The UW System

Miscellaneous discussions. Things that don't have anything to do with Western, Leatherneck Athletics, college sports in general, etc.
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wiu712
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Illinois Higher Education operates under a system of multiple BOT's. The Illinois state universities compete against each other for funding and enrollment.

Perhaps a more viable option would be to go a system similar to the one in Wisconsin.

The University of Wisconsin system merged with the Wisconsin State University system in 1971 to create today's University of Wisconsin System.

The Board of the University of Wisconsin System includes 18 members, 16 of whom are appointed by the Governor and approved by the Senate. Of these 16 members, 14 serve staggered, seven-year terms. The remaining two are two-year-term positions filled by current UW System students.

The UW system operates 13 freshman-sophomore colleges (similar to our community colleges).

The UW system also operates 13 "comprehensive" (four year) colleges.

Only 3 of those four-year colleges have NCAA Division 1 Athletics:
UW-Madison (enrollment 43,000)
UW-Milwaukee (28,000)
UW-Green Bay (6,700)

UW-Parkside plays in NCAA Division 2 and is in the Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC)--the same conference as UIS and Quincy University. Parkside's enrollment is 4,800.

The remaining 9 four-year colleges play in NCAA Division 3:
UW-Eau Claire (enrollment 9,800)
UW-La Crosse (8,300)
UW-Oshkosh (9,400)
UW-Platteville (6,500)
UW-River Falls (5,800)
UW-Stevens Point (8,500)
UW-Stout (6,900)
UW-Superior (2,100)
UW-Whitewater (9,300)
Last edited by wiu712 on Wed Jun 29, 2016 5:53 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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sealhall74
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It appears that they made the decision regarding what division to play in not by enrollment but by the size of the metro region that the school was located in. What a concept - decisions made by applying good common sense instead of just doing what everyone else is doing.
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leatherface
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I agree with your thoughts here. I don't think we will ever see this set up in Illinois- too many entrenched and territorial with the current set up, and not willing to give up any autonomy or the "prestige" of being on their own. The systems you describe always bring up the stories of how one school gets more than another, faculty are treated as step children if not a part of one of the main campuses etc.

UIS will be a growing problem for Western. They have the resource power of the flag ship university, in a region of the state Western is in, a much larger city, state capital, and ride a current wave of student interest. Some schools in Illinois are just going to have to accept the fact they can't keep up in all ways with some of the other schools, and find a place in which they can be successful. That might be lower enrollment, fewer offerings, more online students, a lower sports level ( oh,my, what a horrible scenario) or structure themselves to meet more needs in career and technical programs.
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BobLovely
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I lived in Wisconsin for 31 years and I can tell you the system has historically worked quite well. However, the current governor in Wisconsin, Scott Walker has attempted to degrade the system. Tenure for professors was eliminated. This caused an exodus of some tenured professors, especially at UW-Madison.

Outside of Madison, a number of the state schools [as they are known in Wisconsin] specialize in certain academic subjects such as UW-Whitewater in Finance and Accounting, UW-Milwaukee in Business and Marketing and UW-Platteville in Engineering. Employers in Wisconsin recruit from these state schools based business functional job openings.

The only DI football program in the state is UW-Madison. This is one reason why the Badgers have such a great "walk-on" program in football.

UW-Milwaukee, UW-Green Bay and UW-Parkside do not field football teams. Generally, these are commuter schools near urban centers. The other state schools are all DIII in football, as previously mentioned.

Bob
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leatherface
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I worked in private industry for 25 years, and education going on now a total of 16 years. The years in education were in non tenure administrative positions. I have yet to hear a reasonable explanation why teachers should have -basically- a guaranteed job once they meet a certain time period of employment. I can't think of any other profession or job that allows someone the luxury of knowing they will be yearly employed- barring any severe disciplinary situations/legal issues. I guess it goes back to labor union agreements started years ago.

Not a fan of the Wisconsin governor, however, I don't see a big issue with him cancelling tenure. I guess it goes back to the feelings of entitlement many educator's have.
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Tere North
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Tenure arose out of history to allow faculty to teach controversial subjects. At the time, it primarily involved religious beliefs such as supporting evolution, which faculty were killed for due to heresy. Later were issue of studying the galaxies and asserting that the earth revolved around the sun and was not flat. Imagine where we would be if all those who believed differently were executed because of their beliefs. In the higher ed system, tenure typically occurs after 7 years of full-time teaching. In the K-12 system, after just 2-3 years, and there topics are controlled by the State and school board where protection from firing due to controversial topics is far less likely.

When I was in college, one of my courses was taught by Angela Davis. It was an amazing class where we delved into socialist and communist thinking. Without tenure, the school could have simply decided Ms. Davis should be fired because of her views, even if she were an outstanding teacher.

So yes, public opinion may view higher education tenure as undeserved job security, but its foundation is based on supporting expansion of thought and ideas. In the private and industrial sector, new thought is not protected, but new revelations come from those challenged with thinking, e.g., university faculty, not those tasked with following organizational procedures.
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leatherface
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Oh, really. You would be surprised how much analytical and creative thinking goes on in the private sector. I find your response condescending,. You obviously know nothing about the private sector.
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Tere North
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Analytical and creative thinking may well go in on the private section, but higher education is designed to teach folks to be creative and analytical thinkers. Doing so often entails controversial issues, something tenure provides protection for.

And why is tenure OK after 2-3 years in K-12, but so bad after 7 years in higher ed?
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leatherface
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Believe me, I don't need you lecturing me on anything. I'm not some impressionable 18-20 year old. As far as I'm concerned, you still haven't given me a reasonable explanation for guaranteed employment. I fully respect K-12 teachers. They work every day, very well qualified and put up with discipline problems and are accountable for their actions - something higher ed teachers do not. I believe your argument that free thought protection justifies tenure is old and just a way to try and hold on to an outdated educational system.

I'm done. No hard feelings- oh, wait, I need some type of protection for my thoughts :)
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sealhall74
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With two-thirds of ALL college teachers not on any tenure track, I have a hard time seeing the benefits of it. Appears to be more of a status symbol than anything else.
Embrace the pace of the race.
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