Latest news with #UniversityofWisconsin-GreenBay
Yahoo
25-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
How the Class of 2025 Got Screwed by DOGE
Jonah Zuehls is exactly the kind of young person the United States government should be looking to put on its payroll — smart, ambitious, and inclined toward public service. And up until recently, that's exactly where he always thought he was going to land. Last summer, when the 21-year-old health science and molecular biology student at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay met virology researchers who had worked on a Covid vaccine, he was so inspired by how their work had helped humankind, he decided he wanted to follow in their footsteps. Over the winter break, Zuehls began lining up full-time contract opportunities at government-run labs in Maryland and Montana as an applicant to a prestigious National Institutes of Health postbaccalaureate program. He was excited to spend the next year or two serving the public. But not long after Jan. 20, when the Biden administration gave way to the Trump administration, recruitment for those positions was abruptly put on pause. Zuehls initially regretted not having listened to the four professors who had advised him to simply apply straight to graduate school and pursue a Ph.D. But then he heard other students across the U.S. who'd been accepted into those grad programs were suddenly having their offers rescinded too, after federal funding to their colleges was pulled. He reached out to two biotech companies to see if they had any open roles, only to learn they had either paused or delayed any hiring as they waited to learn the fate of their NIH grants. Suddenly, everywhere he looked, doors were slamming shut. 'I can't enter the private sector. I can't go to university. I can't do the postbac. What do I do?' Zuehls says. 'Do you just go work at McDonald's?' Almost four months after Zuehls' first offer was rescinded, he was able to accept an offer to work on HIV research at an NIH lab in Maryland, when recruitment for some of these programs partially resumed. But he remains shaken by the experience. More than anything, he's been trying to understand why the country so many young people want to serve no longer seems to place as much worth on that service. 'You go to school for a career where you're supposed to be helping people and then find it's not valued,' he says. 'Nothing about it makes sense.' Interviews with 10 students and new graduates across the U.S. offer a glimpse of how they've been grappling with the fallout from the Trump administration's unprecedented slashing of the federal government. Spearheaded by Elon Musk's so-called Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, the haphazard cuts to public agencies have resulted in more than 280,000 federal workers and contractors being laid off from 27 agencies, according to a tracking report by one outplacement firm. But the axe has also fallen on aspiring attorneys, scientists, data managers, and others who had federal internships canceled or offers of employment rescinded amid hiring freezes, leaving them stung and confused. As they've scrambled to plot their next steps, many of these students have not only lost postgraduate opportunities, but their very faith in the public service as a viable career path. Kristin Comrie, a 35-year-old completing her master of science degree in healthcare informatics at the University of Central Florida, says work in the public sector is 'obviously a lot less secure.' Comrie was deeply frustrated when even her unpaid internship at the Department of Veterans Affairs was scrapped as of Jan. 21, just weeks before she was set to start. 'In a way, it was a valuable experience — but not in a positive way, because now I would think twice about joining the public sector,' Comrie says. 'It just didn't even occur to me that something so sweeping like that could impact even an internship.' Prior to the DOGE cuts, it seemed more students were feeling drawn to government work. A report from May 2024 by Handshake, a recruiting platform for college students, found almost 7.5 percent of applications submitted by graduates through the platform were for government jobs, up two percent from the previous year. (In November 2024, 1.87 percent of the entire U.S. civilian workforce were federal government employees, per the Pew Research Center.) For three-quarters of all those surveyed, their main career concern was job security, a benefit often associated with government work. 'I'm extremely thankful to be in a secure position where I don't have to worry about being laid off,' one student who had landed an offer to work for a federal agency told the surveyors. For Andrew Nettels, 25, a third-year law student at George Washington University, this promise of stability was a major reason he was eager to begin a Department of Justice role he'd secured as part of the highly competitive Attorney General's Honors Program — a job offer that was subsequently revoked when the program was canceled as part of the hiring freeze. 'I wasn't applying to a job, per se. I was applying for a vocation,' Nettles says. 