UW in the News

State, national and international media frequently feature the University of Wyoming and members of its community in stories. Here is a summary of some of the recent coverage:

UW officials kicked off a master planning process in Sheridan last Sunday, inviting community members, alumni and stakeholders to provide input on how the university is doing and how it could do better, reported The Sheridan Press. Massachusetts-based planning firm Sasaki is updating UW’s campus master plan.

The Laramie Boomerang reported that a preliminary UW parking study indicates that a recommendation is not to build a parking garage, but restructure the permit system to make better use of current parking availability on campus.

U.S. News & World Report published an Associated Press story about the opening of UW’s new Engineering Education and Research Building last week. K2 Radio also published the story.

In an Associated Press article about campus sexual assaults, UW President Laurie Nichols told the Education Department that curbing schools’ powers to punish offending students could push sexual violence off campus, to areas where offenders know they’re beyond the schools’ reach. Her comments appeared in The Salt Lake Tribune, The Ledger in Lakeland, Fla., and CBS Chicago. Sean Blackburn, UW vice president for student affairs, talked with Wyoming Public Radio about the proposed changes to federal guidelines brought forward by U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos.

Wyoming Public Radio covered the return of six members of the Black 14 during last week’s Black History Month Conference at the UW College of Law. The Sheridan Press and Philadelphia Tribune published a similar article. The Wilmington Star News profiled Mel Hamilton, one of the Black 14 members.

A bill that would allow as many as 24 students at any given time from Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nebraska and Utah to receive top-level Hathaway scholarships moved closer to being approved by the Wyoming Legislature, according to an Associated Press article published in The Salt Lake Tribune and Gillette News Record.

The Yucatan Times noted that UW Assistant Professor Kevin Befus and other scientists conducted a study in which they determined that underground water, a source for billions of people, could take more than a century to respond fully to climate change.

UW economist Rob Godby commented to The Wyoming Tribune Eagle as to why gas prices are more important to most Americans than health care and saving money when it comes to household budgets.

UW College of Law Professor Michael Duff was interviewed by Wyoming Public Radio for a story on how a Wyoming law for undocumented workers might be making workplaces more dangerous.

Bruce Parkinson, a UW School of Energy Resources chemistry professor, was quoted in a Casper Star-Tribune (CS-T) story on solar energy in Wyoming that KPVI published on its website.

Ocean News published UW’s release noting that new data collected by the university point to a newly defined mantle domain in a remote part of the Southern Ocean. Professor Ken Sims and recent Ph.D. graduate Sean Scott were co-authors of a paper published by the scientific journal Nature Geoscience last month.

Recent UW master’s degree graduate Bryan Lamont led a study that indicates elk avoid forest habitat during the summer in areas that have been impacted by bark beetle outbreaks, according to ODU Magazine. The study was originally published by the Journal of Wildlife Management. Buckrail published UW’s release.

The Gillette News Record previewed UW’s popular one-day lecture series -- Saturday (Thursday) University -- scheduled this week.

Chad Baldwin, UW associate vice president for Institutional Communications and Marketing, told Sheridan Media that the UW Board of Trustees hired GE Johnson Construction, based in Jackson, to lead construction of the Science Initiative facility on campus. Other UW releases published were: the announcement that UW is among the top 15 schools in a new list of the “50 Most Underrated Colleges in America,” and UW College of Engineering and Applied Science personnel are moving into the new engineering building.

Hits 106 Radio, in Laramie, published UW’s release announcing a $5 million gift to the university that will support the UW College of Business through a new Student Success Center and scholarships, as well as the American Heritage Center.

County 17 reported that UW computer science student Kip DeCastro developed a blockchain code to track a December 2018 shipment of Wyoming beef to Taiwan.

Sweetwater County students nominated instructors for “Top Profs,” according to a UW release published by Sweetwater Now.

The Boomerang reported that the Wyoming Legislature is considering a bill that would change the title of the UW Board of Trustees president to “chairman.”

UW plant sciences Professor Andrew Kniss won the outstanding paper award by the Weed Science Society of America, according to Farm Progress. His paper is titled “Genetically Engineered Herbicide-Resistant Crops and Herbicide-Resistant Weed Evolution in the United States.”

Buffalo News broke down former UW standout quarterback Josh Allen’s rookie season with the Buffalo Bills.

UW’s men’s and women’s cross country teams both received All-Academic honors from the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association, reported The CS-T.