Accuray Moves HQ to Madison

Accuray – a global leader in precision radiation therapy and makers of CyberKnife, TomoTherapy and Radixact – now with FDA VitaHold Breast Package has just moved its headquarters to Madison, WI.

The company is expanding its footprint in Madison with expansion of its manufacturing facility and a new, state-of-the-art training center where it will train customers on its latest technology and radiotherapy platforms.

Accuray held a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Tuesday, August 29. Accuray CEO Suzanne Winter and Secretary Missy Hughes, CEO of the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation, made brief remarks, and Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway and State Senator Kelda Roys were on site, in addition to Accuray staff, business leaders and other dignitaries.

The event marked the completion of two projects at their Madison location – the expansion of its manufacturing facility and the completion of a new, state-of-the-art training center where it will train customers on its latest technology and radiotherapy platforms.

This announcement reinforces the company’s commitment to Madison’s health tech sector with 289 employees in Madison and 319 in Wisconsin.

ABOUT ACCURAY:
Accuray develops, manufactures, and sells radiotherapy systems for advanced cancer treatments, enabling patients to live longer and better lives. Accuray is the only major U.S. manufacturer exclusively manufacturing its systems in the U.S. for export around the globe. The company is committed to building our business in Wisconsin and contributing to the state’s growth as a global leader in biomedical and healthcare technology. Accuray is devoted to fighting cancer with innovative treatment options that can provide lifesaving and cost-effective therapy to patients.

UW–Madison Division of the Arts hosts Indian Dalit theatre practitioner Sri Vamsi Matta as 2023–24 Interdisciplinary Artist-in-Residence

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 29, 2023

Media Contact: aryn kresol, Arts Residency Programs Coordinator at UW–Madison Division of the Arts, akresol@wisc.edu

URL: go.wisc.edu/Matta

Link to media assets: https://uwmadison.box.com/s/1c187t0l7tpdhunjhieqlfl8w0z6qj42

Link to article: https://artsdivision.wisc.edu/2023/08/29/matta-year-long-residency/

UW–Madison Division of the Arts hosts Indian Dalit theatre practitioner Sri Vamsi Matta as 2023–24 Interdisciplinary Artist-in-Residence

Madison, Wis. – The University of Wisconsin–Madison Division of the Arts and the Department of Asian Languages and Cultures (presenters) are excited to welcome Sri Vamsi Matta as the inaugural academic year-long Interdisciplinary Artist-in-Residence for 2023–24. Vamsi is a Dalit theatre practitioner (writer, actor, director), educator and visual artist from Bengaluru, India. 

The word Dalit is a rebellious outcast-identifying label. For centuries, caste has remained the organizing principle of society across South Asia. Determined by birth, caste draws distinctions between communities, determining one’s profession, level of education and potential marriage partners. The lowest in this pecking order, and cast outside the hierarchy altogether (and therefore dehumanized) are the Dalits, once termed “untouchable.” Though the Indian government legally abolished untouchability in 1950 with the adoption of India’s Constitution, the practice  is still rampant in the subcontinent, translates into a myriad forms of microaggression and gatekeeping, and has been carried along wherever Savarnas (people higher up on the pyramid of caste) migrate globally.

“I want my presence to be felt and interacted with through my performances, teaching, workshops and public interventions during my time in Madison,” says Vamsi. “Through my presence, I want to be able to engage with America’s imagination of performing arts and what constitutes aesthetics, and to find crossroads where our notions of the other intersect on questions of caste, race, sexuality, ethnicity or gender.”

During the fall 2023 semester, Vamsi will teach a three-credit course, “Whose Art Is It Anyway? Exploring Folk Performance from South Asia.” Throughout the semester, students will examine various folk performance traditions from across South Asia, their roots, and the appropriation, weaponization, or dilution of practices by dominant groups. The course will juxtapose the history of these performance styles with practices of performance-based activism in the United States, and how the performing arts can be and have been catalyzed for community building and challenging socio-political inequities.

“This is the first time this content will be taught by a Dalit artist and scholar themselves, thus inviting others from similar backgrounds of identity-based oppression into the classroom,” says Zara Chowdhary, lecturer in Hindi in the Department Asian Languages and Cultures and residency lead. “Madison, the university student and staff community, and the state have so much to offer in the fields of storytelling, music and culture. This residency is structured as a bridge between these diverse and vibrant communities to spark conversation and to invite questions, collaboration and contribution.”

Vamsi’s residency and presence throughout the academic year will unify campus and Madison communities through public programming, including an October 5 workshop at the YWCA Racial Justice Summit (October 3–5, 2023, register by September 4) and an October 21 performance the annual Conference on South Asia (October 18–21, 2023), among others. A residency-long engagement with playwrights and songwriters at UW–Madison will lead up to a final production debuting at the end of the spring 2024 semester. Additional event details will be announced.