'I had the long-term in mind.' The government is also desperately in need of younger workers like Nettels given that a significant portion of its employees is nearing retirement age. A January report from the Pew Research Center found that more than 28 percent of federal workers were over 55, compared to 23.6 percent of the overall workforce. Fewer than nine percent were under 30, compared with 22.7 percent of all workers. 'The government has a gray-hair problem,' says Zachary McDaniel, a 30-year-old completing a masters in taxation law at the University of California, Irvine, who was due to begin a salaried graduate position he'd secured at the Internal Revenue Service before it was abruptly canceled. 'You want the next generation of really, really smart, motivated people to be in there. You want to have the best and brightest. I think it truly is the government's loss that they've essentially terminated an entire class.' The Biden administration had been taking steps to remedy the age demographics. In January 2023, the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) released guidance on growing the number of early-career programs in the federal government, with agencies instructed to increase their numbers of interns, fellows, apprentices, and early-career hires. The administration had wanted to hire at least 35,000 interns alone in 2023, and job postings on Handshake from federal employers subsequently jumped 22 percent from the previous year. OPM director Kiran Ahuja had said the recruiting efforts would allow federal agencies to 'boost their talent pipelines and better serve the American people,' in part by better reflecting the age diversity of the country. (The comments by Ahuja, who subsequently announced she was stepping down from her role in May due to what an agency spokesperson said were health and family reasons, have since been scrubbed from the internet.) Now, though, many federal agencies have disappeared from recruiting events on college campuses, according to Shawn VanDerziel, the executive director of the National Association of Colleges and Employers, which represents 17,000 members who work in career services on campuses or who recruit new graduates. These career-guidance professionals are now advising students who might be thinking about federal work to wait until the government is more stable. Currently, its reputation as an employer is just not what it used to be, and it may not recover for some time to come, according to VanDerziel. 'The federal government will really need to be rethinking recruitment strategies whenever it is ready to bring in new recruits because of the impressions that this is leaving in the eyes of new graduates,' he says. 'They are really going to need to plan carefully if they are going to appeal to Generation Z.' The perception that government work is generally more stable than the private sector was not the only material benefit attracting aspiring federal workers. The competitiveness of many graduate program roles and internships in the federal government meant they naturally bestowed a certain degree of prestige on young workers, opening doors that might eventually lead them to higher-paying roles in the private sector. Many interviewed by Rolling Stone said they also expected to develop significantly more experience in public service by virtue of being handed more to do than they would be in a corporate job. 'When you go into Big Law, you're not really given a lot of responsibility, and I'm someone that does enjoy being given responsibility and starting to work right away,' says Malen Nousari, a 29-year-old University of Miami law student set to graduate in May. 'So I knew that working at the IRS, not only would I feel good about the work I'm doing, but I also would get the experience that I'm looking for.' The daughter of immigrants from Argentina, Nousari had welcomed the opportunity to give back to the country that had taken her family in. 'I was ecstatic. I mean, I cried,' she says of learning in August that she'd been accepted into a role as an attorney with the IRS in Fort Lauderdale. 'Well, I cried on both sides — when I got it and when I lost it.' Many of the students who spoke with Rolling Stone had similarly personal stories about why they wanted to enter the public sector. Neil Mahto, a 20-year-old sophomore at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, viewed the three-month paid internship he'd secured at an NIH lab to research Alzheimer's disease as a chance to combat the brain-related disorders that had affected his mother and grandmother. Angela Silva, a 34-year-old who graduated in December from the University of Florida's law school, came to appreciate the need for compassionate public servants during the lengthy period it took for her immigrant husband to win permanent residency. Another law student at the University of Oregon, who asked to remain anonymous so as not to jeopardize other government opportunities, was devastated when a paid internship offer from the Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Civil Rights was rescinded before the job began. She'd wanted to become an attorney since seeing the 2019 movie Dark Waters, which told the story of how a chemical manufacturer had dumped waste that contaminated communities in West Virginia. 