(The Center Square) – New wedding barn regulations set to go in place Jan. 1 were the subject of lawsuit that was thrown out in Trempealeau County court last month and is now the subject of a bill that would…
Reflecting on 2025, it was a year of visual firsts in our newsroom. It was my first full year working as Wisconsin Watch’s staff photojournalist, a new position at Wisconsin Watch supported by Report for America. It was also the first full year Wisconsin Watch worked with Catchlight, a visual-first nonprofit that leverages the power of visual storytelling to inform, connect and transform communities. That partnership brought a familiar face back to the newsroom: Coburn Dukehart, Wisconsin Watch’s former associate director, who is now our contract photo editor through Catchlight Local.
This was also the year when Wisconsin Watch set out to publish a new story every day — a major shift for the 16-year-old newsroom that had previously focused on more time-intensive investigative stories. That change — and our growth as a newsroom — meant more reporters were filing photo requests each week. As a result, we published far more original photography compared to past years.
Our visuals transported readers to many places, from underneath the Capitol’s granite dome to inside the homes of residents across Wisconsin. They illustrated that our storytelling isn’t limited to words. Far from it.
Our photojournalism shows the mosaic of people and communities that make up our state and helps to convey their emotional reactions to the circumstances of their lives. That’s true whether it’s a sense of optimism while traveling on Amtrak; uncertainty while preparing to move out of a recovery home; joy while pursuing a new career; or togetherness and resolve in the face of federal budget cuts.
We approach each story with compassion and present stories with the hope that these images make our communities feel more connected. We’re going to keep at it in 2026. Until then, here are our favorite Wisconsin images from 2025.
Phillip Loan, 27, of Atlanta, looks out the window Jan. 6, 2025, while riding the Amtrak Hiawatha service from Chicago Union Station to the Milwaukee Intermodal Station. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Snow falls on the Wisconsin State Capitol before the State of the State address Jan. 22, 2025, in Madison, Wis. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice-elect Susan Crawford celebrates her win against Waukesha County Circuit Court Judge Brad Schimel in the spring election April 1, 2025, in Madison, Wis. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch) Tracy Germait, right, who has been waiting more than two years for a public defender, laughs with her daughter, Isis, 11, after leading a Cocaine Anonymous meeting Aug. 12, 2025, at MannaFest Church in Green Bay, Wis. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Laurie Doxtator poses for a portrait Sept. 30, 2025, at the Recovery Nest, part of the Oneida Comprehensive Health Division, in Green Bay, Wis. Doxtator, an Oneida Nation citizen, visits the Recovery Nest a few times a week to meet with her recovery coach and engage in its programming. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Laurie Doxtator, a resident at Amanda’s House, poses for a portrait with her newest tattoo Aug. 13, 2025, in Green Bay, Wis. Doxtator and six other women living at Amanda’s House got matching tattoos of the hummingbird design, which is based on the logo of the Recovery Nest. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
A transgender teenager had to announce his previous name, or deadname, in the newspaper when he legally changed his name under Wisconsin law. He is trying to retroactively seal those records because of concerns related to the political climate. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Earl Lowrie, 66, in his garage, June 21, 2025, in Cameron, Wis. “You wouldn’t know what light was if you hadn’t found darkness,” Lowrie said. Lowrie, who has struggled with depression and suicidal thoughts throughout his life, sees a therapist weekly that he found after calling the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) hotline and getting connected to the organization’s Chippewa Valley local affiliate in Wisconsin. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Deloise L. braids the hair of her daughter Da’Netta during Camp Reunite at Taycheedah Correctional Institution. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Alba Prado, left, an inmate, embraces her son, Avery, 8, during Camp Reunite at Taycheedah Correctional Institution, a maximum- and medium-security women’s prison, June 24, 2025, in Fond du Lac, Wis. Camp Reunite is a weeklong, trauma-informed summer camp for youth aged eight to 17 who have a parent incarcerated in the Wisconsin correctional system. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)Madelyn Rybak, a 17-year-old senior at Pulaski High School, works on the summer edition of the Pulaski News on Aug. 12, 2025, in Pulaski, Wis. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)Anna Mykhailova and Sasha Druzhyna’s 10-year-old daughter Varya plays on her mother’s smartphone at their home, Oct. 25, 2025, in Madison, Wis. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)An 11-year-old child holds her great-cousin on her lap at their current apartment Oct. 22, 2025, in Prairie du Chien, Wis. Her family is one of 10 families chosen to live in newly built, manufactured Habitat for Humanity homes in Hillsboro, Wis. (Trisha Young / Wisconsin Watch)Instructor Robin Eichhorst, left, shares a laugh with student Nikky K. in the dental lab at Fox Valley Technical College on Oct. 1, 2025. (Kara Counard for Wisconsin Watch)Jimmy Novy, 77, hangs onto a canopy to hold himself up July 29, 2025, in Hillsboro, Wis. Novy is one of 312 permanently and totally disabled individuals in Wisconsin and has been collecting worker’s comp checks from the state since his injury in his late 20s. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Sandy Hahn, housing manager at Community Action Coalition for South Central Wisconsin, talks to someone sleeping in a car during the annual point-in-time (PIT) count on Jan. 22, 2025, in the parking lot behind the Pine Cone Travel Plaza in Johnson Creek, Wis. Hahn and Britanie Peaslee, community resource liaison at Rainbow Community Care, found a handful of people sleeping in their cars in the Pine Cone Travel Plaza parking lot, including a mother with a young child in one car. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Larry Jones, 85, shown in his home in Milwaukee on March 21, 2025, attended a Wisconsin Assembly hearing with the intention of supporting a bill that would ban gender-affirming care for minors but changed his mind after hearing testimony from trans youth. The moment, captured on video by WisconsinEye, was celebrated by those in attendance and shared widely online. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Camp Randall Stadium is shown on June 4, 2025, in this photo illustration. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Jess D’Souza, who raises Gloucestershire Old Spots pigs at Wonderfarm in Klevenville, Wis., looks out the window of her home on April 8, 2025. She doubled the size of her pig herd last year, believing the federal government would honor a $5.5 million grant it awarded to Wisconsin. But it didn’t. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Jess D’Souza, owner of Wonderfarm in Klevenville, Wis., retrieves a bale of hay for one of her “mama pigs” during morning chores, April 8, 2025. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Laura Mortimore, owner of Orange Cat Community Farm in Lyndon Station, Wis., chats with Dustin Ladd, Juneau County land and water conservation administrator, while walking across the property on Aug. 27, 2025. She is one of several area farmers participating in a Juneau County food purchase and distribution program that offers free, fresh produce and meat to residents in need. (Bennet Goldstein / Wisconsin Watch)Michelle Mehn, from left, Toby and Elizabeth Kohnle work behind the desk at Tisch Mills Farm Center on Sept. 16, 2025, in Tisch Mills, Wis. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)Devin Remiker was elected the next chair of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin at the party’s annual convention in Lake Delton on June 14, 2025. (Patricio Crooker for Wisconsin Watch)Wisconsin Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, talks on the phone after legislators delayed what was supposed to be the final day of the Joint Finance Committee budget votes June 27, 2025, at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison, Wis. The Joint Finance Committee meeting didn’t kick off until after 10 p.m. and left several topics unresolved. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)The sun sets as construction continues at Microsoft’s data center project Nov. 13, 2025, in Mount Pleasant, Wis. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
In “Song Sung Blue,” Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson play Lightning & Thunder, a legendary Neil Diamond tribute band from Milwaukee with a remarkable love story. Real-life Claire "Thunder" Sardina joined WPR’s "Wisconsin Today" to talk about what it’s like to see her story told on the big screen.
After losing its case in two federal courts, a northern Wisconsin town has agreed to use an electronic voting machine designed for people with disabilities.
The federal government is suing one of the largest health systems in Wisconsin, claiming that it discriminated against an employee by denying a nurse's request for a religious exemption for receiving a COVID-19 vaccine.
A Waukesha County judge has granted a petition to revoke Morgan Geyser's conditional release after the woman fled from a Madison group home last month.
Wisconsin scientists and students say the planned dismantlement of a national climate and weather center will have devastating effects on research in the state.
Wisconsin musician Rökker is marking the one-year anniversary of his cardiac arrest with another show at the same club. And he’s using his experience to encourage people to get trained in CPR and to advocate for more access to emergency defibrillators at performance venues.
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Growth Energy, the nation’s largest biofuel trade association, expressed its support today for regulatory amendments proposed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) that streamline the regulatory process, addressing unnecessary barriers that have the potential to undermine the benefits of the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), a clean energy program that drives economic and environmental benefits by promoting the use of American biofuels.
FWS and NMFS proposed a rulemaking that clarifies how Section 7 consultations are conducted under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). This is relevant to the RFS because some organizations have argued that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) should conduct costly and time-consuming “formal” ESA consultations regarding the agency’s proposed RFS renewable volume obligations (RVOs)—despite findings by several agencies that such consultations are unnecessary.
“A strong RFS drives economic growth while making fuel more affordable—these amendments clarify that agencies like EPA can help the RFS deliver those benefits without unnecessary regulatory hurdles,” said Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor. “We commend FWS and NMFS for proposing these changes and look forward to seeing them finalized. We’ll continue to work with Congress and the Administration to maximize the positive impact of the RFS on drivers, the economy and the environment.”
