K9 Protection Dogs in Madison, WI

Galasys, a University of Wisconsin–Madison based spinoff company, took first place in the Advanced Manufacturing category of the 22nd annual Wisconsin Governor’s Business Plan Contest. The contest was developed to encourage entrepreneurs in the startup stage of tech-enabled businesses. The contest links up-and-coming entrepreneurs with a statewide network of community resources, expert judges, mentors and possible sources of capital.

Galasys was co-founded in fall 2023 by Jarryd Featherman, research specialist and serial entrepreneur in the Department of Chemical Engineering; George W. Huber, the Richard L. Antoine Professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering; and Scott Rankin, professor and chair of the Department of Food Science. It arose from a nine-year collaborative cross-campus research project funded by USDA, National Dairy Council, Center for Dairy Research, Dairy Innovation Hub, Dairy Management Inc., Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF), and other sources. Entrepreneurial support was provided through campus and Wisconsin innovation ecosystems, including the Technology Entrepreneurship Office’s Early Entrepreneur-in-Residence program, D2P, Center for Technology Commercialization, gener8tor, and Small Business Development Center.

The manufacturing technology developed by Galasys, which has been patented through WARF, involves converting a dairy food processing byproduct into tagatose, a natural, low-calorie sweetener. As shared by the Galasys team, tagatose has 63% fewer calories and a 95% lower glycemic index than table sugar, while delivering 92% of the sweetness. It also offers anti-cariogenic benefits (helps prevent tooth decay) and prebiotic effects that support gut and immune health. This provides the dairy industry with a high-value revenue stream and adds a new sustainable solution for dairy waste disposal while addressing food industry gaps. More than other currently-available sugar alternatives, tagatose tastes and functions like real sugar, giving food companies a better option to create reduced-sugar products.

The WI Governor’s Business Plan Contest is produced by the Wisconsin Technology Council and a growing list of partners, led by the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. It engages contestants in a five-month process that includes the opportunity to work with mentors and receive feedback from judges.

The 2025 competition began in January with 156 entries in four categories: Advanced Manufacturing, Business Services, Information Technology, and Life Sciences. Through various rounds in the competition, the top 13 business plans were announced in May. These finalists pitched their businesses at the Wisconsin Entrepreneurs’ Conference on June 4. At the conference, Featherman gave the winning presentation for the Galasys team.

Since the contest’s inception, 4,813 businesses have applied to compete in the statewide contest.

Update (6/22/25, 10:30am): Due to the heat advisory, this event is canceled. We look forward to seeing you next month, July 20 for the showing of Cars!

Enjoy a warm-weather evening of fun at Movie at The Glen. Starting at 5 PM, join us for classic yard games and a hands-on boating demonstration and tutorial led by the experts at Brittingham Boats—a great chance to learn something new and get moving outdoors. As the evening winds down, grab your blankets and lawn chairs for a magical outdoor screening of Moana 2. Free, family-friendly, and full of feel-good vibes—don’t miss this memorable night at The Glen!

Moana 2 reunites Moana and Maui three years later for an expansive new voyage alongside a crew of unlikely seafarers. After receiving an unexpected call from her wayfinding ancestors, Moana must journey to the far seas of Oceania and into dangerous, long-lost waters for an adventure unlike anything she’s ever faced.

The Glen events are sponsored in partnership with the Madison Parks Foundation.

The scene around Camp Randall on Saturday looked like any other Badger game day. Downtown Madison was buzzing with out-of-towners. Crowds shuffled up Regent Street, and pregame tailgates were in full swing by mid-afternoon.

But this time, fans had swapped their Badger red for denim and cowboy hats. Everyone was headed to a rowdy Morgan Wallen concert, the first live music concert of this scale in nearly 30 years on the Badgers’ home turf.

Wallen’s two-night stop in Madison, with a second show Sunday night, is part of his “I’m the Problem” tour, named after his latest album released in May. The country superstar is the first artist to play Camp Randall Stadium since The Rolling Stones in 1997.

“It feels exciting and historical,” said Madison resident Emma Krumpen. “Morgan never comes to Madison and tonight he’s playing where the Badgers play. It’s surreal.”

Over the last few years, Morgan Wallen has risen to being one of the biggest names in modern country music. Since releasing his debut album “If I Know Me” in 2018, the Tennessean fills stadiums with his blend of country, rock and pop.

