PROFS, The national context, The state, UW, UW System

Election Update from PROFS

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Last week, Michael Bernard Donals, President of PROFS, and Jack O’Meara, PROFS’ lobbyist, sent an email to all faculty with an update on the federal and state elections. The text of that message is below:

Hello UW-Madison Faculty Member:

With the election a few days behind us, we wanted to get in touch to summarize what happened and where we see things going in the days and months ahead. We particularly want to make sure you are aware of the results in the state legislative elections.

On Election Night, Wisconsin–long a battleground state–gave former President Donald Trump the electoral college votes he needed to declare victory. Trump won the state by roughly 30,000 votes.

We can expect major changes in higher education policy under President Trump. Here are some articles on that topic:

Democratic U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin won a close election, defeating her opponent, Eric Hovde, by about 29,000 votes for a third term in the Senate. Our longtime local congressman, Democrat Mark Pocan, was also re-elected. PROFS has strong relationships with Senator Baldwin and Congressman Pocan, dating to their times in the Wisconsin Legislature, and we look forward to working with them and their staffs in 2025.

Because of Democratic losses in other states, control of the U.S. Senate will shift to the Republicans. Control of the U.S. House of Representatives has yet to be determined, as many races, particularly on the West Coast, have not been called. This will be a significant factor in whether President Trump will be able to fully advance his agenda.

The balance of power in the Wisconsin Legislature will be much closer in January following a lawsuit over gerrymandering that resulted in new, more competitive legislative maps. Democrats, however, were not able to take control of the State Assembly, as they had hoped. Given that only half the Senate is up for election every two years, it was not realistic for the Democrats to take back the Senate, but it is noteworthy that the Democrats won all of the most competitive races on the Senate side.

Democrats picked up 10 seats in the State Assembly and four seats in the State Senate. This means there will be 54 Republicans and 45 Democrats in the Assembly, and 18 Republicans and 15 Democrats in the Senate. In the previous legislative session, the balance was 64-35 and 22-11, meaning the Republicans had a supermajority in the Senate and a near-supermajority in the Assembly. Legislators can override vetoes from Democratic Governor Tony Evers with supermajorities.

Some of the notable new faces in the Legislature include Democratic Representative-elect Renuka Mayadev, who will serve in the newly-created district that represents UW-Madison and many areas where UW employees live. Rep.-elect Mayadev currently works at the UW School of Medicine and Public Health. Also of note, Democratic Senator-elect Jamie Wall, a business consultant in Green Bay, was a Rhodes Scholar after receiving his bachelor’s degree from UW-Madison. Senator Kelda Helen Roys (D-Madison), a strong advocate for the faculty and UW-Madison, was also re-elected.

Legislators are beginning to elect their leadership. Senator Mary Felzkowski (R-Tomahawk) was elected by her caucus to serve as Senate President. Senator Felzkowski is a long-time member of the Joint Finance Committee. Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu (R-Oostburg) will continue to serve as leader. More leadership votes will take place next week, and committee memberships will be announced in the coming weeks.

The 2025-27 state budget, including funding for UW-Madison and the Universities of Wisconsin, will be at the top of the agenda for the new Legislature when they take office in January. Following the recommendation of UW System President Jay Rothman, the UW Board of Regents has requested $855 million in new funding for the universities.

Last week, the Legislative Council Study Committee on the Future of the UW System endorsed the idea of a separate board and separate funding for UW-Madison, along with bonding authority for the university, plus other suggestions. PROFS will monitor developments and advocate for the best possible result for UW-Madison and its faculty.

As always, let us know if you have concerns, suggestions, or questions.

Sincerely,

Michael Bernard-Donals, English & Jewish Studies
PROFS President

Jack O’Meara
PROFS Lobbyist

PROFS, The state, UW, UW System

PROFS Statement on the Recommendations of the Legislative Council Study Committee on the Future of UW System

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A legislative study committee has been meeting since July to discuss UW System’s enrollment and budget challenges. The committee met for last time last month and voted on 19 proposed recommendations, and the results of their votes were made public on Thursday. Our statement on their action is here:

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PROFS, UW

Voting Information for Students

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PROFS shared the message and slides below with its membership earlier this week. We encourage all faculty to take a few minutes in class to ensure students have accurate information about the process and requirements to vote in Wisconsin.

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The state, UW, UW System

September Board of Regents Meeting

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Universities of Wisconsin logoThe Universities of Wisconsin Board of Regents is meeting at UW-Parkside on Thursday and Friday, September 26 and 27. Registration to watch the open portions of the meetings is here. The Regents met informally at a welcome reception on Wednesday evening and will meet again at the inauguration of UW-Parkside Chancellor Lynn Akey on Thursday evening.

The Regents will be in committee meetings Thursday morning:

  • The Audit Committee will hear updates on several reports.
  • The Capital Planning & Budget Committee will consider approval of several agreements, leases, and building projects, including the sale of a UW-Madison parcel of vacant land, a lease agreement at 333 East Campus Mall at UW-Madison, and a building project to expand the Grainger Hall dining area.
  • The Business & Finance Committee will consider changes to Regent policies relating to executive salaries and the hiring of the president, chancellors, vice chancellors, and UW System senior leadership positions, and hear a presentation from UW-Parkside on strategic operations and shared services.
  • The Education Committee will hear a presentation from UW-Parkside on the arts and student success and have a discussion on continuing education and the UW Strategic Plan.

The Regents will meet in full session Thursday afternoon and Friday morning. On Thursday, they will hear a presentation from UW-Parkside Chancellor Lynn Akey and updates from UWs President Jay Rothman and Regent President Amy Bogost. They will also discuss the planning, approval, and review of the academic program array and present 2024 University Staff Excellence Awards.

Regents will meet in two separate closed sessions — one to discuss the dismissal with cause of former UW-La Crosse Chancellor Joe Gow and one to discuss potential litigation, the naming of a UW-Oshkosh facility, and chancellor performance evaluations.

UW, UW System

August Board of Regents Meeting

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Universities of Wisconsin logoThe Universities of Wisconsin Board of Regents will meet tomorrow and Friday, August 22 and 23, in Van Hise Hall on the UW-Madison campus. Zoom links for the open meetings are available here.

The Regents will meet in committee Thursday morning:

  • The Business & Finance Committee will hear several reports and consider approval of the proposed 2025-27 biennial budget request (below), two contractual agreements and two collective bargaining agreements.
  • The Education Committee will hear an update on direct admission and consider approval of new degree programs at UW-Milwaukee, UW-Stout and UW-Superior, and an academic realignment proposal at UW-Oshkosh. The committee will also vote on UW-Milwaukee’s proposal to discontinue the College of General Studies and its three departments and layoff its faculty. The college and its faculty were located at UWM’s two two-year campuses in West Bend and Waukesha.
  • The Audit Committee will hear two reports and a presentation on the risk treatment plan.
  • The Capital Planning & Budget Committee will vote on the 2025-27 capital budget request. The request, $1.7 billion, covers projects large and small, including demolition and replacement of the Humanities Building and a new dormitory at UW-Madison.

The full board will meet Thursday afternoon and Friday morning.

On Thursday, the board will hear reports from incoming Regent President Amy Bogost, Universities of Wisconsin President Jay Rothman, and the Wisconsin Technical Colleges Board. The board will also consider approval of committee action, including the biennial budget proposals, and recognize the service of Regent Emeritus Dana Wachs and UW-River Falls Chancellor Maria Gallo and Sean Nelson, UWs Vice President for Finance and Administration, who are both retiring in September.

The Regents will meet in closed session on Friday morning.

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