'I felt like this was a long dream of mine,' she says. For Daniel Pintard, a biology and computer science student at Marymount University in Virginia, the opportunity to return this summer to a paid internship he completed last year at the National Library of Medicine was meant to be a homecoming of sorts. The 22-year-old couldn't recall another time he'd found something so intellectually stimulating and rewarding — even comforting. 'It was really surprising to me that a government agency could feel like a place where there's a really strong sense of community and belonging — that you feel like you're kind of in the right place,' Pintard said. 'To be a part of something that's bigger than you and that is very fundamentally important to the field that you really care about is one of the most satisfying feelings.' After finally learning their fates, though, Pintard and others who spoke with Rolling Stone said they'd felt a mix of feelings from disappointment to devastation, frustration to anxiety. More than anything was a sense of confusion about why the government would abandon so much talent. 'I've talked about it with other law students, and everyone's just in disbelief. They keep saying the same thing: It doesn't make sense,' says Nousari, who adds that she needed time to grieve for her lost role. 'Anyone in these [graduate] programs is very qualified, at the top of the class, and is choosing to work. You'd think you'd want more of those people in government. I think jaded is the sense I've had talking to friends.' On a practical level, the cancellations and rescissions have affected students in different ways. Some had structured their course schedules in their final semesters under the assumption that their job search was over. ('Being thrown back into the job search, it's been quite difficult to balance that,' says Nettels, the George Washington University student.) Others had already graduated — like Silva in Florida, who was studying for the bar exam when she learned her role at the IRS was gone — meaning they no longer had access to their school's recruiting resources. 'It was like a double blow,' Silva says. 'I lost my dream job, and now I'm on my own trying to find new employment.' The news was particularly painful for Silva because she'd turned down another position to accept the government role. 'I thought the IRS was more permanent, that it's a safer position,' Silva said. 'Joke was on me.' (Silva ultimately was able to return to the position she had turned down at the University of Florida's Low Income Taxpayer Clinic.) To try to find their way out of the mess, students have been frantically applying for other opportunities and reaching out to their college and professional networks. Many have shared candid posts on LinkedIn, some of which went viral and gave rise to potential leads. Nettels created a group chat for more than 100 other law students who'd lost roles at the DOJ where they could share tips and strategize. He, like others, was also supported by trade groups, college career advisors, companies, and law firms that rallied to assist the affected students and steer them into new roles. Many of those who spoke with Rolling Stone had successfully found new opportunities, but some were still looking. Zuehls, the young scientist in Wisconsin, says he's been considering leaving the U.S. altogether to pursue a Ph.D. in Canada or Europe — somewhere he can feel more confident that the government wouldn't suddenly pull funding based on a whim or grievance. All this instability has also shaken the confidence of graduates who have recently begun their hard-won government roles, only to find themselves now eyeing the exits. One 32-year-old attorney at the IRS Office of Chief Counsel, who asked to remain anonymous to discuss a job she only began at the end of last year, described how she had gladly signed a contract that pledged her to three years of work with the agency, because she'd fully expected to work there for twice as long. But confronted with cuts spearheaded by Musk, who has demonized workers like her, she's now considering accepting a package being offered as part of a second round of buyouts — a development she calls 'heartbreaking.' She explains, 'Not to be dramatic, but I like this job and I don't want to quit. But things don't seem to be getting any better; in fact, they seem to be getting a lot worse.' 'I'm really struggling to find the word, because 'unprecedented' just doesn't feel right,' she adds when asked what the last few months have been like. 