Read Growth Energy’s comments to FWS and NMFS here.
A 15-year-old was taken to a medical facility with minor injuries after being struck by a pickup truck while crossing the highway on their way to a school bus Monday morning, reported WBAY News.
According to the news report, deputies and EMS personnel responded to the incident around 7:23 a.m. Authorities said the school bus was stopped in the northbound lane with its flashing lights activated and stop arm extended, when the teen attempted was crossing the highway.
Investigators determined the teen was hit by a 2018 Ford F-150 traveling southbound. The truck was reportedly driven by a 59-year-old man from the Village of St. Nazianz.
The teen sustained minor injuries and was transported to a medical facility for treatment. A second bus from the Valders Bus Company was dispatched to the scene to transport the remaining students.
Police sited the pickup driver for failure to stop for a school bus and inattentive driving. The sheriff’s office said no additional details would be released. Officials used the incident as a reminder that children’s safety is a shared community responsibility, urging drivers to remain alert around school buses, obey stop requirements, slow down, watch for children in the roadway and at school bus stops, and exercise patience during school pickup and drop-off times.
As winter settles over Oklahoma City, one school bus driver warms students one hand-knitted beanie at a time.
Tina Hutcherson, 63, drives for the Putnam City School District and has become a beloved figure among her students for a simple but heartfelt mission: Ensuring no child goes without a warm hat during the cold months. Her journey in student transportation began long before she ever picked up knitting needles.
She told School Transportation News that she started as a school bus driver in 2004. She had to take a small break in 2009 to care for her son but returned as a driver in 2013.
The idea of making hats came from what she witnessed each winter on her route.
“I know how cold it gets in Oklahoma, and I see some children who may not have coats, hats, etc., to keep them warm,” Hutcherson said, adding that a recent blanket giveaway inspired her to expand her efforts. “I didn’t want anyone to feel left out, so I decided to make all the students a stocking cap as well.”
Her process quickly became a collaboration with the very kids she serves. Instead of choosing colors herself, Hutcherson invites her students to design their own.
“I draw a picture of a hat and give it to the students to color over the weekend,” she said. “They bring it back to me, and I use their drawings as the design and color guide. Many of the students know exactly what colors they want.”
The project has grown far beyond her original plan.
“I’ve made about 50 or more hats so far,” she told STN. “When my middle schoolers heard about the elementary students getting hats, they asked for some too. So, I gave them hats right before Thanksgiving break.”
In addition to beanies for both elementary and middle schoolers, Hutcherson has also crocheted backpacks for students and hats for local military veterans.
The joy her students express makes every hour of work worth it.
“The kids get excited knowing they’re getting hats that morning,” she said. One student proudly wears his hat every day and makes sure Hutcherson sees it when he steps on the bus. She also received a stack of handmade thank-you cards from her elementary riders; gestures she treasures deeply.
More than warmth, Hutcherson said she hopes the children feel the intention behind each stitch.
“I hope they know I made it with love,” she said. That love, she believes, is what keeps her going. “I just love giving crochet and knitted projects to people who I feel need a little extra love. It’s my favorite hobby, and I love to put a smile on their faces!”.
Researchers have created a new kind of 3D computer chip that stacks memory and computing elements vertically, dramatically speeding up how data moves inside the chip. Unlike traditional flat designs, this approach avoids the traffic jams that limit today’s AI hardware. The prototype already beats comparable chips by several times, with future versions expected to go much further. Just as important, it was manufactured entirely in a U.S. foundry, showing the technology is ready for real-world production.
More than 200 years ago, Count Rumford showed that heat isn’t a mysterious substance but something you can generate endlessly through motion. That insight laid the foundation for thermodynamics, the rules that govern energy, work, and disorder. Now, researchers at the University of Basel are pushing those rules into the strange realm of quantum physics, where the line between useful energy and random motion becomes blurry.
A four–amino acid peptide called CAQK has shown powerful brain-protective effects in animal models of traumatic brain injury. Delivered through a standard IV, it zeroes in on injured brain tissue, calming inflammation and reducing cell death while improving recovery. The peptide worked in both mice and pigs, whose brains are closer to humans in structure. Researchers are now preparing to move toward early human clinical trials.
A new discovery shows that messy, stray light can be used to clean up quantum systems instead of disrupting them. University of Iowa researchers found that unwanted photons produced by lasers can be canceled out by carefully tuning the light itself. The result is a much purer stream of single photons, a key requirement for quantum computing and secure communication. The work could help push photonic quantum technology closer to real-world use.
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