I am serving as moderator for a special event free and open to the public on April 10, 2025, at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre on the campus of UWM at Waukesha.  Come join us! Free parking too.

We were thrilled to host a public forum at the College on April 9, 2024, with nationally renowned political analysts Donna Brazile and Ana Navarro on presidential elections past, present, and future. Sponsored by the Thompson Center on Public Leadership, I was pleased to serve as moderator and field questions from the audience. Click here  for a recording of the event.

Simon Bronner appears on the “Fabric of Folklore” podcast hosted by Vanessa Rogers 3-21-23.

What is the meaning of folklore? Is folklore a study of old cultures, or does it include modern cultures as well? What does psychology and folklore have to do with one another and how can they help each other explain the world? Dr. Simon Bronner, Dean of the College of General Studies and expert folklorist at the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee explores a range of topics. He challenges us to recognize that jokes, common phrases, insults, children’s rhymes and more are all part of modern folklore. History, psychology, and sociology help explain the world, but folklore helps to add meaning. Timestamps 0:00:03 Introduction 0:03:30 Journey into folklore from immigrant identity as well a transformative course 0:05:57 The need to talk about the importance of tradition and everyday life through the perspective of folklore 0:10:46 Exploring the Influence of Folklore on Human Development: An Analysis of Alan Dundes 0:12:56 The Emergence of New Forms of Folklore 0:17:43 Exploring Folklore in the present 0:20:07 Alan Dundes and digital folklore including Photocopied Broadsides -humorous book 0:22:25 The journey into writing The Meaning of Folklore 0:24:51 Bloody Mary ritual and adolescent girls 0:30:23 Intersection of Psychology and Folklore 0:37:57 Psychoanalysis and Folklore in Peter Gamwell’s Book 0:40:36 Sigmund Freud’s Connection to Folklore 0:42:51 Freud’s Influence on Scatological Customs and Womb Envy 0:45:49 the History and Meaning of Folklore and Wishing Wells 0:51:35 Urban Legends and Contemporary Folklore 0:55:41 Intersection of Psychology and Folklore 1:01:05 Folklore, Psychology, digital folklore, and Wishing in Modern Society 1:03:24 Practice of Folklore book 1:05:29 Male Communication and Folklore 

Against the background of Halloween, Dr. Bronner discusses how black cats became a symbol of the holiday on Wisconsin Public Radio. He also talks about other animals and their representation in folk and popular culture.

The thirteenth Southeast Wisconsin Festival of Books concluded with a terrific turnout for keynote speaker Lawrence Tabak, author of Foxconned and multiple panels featuring University of Wisconsin Milwaukee authors including the special session on “Gun Talk” and “Indigenous Authors.”

Following up a series of public presentations on university relations to our region and diverse communities, I participated in a well-attended event sponsored by the Waukesha County Business Alliance (WCBA) and the Mayor of Waukesha, Wisconsin. Other participants included  presidents of  Carroll University and Waukesha County Technical College (WCTC) to discuss ways that higher education can mitigate the worker shortage. I emphasized innovative programs through Continuing Education for reskilling and upskilling, and through residential instruction for future-prepared critical thinking and adaptability. I also pointed out the ramping up of dual enrollment programs with the innovative Early College Academy and a new collaborative program with WCTC. In answer to the question of what the region could contribute to our efforts, I discussed solutions to problems of transportation and affordable housing to increase access to the region and public universities. I also referred to technology and the need for partnerships with industry on provision of equipment for students to learn. Unlike the other panelists focused on manufacturing and service businesses, I also referred to the significance of university education for quality of life through support of creative industries and social-cultural work.

The roundtable at the Washington County campus  of the University of Wisconsin on April 27, 2022 was the latest in a series of listening sessions with Chancellor Mark Mone and Dean Simon J. Bronner during a time of transition for the University of Wisconsin system. Jay Rothman takes over the position of UW System President in June.

Expanding public transit options could bring more students from around southeastern Wisconsin to UWM at Waukesha while connecting those already on campus to more work opportunities, some regional business and educational leaders told UW System President Tommy Thompson.

Southeastern Wisconsin lacks a transportation system that connects people across municipal lines, especially the population hubs of Milwaukee and Waukesha. Robyn Ludtke, vice president of talent development at the Waukesha County Business Alliance, said at a roundtable discussion led by Thompson that transportation is one of the biggest barriers of growth for the county.

It was the latest in a series of listening sessions that Thompson is holding at UW System campuses across the state as he winds down a nearly two-year-long tenure as interim president.

