Final ‘After Thoughts’ presentation of academic year to focus on college relationships

A UW-Green Bay associate professor of Human Development and Psychology will present “What’s Love (and Sex) Got To Do With It?: Women, Men, and College Success,” the University’s final After Thoughts program of the 2012-13 year, Tuesday, April 9 in the Grand Foyer of the Weidner Center for the Performing Arts, 2420 Nicolet Drive.

Denise Bartell will speak about the romantic lives of college students, an often-overlooked aspect of the postsecondary experience that has tremendous potential to influence the likelihood of college success. Using data from her research on Wisconsin college students, as well as national studies on relationships and sexual behaviors among college students, Bartell’s talk will consider such questions as:

• What is ‘hooking up,’ and is it bad for young women (and what about young men)?
• Do relationships prevent full engagement in the college experience?
• What does the typical college student know about how to have a healthy romantic relationship (and what do they just think they know)?
• Why are so many students getting pregnant while they’re in college?

After addressing these topics in the context of her research, Bartell will conclude her talk with a discussion of what can, or should, be done to help college students be successful in college and in their relationship experiences.

Bartell began her UW-Green Bay career in 2002 after earning her Ph.D. in Human Development & Family Sciences at the University of Texas at Austin. She is the co-director of UW-Green Bay’s First Year Seminar program; and the director of the University’s Center for Students in Transition. Bartell teaches such courses as Family Development and Introduction to Human Development; she conducts research on mate selection and the development of romantic relationships. She offers students opportunities for involvement in her research, as well as in teaching assistantships and independent study.

Designed to connect women in the community with UW-Green Bay, After Thoughts gatherings showcase faculty, staff and guests, and convene women after their workdays for learning, enrichment and fun. The sessions are so named because they provide “After Thoughts” for participants to take with them when they leave. UW-Green Bay Associate Prof. Rebecca Meacham kicked off the 2012-13 After Thoughts season Oct. 1, with her talk, “Fiction’s Burning Questions: Novelists, History and the Creative Spark.” Nov. 13, Jeanne Stangel, UW-Green Bay’s Director of Development and the former Associate Director of UW-Green Bay Athletics, engaged an After Thoughts audience with her address, “The Green Bay Way: The Impact of National Recognition in Collegiate Sports at UW-Green Bay.” And on March 5, UW-Green Bay Associate Physics Prof. Heidi Fencl explored the mysteries of the universe with her talk, “The Universe Falls Up?! Dark Energy and the Accelerating Expansion of Everything.”

Each After Thoughts session takes place from 5-7 p.m. in the Grand Foyer of the Weidner Center for the Performing Arts at UW-Green Bay, 2420 Nicolet Drive. The events begin with time to network, mingle and enjoy hors d’oeuvres before the featured guest speaker begins.

Seating is limited, so advanced registration is recommended. The cost of each program is $13. To reserve your spot, send a check (payable to UW-Green Bay Foundation) to: UW-Green Bay Foundation, CL 805, 2420 Nicolet Drive, Green Bay, WI 54311; or register online at https://secure.qgiv.com/for/afterthoughts/. Walk-up registration also is an option. Call (920) 465-2074 for more information. You can find After Thoughts on Facebook at www.facebook.com/afterthoughts.uwgb.

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