May 6, 2013

For Immediate Release
Contact: Dean Kallenbach
715-839-3868

dean.kallenbach@wpr.org

Local Artist’s Life, Work to be Featured on Spectrum West May 10

“Kay Dawson Retrospective: Her Life in Art” will be featured on Spectrum West from Wisconsin Public Radio’s Ideas Network, this Friday, May 10 at 5 p.m. on 88.3 WHWC/Menomonie-Eau Claire and 88.7 WRFW/River Falls. Other topics include “Burleigh Grimes: Baseball’s Last Legal Spitballer,” the annual Beaver Creek Reserve photo contest, a collaborative spring concert event and the Creative Drive Art Tour.

Host Al Ross welcomes David Caradori, ceramic artist and curator of “Kay Dawson Retrospective: Her Life in Art,” on display at the L.E. Phillips Memorial Public Library in Eau Claire through May 28. Kay Dawson was a long-time resident of the Eau Claire area whose still life paintings and drawings have been shown throughout the Midwest.

“What’s On-Stage in Western Wisconsin” with special correspondent Jim Oliver features area theater. Oliver also interviews and Joe Niese, author of “Burleigh Grimes: Baseball’s Last Legal Spitballer.” Niese is a librarian in Chippewa Falls and a member of the Society for American Baseball Research.

Lynn Barrie, from Beaver Creek Reserve in Fall Creek, will talk about its annual photo contest. The nature photography contest categories include mammals, birds, dynamics of nature, landscapes and more.

Gordon Murphy is the executive director of the Chippewa Valley Symphony. Murphy and the Symphony are preparing for the spring concert,  “Ode to Joy,” a collaborative music event featuring The Master Singers and the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Concert Choir, performing Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony. Murphy will preview the concert scheduled for May 11.

Potter John Onkka will join the show to preview the annual Creative Drive Art Tour coming to four locations in western Wisconsin the weekend of May 18-19 and featuring over 60 artists.

Spectrum West is a weekly program exploring the music, arts, and humanities in Western Wisconsin.  The show includes in-depth behind-the-scenes interviews and stories about area writers, musicians, theater, visual arts, and much more.  It is heard weekly on Friday from 5 to 6 p.m. on Ideas 88.3 WHWC/Menomonie-Eau Claire and 88.7 WRFW/River Falls.

WPR is a service of the University of Wisconsin Extension, the Educational Communications Board and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.  For more than 95 years, WPR has served the people of Wisconsin with quality news, classical music, and talk radio programming.  Listen, learn more and donate online at www.wpr.org.

-end-

May 6, 2013

For Immediate Release
Contact: Dean Kallenbach
(715)-839-2936

dean.kallenbach@wpr.org

Western Wisconsin Latino Population to be Featured on The West Side

The West Side, on Wisconsin Public Radio’s Ideas Network, will discuss the growing Latino population in western Wisconsin on Thursday, May 9 at 5 p.m. on 88.3 WHWC/ Menomonie-Eau Claire.

Host Rich Kremer will welcome Edgar Bernal, a Panamanian immigrant and active member of El Centro de Conexión de Chippewa Valley, Father Tim Oudenhoven, pastor at St. Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Independence, Wis. and Drs. Sue Peck and Lisa Schiller, faculty in the College of Nursing at University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire who work to improve the health services available to immigrants.

Guests will discuss how the Latino community in western Wisconsin is growing and changing and how the population is faring in the current cultural climate. Oudenhoven, whose church offers a Spanish mass for the Latino population, and Bernal, whose work with El Centro de Conexión de Chippewa Valley strives to make connections with various Latino American cultures in the Chippewa Valley, will discuss how a sense of community impacts the population. Peck and Schiller will share details on the excursions they take with UW-Eau Claire nursing students to give health screenings and presentations on farm safety to immigrants.

The West Side is a call-in program focused on issues specific to western Wisconsin.  The show airs on Thursdays at 5 p.m. on 88.3 WHWC/ Menomonie-Eau Claire. Listeners may call in with questions and comments during the program at 1-800-228-5615.

Wisconsin Public Radio is a service of the University of Wisconsin Extension, the Educational Communications Board and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.  For more than 95 years, WPR has served the people of Wisconsin with quality news, classical music, and talk radio programming.  Listen, learn more and donate online at www.wpr.org.

