Open house: Y’all come!
The university plans three days of hands-on fun and education as part of a free Campus Open House Aug. 18-20.
The event features interactive, educational and entertaining activities for people of all ages, says Noel Radomski, director of the Visitor Services program: “Together, our schools, colleges and other units will provide visitors with a snapshot of the great discoveries, instructional initiatives, outreach efforts, cultural life and athletic programs of the university.”
All events are free and family-oriented. The entire campus will open its doors with tours, concerts, special events and freebies. Parking in university lots will be free Saturday, and buses will shuttle visitors between the major event sites. Information booths will have complete schedules.
Events will center on several major locations and timing will be staggered so that people can visit several sites throughout the day. Some of the highlights over the three days:
- Check out the 56 bronze bells of the 85-foot carillon tower, delve into the politics of the 2000 election, and enjoy a cool neon light show.
- Take a look inside the state of the art Med Flight emergency helicopter or explore the inner workings of the human brain.
- Enjoy hands-on fun extracting DNA from wheat germ or explore the genetic codes of living plants and bacteria.
- Visit the milking parlor, check out the veterinary school, or learn about butterflies, beetles and bipeds with the Creepy Crawly Zoo.
- Tour Wisconsin’s native plant communities and learn about healthy fruits and vegetables.
- View art and fabric displays, enter a coloring contest of historic buildings, or watch vintage cartoons of Bugs Bunny.
- Learn to play billiards, canoe Lake Mendota, climb a rock wall, or join the polka party.
- See high-tech distance learning systems, Internet movie-making, wireless communications, videoconferencing and more.
- Enjoy hands-on astronomy activities, peek at the stars at Washburn Observatory, take a look at Antarctic weather from a satellite, or learn about past and future climates.
- Check out the neat cars students are making today, get your picture taken in from of the famous Engineering Fountain or Heisman Trophy.
- Tour greenhouses, gardens, buildings, the arboretum and more, or sit back and relax to world music at the Union Terrace.
Most events are scheduled Saturday, following this general schedule:
- Health and fitness activities and exhibits, 8 a.m.-noon.
- Exhibits and hands-on demonstrations in life sciences and biotechnology, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.
- Geology Museum tours, engineering, weather and space science exhibits and more, 1-5 p.m.
- Poetry, storytelling, music and dancing, and bookmaking for kids, 10 a.m.-6 p.m.
- Music on the Union Terrace, 5-11 p.m.
On Sunday, Aug. 20, a free soccer clinic for kids is planned, 8:30-11 a.m., and the annual Badger Football Family Fun Day is scheduled at Camp Randall starting at 2 p.m.
Food will available Saturday and Sunday at the Stock Pavilion, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.; Babcock Hall, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Memorial Union, 11 a.m.-midnight; and Union South, 11:30 a.m.-4 p.m.
The Campus Open House is sponsored by the UW–Madison Office of Visitor Services, Division of Intercollegiate Athletics, UW Health, The Wisconsin State Journal, WISC-TV, Wisconsin and Southern Railroad Company, and A to Z RentAll and Sales.