August 17, 2026 – Academic Staff Committee (ASC) – Minutes

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Time: Monday at 9:00 a.m.
Location: Microsoft Teams and Lubar N440

Attendance

Present: R. Edwards, K. Esguerra, J. Herriges, T. Joosten, N. Oswald, A. Schmidt, N. Simonson
Guests: Sunny Brysch, Tina Freiburger, Catherine Ledden, Cynthia Marifke, Lane Sunwall

I. Call to Order

The meeting was called to order by Chair J. Herriges at 9:01 a.m.

The agenda was approved as presented.
The minutes of August 3, 2026, meeting were approved as presented.

III. Persons Who Wish to be Heard

None.

IV. Chair’s Report

J. Herriges reported she and N. Oswald met with Chancellor T. Gibson and discussed his vision for UWM, improving engagement at AS Senate meetings with shifting fully virtual to hybrid meetings beginning in September 2026, and statistics on academic staff at UWM being difficult to obtain.

V. Guests

  1. Interim Provost T. Freiburger reported she will attend the chairs and associate dean retreat on August 18th and dean and chancellor’s direct reports retreat on August 24th. She attended a retreat for UWs new and interim provosts in Madison. Interim Provost Freiburger stated the enrollment numbers are looking good and discussed the flex programs at UWM and UW Parkside. Discussion about Dean of School of Freshwater Sciences Klaper’s retirement and plans moving forward. No decisions have been made on the Realignment Report. Discussed impact of changes to federal financial aid.

VI. Unfinished Business

  1. Proposed revisions to Academic Staff Personnel Policies and Procedures Chapters 106, 109, and 110 – Item postponed until further notice from Legal Affairs.
  2. Review Academic Staff Appointment Types and Contract Term Comparisons to Peer Institutions submitted by NIAS and IRAS Subcommittees – No update.
  3. ASPPP Proposed Chapter 114: Instructional Academic Staff Workload – No update.

VII. New Business

  1. Review Proposed Revisions from AS Codification to Academic Staff Personnel Policies and Procedures Chapter 108: Notice Periods – ASC reviewed the proposed revisions and drafted additional revisions including referring to ASPPP Chapter 101 for definitions of cumulative years of service and years of service. N. Oswald moved and R. Edwards seconded to return the revised ASPPP Chapter 108 to AS Codification Committee for review. Motion carried unanimously.
  2. Orientation for New ASC Members and Advice from Outgoing Members – Current members shared thoughts on ASC’s role and recommendations for incoming members. Topics included the process for drafting and revising policies, advisory role of ASC, and how to best represent academic staff colleagues.
  3. Approve AS Senate Agenda (September 8) and New Senator Orientation – R. Edwards moved and N. Oswald seconded approving the AS Senate for September 8th as presented. Motion carried unanimously. N. Oswald and A. Schmidt will present the New Senator Orientation at the meeting.
  4. Motion to Shift AS Senate Meetings to Hybrid – Discussion about potential challenges to hybrid meetings. R. Edwards moved and K. Esguerra seconded moving Academic Staff Senate meetings to hybrid beginning in September 2026.
  5. ASC appointment to Honorary Degrees Committee – R. Edwards moved and K. Esguerra seconded to appoint Hillary Vara to serve a three-year term on the Honorary Degrees Committees.(Rachel Baum as backup) Motion carried unanimously.
  6. ASC appointments to AS Committees (Codification and Orientation) – R. Edwards moved and A. Schmidt seconded appointing Lixin Cai to serve on the Codification Committee for three-year term. (Zach Finch as backup). Cynthia Marifke, incoming ASC member, volunteered to serve on the AS Orientation Committee. R. Edwards moved and K. Esguerra seconded appointing Cynthia Marifke to serve a one-year term as ex officio on the AS Orientation Committee. Motion carried unanimously.

VIII. Reports

  1. T. Joosten reported the APBC has not met over summer but she shared latest enrollment report.

IX. Personnel Matters

None.

X. Good and General Welfare

ASC thanked J. Herriges for her leadership and service as Chair during 2025-26. ASC thanked the outgoing members for their service.

XI. Adjournment

Meeting adjourned at 11:10 a.m.