The residency is presented in partnership with the Division of the Arts and the Department Asian Languages and Cultures, with Jamal Jones, Assistant Professor, as lead faculty and Zara Chowdhary, Lecturer in Hindi, as residency lead. Co-sponsors for the residency are the Department of History,  Human Rights Program, Center for Humanities, International Learning Community, Center for Research on Gender and Women, Center for South Asia, Department of Theatre and Drama, and the Center for Visual Cultures.

About the Artist

Sri Vamsi Matta, (Vamsi, he/him), is a Bangalore-based theatre actor, writer and director. His practice is influenced by his Dalit identity, experience and social location. The histories of his family and community inform the questions, topics and mediums that Vamsi engages with through his work. His most recent traveling solo show performance, ‘Come Eat With Me’ –– an invitation to folks from all caste, faith and race locations–– has received a tremendous response in the national and regional media across India. His play, ‘Star in the Sky’ about the institutional murder of a Dalit PhD scholar in 2016, often seen as a moment of reckoning for Indian academia’s inherent caste biases, won second place at the prestigious Tata Literature Live! Sultan Padamsee Award For Playwriting Sultan Padamsee Playwriting Awards. While in Madison, Vamsi is excited to engage with UW Madison’s own reckoning with historic inequities and contributing to its present campus culture and goals of fostering a greater sense of inclusion and belonging through the arts. 

About the Presenters

The Division of the Arts’ Interdisciplinary Arts Residency Program brings innovative, world-class artists to the University of Wisconsin–Madison campus, providing students with extended learning experiences with a working artist, increasing diversity of teaching staff on campus and strengthening programmatic ties among individual departments, programs and other campus and community arts entities. Since 1999, the program has hosted 51 residencies involving 55 artists-in-residence and more than 140 guest artists from 20 different countries, engaging over 50 university units and more than 40 community organizations. All residencies center interdisciplinary arts, recognizing that interdisciplinarity can break down barriers and silos, advance intellectual artistic diversity and give opportunities to people who do not fit into the traditional modes of inquiry and practice (see the Division of the Arts’ guiding principle of The Arts for Everyone, Everywhere). The program often brings together artists, faculty, staff and students from various disciplines across the arts, sciences and humanities, sustaining the Division of the Arts’ mission tounify and catalyze the arts at UW–Madison.

Asian Languages and Cultures is home to nearly 20 faculty whose research and teaching specialties include the following: traditional medicine in India; the history of yoga; diversifying contemporary mindfulness practice with insights from Tibetan Buddhism; Hindi-Urdu poetry of protest, human rights in Thailand; Chinese ghost stories; traditional poetics and philology; sociolinguistics and discourse analysis of the Mandarin, Japanese, Korean, Indonesian languages; analysis of classical Japanese tale fiction, early modern comedic narratives, manga, anime and Japanese counterculture.

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Bank of Sun Prairie Awarded Best Financial Institution

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 25, 2023

Contact: Jimmy Kauffman, President and CEO,
Chairman of the Board of Directors
Bank of Sun Prairie
608.837.4511 ● jimmy.kauffman@bankofsunprairie.com
www.bankofsunprairie.com

Bank of Sun Prairie Awarded Best Financial Institution
125-Year Community Bank Assumes Title of Best Financial Institution

Sun Prairie, Wis.— Bank of Sun Prairie won Best Financial Institution in the 2023 Best of Sun Prairie Awards conducted by the Sun Prairie Star. Bank of Sun Prairie offers personal and business banking, mortgage, and wealth management services with more than 100 employees at its five branch locations with its newest housed at Sun Prairie West High School.

Bank of Sun Prairie is the only financial institution headquartered in Sun Prairie and its dedication to area nonprofits and community organizations is unmatched. Last year, the bank’s employees volunteered 4,200 hours and Bank of Sun Prairie supported more than 100 organizations through sponsorships and contributions. The bank’s strong commitment to financial education through their Financial Fitness Center offering 52 digital courses via their website and 17 workshops for schools, businesses and nonprofits continues to grow.

“Thank you for recognizing Bank of Sun Prairie and our colleagues. It is an honor to work in this amazing community, and we promise to continue our high level of service and dedication to the communities we serve.” shared Jimmy Kauffman, Bank of Sun Prairie’s president and CEO.

Bank of Sun Prairie is a locally owned, full-service community bank with $710 million in assets and five branches in Sun Prairie and Cottage Grove, Wis. Its mission is to be trusted advisor for families, businesses and communities offering a complete range of services, while delivering fair returns for stockholders. Member FDIC. Equal Opportunity Lender.

