K. Dolan reported on the changes to Title IX campus policies that are being put into place by the Trump administration. The new guidelines go into effect Friday; the UW System has created a series of emergency rules working with individual campuses that will go into effect on that date until campus policies can be changed permanently depending on the outcome of the November elections. The Expanded Cabinet update reported that total undergraduate enrollments are down 5% over last year, mainly new student registrations. There are currently 2100 contracts for students in dorms but the final numbers have not been confirmed. The limited number of students in dorms will make it possible for social distancing to be maintained. Robin Van Harpen reported on a new interim SAP for fall re: masking, social distancing, training and attestation for students, faculty and staff. Normally such interim policies would become permanent after 120 days but in this case the deadline could be extended for an additional 120 days if governance groups agree. The Provost has announced that WinterIm 2021 will be online to the greatest extent possible. Measures to be taken if COVID cases appear on campus are still being discussed.
Chancellor Mone reported on fall re-opening plans; 25% of f2f classes are confirmed at this point. There is a commitment from UW System re: funding for testing of students in residence halls but the details are still being worked out and numerous questions remain. The Provost and Chancellor continue to work on ways to implement the Thinktank 2030 recommendations; the focus will be on maintaining research excellence while reorganizing programs. Four groups will be designated to work on revising the undergraduate experience with an emphasis on developing core competencies that make us different from other schools, making UWM more inclusive, and program array restructuring, which includes not replacing administrators and faculty who have left or retired. Implementation actions will be put in place by January 2021. Sports in the Big Ten remain a major issue being discussed at all levels; cancellation is likely for the fall and spring still unclear. The Horizon League will be canceling all fall sports but questions re: student training, staffing etc. remain. Basketball is a problem because it straddles both semesters; a compressed season is likely in spring. The goal is to avoid exposing young athletes to the post-COVID complications that can accompany infection. In response to a committee member’s question about on-campus testing the Chancellor confirmed that at the moment every campus gets three antigen machines irrespective of student numbers or other considerations; this is just one of the issues being discussed with System. UW System campus leadership is still determining the procedures to be followed if a student in a class is confirmed positive; the goal is to ensure that all UW System campuses have a comparable response.
There were no Members’ Reports.
The UC recognized the contributions of outgoing member Mark Schwartz.
Provost Britz and ASC Chair Leigh Wallace and Vice Chair Kyla Esguerra will attend the August 25 meeting.