The Associated Students of Madison Shared Governance Committee met Thursday to discuss how Gov. Scott Walker’s proposed budget cuts to the UW System would affect UW-Madison and the uncertain future of ASM.
The proposed budget cuts, set at $300 million over the next two years, would amount to a 13 percent cut of the UW System budget. Walker also proposed extending the current in-state tuition freeze for two more years.
The shared governance members raised concerns over the possibility that the cuts may lead UW-Madison Chancellor Rebecca Blank to raise both out-of-state tuition and the cap on the number of admitted out-of-state students.
Members discussed the possibility of losing faculty because of less certainty in granting tenure. Students also discussed the possibility that once the two-year tuition freeze expires, there will be a spike in tuition.
The committee also talked about how the budget cuts would affect the future of ASM, which is given decision-making authority through a Wisconsin state statute. However, Walker’s proposals may eliminate that authority.
“The Governor has proposed us becoming a public authority system, which means Chapter 36 would no longer apply,” Shared Governance Chair Morgan Rae said. “We are the only state that has shared governance in its state statute, and that would be gone.”
However, until the budget is officially proposed Tuesday, nothing is certain. There could still be changes over the next month as the Joint Finance Committee holds hearings on the budget plan.
There has also been some resistance to the plan in the Capitol.
“The Republican leadership has said 300 million is a pretty big number,” Rae said.
As the budget process moves forward, ASM will get the word out on how the cuts will affect students.
Members of the committee proposed various ideas to get information to students, including using Facebook, contacting alumni and helping students reach out to their state legislators. They also proposed ideas to bring students from other UW schools to Madison in order to lobby.
Committee members expressed the need to show students how this affects them and not just dispel information about abstract numbers.
“I think it’s important for us to reach students who aren’t looking for news in the newspaper,” committee member Kyle Schroeckenthaler said.
As the budget process progresses, ASM will continue to resist the cuts and reach out to students.
“We’re trying to come up with ways to educate as many students as we can,” Rae said.
