In his fall plenary address, UWM Chancellor Mark Mone acknowledged that budget cuts and threats to tenure and faculty governance challenge the university, but reminded the audience to remember “why UWM matters and why we are here.”
UWM Chancellor Mark Mone asked members of the UW System Board of Regents on Thursday to work with chancellors and the Legislature to “help preserve the value of our degrees.” Mone’s speech was in response to lawmakers’ proposals to cut state funding for public universities and change tenure and shared governance.
Mone acknowledged questions about whether the cuts would be larger or smaller than Walker proposed, when they would hit and what flexibility the university would have.
Gov. Scott Walker has proposed cutting the University of Wisconsin System budget by $300 million over two years; UW-Milwaukee’s share of that is estimated at $40 million. Here are some things to know about the budget situation.
Calling a proposed $300 million cut an unprecedented challenge, Chancellor Mone asserted that UWM has exceptional resources in its faculty and a mission important to defend.
“I am deeply concerned that if the proposed cuts materialize there will be a significant impact on our ability to serve our students and meet our mission as a public urban research university.”
“Today, I am sharing what we have been hearing and possible implications for the UW System and our campus.”
Mone won’t personally solve all those problems, but he can give students “a mechanism and a voice” that gets their needs met.
Mone will step into his new leadership post immediately.