Non-graduating students at two University of Wisconsin System two-year campuses will transfer or shift to virtual learning after UW-Oshkosh, Fond du Lac and UW-Milwaukee at Washington County end in-person learning in June 2024.
UW System president Jay Rothman cited market challenges and plummeting enrollment numbers for the closures in a statement Tuesday, the same day the state Joint Committee on Employment Relations blocked 6% pay raise over two years for UW System employees.
“The status quo is not sustainable,” Rothman said. “This decision is a response to an evolving student marketplace.”
Rothman cited students making alternative educational choices as the driving factor behind the decision, not cost savings. According to Rothman, online and four-year campus enrollment rose while two-year campus enrollment sagged.
The Fond du Lac and Washington County campuses will end in-person coursework on June 30, 2024. The move follows the end of in-person classes at UW-Platteville Richland in July. The campus will also close in June 2024.
The move to online coursework will affect the 235 students at the Fond du Lac campus and 339 at the Washington County campus.
Rothman directed chancellors managing the remaining ten branch campuses to evaluate their “long-term viability” in an April 2023 letter.
He further encouraged branch campus chancellors to explore options with local governments that own campus buildings and provide a “clear pathway” by early spring 2024.
Liam Beran is the former campus news editor for The Daily Cardinal and a third-year English major. He has written in-depth on higher-education issues and covered state news. He is a now a summer LGBTQ+ news fellow with The Nation. Follow him on Twitter at @liampberan.
