Category: News

Ruth Munz receives Excellence in Early Education Award

Ruth Munz, a university associate in the Waisman Early Childhood Program, received the Excellence in Early Education Award last month after nomination from her co-workers. She was honored at Jazzin, the annual fundraiser for campus childcare and acknowledgement of exceptional early education teachers and leaders on campus.

Fragile X proteins involved in proper neuron development

Fragile X syndrome is the most common inherited intellectual disability and the greatest single genetic contributor to autism. Unlocking the mechanisms behind fragile X could make important revelations about the brain.

Greenberg to fill research leadership post

Norman Drinkwater, a UW-Madison professor of oncology, and Jan Greenberg, a UW-Madison professor of social work, have been named associate vice chancellors in the Office of Research and Graduate Education. Greenberg will lead the area of social studies while Drinkwater will lead the biological sciences.

Questions for Maureen Durkin: Understanding autism’s rise

Waisman Center investigator, Maureen Durkin, PhD, DrPH, professor of population health sciences and pediatrics, was featured by the Simons Foundation Autism Reseach Initiative (SFARI) in a Q&A article about the rising prevalence of autism.

Vision research month

June is Vision Research Awareness Month and the Waisman Center is home to a comprehensive vision research program led by David Gamm, MD, PhD. Gamm, a Waisman Center investigator, associate professor of ophthalmology and visual sciences, and Director of the McPherson Eye Research Institute, studies human retinal development and potential therapies for retinal degenerative diseases.

2015 Spring Benefit Concert raises more than $25,000

The Friends of the Waisman Center held its 20th annual benefit concert on Friday, May 1. This was a milestone event celebrating not only the 20th concert, but also the 40th anniversary of the Friends of the Waisman Center.

ALS awareness month

May is ALS awareness month and Waisman Center investigator Su-Chun Zhang, MD, PhD, uses stem cells from ALS patients to uncover the cause of ALS and screen drugs to treat the disease. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord that control muscle movement. …

Autism and employment

Waisman Center investigator, Leann Smith, PhD, was interviewed by WSAW-TV in Wausau to discuss the importance of employment for teens and young adults with autism as they transition out of high school. The Age of Autism – click to watch Smith created an eight-week program, Transitioning Together, to help teenagers with autism and their families …

UW-Madison expert on infant learning elected to American Academy

Jenny Saffran, a University of Wisconsin-Madison professor of psychology and an expert on how infants learn, is among leaders in academia, business, public affairs and the arts elected to membership in the American Academy of Arts and Sciences

Messing named director of Waisman Center

Albee Messing, a University of Wisconsin–Madison professor of comparative biosciences and an international leader in research on Alexander disease, has been named director of the Waisman Center, UW–Madison School of Medicine and Public Health Dean Robert Golden announced April 14. Golden says Messing was selected for the position due to his unique combination of experience, …