-end-

May 1, 2013

For Immediate Release
Contact: Dean Kallenbach
715-839-3868

dean.kallenbach@wpr.org

German-American Heritage Institute to be Featured on Spectrum West

The Max Kade Institute for German-American Studies will be featured on Spectrum West from Wisconsin Public Radio’s Ideas Network, this Friday, May 3 at 5 p.m. on 88.3 WHWC/Menomonie-Eau Claire and 88.7 WRFW/River Falls. Other topics include the Eau Claire Children’s Theatre’s production of “Next to Normal,” spring art tours and a Japanese garden celebration.

Host Al Ross welcomes Johannes Strohschank, a German language expert and presenter at the 2013 Friends of the Max Kade Institute Annual Meeting and Dinner to be held in Eau Claire on May 4. The Institute supports scholarly research, documentation and outreach of German-American history, culture and language. The event includes a tour of the Chippewa Valley Museum, presentations by local German heritage specialists and a German banquet.

“What’s On-Stage in Western Wisconsin” with special correspondent Jim Oliver features the Eau Claire Children’s Theatre’s presentation of “Next to Normal” opening May 9 at The Oxford. Oliver welcomes Wayne Marek, executive director of ECCT.

Artist David Demattia will preview the “Earth Arts” spring art tour happening May 4-5. “Earth Arts” features 27 different stops and more than 40 artists in the upper St. Croix Valley.

Lee Friederich, event coordinator and associate lecturer at the University of Wisconsin – Barron County, will share the details about “The Friendship Garden Festival: An Evening of Music and Japanese Food.” The event celebrates the 15^th anniversary of the Japanese garden on the UW-Barron County campus in Rice Lake.

Spectrum West is a weekly program exploring the music, arts, and humanities in Western Wisconsin.  The show includes in-depth behind-the-scenes interviews and stories about area writers, musicians, theater, visual arts, and much more.  It is heard weekly on Friday from 5 to 6 p.m. on Ideas 88.3 WHWC/Menomonie-Eau Claire and 88.7 WRFW/River Falls.

WPR is a service of the University of Wisconsin Extension, the Educational Communications Board and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.  For more than 95 years, WPR has served the people of Wisconsin with quality news, classical music, and talk radio programming.  Listen, learn more and donate online at www.wpr.org.

-end-

May 1, 2013

For Immediate Release
Contact: Dean Kallenbach
(715)-839-2936

dean.kallenbach@wpr.org

Legislative Update to be Featured on The West Side

The West Side, on Wisconsin Public Radio’s Ideas Network, will discuss the latest issues facing Wisconsin’s state legislature on Thursday, May 2 at 5 p.m. on 88.3 WHWC/ Menomonie-Eau Claire.

Host Rich Kremer will welcome state senator Kathleen Vinehout (D-Alma) and state representative Scott Suder (R-Abbotsford).

Guests will discuss various bills currently proposed to the 2013-14 Wisconsin state legislature. Bills to be discussed include a bill about  hunting, fishing and trapping in state parks, a bill concerning zoning actions related to frac sand mining and a bill about sales and transfers of firearms.

The West Side is a call-in program focused on issues specific to western Wisconsin.  The show airs on Thursdays at 5 p.m. on 88.3 WHWC/ Menomonie-Eau Claire. Listeners may call in with questions and comments during the program at 1-800-228-5615.

Wisconsin Public Radio is a service of the University of Wisconsin Extension, the Educational Communications Board and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.  For more than 95 years, WPR has served the people of Wisconsin with quality news, classical music, and talk radio programming.  Listen, learn more and donate online at www.wpr.org.

-end-

April 24, 2013

For Immediate Release
Contact: Al Ross
715-839-3868

Lisa Lampanelli to be Featured on Spectrum West

Comedian Lisa Lampanelli will be featured on Spectrum West this Friday, April 26 at 5 p.m. on 88.3 WHWC/Menomonie-Eau Claire and 88.7 WRFW/River Falls. Other topics include The Jones Tones album release, the upcoming Eau Claire Chamber Orchestra concert “Two Symphonies and a Double Concerto,” a preview of upcoming events in the St. Croix Valley and the annual Classical Piano Festival in Shell Lake.

Host Al Ross welcomes comedian Lisa Lampanelli. Lampanelli will join the show via telephone from her New York home to talk about her upcoming appearance at the State Theatre in Eau Claire on May 10.

Dr. David Jones, a professor of English and Women’s Studies and member of The Jones Tones, also joins the show. Jones will discuss The Jones Tones album release on April 27 at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation in Eau Claire.

