An academic staff committee released a report Wednesday stating their belief that the proposed restructuring of the graduate school is unnecessary.
The ad hoc committee was created to review a plan submitted by Provost Paul DeLuca that would create a new office to manage UW-Madison's research operations. Currently, research grants and procedures are managed within the graduate school.
The report concluded that while some changes may be necessary, the proposed restructuring would not solve the current problems in the system.
The official report states, ""While the Committee recognizes that there are problematic areas of the research enterprise that are not functioning optimally… the current consensus of the Committee is that this is not due to the organizational structure per se.""
Committee member Jenny Dahlberg of the UW-Madison Neuroscience Training Program said the current system has been successful in promoting both quality graduate education and a successful research enterprise. She said she feared the proposal would weaken that aspect of the university.
""I fear the Provost either neglected to articulate, or to consider, the potential negative consequences a restructuring could have on both our national research and graduate school rankings,"" she said.
The report also voiced concerns over the cost of the proposed plan. The committee said the cost of adding a Vice Chancellor-level position to oversee the research program would not necessarily address the current shortcomings in the system.
The committee's report recommends to UW-Madison administrators that more assessment is needed before making any decisions regarding the future of the research program.
Dahlberg said she stresses the importance of strategic planning and increased transparency in funding UW-Madison's extensive research enterprise.
""Too often a crisis request was made and funds were allocated to bridge the gap but no long-term plans were made to deal with the root of the problem,"" she said.
The committee said that this lack of future planning may have negative consequences for the research program and the campus as a whole in the long run.
Some staff have previously stated that the proposal appeared to be fast-tracked through the system, however, administrators have said the proposed changes are necessary to deal with the complexity and the scope of the university's research.
