Chancellor’s Update: Climate, Strategic Visioning & Budget Progress

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Dear Faculty and Staff,

I write with a summary of this week’s campus meeting where we discussed climate, strategic visioning, and the latest budget updates. The slides and recorded presentation are available here.

Climate

This year provided opportunity for reflection, discussions and action regarding environment, inclusion and culture. UWM’s many dimensions of diversity are a major strength, and we want all students, faculty and staff to feel welcome here. While we cannot control current events in the country, we can contribute to a positive and heathy campus climate. As I discussed in a recent campus message regarding our support for diversity, including assurances for our international and undocumented students, each of us contributes to UWM being an inclusive community. I ask that you remember our Guiding Values, approved by our campus and governance in 2012, especially the following:

  • A caring, compassionate, and collegial community characterized by mutual respect and safety.
  • Diversity in all of its definitions, including who we are, how we think, and what we do.

Our Guiding Values are essential to everything we do, and I will discuss them in future communications.

Strategic Visioning

We have been reacting to budget challenges for some time due to cuts, the four-year tuition freeze, declining enrollments, and other factors. Now is time to switch gears. I am leading a work group to develop a clear, crisp strategy to advance and protect our strategic drivers: student success, research excellence, community engagement, culture and climate, and our brand, visibility and image.

The Chancellor’s Strategic Visioning Work Group will examine what UWM will be known for in the future and identify areas of excellence and growth. See here for specifics about the group’s charge and membership, including governance representatives. The group will meet over the next several weeks to complete a draft plan. We will build upon the UW-Milwaukee Strategic Plan 2020 process from process from 2012-14, which was comprehensive and inclusive. However, much has changed since that planning was done – funding, enrollment, and shifts in higher education – and we need to adapt to be successful.

The call for this focused direction has come directly from the Board of Regents, UW System, governance groups, community members and many of you. Such a direction is intended to enable greater campus, community and legislative support, resulting in a stronger resource base and greater financial sustainability.

Budget Updates

For more details on the following budget sections, please see the link in the first paragraph to the December 6 campus budget presentation materials.

Board of Regents Review

At its Dec. 8 meeting, the Board of Regents will consider several items critical to UWM.

  • UW System’s proposal for a 2017-19 compensation plan with a 2% increase each year.
  • UWM’s recommendations for 2017-18 non-resident tuition rates, which include no increase for non-resident graduate students and a 5% increase for non-resident undergraduate students.  Please note that the 5% increase would not apply to students from Minnesota or the Midwest Student Exchange Program, a multi-state tuition reciprocity program with Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, and North Dakota.
  • The post-tenure review policy passed by the Faculty Senate in November.
  • An additional major project request for Sandburg Hall improvements.  UW System has requested that we combine several small projects into this one combined, larger, project.

2015-16 Budget Progress

In 2015-16, we reduced expenditures by $31 million (M), or 7%. Compared to 2014-15, we reduced salaries and fringes by 4%, supplies and expenses by 13% and capital and other items by 13%. For our largest budgeted item – staffing – we reduced the number of full-time equivalent employees by 289, which amounts to 8% of our total workforce. Overall, our tuition and other fund balances declined by about $7.5M.

2016-17 Budget Plans and Strategic Position Control

In the first quarter of 2016-17, we reduced salaries 8% and administrative expenses by 20+% from last year. We expect the rate of savings to slow throughout the year, and thus, we need to continue efforts to reduce budget deficits and ongoing expenditures. For FY17, we plan to reduce expenditures by $17M.This includes $8.5M from unit plans established in 2015-16 and $8.5M from the Strategic Position Control (SPC) process.

The purpose of SPC is to produce savings by establishing some central control over positions. The SPC Committee, led by APBC Chair Hobart Davies, has been meeting since spring and providing oversight. Schools, colleges and divisions are still recruiting, and make their own decisions about which positions to hire based on savings targets and their own SPC plan, which outlines priorities. Unit SPC plans and hires made from July to September 2016 are posted on  SPC section of State Budget Information web site.

Other Budget Initiatives

The Integrated Support Services Project (ISSP) team has shared with campus groups recommendations for a high-level redesign of the impacted core services ­­– Human Resources, IT, Finance, and Procurement – and is planning a phased-in rollout beginning in the fall semester of 2017, following a detailed design phase.

Work continues on schools/college alignment. The three health schools/colleges had their final planning meeting on December 2 and will move forward with the following action items: creating a Dean’s Council and collaborating on marketing and recruitment, research, instruction and educational programming as well as outreach and community service engagement.

The Workload Policy is being implemented in schools/colleges, a work group is discussing course duplication, the SPC Committee is addressing administrative efficiency metrics, and the Campus Space Planning Committee is drafting a space utilization policy.

Enrollment and Retention

Student enrollment and retention has a significant effect on our budget. Our final 2016-17 student count is 26,037. Overall enrollment for fall 2016 is down 4.1% compared to last year, which resulted in a $7M revenue reduction. The Chancellor’s Enrollment Management Action Team (CEMAT) is leading the following efforts to address enrollment:

  • Illinois recruitment plan
  • Enhanced advising services and scheduling tools
  • Expanded online and flex programs
  • Investment in graduate, international and high-achieving student enrollment

This is a reminder that each of us can promote enrollment and student success through positive actions. Ask a student how her week is going, assist someone who needs directions to a campus building or office, or connect a student with a needed resource. We all benefit from UWM being a welcoming, inclusive and student-centric environment.

Conclusion

We will continue to provide regular budget updates. The Provost and Vice Chancellor Van Harpen will meet with each school, college and division to discuss budget details during the spring semester. Please plan to join us, either in person or online, for the Spring Plenary on January 26, 2017 at 2:30 in the Helen Bader Concert Hall at the Zelazo Center for the Performing Arts, where I will discuss the outlook for the upcoming semester, share the strategic visioning draft, and provide further budget updates.

Thank you for your dedication and excellence in making UWM a positive place to study, live, research and work.

Best regards,

Mark A. Mone
Chancellor
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee