Just a phrase on my history- a long-time professor of Neuroscience, and an ardent opponent of all things Tea Party and long time proponent of liberal and left of liberal points of views and sometimes activist. I was on the University Committee, which heads the Faculty Senate, during the crash of Chancellor Biddy Martin against the rocks of the Public Authority proposal- a proposal that Scott Walker surprisingly initiated about 4-5 years ago. The proposal was heartily squelched, as was Biddy Martin’s Chancellorship!
At the time I was one of a minority (perhaps of one!) of the 6 faculty who comprise the University Committee in supporting the concept of making UW MADISON into a public authority. I think we all recognized, as did Biddy Martin, that there were enormous benefits to the University from breaking away from legislative control of University affairs. Where the dissension arose was in the proposal to break UW Madison off from System: System (the non- UW Madison campuses) would not be part of the public authority under the proposal. Personally, on balance, I thought it was still worth taking the plunge because of all the benefits that autonomy would give us.
In the current rendition of Walker’s proposed proposal, System would remain together. UW Madison and all the other campuses would be one public authority, under the control of the UW Board of Regents. This is a major change in the proposal from 4 years ago. SO, now we can consider whether becoming a Public Authority is indeed a better way to go than the current system where the Legislature makes all the major decisions.
To me the answer is obvious. This is a much healthier path. To a very large extent the University could set its own way, free from being a political football. But there is a price! 300 million dollars.
So, what should the University’s position be? Here is where I once again find myself at home in that strange and alien land- the brain of Scott Walker! I think the University community should think very carefully about whether it wants to fight Walker’s budget proposal, and run the almost certain consequence of throwing out the baby with the bathwater, if we are successful. The key question is whether it is worth sucking up the budget cut, in order to gain a lot more control over our institution. That is-rather than fighting the budget proposal, should we support it? I admit to not having thought through all ramifications, so am not an adamant defender of my position, but as of now, with the fair amount of thought I have put into it, I think our route is to accept, and back, the proposal. Not, for a second time, to reject the chance to free the University from the political influence of the legislature. This time, lets go for it, even of it means significant financial hardship for two years. I think the end result will be well worth it, looking 10-20 years down the road. The ability to move the University to what is right for education and research, rather than what is right for state politics, is too good an opportunity to miss.
Peter Lipton is currently a professor of Neuroscience at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Do you agree with his take on this issue? Would privatization benefit the University, and the entire UW System for that matter? Would that benefit outweigh the cost (the loss of millions of dollars in public funds)? Could you foresee any problems or flaws with the decision to privatize? What do you think? Please send all comments to opinion@dailycardinal.com
