge financial burden. Project Fresh Start is one small way we can help make a difference.”

Project Fresh Start uses the same income eligibility guidelines as the Federal Free & Reduced Meal program offered through the school system, but families do not need to be registered for the meal program to utilize Project Fresh Start. Registration forms and eligibility guidelines are available at the United Way office or online at www.unitedwaypoco.org. Completed forms should be returned to the United Way office by 4:30 p.m. on August 6.

Over 75 organizations and businesses are currently helping collect supplies for this year’s Project Fresh Start. For a complete list of collection sites, visit www.unitedwaypoco.org. To help collect the volume of supplies needed, a 53-foot United Way semi-trailer will be located at ShopKo in downtown Stevens Point August 17-18.

“The community support for this project is absolutely incredible,” reflected Winn. He continued, “This year, with the need being even greater, it is going to take even more volunteers and supplies, but I am confident that once again this community will come together to meet this need and support academic success.

Students attending Project Fresh Start on August 21 will have more than just school supplies on the first day of school. Project Fresh Clothes will also be providing gently used clothing, and Child Passenger Safety will be available on site to provide families with additional resources. Clothing donations can be dropped off at the Stevens Point Area YMCA or Saint Paul’s Methodist Church.

Project Fresh Start makes the first day of school a fresh start for everyone, giving students the tools to excel in the classroom. Please consider how you can be a part of this community-wide effort. For questions about  Project Fresh Start, call (715) 341-6740 or simply dial 2-1-1 (some cellular customers may need to dial 1-800-922-5590).

UWSP professor and student researchers identify two new Bolivian plant species

UWSP professor and student researchers identify two new Bolivian plant species

Stevens Point — Two recent graduates of the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point made the most of their undergraduate research opportunities to help discover two new plant species, and now their recent results will be published in a national journal.

Eddie Shea of Omro and Tanya Wayda of Stevens Point, both of whom graduated in May, join Emmet Judziewicz, associate professor of biology and forestry, as co-authors of “Two new Bolivian species of Aulonemia (Poaceae: Bambusoideae: Bambuseae),” to be published this fall in “The Journal of the Botanical Research Institute of Texas.”

“I am so impressed by both of these young researchers and am honored to have them share in this finding with the scientific community,” said Judziewicz. Both Tanya and Eddie have gained immeasurable experience in the scientific method and can put this research on their resumes for the rest of their lives.”

Both species, Aulonemia austroviscosa and A. bromoides, were collected in the Madidi National Park in the upper Amazon River basin of Bolivia. According to Judziewicz, tunda bamboos reach their greatest diversity in cloud forests of Andean South America.

“The discovery of these two new bamboo species is likely to be followed by more discoveries, with up to 60 tunda bamboo species rather than just over 30 as previously thought by plant biologists,” said Judziewicz. “I am convinced that many more species await discovery in previously remote and inaccessible cloud forests in Columbia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia.”

Shea graduated with a triple major in wildlife ecology, biology and natural resource policy, with a minor in natural science. He is working at Glacier National Park on a research project focusing on Clark’s nutcracker and its co-evolved relationship with whitebark pine. Shea plans to attend graduate school within the next year.

Wayda, originally from Merrill, graduated with a major in biology and a minor in chemistry. She plans to pursue a master’s degree in ecology. As an undergraduate, she studied arctic ecology and peregrine falcons in Greenland.

Judziewicz, an expert in the flora of the Midwest and the islands of the Great Lakes, works with international biology colleagues, UWSP students and artists describing new plant species, their disappearing habitats, and interactions between bamboos and birds, insects and even larger mammals such as bears. Judziewicz came to UWSP in 2001 and holds a bachelor’s degree from UW-Parkside and a master’s and doctorate from UW-Madison.

In addition to his work in the classroom, Judziewicz, along with UWSP biologist Virginia Freire, are curators of UWSP’s Robert W. Freckmann Herbarium. More information about the herbarium is on the Web at http://wisplants.uwsp.edu.

United Way Supports WINR Donated Wheels Program

United Way Supports WINR Donated Wheels Program

Photo: Jim Weishan, Chairman of United Way of Portage County’s Vision Council (Center) and Sue Wilcox, Executive Director of United Way of Portage County present the check to Joel Breitzman, General Manager of Scaffidi Motors (Left); Jon Cronce, Portage County Director for WINR (second from Left) and Bill Zimdars, Board Member for WINR (Right).

Stevens Point, WI—The Wisconsin Interfaith Needs Response (WINR) Donated Wheels program is working to address a key barrier to employment and self-sufficiency—lack of reliable transportation. Through a recent grant from United Way of Portage County, WINR will receive $2,000 per car, up to a maximum of $30,000 to match donated vehicles with families in need of safe, reliable transportation.

“Access to reliable transportation is such a crucial part of getting and maintaining employment. United Way of Portage County supports this program because it is helping families in our community become self-sufficient,” said Sue Wilcox, Executive Director for United Way of Portage County.

WINR accepts donated vehicles and repairs them as necessary to ensure that the car should be usable for another 2 years or 20,000 miles with only routine scheduled maintenance. Eligible clients who complete the required interview, financial counseling, and vehicle maintenance training are matched with an available vehicle according to need. Once placed with a family, a WINR vehicle typically provides 5,000 rides to the family at a cost of $.91 per ride, including gas, maintenance, registration and insurance.

