News from WCER

NIH Grant Writing Bootcamp Offered for Social Scientists

September 11, 2023   |   By WCER Communications

Sessions will be held from mid-October 2023 through mid-May 2024 and will be restricted to participants who plan to submit an NIH proposal by July 2024. Apply by Friday, Sept. 15.


WCER Colleagues After Work: An-Chieh Angela Chang

August 1, 2023   |   By WCER Communications

An-Chieh Angela Chang likes to cook and bake in her off-hours, especially the breads and treats she made when she ran a local tea shop with her spouse and some friends before joining WCER in 2022. She still does some home-based catering for former tea shop regulars.


UW–Madison’s Kim, Shaffer, Eagan Offer QE Masterclasses in Asia

August 1, 2023   |   By WCER Communications

In a series of seven workshops and lectures across Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Kuala Lumpur in February, Kim, Shaffer and Eagan offered researchers hands-on opportunities to learn about the methods and potential applications of QE, which unifies statistical and qualitative research methods to help researchers better harness the power of “big data” in the study of complex and collaborative human activity.


WCER Launches Sample Proposal Library for SoE Grant Writers

August 1, 2023   |   By WCER Communications

To help School of Education (SoE) faculty, staff, and students apply for—and hopefully win— more grant funding, WCER recently launched the Sample Proposal Library (SamPL). It contains full narratives from 16 funded education grant proposals to federal and foundation grantmakers.


From the South Pole to Rural Wisconsin via Virtual Reality

August 1, 2023   |   By Sofie Schachter

David Gagnon, director of Field Day Lab, says Field Day is exploring how virtual reality games like Waddle may help increase users’ empathy and engagement with certain subjects. For players of Waddle, those issues include polar research and conservation.


From Grant to Global Impact: WIDA’s Journey Over Two Decades

July 17, 2023   |   By Hannah Haynes, WIDA Communications

WIDA turns 20 years old this year. Read about how WIDA grew from the early days as a grant-funded startup to the large-scale consortium it is today and see where the organization is hoping to go in the next two decades.


Communications Pro Kelly Mella Joins WCER as Director of Communications and Marketing

July 5, 2023   |   By WCER Communications

​Mella has more than three decades of experience in communications as both a professor and practitioner.


WCER’s Gwen Goplin Receives One of 10 Campus-wide University Staff Recognition Awards

June 27, 2023   |   By WCER Communications

​Goplin, whose job title is Accountant III, has worked at WCER for more than 45 years.



WCER Researcher Ross Benbow in Campus Roundtable with U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs

June 15, 2023   |   By WCER Communications

​Benbow is studying the effect of social support networks on the academic and career success of student military and veterans.


Faculty receive 2023-24 WARF Named Professorships, Kellett Fellowships, Romnes Awards

June 13, 2023   |   By WCER Communications

Three from WCER/SoE are among the 34 awardees: Lesley Bartlett, Brian Burt, and Mitch Nathan.


CRECE Seeks Applicants for Paid Research Internships for Undergrad, Grad Students

June 8, 2023   |   By WCER Communications

For both programs, the goal is to diversify the research communities that address early childhood education issues. CRECE hopes to do this by providing mentored research experiences to traditionally underrepresented and other minoritized undergraduate and graduate students.


Meet Your Service Unit Member: Angela Chang

June 8, 2023   |   By WCER Communications

Angela Chang works in the Business Office as a pre-award specialist, where she is responsible for proposal preparation and submission including budgeting, preparing non-technical documents, and communicating with intra- and extramural stakeholders. A former tea shop co-owner, she still likes to make different types of breads in her off-time.


Nominations Open for WCER Values Awards

June 8, 2023   |   By WCER Communications

Do you have a WCER colleague who embodies the WCER Values? Nominate them to receive the WCER Values Award. This annual prize will be presented at the All-Staff Conference on Oct. 6. Deadline to nominate someone is on or before Aug. 25.


OVCRGE Grant to Investigate Asian American Pain

June 6, 2023   |   By WCER Communications

The two-year project is designed to improve diagnostic accuracy and treatment efficacy for multiple pain conditions, including informing whether to prescribe opioids and at what level, Kim says.


WCER’s CALL Project Celebrated on IES Blog

June 6, 2023   |   By WCER Communications

“The CALL project provides a model of how IES-funded research can have broad impact in schools around the country,” the blog post says. “We are thrilled that CALL developed into the rare educational survey that was embraced by the people who tested it as well as the research community.”