With a capacity of 80,000 at Camp Randall, the return of live music to the stadium was bound to be a monumental event for Madison, and Wallen delivered with a hit-heavy, two-hour, 26-song set.

“He doesn’t just sing at you when he performs. He really gets the whole crowd involved,” said Michelle Picard, a concertgoer from Plymouth, near Sheboygan.

The show kicked off around 6 p.m. with a performance from rising country star Ella Langley, followed by a set from three-time Grammy winner Miranda Lambert. Dedicated country fans showed up early, with the stands about 80% full by about halfway through Langley’s set. By the time Lambert took the stage, the crowd was singing every word.

The sun was just setting when a loading bar appeared onscreen, teasing Wallen’s entrance. He opened with a high-energy performance of “Ain’t That Some” and made use of a runway that protruded out into the crowd throughout the night, jogging from end to end.

Wallen, a big fan of University of Tennessee sports, catered to Badger fans: “I usually prefer orange, but I thought I’d wear a little red for you tonight.”

The set gained fresh momentum about halfway through, when Wallen and guitarist Dominic Frost hustled through the crowd, high-fiving fans as along the way, to a smaller stage at the opposite end of the field. There, they delivered an intimate, three-song acoustic performance for fans in the far end zone.

“I used to play those small venues where I could look into the eyes of every person in the crowd,” Wallen said. “It’s a bit more complicated these days, so this is my attempt to recreate that.”

The stripped-down mini-set was the high point of the night, with crowd-favorites like Wallen’s cover of Jason Isbell’s “Cover Me Up,” “I’m a Little Crazy,” and “Sand in My Boots” — anthems that encourage singing along, which fans were more than happy to oblige.

“We were right in that section he was singing to and we weren’t expecting that at all,” said Madison resident Josh Treffert. “It was an amazing experience.”

The night’s biggest misstep came during the performance of the title track, “I’m the Problem,” which was backed by a montage of negative headlines from Wallen’s past controversies. Near the end of the song, Wallen pours “gasoline” onto the stage and lights a match — a moment of theatrics that felt forced and out of place amid the otherwise positive energy of the show.

The mood rebounded when Wallen returned for a three-song encore, sporting a red Wisconsin Badgers jersey and powering through crowd-pleasers like “Just In Case” and “The Way I Talk” for a fireworks-heavy finale.

As fans filed out of the stadium at the end of the night, Wallen’s fans seemed to agree that the first show back at Camp Randall was one for the books.

“It was amazing, 10 out of 10,” said Eileen Clark of Chicago. “Even better than the last time I saw him.”

City officials have unveiled initial design concepts for the plazas at the top of State Street that call for tables, planters and programming in order to draw more people to the area and address concerns about public safety.

It’s an example of ongoing city investments in placemaking, a process meant to bring pedestrian traffic to underused areas and create shared, safe spaces.

“This is really the most visible, I would argue, crossroads in the entire state of Wisconsin, the area that connects our state Capitol building to our flagship university,” Ald. Mike Verveer said at a June 23 public meeting held by city planning staff. “Whether it's true or not, I've heard for years that it has more pedestrian traffic at the top of State Street than anywhere else in Wisconsin.”

“We really have to get this right, is the bottom line,” Verveer added.

The top of State Street has been an area of concern for more than a decade. Many homeless residents hang out there during the day and some sleep overnight. Criminal behavior — often from people who aren’t homeless — has prompted city action in the past. Former Mayor Paul Soglin in 2015 removed seating stones designed by Wisconsin artist Jill Sebastian from the area closer to West Mifflin Street. The stones were used as a seat by many people there; their removal was met with dismay by Madison’s homeless community.

Soglin cited the move as one needed to address problems including “drinking, fighting, drug dealing, abusive language, littering, prostitution and using alleys and doorways as toilets,” the Wisconsin State Journal reported at the time.

In 2025, those complaints have persisted.

“I’ve had employees tell me they’re getting accosted walking home from work at night,” said Anthony Moors, manager of Michelangelo’s Coffee House, located in the 100 block of State Street.

City planners in April 2024 began a process to find other uses for the spaces, which are now surrounded by a number of redevelopment projects. The Wisconsin Veterans Museum, which borders North Carroll Street, is set for a renovation in 2027. The construction of the new Wisconsin History Center is underway and Hovde Properties recently announced it planned to develop the Churchill Building into a boutique hotel.

