Tag: Regents

Regent President Michael Falbo on Increasing Faculty Workload

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Michael Falbo

Michael Falbo

Michael Falbo, President of the University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents, recently spoke with WisconsinEye senior producer Steve Walters. A two minute video excerpt is below.

The pair discussed Governor Scott Walker’s budget proposal, including the governor’s recent remark that the university’s budget situation could be improved if faculty taught one additional class each semester.

When asked to react to the governor’s remark, Falbo said, “certainly it’s true if they (faculty) taught another class there would be some efficiencies from that.” Falbo went on to say any changes to faculty workload would not happen quickly and would be the result of a collaborative process with all involved.

The full 18 minute video interview is here:

February Board of Regents Meeting

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uw system logoThe University of Wisconsin-Madison will host the UW System Board of Regents today and tomorrow, Thursday and Friday, February 4 and 5. All meetings will take place in Varsity Hall in Union South, 1308 West Dayton Street. Livestream coverage of the meeting is available here.

The regents meet in committee Thursday morning, and the full board meets Thursday afternoon and Friday morning. UW-Madison Chancellor Rebecca Blank will address the regents at 1:15 pm, followed by a board discussion of the 2015-17 biennial budget proposal.

The Education Committee will discuss sabbatical guidelines for 2016-18 and hear a report from UW-Madison Provost Sarah Mangelsdorf on educational updates. On Friday, the committee, along with all regents, will discuss the engineering needs in the state, including a proposal to create new engineering programs in northwestern Wisconsin.

The Business and Finance Committee will hear the 2014 Finance Report, the 2014 Annual Trust Funds Report, and the Information Technology Report.

The Capital Planning and Budget Committee will hear presentations from UW-Madison and UW-Parkside on their respective campus master plans.

The Research, Economic Development, and Innovation Committee will hear updates on UW-Madison’s research enterprise and the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation partnership.

On Friday, the regents will hear several reports, including UW-Madison’s NCAA Division I Athletics Report. UW-Madison professor Erik Brodt will receive a 2015 Board of Regents Diversity Award.

UW System President Ray Cross’ Remarks to Regents

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UW System President Ray Cross

University of Wisconsin System President Ray Cross addressed the Board of Regents Friday, broadly outlining reforms intended to improve efficiency and effectiveness while allowing the university to be more responsive to the needs of the state.

Some of the areas mentioned for reform:

  • Faculty workload
  • Class offerings and low-enrollment courses
  • Search processes for chancellors
  • Credit requirements
  • Student segregated fees
  • Administrative operations

PROFS President Grant Petty told the Wisconsin State Journal that courses are already examined carefully and cautioned against using credit hours taught as the only measure of efficiency:

“(L)ow-enrollment courses here at UW-Madison are often also high-impact courses. That is, they are usually taught to advanced students on a specialized topic by a professor with world-class expertise in that subject. Sometimes losing low-enrollment courses due to budget constraints means that our students lose valuable educational opportunities. Efficiency at UW-Madison cannot and should not be measured strictly in terms of the number of student credit-hours taught.”

Cross’ full remarks are here:

December Board of Regents Meeting

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uw system logoThe University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents will meet Thursday and Friday, December 4 and 5 at at UW-Madison. The meeting will be held in the Symphony and Overture Rooms of Gordon Dining and Event Center, 770 West Dayton Street. Livestream coverage of the meeting will be available here.

The regents will meet in committees Thursday afternoon and Friday morning:

The Education Committee will discuss UW System baccalaureate engineering programs, including the proposal to create a Northwest Wisconsin Engineering Consortium at UW-River Falls, UW-Stout, and UW-Eau Claire. Earlier this year, UW System commissioned a study to examine the potential need for more engineers in the state.

The Business and Finance Committee will hear a quarterly report on gifts and grants, review the trust funds investment policy, and listen project update reports.

The Capital Planning and Budget Committee will discuss proposed building projects, including projects at Grainger Hall and Elizabeth Waters Residence Hall. The Grainger Hall project to renovate two classrooms will be paid for entirely through gift funds, while the residence hall project requires additional funding authority.

