UWM At Waukesha: Regents To Consider UWM School And College Realignment Plan

Press release from UWM at Waukesha:

February 7, 2022

Eight schools or colleges at UWM would merge to form four new colleges in a proposal expected to be reviewed by the University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents.

If approved by the regents at their board meeting Feb. 10-11, the process of realigning the current schools and colleges would begin immediately, with the new colleges in place by July 1, 2023.

The mergers would reduce administrative layers, produce a still-to-be determined amount of cost savings and efficiencies, and allow for better coordination of student services like advising, according to the proposal, which the UWM Faculty Senate approved in December.

However, realignment is not intended as a means to reduce staffing, the proposal says, and course offerings and programs would remain the same in the new structure. Additionally, there will be no impact on student matriculation, progress or graduation.

2030 report recommendations

The realignment plan is the result of work by a team of faculty, staff and administrators that followed up on recommendations in the 2030 report released in March 2021.

The 2030 report, which is intended to guide UWM into the next decade and beyond, also issued sweeping recommendations in areas such as increasing inclusion and diversity, and becoming a more student-centric university.

Envisioning school and college realignment has been one of the top initial priorities for the 2030 Action Team, formed to act on the 2030 report recommendations.

Acting on the recommendations “was a truly complex task, given the many possible combinations for restructuring, as well as faculty and staff attachment to, and pride in, their schools and colleges,” UWM Provost Johannes Britz said.

“The Action Team successfully identified strong alignments that will advance UWM while retaining the distinctive attributes of the current school and college array,” Britz added.

These new colleges would result from the proposed mergers:

College of Architecture and the Arts

Peck and the School of Architecture and Urban Planning are currently led by interim deans. A search for a dean for the new college would be conducted.

College of Applied Social Sciences

Programs from UWM’s three current health-related colleges or schools will be realigned into two colleges.

Joseph J. Zilber College of Public Health

College of Health Professions and Sciences

In addition, the Graduate School is merging with the Office of Research, though the change is strictly administrative and only requires the approval of UWM leadership.

The following schools and colleges would not be affected by realignment:

No impact on staffing levels

The realignment proposal says there was “no anticipated impact on the number of faculty, academic and university staff.” Students were not expected to be affected by the changes, according to the proposal, other than a name change to their school or college.

Other key points from the proposal:

“School and college realignment was not a budget-cutting exercise,” Britz said. “Although cost considerations and efficiencies were part of the 2030 planning process, the realignment recommendations were the result of a deep analysis of actions that could position UWM for the future.”

This press release was produced by UWM at Waukesha. The views expressed here are the author’s own.