The UW System Board of Regents Business and Finance Committee approved a resolution Thursday that would allow UW System faculty and academic staff to receive up to a four percent pay raise per year for the next biennium.
This decision contradicts UW System President Katharine Lyall's recent recommendation to freeze or significantly lower the salaries of UW employees.
The regents acknowledged such pay increases are necessary to keep up with other university systems in attracting qualified faculty.
However, the committee said they realized the state may not be able to fund such increases and added, \the UW System Staff and the Board of Regents is cognizant of the difficulty of funding the needed pay play in the current fiscal climate"" to their resolution as a way of acknowledging Wisconsin's budget crises.
Additionally, Camp Randall, the Shell and scoreboards will see no immediate improvements as the Physical Planning and Funding Committee agreed to postpone a resolution calling for an increase in their funding.
Another side of campus may receive funding for two new greenhouses if the board passes a resolution set Thursday calling for Madison Gas and Electric Construct LLC to build a greenhouse at UW-Madison's Agricultural Station. The other greenhouse is part of the Greenhouse Replacement Project and would be on Walnut Street.
Regents decided tuition cuts may also be a possibility for students at UW-Eau Claire, UW-LaCrosse and UW-Oshkosh. Under the ""Return to Wisconsin"" program, children of out-of-state alumni would receive tuition cuts as an incentive to attend UW System schools and remain in the area after graduation.
This incentive program stems from the regents' growing concern that only one Wisconsin city, Madison, is an attractive place for young people to work. As baby boomers begin to retire, regents worry Wisconsin jobs will go unfilled as UW System graduates flee to Chicago or the Twin Cities.
""The real problem in Wisconsin is supply, not demand,"" Terry Ludeman of the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development said at the meeting.
The Education Committee decided to postpone implementing a newly proposed credit transfer system allowing students to transfer credits between and among technical colleges and UW System schools uniformly and easily.
""There are still some elements that need to be worked on at this point but [regents] are going to take another look at it this month,"" regent spokesperson Erik Christianson said.
Finally, regents approved a contract with Triad Management Services, Inc. for UW-Madison's ""Ice Cube"" project in which UW-Madison's Space Science and Engineering Center will be constructed at the South Pole.
The Board of Regents will meet today to make final decisions on passed resolutions.
