UW-Madison Chancellor Rebecca Blank gave her annual State of the University address to the Faculty Senate yesterday afternoon.

Read her prepared remarks here.

Audio of the address is available here.

Now is the time for the state to reinvest in its higher education system, University of Wisconsin­–Madison Chancellor Rebecca Blank told a crowd of about 100 students, staff, faculty and state legislators who attended a campus budget forum Wednesday at the Gordon Dining & Event Center.

Blank provided an update on the university’s current budget outlook, as well as the budget request proposed by UW System.

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View the slides from the presentation here.

Read coverage of the forum from the Wisconsin State Journal and The Daily Cardinal.

The campus community is invited to be part of a discussion about the state budget and its impact on the University of Wisconsin–Madison in a forum on Wednesday, Sept. 14, from 3:30-5 p.m. at Gordon Dining & Event Center, 770 W. Dayton St.

In a visit with the editorial board of the La Crosse Tribune, UW System President Ray Cross said investment in the system in an investment in the future of Wisconsin.

Read the article here.

UW-Madison Chancellor Rebecca Blank writes in her blog that the System budget request aligns well with the institution’s goals.

“I’m happy to support this request, and I hope you will join our efforts over the next nine months as part of the state budget process,” Blank says.

University of Wisconsin Board of Regents President Regina Millner and Vice President John Behling write that the System can play an important role in reinvigorating the state economy.

“All of our UW System campuses are in an ideal position to drive a stronger Wisconsin economy – something we all want for students, for families, and for Wisconsin.”

Read the column from Millner and Behling here.

Wisconsin State Journal: UW budget request seeks new outreach programs, $4M for student advising

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: UW System details new initiatives

Capital Times: UW System seeks $42.5 million to cut student costs, develop workforce

Wisconsin State Journal editorial: Keep tuition freeze but increase state aid to University of Wisconsin

Eau Claire Leader-Telegram editorial: UW System budget request reasonable

The University of Wisconsin System today released details of the strategic framework, 2020FWD, and the 2017-19 biennial budget request.

The items will be presented UW System Board of Regents for discussion and a vote during Thursday’s meeting at the Gordon Dining & Event Center on the UW-Madison campus.

In a recent post on her blog, Chancellor Blank addressed recent discourse around UW-Madison and UW System, along with ways the university can work with the state to move both forward. Related: View the UW-Madison Budget in Brief document (PDF).

In a summary on budget impacts submitted to the University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents, UW–Madison reported that a 10.6 percent reduction in state support in the current fiscal year has created an $86 million budget deficit.

To close the budget gap, UW–Madison has cut or redirected spending by $50 million over the next two years. The rest of the deficit will be filled by tuition increases to non-resident students.

Impacts of the cuts include:

• In the largest college, Letters & Science, all general fund hiring was frozen this year. L&S ultimately will cut 48 faculty and 44 staff positions. With these losses, departments are reducing the number of courses offered, increasing class sizes or substituting staff for faculty instructors.

• During the 2015-17 biennium, we expect to lose 418 faculty and staff positions through layoffs or attrition.

• In the Office of Undergraduate Advising, cuts will impact the ability to work with students, potentially increasing time to graduation for more students. The College of Engineering has halted a planned expansion of advisors. The College currently has 17 advisors to serve 6,600 students – at least five advisors below the minimum needed to serve students effectively.

• Student employment positions have been drastically reduced across campus. For example, Human Resources cut more than 6,500 hours of student employment. Research and Sponsored Programs cut about 6,300 hours of student employment. Not only do these reductions decrease the level of service, but they also reduce learning opportunities and financial support for students.

• The university are unable to expand enrollments in areas of increased student demand in important areas such as Business, Engineering and Nursing because of the budget cuts.

• The Division of Information Technology (DoIT) reports an array of service reductions to students in 2015-16. Labs are updated less frequently as a result of computer lab support reductions. Due to a digital media lab closing, students now must pay for these services elsewhere. In addition, early-morning and late-night help desk hours for students were reduced.

Go here to view the full UW–Madison summary and the summaries from other System school.