'It feels disorienting, unsettling, destabilizing, and just shocking. I feel frozen, and I think that's the point. …It's hard to get your bearings.' While none of the students who spoke with Rolling Stone said they had voted for Trump, they described conversations with friends and loved ones who had done so and who were shocked to hear how they had been affected. Mahto, the Johns Hopkins student, says some of his roommates had voted for Trump and were now regretting their choice, while Pintard, the Marymount student, says a friend who had opted not to vote has since apologized for how his apathy led to Pintard's predicament. Zuehls says he's depressed that some in his extended family who support Trump can't seem to see how the president's actions had so profoundly hurt him. What each student has been left with is a clear and direct understanding of just how much a person's fate can be affected by a single election. 'When you vote, you don't really understand how much of your life is impacted by politics,' says the unnamed Oregon law student. 'We don't understand that everything that we have around us is politics.' McDaniel, the UC Irvine student, in particular, has a very strong sense of the road not taken. He and his girlfriend had already traveled to Salt Lake City to inspect potential apartments in anticipation of the IRS position he'd expected to start there in June. He was looking forward to being closer to family and ski resorts. Instead, he's off to start a role he's managed to find in the private sector in San Jose. Still, as he read reports of senior IRS officials resigning in protest over a deal to share migrants' data with federal immigration authorities, McDaniel couldn't help thinking he had dodged a bullet. He'd always assumed that a public sector role wouldn't require someone to compromise their values in a way one might have to in private industry, but that no longer seemed true. He had wanted to serve the public, not a president, but an election had changed everything. 'It's a Sliding Doors moment for the U.S.,' he says. 'Who knows what would have been different?' More from Rolling Stone Trump Is Trying to Take Control of Congress Through Its Library Elon Musk: It Is 'Outrageous' to 'Claim That I'm a Nazi' Elon Musk and His DOGE Bro Have Cashed In on Americans' Retirement Savings Best of Rolling Stone The Useful Idiots New Guide to the Most Stoned Moments of the 2020 Presidential Campaign Anatomy of a Fake News Scandal The Radical Crusade of Mike Pence
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Community lifting up former Crown Point volleyball star facing leukemia
CROWN POINT, Ind. — The community is rallying around a current college volleyball player and former Crown Point star facing a recent leukemia diagnosis. Kendall Schara, 21, was wrapping up her spring season for the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay when she went to the dentist to get her wisdom teeth removed. She had some complications with antibiotics and ended up in urgent care up in Green Bay. She was tested for COVID-19, the flu and strep. It came back positive for Influenza A. Her conditioned worsened and she ended up in the emergency room. 'Her team was playing Wisconsin and she stayed behind with abdominal pain,' mother Shelley Schara said. 'They thought she had to have her gallbladder removed but a test came back and it showed no blockage.' Schara underwent a bone marrow biopsy on April 24 and the next day she received the news that she was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia. 'You're heartbroken and you question how this could happen to your child,' Shelley said. 'Then you kick into survival and fight mode to keep her positive.' Schara is a fighter who has been playing volleyball since she was a kid. She helped lead the Crown Point Bulldogs to a sectional championship and was named all-conference of the Duneland in 2020 and 2021. 'It's someone no one expects to go through at 21 and it's still something so hard to wrap my mind around, 'cancer,'' she told WGN News. 'But to be able to come home and lean back on people I haven't seen in awhile — they're always going to be here for me.' Her Green Bay teammates and coach have also been in her corner. 'Kendall is a leader, a warrior, and a special young woman. I love coaching Kendall and I love who she is,' her coach Abby Geschke wrote on social media. 'Our team is devastated, but we know we have a role. We have the honor of supporting her, and we will do whatever we can do to help her fight and win.' Schara is currently on a 24-hour drip of chemotherapy at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where a steady stream of visitors have kept her company. After chemotherapy, her next road will be a stem cell treatment. Without hesitancy, her two younger sisters volunteered to be tested and her mother said they will fight until they get a match. A GoFundMe set up by Schara's high school coach has raised over $43,000 at this time for her medical bills. 'Crown Point has been absolutely amazing with the calls, texts, letters, visitors and food being delivered,' her mother said. 'But most importantly with prayers and it's amazing to see the community come together and help during a time like this.' In the meantime, Schara is thankful for modern technology and being close to home during this time. 'I have visitors every single day. Green Bay people, Crown Point people. Having a Roku here is life saving,' Schara said with a laugh. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Iconic Rock Band Plays at Backyard House Party & Fans Go Feral
