In the Know: SMPH Updates for September 21, 2020 

Top news 

  • Chancellor Rebecca Blank released a statement today concerning the shared goals of UW–Madison, the City of Madison, Dane County, and Public Health Madison & Dane County in reducing COVID-19 infections in our community.
  • Reminder: Don’t forget to take your furlough time: All furlough days must be taken by October 31, 2020. Please work with your supervisor to ensure remaining furlough days are scheduled and taken by that time. Final deadlines for submitting and approving furlough time are: October 5 (non-instructional staff paid monthly), November 5 (instructional staff and faculty who hold UW-Madison appointments; does not apply to faculty with dual SMPH and UW Health appointments) or November 7 (staff paid bi-weekly). These are final deadlines for the whole furlough period; employees and approvers should still adhere to biweekly and monthly reminders to report furlough time sent by HR.
  • Leadership searches have resumed: See the Leadership Search page for the most up-to-date information regarding candidate visits. First up will be visits for the chair of the Department of Family Medicine and Community Health, which will begin October 5. Look out for more information on this search and others.

Building an Anti-Racist SMPH  

Upcoming events: 

    • Wisconsin Leadership Summit, October 5-9, 2020. Moderators include Danielle Yancey, MS, director of the Native American Center for Health Professions moderating a panel titled “Indigenous in Wisconsin: A panel of our Native brothers and sisters and their shared experience in Wisconsin” and Shiva Bidar-Sielaff, UW Health Vice President of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, moderating a panel titled “Supporting Staff of Color Beyond Your Walls: The role of business in community investment.”
    • Advancing Health Equity in the Era of COVID-19, virtual symposium offered by the UW–Madison School of Education – October 1 from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m.   
    • WISELI virtual workshops on Breaking the Bias Habit in October and November are available for faculty and staff and a workshop for SMPH members serving on faculty search committees on October 21.  
    • The Building Community/Ebling Library Book and Film Club offers two discussion sessions on September 25 and October 15 for the documentary Human Zoos: America’s Forgotten History on Scientific Racism. Visit the Book & Film Club website to register. 

 Shout-outs: 

Please send kudos about your colleagues. Honor someone at go.wisc.edu/shoutout and we’ll share the stories. Visit this page to see a collection of shout-outs to date.

 Anti-Racism in Action: 

  • The UW–Madison Libraries have a large collection of materials about anti-racist theory and practice, many of which are available online. Learn more.