Dan McAuliffe, city planner, outlined three potential designs for the plaza, though he cautioned that “we don't expect any of these as drawn today to be what gets built.” All would add increased lighting and revamped pedestrian plazas to the corners stretching northwest and southeast from State Street. McAuliffe said food carts and vendors could also make use of the spaces.

And city planners would be “relying” on partners like the Wisconsin Veteran’s Museum, Downtown Madison Inc. and the Business Improvement District to devise programming opportunities to bring people into the space, said McAuliffe.

“We build the room,” said McAuliffe. “We don’t throw the party.”

The Forum of Origin, a public art pavilion and mesh dome designed by architect Brower Hatcher in 1993, is not guaranteed to remain in the new design. McAuliffe said that the Madison Arts Commission would have to sign off on the removal and that no decision has been made yet about whether to remove the installation.

Local business owners at the meeting expressed concern about one proposal from city planners — the potential removal of the small parking lot on Carroll Street. Rose Mohan, general manager of Ian’s Pizza, said they use the Carroll Street circle at the back of their building “significantly for our delivery operations.” Delivery operations account for up to $1.5 million of the store’s yearly sales, she said.

“While all three of these designs are beautiful, we are very concerned about how this will impact our delivery conditions,” Mohan said in the meeting’s online chat. “Are there any solutions to this that the city is considering or is this an issue Ian’s will just have to figure out?”

Moors said many of his older customers are accustomed to parking briefly in the spots behind the coffee shop. “I have yet to really hear solutions for somebody’s parking,” he added. “The solution is somebody can cross the street. And that’s a hike.”

McAuliffe said there was a community push during a meeting in January to implement “designs that looked at very limited vehicular access” and noted that the State Street Capitol Parking Garage is nearby.

“We thought this seems like a good opportunity to recapture some space that's predominantly used for storing of private vehicles and program it for a better use of public space,” said McAuliffe. “We certainly understand the delivery schedules…and we're certainly looking at how we can accommodate that.”

McAuliffe said he expects to hold a meeting in the winter to review final designs.

MADISON, Wis. -- Prosecutors say a Wisconsin couple allegedly conspired to use poisons, including cyanide and hydrogen sulfide, against two women.

Authorities in hazmat suits descended on a Madison home as part of their investigation into this couple, accused of orchestrating an elaborate plot to poison, stalk and kill the two women, one of whom the suspects previously dated.

Prosecutors allege Paul Vanduyne Jr. and Andrea Whitaker attempted to poison the women with deadly substances, including cyanide, on multiple occasions for weeks.

One alleged victim described the ordeal at a Friday court hearing.

"I no longer feel safe, not at home, not out in the community. I am scared for myself. I am scared for my two children. I cannot sleep soundly," she said.

Prosecutors say the first incident took place in April, when the couple allegedly broke into one of the victim's cars and filled her gym water bottle with cyanide and thallium, a highly toxic metal. They say just days later, the couple put a tote full of hydrogen sulfide in the trunk, sickening the victim's younger sister.

Prosecutors also say on another occasion, the couple stashed abrin, a toxic plant protein, inside the vehicle's air vents.

SEE ALSO| Dentist poisons wife's protein shakes, kills her to be with woman he was having affair with: police

Authorities say the case broke weeks later in May, when, according to court documents, one of the victims was hospitalized with severe stomach pain after drinking from her water bottle.

Doctors found dangerous levels of cyanide and thallium. Investigators say the woman then went through old text messages, pointing detectives to Vanduyne, who she had met on a dating app two years prior.

"The truth is, I barely knew him. And yet, he and his accomplice decided I should die," his victim said.

READ MORE | Ex-football star, son of Texas A&M coach, arrested in poisoning deaths of girlfriend, unborn baby

Authorities arrested Vanduyne last week, after, they say, they found him surveilling one of the victims, finding a trail camera pointed at her home. Then, officials apprehended his girlfriend, Whitaker, a day later after, they say, they observed her removing evidence from her boyfriend's residence

Both suspects pleaded not guilty to misdemeanor charges associated with the case. They also face attempted homicide and stalking charges and are due back in court later this summer.