“Our greatest need right now is donated vehicles,” said Jon Cronce, Portage County Director for WINR. He continued, “We have seven people who have fulfilled all of the requirements and are currently on our waiting list and no available vehicles. We would like to find vehicles for all of these families.”

People who donated a vehicle to WINR can be claim the full Blue Book value of the vehicle as a charitable contribution on their taxes, since the vehicle is used to fulfill the mission of the organization.

If you are interested in donating a vehicle to WINR or making a financial contribution should call Jon Cronce at (715) 498-2465 or email portcoor.winr@tds.net.

Explore foreign languages at UWSP

Stevens Point— Pack your bags and don’t forget your passport! Youth ages 8-10 are invited to “travel abroad” as part of a three-day foreign language workshop offered by Continuing Education at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.

“Speak!  An Exploration of Foreign Languages” will be held Tuesday through Thursday, August 17-19, offering students the chance to act as tourists in Paris, France, Mexico City, Mexico, and Moscow, Russia, as they learn key phrases in French, Spanish and Russian.

The class will meet from 9 a.m. to noon each day, taught by Kristin Martell, a classroom facilitator for UWSP’s Foreign Language Department who holds degrees in French and Russian. The cost is $55 per student.

To register or for more information, contact UWSP Continuing Education Arts and Culture Outreach at 715-346-3838 or 800-898-9472 or go online to http://www.uwsp.edu/conted/aco.

Boys & Girls Club receives Wal-Mart Summer Food Program grant

Stevens Point —The Boys & Girls Club of Portage County is a recipient of Wal-Mart Summer Food Program Grant.  For the last 8 years the Boys & Girls Club of Portage County has implemented the USDA Summer Food Service Program by serving lunch and a healthy snack daily to six operational sites during the summer months.  This grant will supplement what the Boys & Girls Club is providing and also allow the Club to provide healthier options during lunch & snack time.  The Boys & Girls Club currently serves a free, healthy cold lunch at The Club at 1007 Ellis Street located in downtown Stevens Point, at Madison View Apartments in Stevens Point, at Jefferson Elementary School in Stevens Point, in Junction City at Kennedy Elementary School, and at the Plover Club at 2401 Cedar St.  The Boys & Girls club serves approximately 200 lunches daily between the sites.

The Summer Food Service Program is funded in large part by the United States Department of Agriculture and is administered by Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction.  It provides nutritious meals to needy children when school meals are not available.  Persons over 18 years of age who are determined by a state or a local public educational agency to be mentally or physically disabled and/or participate in a public or private non-profit school program during the regular school year also qualify for the Summer Food Service Program.

The Boys & Girls Club Movement is a nation-wide affiliation of local autonomous organizations and Boys & Girls Clubs of America, working to help girls and boys of all backgrounds to develop the qualities needed to become responsible citizens and leaders.  Area communities that have a local Boys & Girls Club include Wisconsin Rapids, Wausau and Antigo.

For more information or to make a donation, please call the Boys & Girls Club of Portage County at 341-4386.

“Big Lake Kayaking” workshop for women

Stevens Point— Women will learn sea kayaking skills on Lake Michigan at the “Big Lake Kayaking” workshop offered by the Becoming an Outdoors-Woman (BOW) program at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point September 3–5.

Activities will be taught by patient, certified paddling instructors who will tailor the lessons to fit a range of experience levels. Kayaking is relaxing and a great way to connect with nature and Door County offers quiet bays to learn in a safe atmosphere. Participants may also choose to venture out on the more open water to explore the Strawberry Islands off the shores of Peninsula State Park. This is a learn-at-your-pace workshop with one-on-one coaching from instructors.

The workshop is offered in partnership with the Team Leadership Center of Door County and with the support of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. The registration fee is $450 and includes lodging in Sturgeon Bay at the Bay Shore Inn, all-equipment rental, five meals, Door County history and sightseeing, and transportation during the workshop.

Participants range in age from 18 to 80 plus. All ages and fitness levels are welcome. Becoming an Outdoors-Woman, a nonprofit, educational opportunity offered throughout North America, provides women the opportunity to learn outdoor skills in a comfortable, safe and fun environment.

For more information and to register, call the Wisconsin BOW office at 715-346-4681 or visit the Web at http://www.uwsp.edu/cnr/bow/wihome.

Contact: Director Peggy Farrell, 715-345-4681 or peggy.farrell@uwsp.edu.

Former St. Bronislava pastor arrested for possession of child porn

La Crosse County— Rev. Patrick Umberger, 59, a former pastor at St. Bronislava Catholic Church in Plover, has been arrested in La Crosse County for possession of child pornography after images were found on his computer.

According to his website, frpat.com, Umberger is from Stoddard.  He has a bachelor’s degree from UW-La Crosse and served St. Bronislava Parish in Plover in 1993.  There, he began web ministry.  His website says, “…he began sending a daily e-mail Morning Prayer that now goes to thousands of people all over the world.  He also began sending weekly e-mails containing the Scriptures for the following weekend, Reflection Questions and a weekly Spiritual Reflection.”

Additionally, the website says he helped to develop Pacelli High School’s website.

A complaint has not officially been filed at this time; more information will be available once this is done.