June 1, 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, B. Freer, J. Herriges, T. Joosten, N. Oswald, A. Schmidt, N. Simonson, J. Steinheiser
Guests: Makda Fessahaye, Thomas Gibson

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 May 18, 2026, meeting were approved as presented.

III. Persons Who Wish to be Heard

None.

IV. Chair’s Report

J. Herriges provided a report to the University Staff Senate on ASC’s and AS Senate’s activities. She requested the Instructional and Research Academic Staff Subcommittee to review the proposed Chapter 114-Instructional Academic Staff Workload. She reminded the ASC they are invited to attend the BOR meetings this Thursday. HR will provide data about contracts by late June. J. Herriges will raise the issue of obtaining data with Interim Provost Freiburger, asking if deans can provide contract information so that ASC can continue to advocate for academic staff colleagues.

V. Guests

  1. Chancellor Thomas Gibson
    Chancellor Gibson shared John Drevs has been selected as the VC for Marketing and Communication and will begin on June 26th. Interacting with impressive students at various events. Discovering UWM met with Lubar and Health Sciences-toured the James and Yvonne Simulation Center. He is speaking later today at the Wisconsin Drives Manufacturing Summit at Lambeau Field. This month’s guest on Chancellor’s radio program is Marc Young, Chief Recruitment & Outreach Officer and Executive Director of Undergraduate Admissions. Chancellor Gibson noted that May Commencement was fantastic, had great energy with lots of media present. First year as Chancellor brought an understanding of how important UWM is to the community. He invited ASC to attend the June Board of Regents meeting being hosted on UWM’s campus this week. Gibson asked ASC what initiatives should he consider to better the institution? K. Esguerra and N. Oswald presented investing funding for undergraduate research. A. Schmidt talked about supporting Libraries which directly impacts undergraduate and faculty research. B. Freer shared supporting student basic needs, including mental health resources, and finances through increasing scholarships for low-income students; increasing legislative advocacy; and considering staff to student ratios as retention strategies.
  2. Associate Vice Chancellor Makda Fessahaye
    Human Resources promoted the new Panther Praise program in their newsletter. M. Fessahaye reported HR is seeing a record number of recruitment requests on top of summer assignments which are being processed in Workday. HR is working with Marcomm to highlight the diverse types of work UWM employees do through LinkedIn. Positions are integrated with LinkedIn. HR is working through the pay plan eligibility that will be effective June 28th. Health coaching is now available through HR with certified health coach Tracy Oles. HR is reviewing survey feedback about employee appreciation week to enhance events for next year. ASC discussed condensing the health and wellness reports at AS Senate meetings and asked M. Fessahaye to present highlights only while directing attendees to the website for additional information. B. Freer asked if the monthly HR Digest can be sent to all employees and M. Fessahaye explained that HR doesn’t want to over saturate people’s inboxes. Supervisors are encouraged to share the Digest or relevant information with their employees. Employees can subscribe to the HR Digest to receive monthly emails. J. Herriges asked about the status of the Comprehensive Compensation Guidelines and M. Fessahaye said campus leadership will be reviewing soon.

VI. Unfinished Business

  1. Proposed revisions to Academic Staff Personnel Policies and Procedures Chapters 106, 109, and 110 – Item is 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 – ASC agreed to ask the workgroup to draft a presentation for review by ASC in August for presentation to the AS Senate in September.
  3. ASPPP Proposed Chapter 114: Instructional Academic Staff Workload – J. Herriges asked the Instructional and Research Academic Staff Subcommittee to review the draft Chapter and return feedback to ASC by September. T. Joosten raised concerns about the proposed changes to the policy. J. Herriges will connect T. Joosten with Renee Scampini, co-chair of the Subcommittee, so that she can share historical information and offer suggestions for revisions.
  4. Review Academic Staff Personnel Policies and Procedures Chapter 108: Notice Periods – Deferred.

VII. New Business

  1. Appoint ASC Member – UWs Shared Governance Rep – B. Freer provided an overview of the position and its benefits. N. Oswald moved and R. Edwards seconded appointing A. Schmidt as the 2026-27 rep. Motion passed unanimously.
  2. AS Senate Guests – June, July and August – T. Howard will invite Alberto Maldonado to provide an update on the new student centers, Melissa Spandanuda to give update on capital projects and budget request, Vice Chancellor Ali Abedi to talk about the recent Office of Research moving to the Division of Research, and Sr. Vice Chancellor Robin Van Harpen and Associate Vice Chancellor Drew Knab to present the budget.

VIII. Reports

  1. R. Edwards reported the Realignment Workgroup met with Chancellor Gibson who indicated they will be looking closely at the report before making changes.
  2. K. Esguerra reported the NIASRC elected Randy Trumbull-Holper as chair for 2026-27.

IX. Personnel Matters

None.

X. Good and General Welfare

None.

XI. Adjournment

Meeting adjourned at 10:31 a.m.