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One Community Bank: Chris Anderson Promoted to Assistant Vice President Mortgage Loan Officer

August 25, 2023
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:
Ameilia Abraham
One Community Bank
608-838-3141
aabraham@onecommunity.bank

Chris Anderson Promoted to Assistant Vice President Mortgage Loan Officer

(August 2023) – One Community Bank is proud to announce the recent promotion of Chris Anderson to Assistant Vice President Mortgage Loan Officer at its Middleton location!

“Chris is an incredible team member and has done an excellent job assisting with the launch of our Middleton location. He puts his clients first and is always volunteering in the Middleton community. In his new role he will be serving clients both in the Middleton and the McFarland communities,” said Brian O’Handley, SVP Head of Mortgage and Consumer Lending.

Chris has worked in the mortgage industry for over 10 years and at One Community Bank for 3 of those years. At OCB he has spent his career developing and growing client relationships in the Middleton community.

“I enjoy helping clients successfully close on a home, this has been especially rewarding in the current real estate environment. I also love having supportive colleagues and being a part of the Mortgage and Middleton teams at OCB,” said Chris.

Chris is passionate about giving back to his community. He enjoys volunteering at WayForward Resources in Middleton and participating in Middleton Chamber of Commerce events. He also volunteers as a mentor at Blackhawk Church with his wife and son.

Outside of work, Chris enjoys a plethora of hobbies including cooking, baking, reading, playing musical instruments, hiking, and kayaking. Most of all he enjoys spending time with his wife and children.

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One Community Bank is one of the largest community banks in south central Wisconsin. The locally owned bank has 10 bank locations and $1.9 billion in assets. It provides both personal and business banking solutions, with an intense focus on serving clients, supporting colleagues, and investing in its communities. Five years in a row named one of Madison’s best places to work, One Community Bank serves the communities of Oregon, McFarland, Waunakee, Stoughton, Sun Prairie, Middleton, Adams, Oxford, and Grand Marsh. Member FDIC. Equal Housing Lender. Chris Anderson NMLS #1979988. OCB NMLS #4106989.

Second Harvest’s Farm To Foodbank Initiative Receives $50,000 From Compeer Financial

MADISON, WI, August 25, 2023 – Officials from Second Harvest Foodbank of Southern Wisconsin and Compeer Financial announced today that the Compeer Financial Fund for Rural America is providing $50,000 to support the purchase of produce, dairy, eggs, and more from local farmers and food producers and distribution of the product to families struggling with hunger through Second Harvest’s Farm to Foodbank initiative. 

“Everyone deserves access to the food that makes them feel part of the community,” said Michelle Orge, president & CEO of Second Harvest Foodbank. “Local, fresh produce should not be out of reach for anyone, and thanks to tremendous support from many different sources including organizations like Compeer Financial we’re able to put nourishing food on the tables of those facing hunger in our community while supporting our local economies at the same time.” 

The goals of Farm to Foodbank are simple: 

• Provide more nutritious food to those facing hunger in southwestern Wisconsin 
• Support local farmers and food producers 
• Invest in the local economy 

Launched by Federal pandemic-relief funds allocated by Dane County, Farm to Foodbank has provided tens of millions of pounds of locally sourced food into our community. Working with over 55 local farmers and food producers throughout southwestern Wisconsin, in 2022 alone the initiative helped provide 3.8 million meals and generate more than $12 million in local economic activity. 

The $50,000 from Compeer was allocated through Compeer’s MORE for Agriculture grant which, now it its fifth year, supports innovative programs that encompass four qualities: 

• Mission: Aligns with the mission of Compeer Financial, enriches agriculture and rural communities 
• Opportunity: Provides a new opportunity for clients or future clients, fills a known void in agricultural and rural markets, is a new and innovative project 
• Replication: Can be replicated by others to serve different geographic areas, with the ability for future collaboration 
• Evolution: Evolves over time to create a better future for agriculture and rural America 

As part of the grant process, the Compeer Financial Fund for Rural America Trustees asked Compeer team members to identify programs and projects they believe create MORE for agriculture. In all, nearly $900,000 has been awarded to 20 organizations since 2019. 

“It is an honor to join forces with these groups that are truly creating positive changes in their communities through groundbreaking projects,” said Karen Schieler, senior corporate giving specialist at Compeer Financial. “The recipients of the MORE for Agriculture grants are trailblazers and creative thinkers in the field of food and agriculture. Second Harvest Foodbank of Southern Wisconsin exemplifies this. We hope projects and programs like this will motivate others to contribute further toward ending hunger.” 

The grant comes at a critical time for Second Harvest and its network of partner food providers like food pantries, meal sites, and shelters. In fiscal year 2023 – July 1, 2022 through June 30, 2023 – Second Harvest distributed 22.7 million pounds of food, more than any other fiscal year in its history. Recently, many of the food providers in the network have reported a 30%, 40%, and even 100% increase in the number of people seeking support.