Ivar Lunde, Jr., music director for the Eau Claire Chamber Orchestra, will join the show to preview the final concert of the 2012-2013 season. The performance of “Two Symphonies and a Double Concerto” will be held on April 27. Wisconsin Public Radio’s Saturday and Sunday Afternoon Classics host Marika Fischer Hoyt will emcee the concert and host a preconcert lecture on the evening’s program.

Ross will offer previews of ArtOPENer, a tour of ten artists’ studios in the St. Croix Valley on May 4 and 5, the “Falls Sampler,” a spring tasting event and fundraiser featuring foods and beverages from around the St. Croix Valley on May 3 and the annual Classical Piano Festival at the Shell Lake Arts Center in Shell Lake on April 27.

Spectrum West is a weekly program exploring the music, arts, and humanities in Western Wisconsin.  The show includes in-depth behind-the-scenes interviews and stories about area writers, musicians, theater, visual arts, and much more.  It is heard weekly on Friday from 5 to 6 p.m. on Ideas 88.3 WHWC/Menomonie-Eau Claire and 88.7 WRFW/River Falls.

-end-

April 22, 2013

For Immediate Release
Contact: Rich Kremer
(715)-839-2936

Spring Fishing Opener to be Discussed on The West Side Outside

The West Side will discuss the spring fishing opener for the spring edition of The West Side Outside on Thursday, April 25 at 5 p.m. on 88.3 WHWC/ Menomonie-Eau Claire.

Host Rich Kremer will welcome “The Outdoor Guys” Joe Knight, outdoor editor for the Eau Claire Leader Telegram and Dave Carlson, host of the syndicated television program Northland Adventures on WQOW-TV18.

Guests will discuss the spring fishing opener scheduled for May 2 and the possible effects that new tribal spearfishing declarations could have on western Wisconsin fisheries. The declarations have increased the number of lakes with a “one-walleye” bag limit in northern Wisconsin.

The West Side is a call-in program focused on issues specific to western Wisconsin.  The show airs on Thursdays at 5 p.m. on 88.3 WHWC/ Menomonie-Eau Claire. Listeners may call in with questions and comments during the program at 1-800-228-5615.

-end-

April 16, 2013

For Immediate Release
Contact: Al Ross
715-839-3868

Frost Medal Award Winner to be Featured on Spectrum West

Marilyn Nelson, winner of the Frost Medal from the Poetry Society of America, will be featured on Spectrum West this Friday, April 19 at 5 p.m. on 88.3 WHWC/Menomonie-Eau Claire and 88.7 WRFW/River Falls. Other topics include the University of Wisconsin – River Falls’ Wyman Series presentation of “What’s your Tree? Believe in your Dreams and your Power to Change the World,” the Menomonie Theater Guild’s production of “Our Town” and the Eau Claire Male Chorus’ upcoming concert, “The Big Sing.”

Host Al Ross welcomes Marilyn Nelson, winner of the Frost Medal from the Poetry Society of America for “distinguished lifetime achievement in poetry.” She will speak on her career and share a verse or two. Nelson will read some of her works during the annual “Chippewa Valley Reads” event in the Woodland Theater in the W.R. Davies Student Center at the UW-Eau Claire on April 23.

Julia Butterfly Hill also joins the show. A guest at the UW-River Falls Wyman Series for the presentation “What’s your Tree? Believe in your Dreams and your Power to Change the World,” Hill will speak about her experience living in the canopy of a California Redwood. She will also discuss her book “The Legacy of Luna: The Story of a Tree, a Woman and the Struggle to Save the Redwoods.”

Special correspondent Jim Oliver will join the show with his segment, “What’s On-Stage in Western Wisconsin.” Oliver will also speak with Susan Weston, director of the Menomonie Theater Guild’s production of “Our Town” that will open April 26 at the Mabel Tainter Center for the Arts in Menomonie.

Robert Wierman will join the show to preview the Eau Claire Male Chorus’ upcoming concert “The Big Sing.” “The Big Sing” features over 300 male singers in individual and combined choruses from across the Midwest and special guests the UW-Eau Claire Singing Statesmen. The concert begins on April 27 in the Zorn Arena at UW-Eau Claire at 7 p.m.

Spectrum West is a weekly program exploring the music, arts, and humanities in Western Wisconsin.  The show includes in-depth behind-the-scenes interviews and stories about area writers, musicians, theater, visual arts, and much more.  It is heard weekly on Friday from 5 to 6 p.m. on Ideas 88.3 WHWC/Menomonie-Eau Claire and 88.7 WRFW/River Falls.

