The effects of Gov. Scott Walker’s proposed state budget have become clearer to the UW-Madison community in the past week as Chancellor Rebecca Blank recently detailed the elimination of 400 positions and the closing or merging of several programs.
UW-Madison is preparing to carry $96 million of the $300 million cut to the UW System proposed in the governor’s state budget. The Board of Regents approved the university’s plan to increase nonresident tuition April 10, and is scheduled to start the increase this fall.
Blank granted the deans of each college the autonomy to decide which programs to cut. The deans are expected to start announcing their budget plans Monday, Blank said in an online post.
“Our programs and services are all useful and worthy of support, but we have attempted to prioritize those most essential,” Blank said in the post. “I recognize that this process will impact good people and limit our ability to serve students and the state.”
The termination of 400 jobs will bring additional changes to campus, such as the ending or restructuring of several programs including information technology, agriculture and the arts, according to the post.
Students can expect larger class sizes with fewer course options and a reduction in advising services, which Blank said could hurt both the time students take to graduate and retention.
Additional support services are expected to be reduced and UW-Madison will budget less money toward maintaining buildings on campus.
While Blank said in the post the university will attempt to find other ways to deal with the cuts, she asked the Athletic Department and other schools and colleges within UW-Madison to “make greater financial contributions” to the university.
“We will continue a thorough review of university operations, guided by our new strategic framework, to invest in our strengths and reduce or eliminate underperforming programs,” Blank said in the post.
State Sen. Stephen L. Nass, R-Whitewater, said Blank’s statement is a “political stunt” to make the potential effects of the proposed state budget appear more dramatic.
“Once again, Chancellor Blank issues an announcement to inflame passions of students and faculty against the Governor and Legislature over the budget without releasing details,” Nass said in a release.
Assembly Minority Leader Peter Barca, D-Kenosha, said the job cuts will have a lasting effect on the university.
“It's devastating to our future competitiveness when other institutions are making new investments in academics at the same time that we are de-investing in our world class University of Wisconsin System,” Barca said in a release.