Lieutenant Governor Rebecca Kleefisch has been invited to address the Research, Economic Development, and Innovation Committee. The committee will also hear updates on Economic Development Incentive Grant recipients, including Discovery to Product (D2P) at UW-Madison.

The Audit Committee will discuss recent UW System audit reports and consider a request for proposals to create a waste, fraud and abuse hotline.

The full board begins its meeting at 9 am Friday. UW System President Ray Cross will address the board, providing his thoughts on transforming the way the university does business. The regents will hear reports from the Higher Educational Aids Board, the Hospital Authority Board, and the Wisconsin Technical College System Board.

November Board of Regents Meeting

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uw system logoThe University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents will meet at 9 am tomorrow, Thursday, November 6, at UW-Madison. The meeting will be held in the Symphony Room of Gordon Dining and Event Center, 770 West Dayton Street. Livestream coverage of the meeting will be available here.

The regents will host several panel discussions on Wisconsin’s workforce issues, and UW System Interim Senior Vice President David Ward and UW-Madison Provost Sarah Mangelsdorf will present accountability reports for 2013-14.

Chancellor Rebecca Blank will be among four chancellors discussing UW System’s response to workforce needs around the state. Other participants include Todd Berry of the Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance; Reggie Newson, Secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development; Todd Battle, President of the Kenosha Area Business Alliance; Mark Tyler, President of OEM Fabricators; and Kathi Seifert, former Executive Vice President of Kimberly-Clark.

Governor Scott Walker was invited to the meeting, but a spokesperson said he will not attend.

 

October Board of Regents Meeting

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uw system logoThe University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents will meet at UW-Stevens Point Thursday and Friday, October 9 and 10. Livestream coverage of the meeting will be available here.

The regents will meet in committees Thursday morning:

The Education Committee will discuss updates on credit transfer agreements, changes to faculty bylaws at UW-Platteville, and the UW School of Medicine and Public Health Wisconsin Partnership program.

The Business and Finance Committee will discuss faculty and staff base salary adjustments for FY2014, faculty turnover, the financial management report, and the report of the funding allocation working group.

According to the agenda, 44 percent of faculty and instructional staff at UW-Madison received a non-promotion base salary adjustment averaging $8,772. Five percent of UW-Madison faculty received a lump sum payment averaging $2,772.

Seventy-four faculty members left UW-Madison last year; 31 retired and slightly more than half left the institution.

The funding allocation working group recommends that base funding should not be reallocated among institutions and each institution should retain its tuition dollars. The group also recommends that the president and board retain authority over the distribution of any new flexible state funding.

The Capital Planning and Budget Committee will discuss its priorities and goals and two additional capital budget projects for 2015-17.

The Research, Economic Development and Innovation Committee will hear an update on partnerships with the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC).

The full board will meet Thursday afternoon and Friday morning. UW System President Ray Cross will introduce a report on program revenue balances and the board will hear an update on the Flexible Option on Thursday.

According to the program revenue report, UW-Madison has lowered its tuition balance by 41 percent, from $143 million in 2013 to $84.5 million in 2014. The fund balance was lowered from 14 percent of expenses to 8 percent, well under the 12 percent threshold implemented by the legislature earlier this year.

The regents will hear updates from staff and committees on Friday.

 

Regent Committee Meeting Thursday

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uw system logoThe University of Wisconsin System Board of Regent Committee on Research, Economic Development, and Innovation will meet in Madison at 1 pm on Thursday, October 2. The meeting is in advance of the regularly scheduled full board meeting on October 9 and 10 in Stevens Point.

The committee will review its history and mission and discuss collaboration with business partners. An overview of how UW System impacts Wisconsin’s economy is also on the agenda.

The meeting will be held in Room 1820 Van Hise Hall and is open to the public.

Regents to Discuss UW System Budget Proposal

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uw system logoThe University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents is meeting at UW-Oshkosh today and tomorrow, August 21 and 22. Livestream coverage of the full board meeting is here.

Regents committees will meet Thursday morning, while the full board will meet Thursday afternoon and Friday.

The board will consider UW System’s state budget request Thursday afternoon. The proposal includes $95.2 million for the “Talent Development Initiative,” the implementation of new performance measures, and statutory language changes related to compensation, including the ability to offer merit pay increases.

