A Taste of the Future

Maybe this means there will be snacks.

When Alumni Weekend 2010 kicks off in April, it will do so with a new event — the Food Summit — and a headline speaker: former senator (and 1972 Democratic presidential nominee) George McGovern.

Held at the Memorial Union, the Food Summit offers a series of lectures and discussions on a wide variety of topics surrounding food. McGovern, who was instrumental in passing federal school lunch legislation, will deliver the keynote address. Other speakers at the daylong event include UW faculty (such as biochemist Dave Nelson, food scientist Scott Rankin, nursing professor Susan Riesch, and consumer science professor Lydia Zepeda) and Madison food writer Michelle Wildgen ’97.

The summit is just one of the new events at this year’s Alumni Weekend, which will also include the launch of Crazylegs World, an effort to get Badger enthusiasts everywhere out and running in support of UW athletics. The Crazylegs Classic has been an annual road race and fundraiser for the athletic department since 1982. This year, WAA is working with alumni to create parallel races in cities around the globe.

Alumni Weekend will also include traditional events, such as the Distinguished Alumni Awards ceremony. WAA’s highest honor, these awards go to UW grads who have shown particular devotion to the university and whose careers have exemplified the Wisconsin Idea. This year, five graduates will receive the award: Robert Barnett ’68, a leading representative of authors, television news professionals, and government officials; Rita Braver ’70, an award-winning senior correspondent at CBS News Sunday Morning; Haynes Johnson MS’56, a Pulitzer Prize-winning author and commentator; Kathryn Oberly ’71, JD’73, an associate judge on the District of Columbia Court of Appeals; and Arnold Weiss ’51, LLB’53, a retired investment-bank attorney and decorated World War II veteran whose efforts led to the capture of Hitler’s last will, now in the National Archives.

Alumni Weekend kicks off on April 22. For more information, visit uwalumni.com/alumniweekend.

Published in the Spring 2010 issue