The All-American Rejects have played multiple pop-up concerts in recent weeks—and fans went feral during the iconic rock band's shockingly low-key venue choice at a backyard house party in Chicago. On May 15, the 2000s indie-rock group—led by , 41, and known for hits like "Dirty Little Secret," "Move Along" and more—played a show literally in someone's backyard. 🎬 SIGN UP for Parade's Daily newsletter to get the latest pop culture news & celebrity interviews delivered right to your inbox 🎬 "Night 2 in the bag. Chicago is the city to beat. Where we going next? Easy Come Easy Go," the All-American Rejects captioned an Instagram post featuring a video of the concert. In the clip, attendees (and Ritter) crowd surfed, sang along, formed a mosh pit, and generally looked like they had an amazing time. In the comments, fans went wild over the pop-up concert concept. One Instagram user wrote, "We had so much fun!!!!! So happy I was there y'all were amazing." Another shared, "These shows looks bananas and you all look so happy and like you're having so much fun. I'm so excited for you guys 💖." Someone else declared, "Best night ever!!!" as a different fan commented, "Thanks for an amazing night 🫶🏽." Plenty of folks in the crowd posted videos of their own on social media. On May 14, the All-American Rejects also played a pop-up show at Phoenix Park on the campus of the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay. And on May 16, the band played at a bowling alley in Minneapolis, Minn. The band's unconventional venue choices are part of promoting their new single, "Sandbox." In addition to Ritter, the All-American Rejects features Nick Wheeler and Mike Kennerty on guitar and Chris Gaylor on drums. Next:
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
UW-Green Bay marks historic milestone with spring commencement for over 1,000 graduates
GREEN BAY, Wis. (WFRV) – The University of Wisconsin-Green Bay will mark a major milestone this Saturday, May 17th, as it celebrates the largest graduating class in its history. According to a press release from UW-Green Bay, total of 1,338 students are eligible to receive their degrees during two commencement ceremonies at the Kress Events Center on the Green Bay Campus. Chancellor Michael Alexander emphasized the importance of the occasion, noting that more than 70% of UW-Green Bay graduates stay in the region after earning their degrees. The 1,338 students who will earn their degree this weekend will impact the workforce in amazing ways, through tenacity, critical thinking and a strong desire to ensure the communities that they live and work within are thriving. Chancellor Michael Alexander, UW-Green Bay Chancellor South Bridge Connector project breaks ground in De Pere, aims to improve I-41 traffic flow The release says ceremonies will begin at 9:30 a.m. with graduated from the College of the Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, as well as students receiving associate degrees from all four UW-Green Bay Campuses, including those in the Rising Phoenix Program. The afternoon ceremony is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. and will honor graduated from the Austin E. Cofrin School of Business, the College of Health, Education and Social Welfare, and the College of Science, Engineering and Technology. UW-Green Bay highlights that this year's graduating class represents a wide range of accomplishments. More than 150 high school students from across the state are completing associate degrees through the Rising Phoenix program become receiving their high school deplomas. The release also emphasizes that nearly half of the graduating class are first-generation college students, including Tyler Dean, who is earning a degree in Electrical Engineering after serving in the Middle East and previously studying at Michigan Tech. Green Bay PD marks National Police Week with fallen officers memorial The ceremonies will also mark several 'firsts' for the university. The press release says the master's program in Public Administration will celebrate its inaugural graduates which includes Gage Beck. The new Biodiversity and Conservation Management program will also see its first graduates, such as Daxton Castellanos, who will step foot on the UW-Green Bay campus for the first time on graduation day, having completed the program remotely from California. Adham Elkasses will become the first UW-Green Bay student to earn a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation before completing a bachelor's degree in Finance. The release highlights that student voices will take center stage as well. Monica Garcia, a first-generation student from the Sheboygan campus, will speak at the morning ceremony. Graduating with a double major in Democracy and Justice Studies and Psychology, Garcia credits UW-Green Bay with helping her find her voice and passion for mentorship. In the afternoon, Aashiv Pandev, will share her journey from moving across the globe to pursuing a future in medicine, underscoring the importance of adaptability, compassion, and perservance. Green Bay agency hosts monthly diaper giveaway and resource fair for local