The budget request notes that Governor Scott Walker directed state agencies, including UW System, to submit proposals that assumed no new funding, but UW System discussed its intention to request an budget increase with members of Governor Walker’s staff.

Budget request highlights:

  • $30 million for a competitive grant program targeting six areas critical to the state’s economy: agriculture, finance, insurance/real estate, healthcare, manufacturing, transportation, and water research.
  • $27.3 to cover a pay plan funding gap. Historically, UW System funds about 30 percent of a pay plan increase with tuition dollars. The two-year tuition freeze has led to a funding gap, with many campuses holding insufficient reserves to cover the pay plan. 
  • $24.4 million to increase the number of college graduates statewide, with much of the funding directed to the Course Options program, a program that allows high school students to earn college credits. Additional funding would expand the Flex Option degree program, improve the credit transfer system, and assist working and first-generation college students.
  • $22.5 million in one-time funding to assist with the creation of STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) jobs. The money will be available to individual campuses through a competitive grant process.

UW System also plans to implement several accountability measures:

  • To meet or exceed the current goal of 80,000 undergraduate degrees conferred by 2025-26
  • To enroll at least 32 percent of Wisconsin high school graduates immediately after graduation
  • To meet or exceed the current plan to improve second-year return rate
  • To meet or exceed the current plan to improve the six-year graduation rate.

 

August 2014 UW System Board of Regents Budget Request

Governor Walker Proposes Additional 2-Year Tuition Freeze

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Governor Scott Walker announced Friday morning that he would propose an additional two-year freeze on University of Wisconsin System tuition. The governor said his proposal was a direct result of the recent disclosure that UW System will finish the fiscal year with about $1 billion in reserve. Last year, the governor called for a two-year tuition freeze after the university was found to have just over $1 billion in reserve.

The governor’s plan came as a surprise as the UW System Board of Regents met for a second day in a regularly scheduled meeting. UW System President Ray Cross responded quickly, saying that he will continue his work with the governor and legislature while thoughtfully and judiciously managing and explaining UW System resources. Cross told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel he had discussed the possibility of a one-year extension of the tuition freeze with the governor’s staff about a month ago, but the conversation had been casual.

The Regent Audit Committee and Budget and Finance Committee met Thursday morning and revealed cash balance projections for FY 2013-14. UW System will finish the year with almost $1.1 billion in reserve, about half coming from tuition.

UW System officials say that about 80 percent of the funds are committed on some level (see below). UW-Madison’s share of the reserve is about $600 million, and Cross told the Journal Sentinel that UW-Madison is among the handful of campuses that could survive three to four years on cash balances without implementing major budget cuts.

fy 2013-14 reserves

April Board of Regents Meeting

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uw system logoThe University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents will meet Thursday and Friday, April 10 and 11 at UW-River Falls. Audio and video webcasts of the meeting will be available here.

The regents will meet in committee Thursday morning and hear from UW-River Falls Chancellor Dean Van Goren Thursday afternoon. The full board will also discuss financial reporting and the annual budget process.

The Education Committee will discuss faculty workload and compensation as part of its discussion, but supporting materials were not included with the agenda. Other items on the committee’s agenda include approval of annual Vilas Trust requests, a report on program planning and review, and renewal of UW-Milwaukee charter school authorizations.

The Audit Committee will meet jointly with the Business and Finance Committee. They will discuss two Legislative Audit Bureau (LAB) reports:

The LAB found that UW System’s Human Resources System (HRS) continues to have problems with implementation, accuracy, and security.  Insurance billing errors totaled more than $10 million from April 2011 through May 2013.

The committees will also discuss revisions to UW System policies on financial reserves. Campus financial reserves have been the subject of intense legislative scrutiny since April 2013 when the Legislative Fiscal Bureau reported that UW System holds more than $650 million in financial reserves.

The committees recommend approval of a plan that requires individual campuses to hold between 10 and 15 percent of their total fiscal year expenditures in reserve. Campuses with less than 10 percent fund balances must report a savings plan to the regents, while campuses holding more than 15 percent fund balances must provide justification to the regents and submit a spending plan for tuition, auxiliary operations, general operations, and unrestricted program revenue.