Have you noticed anything new on the Housing website? On August 28, we launched a virtual assistant chatbot, and in true UW–Madison fashion, it's named Bucky. The Bucky Bot reviews the whole Housing website every day so when it's asked a question, it can answer with the most up-to-date information. While it doesn’t have all the answers, we continuously help it learn so that it can have a helpful answer for next time. The chatbot only uses and provides online information right now, but we have the option for staff to chat live with those using the chatbot in the future. A huge thank you to all staff involved in helping make the Bucky Bot happen!
"I Scream, You Scream for Ice Cream" Pumpkin Decorating Contest
Gather a team to make the most boo-tiful Halloween decoration to win a 3-gallon tub of Cherrity ice cream from the Babcock Dairy Store! To enter, submit team members, a team name, and a contact person to laurie.teeter@housing.wisc.edu by October 13, and submit a photo of your spook-tacular pumpkin by October 31. The entry fee is $10, and all proceeds with benefit the Partners in Giving campaign. Submit your donation online and use "CHERRITY ICECREAM" in the Event Description field. The winning team will be announced the week of November 4.
HR News
Annual Benefits Enrollment
September 25–October 20 is your opportunity to make benefits changes for 2024. During the Annual Benefits Enrollment period, Housing HR will be offering 30-minute appointments to assist with any questions you may have. There will be a campus-wide resource fair and opportunities to work with Cultural & Linguistic Services (CLS) for those who wish to participate. If you have any questions about your benefits during this time, please email payroll@housing.wisc.edu or call the Housing Payroll team at 608-262-2308.
A Former House Fellow's Three Minute Thesis
Ever wonder what past House Fellows are up to now? One former Sellery House Fellow, Adarsh Suresh, is researching materials that are lightweight yet strong at the University of Chicago. Inspired by his students and his improv team, he compressed years of research into a compelling three-minute presentation and took first place in the university's Three Minute Thesis competition.
TODAY'S HOUSING TRIVIA
Which residence hall is named after a former director of University Housing?
It's Smith! The building is named after Newell Smith who was appointed Director of Division of Residence Halls in 1954.