families Among the many inspiring graduates are Alex Freeman, who pursued a degree in Public Administration with an Emergency Management emphasis to support his role as Waukesha County's Emergency Management Coordinator, and Jessie Kreiling, whose lifelong love for water has led her to earn a degree in Water Science and work towards solutions for environmental challenges. Graduates from all four UW-Green Bay campuses – Green Bay, Marinette, Manitowoc, and Sheboygan – will be recognized on Saturday, with degrees awarded in high-demand fields such as nursing, education, business and environmental studies. As UW-Green Bay honors the Class of 2025, it also celebrates the passion, resilience, and ambition of students who are ready to rise and shape the future of Northeast Wisconsin. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
How will AmeriCorps cuts affect Wisconsin students? Some see cuts, shutdowns ahead
A few weeks ago, University of Wisconsin-Green Bay junior Jasmine Puls was at her AmeriCorps job at the Girl Scout Reaching Out program, preparing for a trip to a local elementary school, when she got an email marked 'URGENT.' "Out of nowhere, we just got an email that we were being shut down, and that they tried to appeal it but that it was non-appealable, and that there was nothing they could do," Puls said. "We were literally given no warning." Seven staff members lost their jobs 'within 10 minutes,' including Puls. They weren't alone: Statewide, about 430 AmeriCorps workers found themselves out of work after the federal Department of Government Efficiency made cuts to their programs. Reaching Out focused on connecting students in underserved communities — often due to financial or language barriers — with outdoor education and life skills, according to assistant program and inclusion director Brittany Pyatt. Many other AmeriCorps programs offered similar services, providing students in need with tutoring and engagement services. On April 29, Wisconsin joined a multistate lawsuit alleging the AmeriCorps cuts will 'inflict immediate and irreparable harms' to people nationwide. With many of those cuts made to programs interwoven with the education system in Wisconsin, and the state budget for next year not yet set, it's not clear what the future holds for these programs. Programs for students both inside and outside the classroom are facing an uncertain future. Here's a look at a couple Wisconsin programs that will be affected: Volunteer tutoring program Schools of Hope, organized through United Way of Dane County, has existed for decades. It provides one-on-one and small group reading tutors to elementary students in need, among other tutoring sessions and support. In annual surveys, staff in Madison-area schools said they've seen student attendance and literacy rates increase through the program's work. This academic year, over 1,000 students worked with over 175 tutors. The program relies on AmeriCorps workers in every step of the process: 'tutor coordinators' bring in volunteers, train them, match them with students and evaluate them, UWDC president Renee Moe said. Or at least they did, until they found out that AmeriCorps funding had been abruptly cut. "Not only do you disrupt a program for kids to build their confidence, but if someone shows up for you regularly and you have that disrupted, there's a sense of loss there," Moe said. Another Dane County program, Partners for After School Success, is in a similar situation. PASS provided academic and social-emotional support to students in low-income communities. Now, unless the federal decision on AmeriCorps cuts is reversed, the PASS program will be essentially shut down. 'Without the program, providing these services — which are so critical and already under-resourced — just became more difficult,' Ariana Vruwink said in an email. Vruwink is the communications coordinator for the Dane County Department of Human Services. 'PASS alumni often go on to careers in education, youth work, and community service; the loss of this program will have a negative impact on the human service workforce in Dane County for years to come.' Reaching Out, the Girl Scout program, is trying to prepare its schools for what will come next. AmeriCorps members led 70 programs in 56 locations in northwestern Wisconsin, said Brittany Pyatt, assistant program and inclusion director for the Girl Scouts of the Northwest Great Lakes. In the Green Bay School District alone, the program served nine elementary schools. Schools of Hope is able to finish out this year through support from volunteers and the host schools, but next year directors will have to rework the program. The program worked, Moe said, and effective programs don't usually see such sudden, dramatic cuts. "To have a program that's very efficient and very effective in delivering the results that it's intended to achieve, to have that completely go away," Moe said, "It's just really unsettling." Contact Green Bay education reporter Nadia Scharf at nscharf@ or on X at @nadiaascharf. This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: How will AmeriCorps cuts affect Wisconsin students?