“What I really want to hear is ‘What is the need? How can the university solve problems?’” Thompson said Tuesday at the UWM at Waukesha gathering.

Ludtke and a few others among the roughly 30 attendees cited transportation as one of the biggest needs.

“We know that once (the students) are here in Waukesha County, our employers are ready to serve them. Our communities are ready to welcome them,” Ludtke said. “How do we get them here?”

While UWM and other system institutions may not have oversight or capacity to create regional transportation networks, universities can help by way of research and forging partnerships.

One example is the FlexRide Milwaukee transit project, led in part by UWM, that is funded by a $1 million grant from the National Science Foundation. FlexRide is testing a new way to connect workers from Milwaukee, including three segregated neighborhoods on the north or northwest sides of the city, to places of employment in Butler and Menomonee Falls.

Other roundtable attendees included company executives and school district superintendents, some of whom talked about finding ways to increase awareness of higher education to students in high school and even earlier in the K-12 system.

While virtual outreach and mailings help, some school officials talked about the importance of opportunities to bring K-12 students to college campuses for programming.

“I do think we need to reimagine that transition in a kid’s life from 10^th grade through college,” said Corey Golla, superintendent of the Menomonee Falls School District. “We’ve got kids who are seniors in high school who are probably ready to be freshmen at UW-Milwaukee.”

Golla applauded UWM for its partnership programs and said his district was talking to the university about more potential dual enrollment opportunities in which students earn college credit while still attending high school.

UWM Chancellor Mark Mone said he hoped to organize a meeting between university leaders and superintendents in Waukesha and Washington counties to talk more about partnership opportunities. One of the higher-profile educational partnerships at UWM is the M³ initiative in which the university works with Milwaukee Public Schools and Milwaukee Area Technical College.

Other needs brought up by attendees included making it easier for students at two-year colleges to transfer credits to four-year institutions, and for UWM to offer more options for “badges” or credentialing programs that allow students, including those in mid-career, to earn educational certificates.

Mone noted how the university was currently looking at curricular realignment through the 2030 initiative, which is intended to guide UWM into the next decade and beyond. Participation in partnerships like M³ and the Higher Education Regional Alliance also are helping to address issues like making it easier for students to transfer credits.

Another UWM program, TechEd Frontiers, is an example of an offering for mid-career professionals to learn new skills online and on demand. UWM has also helped to address a regional need with the College of Nursing expanding its program to the Waukesha campus in fall 2021.

Higher education overall has come under scrutiny in recent years over rising costs and the weight of student debt. Estimated enrollment declines caused by shifting demographics, as well as a steady decrease in state support, also are among worrisome issues.

Thompson pointed to the importance of community feedback to help address concerns.

“It seems to me this whole afternoon has been about how we can do things better working together – more information, more collaboration and more partnerships,” Thompson said in closing the session.

“I think the university has to take the lead on this,” he added. “We have to be student-centric. We have to make sure our universities are what students need and want. We have to get them on our campus. We have to go to them. We have to create partnerships.”

Transit, partnerships are among community needs voiced at Waukesha roundtable

Brigham Young University will present the William A. Wilson’s Folklore Archives Founder’s Lecture, featuring a lecture by folklorist Simon J. Bronner, on January 26, 2022 at 2pm MST, in person or online.

“This lecture shares a continuing conversation I (Dr. Bronner) had over the years with the late Bert Wilson sparked by a fateful field trip we took to his pioneer home and landscape in Idaho. Analyst turned into the one being analyzed, he reflected on the importance of standing in the landscape to appreciate the whole of the LDS experience. Although writing that ‘the main function of the landscape is to provide a resonant background,’ he diminished the significance of the land and region in favor of individual experience in other writings, particularly in his criticism of the ‘Concept of the West.’

“In this talk, I return to the resurgent question of the land, and what I call ‘makerspace’ and ‘space in-between,’ as formative, or ‘resonant’ backgrounds for cultural development. Although Bert Wilson as historian and religious man was looking backward in time and was focused on the West, I use this opportunity to look forward to assess the effect of globalization and the digital revolution theoretically on region, building, and land in human experience and cultural practice.”

To view a video of the lecture, click here

The Jewish Book Council has named Jewish Cultural Studies by Simon J. Bronner (Wayne State University Press, 2021)  the recipient of its National Jewish Book Award for education and identity. Established in 1950, the National Jewish Book Award recognizes outstanding Jewish literature and is the oldest and most prestigious award of its kind.