-end-

April 16, 2013

For Immediate Release
Contact: Rich Kremer
(715)-839-2936

Virtual Schools and Online Blended Learning to be Discussed on The West Side

The West Side will discuss virtual schools and online learning on Thursday, April 18 at 5 p.m. on 88.3 WHWC/ Menomonie-Eau Claire. The program

Host Rich Kremer will welcome Meleda Mullin, a middle school course instructor and enrichment specialist at the Advanced Learning Academy in Barron and Tim Leibham, assistant superintendant of the Eau Claire School District.

Guests will discuss trends in online learning. Proponents of such programs boast virtual schools and blended learning as a cost effective and innovative way to prepare students for higher education and entrance into the work force. Critics of online learning question the quality and effectiveness of the methods and are skeptical of the chances for success in area schools.

The program also features a special report by Hannah Weikel. Weikel talks with two students participating in virtual learning programs about their experiences. Both students plan to pursue higher education after completing their virtual program.

The West Side is a call-in program focused on issues specific to western Wisconsin.  The show airs on Thursdays at 5 p.m. on 88.3 WHWC/ Menomonie-Eau Claire. Listeners may call in with questions and comments during the program at 1-800-228-5615.

-end-

April 10, 2013

For Immediate Release
Contact: Al Ross
715-839-3868

“In a New Light” to be Discussed on Spectrum West

“In a New Light,” a program encouraging photographic self-expression, will be featured on Spectrum West this Friday, April 12 at 5 p.m. on 88.3 WHWC/Menomonie-Eau Claire and 88.7 WRFW/River Falls. Other topics include the University of Wisconsin-Stout’s annual “Fashion without Fabric” event, the book “Powerful Ideas in Teaching: Creating Environments in which Students want to Learn,” and the Chippewa Valley Theater Guild’s production of “Urinetown.”

Host Al Ross welcomes Ben Thwaits, the Expressive Arts Coordinator for Northwest Passage, a residential mental health treatment center in Frederic. Thwaits will discuss the program, “In a New Light,” which he spearheaded to empower troubled teenagers. The program encourages teenagers to engage in photographic journeys of self-expression.

Katie Thoma, a senior at the UW-Stout, will join the show. Thoma is the director of the annual “Fashion without Fabric” fashion show. The presentation will showcase fashions designed by students from the University and made from a variety of non-traditional materials such as garbage bags, cardboard and vinyl records. The show will take place at 8 p.m. on April 13 in the Great Hall of the Memorial Student Center.

Dr. Mickey Kolis, associate professor of education studies at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, will discuss his latest book, “Powerful Ideas in Teaching: Creating Environments in Which Students Want to Learn” co-authored with Emily Bright Krusack. The book is meant to serve as a classroom guidebook featuring ideas and advice from teachers.

Special correspondent Jim Oliver will join the show with his segment, “What’s On-Stage in Western Wisconsin.” Oliver also welcomes Keith Lorasch, the director of the Chippewa Valley Theater Guild’s production of “Urinetown.” The musical opens on April 18 at the State Theatre in Eau Claire.

Spectrum West is a weekly program exploring the music, arts, and humanities in Western Wisconsin.  The show includes in-depth behind-the-scenes interviews and stories about area writers, musicians, theater, visual arts, and much more.  It is heard weekly on Friday from 5 to 6 p.m. on Ideas 88.3 WHWC/Menomonie-Eau Claire and 88.7 WRFW/River Falls.

-end-

April 10, 2013

For Immediate Release
Contact: Rich Kremer
(715)-839-2936

Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to be Discussed on The West Side

The West Side will host a discussion on how the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act will affect local governments on Thursday, April 11 at 5 p.m. on 88.3 WHWC/ Menomonie-Eau Claire.

Host Rich Kremer will welcome Catherine Conway, an attorney from the Milwaukee-based firm Von Briesen & Roper which specializes in health law; Dale Peters, City of Eau Claire human resources director; and Chippewa County Administrator Frank Pascarella.

Guests will discuss the potential effects of the Affordable Care Act on local governments and businesses. The Act requires businesses with over 50 employees to cover any worker who works an average of 30 hours or more a week. The law also offers a look-back period of 12 months to ensure an employee is full time before coverage is necessary.

The West Side is a call-in program focused on issues specific to western Wisconsin.  The show airs on Thursdays at 5 p.m. on 88.3 WHWC/ Menomonie-Eau Claire. Listeners may call in with questions and comments during the program at 1-800-228-5615.

-end-