January 20, 2026-University Staff Senate-Minutes-revised

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Location:  Microsoft Teams 

Present:  J. Almquist, N. Brautigam, E. Cochrane, A. Dempsey-Fischer, P. Dixon, G. Dukes, P. Geraci, R. Harrison, J. Lassila, T. Nation, C. Parks, C. Peterson, K. Premeau, M. Renk, L. Ross, S. Ruditys, K. Valerius, M. Vallejo, S. Wagner, C. Warneke

Absent:  L. Eastman, C. Fitzpatrick, S. Fuller-Muñiz, K. Morgan

Guests:  S. Genung, T. Gibson, J. Herriges, E. Watson

  1. Call to Order-The meeting was called to order at 10:00 a.m.
  2. Approval of minutes for December 16, 2025-The minutes were approved as submitted via automatic consent.
  3. Chancellor Thomas Gibson provided an update on the following items: Chancellor Gibson provided updates on the following items:
    1. Commencement recap – more than 1,500 graduates received their degrees. The Commencement speaker was Gale Klappa and an honorary degree was given to Lea Denny, founder of HIR Wellness Institute. He thought Commencement went well and there was very good energy.
    2. Panther Arena update: mayor neither vetoed nor approved proposal. Wisconsin Center District is going to meet and review a study on the properties.
    3. UWM was ranked #1 on Research.com as best college in Milwaukee, best value college and best affordable college in Milwaukee. Travel and Leisure voted Milwaukee as #4 for best city.
    4. M Cubed annual report – more than 1,900 MPS students toured UWM and MATC in the last year. Majority said they had a better understanding of higher ed and that they were likely to pursue a degree. Smart Start program has grown exponentially and provides small scholarships (950 were awarded). Retention rate is 78% for UWM students participating in this program, which is higher than the other students in MPS cohort.
    5. Chancellor’s Report on WUWM included Michael Doylen, Associate Vice Provost and Library Director. The Libraries have saved students $1.7M in course materials.
    6. Vice Chancellor for Marketing & Communication search is using the national search firm Witt/Kieffer. The committee has been established.
    7. Length of Service ceremony will recognize employees’ milestones on February 10th. More than 700 employees are eligible for this recognition.Length of Service employees with 30-45 years will be recognized at halftime at the UWM Men’s Basketball game on February 15th.
    8. Chancellor’s Inauguration Committee has been formed. The event will be in September 2026 and coincides with UWM’s 70th year anniversary.
    9. Chancellor Gibson thanked G. Dukes for her service to UWM.
  1. Chair Update-Acting Chair A. Dempsey-Fischer reported on the five year policy review cycle by the Policy Advisory Committee. The US Senate will receive information soon. She will start meeting 1:1 with Chancellor Gibson and encouraged Senators to share topics for discussion with her.
  2. Academic Staff Update-J. Herriges thanked G. Dukes for all her work. She reported on the latest activities of the Academic Staff Committee and Academic Staff Senate including topics about the impact of Workday on academic staff performance evaluations, academic staff appointment types, and the work of the non-instructional academic staff subcommittee and recently reestablished instructional and research academic staff subcommittee.
  3. Digital Accessibility Policy/SAAP Proposal- Elizabeth Watson, Digital ADA Coordinator, presented the draft Digital Accessibility Policy and addressed questions raised by the University Staff Committee (USC). E. Watson encouraged attendees to visit the Digital Accessibility webpage for resources, tools and tips in creating accessible webpages and documents. Overall, the USC has a strong understanding of—and support for—the need for this policy and the compliance requirements driving it. The Senate raised several practical and implementation-focused questions including concerns about accountability for the work required to bring webpages into compliance. CIO S. Genung and E. Watson are aware of the concerns voiced and will continue to address with campus leadership and administrators.
  4. Committee Reports
    1. K. Premeau reported that the Search and Screen Committee for the Vice Chancellor for Marketing and Communications met with the search consultant (Witt/Kieffer) in December and will conduct applicant review in February 2026. Interviews are scheduled to occur in March 2026.
    2. K. Valerius acknowledged G. Dukes’ service to UWM and led the Senate in song to thank G. Dukes for her service at UWM.
  1. Adjournment-The meeting was adjourned at 11:27 a.m.