UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN River Falls
UW-River Falls budget cut impacts fact sheet
Dear UW-River Falls Faculty and Staff:
The UW System Board of Regents met today in Madison and I want to provide you with an update on actions taken by the Board and provide context on how these actions will affect our university.
Dear UW-River Falls Faculty:
It is a time of challenge and serious concern for public higher education in Wisconsin on issues including budget reductions and shared governance. Earlier this week I met with our campus shared governance leaders (Faculty Senate, Academic Staff Council, Classified Staff Advisory Council, and Student Senate) to discuss the most recent information and answer questions. As a campus community, we will need to continue to share information and have dialogue on these matters.
Today, however, I am writing specifically to the UW-River Falls faculty about the matter of tenure.
The Legislative Joint Finance Committee (JFC) voted on revisions to the Governor's proposed 2015-17 State Budget. You can find here the Joint Finance Committee omnibus motion and a Summary of the JFC actions on the UW System Biennial Budget, prepared by the UW System Budget Office. It is important to note that the JFC revisions must still pass approval by the Assembly and Senate and may still be subject to line item veto by the Governor. The next step will be for the JFC revisions to be drafted in bill form, and then submitted to the first of the two houses for review, which is likely to occur in mid-June. Please refer to the link on the right for more details on the Wisconsin State Budget Process.
Dear UW-River Falls Faculty and Staff:
I hope your spring semester is off to a positive start as we welcome our returning and new students to campus. We face some very challenging times, and we must continue to find joy and meaning in the important role we all play in helping our students learn and succeed. I want to provide you with an update and perspective on the budget proposal for the University of Wisconsin (UW) System that was announced earlier today by Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker.
A memo was issued on January 28 by UW System President Ray Cross regarding "Immediate Cost Containment Measures" which has been widely circulated in the local media. It should be noted that this memo was directed specifically to the personnel working at UW System Administration in Madison and was not intended to be adopted or implemented verbatim on any UW campus. UW-River Falls staff and faculty will be duly notified by the Chancellor if and when any such "cost containment measures" are being considered for implementation on our campus. For now, faculty and staff are asked to be prudent when considering travel or other expenditures that may not be critical or essential.
Several questions are being raised regarding system and campus policies on layoffs. You may wish to consult
this recent document from the University of Wisconsin System, which provides some general guidelines for layoff procedures for reasons of budget.
Please also refer to:
UW-River Falls Faculty and Academic Staff handbook
Full text of 2015 Wisconsin Act 55
Wisconsin State Budget Process
Video Recording from Pres. Cross Visit to UW-River Falls (March 31)
Budget Reduction Survey Summary
UW-River Falls Budget Timeline
Projected Impact of 2015-2017 Executive Budget on UW-River Falls
Chancellor Van Galen's Op-Ed Column in the River Falls Journal (Feb. 5)
Town Hall Meetings Presentation (Feb. 2 & 3)
Q & A from February 2015 Town Hall Meetings
Chancellor Van Galen's Statement on Governor Walker's Budget Proposal (Jan. 28)
Summary of Final 2015-2017 Biennial Budget by Program
Tenure Resolution Adopted by the UW System Board of Regents (June 5)
Statement by UW System Regent President Michael Falbo on Joint Finance Committee action (May 29)
Board of Regents Shared Governance and Tenure Resolution (Mar. 5)
Board of Regents Budget Resolution (Mar. 5)
President Ray Cross Testimony to Joint Committee on Finance (Mar. 3)
UW System Statement on Employee Benefits and the 2015-17 Executive Budget (Feb. 26)
UW System Statement Regarding the Wisconsin Idea (Feb. 4)
UW System Initial Review of 2015-17 Executive Budget (Feb. 4)
UW System Statement Regarding Governor's Budget Proposal (Feb.3)
Frequently Asked Questions about UW System Authority Proposal (Feb. 3)