It must be that walk to Camp Randall, downing a rum mixer to stay warm, entering through the tunnel into a beautiful scene of blue skies and green grass, and screaming with thousands of students that drive our love for Badgers sports. The UW Madison Board of Regents apparently feels the same, as they place more weight on sports than our education.
One would assume the recent years of budget cuts, financial downturns and economic dives would drive the Board of Regents to efficiently manage our money. However, more losses and withholdings are the only records on their accounting journals.
It is difficult to support some of the expressed budget plans. The Camp Randall renovations are costing over $100 million, of which 90 percent comes from the Athletic Department and private sources and 10 percent from the state. Or paying Barry Alvarez $100,000 more this year, conveniently increasing his annual salary to $1.6 million dollars. This high spending is not timely.
After reading these numbers, and seeing Chancellor Wiley quoted ensuring a sound financial plan for UW, it is interesting hearing Deborah Durcan, the UW system vice president of finance, state \campuses are deep into determining where to cut to generate $26 million"" to pay for financial aid. So they decide to withhold trust funds and cut close to $200,000 in scholarship money and have less reserve available for students intending to study abroad. The Board of Regents refuses to search elsewhere for its spending needs, and by elsewhere I mean cutting Alvarez's pay check.
The Jim Doyle-enforced biennial budget cut of $250 million dollars to the UW System, $38.5 million to UW-Madison, is cause for cutting 650 faculty and staff positions, increasing our tuition fees and digging into our auxiliary reserves. But the recent economic downturns and budget cuts only take a bite out of our education, never out of our valuable sports renovations.
While teachers or staff are sent to the streets, Bo Ryan, the Badgers' basketball coach, received a phenomenal $400,000 pay raise, doubling his last year's salary. People love college sports because athletes essentially play for free. Paying coaches this insanely large lump sum of money adds to their egos and commercializes college sports.
Some argue Rose Bowls, conference championships, seating improvements and pricey VIP suites are the driving force for attracting students and personnel. This is true. But soon there will not be enough money to support the newcomers. With all these cuts, there is no reason for Alvarez to be the highest-paid staff member at UW. After all, Madison is rated the best sports town in the country before Camp Randall has finished renovation. The liberalism, relaxed personalities and high-spirited characteristics of Madison students are qualities that do not require an improved stadium.
UW-Madison is like a corporation and the students and their affiliates are the stock owners: Budget proposals for renovations, pay raises as incentive to its employees-all are policies enforced to keep the corporation looking profitable to the stock owners and the public. The school will bring in more revenue from these stadium improvements and continuous season victories, but when does one stop corporate strategy and focus on educational issues?
