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Another
delight has been the quality and character of our students. The year has brought
me an unending string of pleasant surprises about their achievements and character.
Their undergraduate research, performances, and exhibitions are impressive! They
engage in all kinds of public service, from doing tax returns for the needy to
helping in local schools. When our students compete regionally or nationally in
their fields of study — be it theatre or business — they do very well.
And with the help of our terrific Student Affairs staff and our Residence Life
program (a model both regionally and nationally), our students maintain a healthy,
socially responsible student culture. So many campuses today are plagued by binge
drinking, hazing, sexual aggression or racial divides. I’m really proud of
the way our students choose to live instead. I’ve also seen disappointments. The biggest has been the erosion of State support for higher education in Wisconsin. Of our five biggest state agencies, four were given funding increases this past year. Only one agency — higher education — was cut. The impact, for me, is pretty scary. What have been the effects of what is, really, a decade of disinvestment? We have tried to protect access to instruction as our top priority. This means, though, that there is real erosion in the service infrastructure. Modern universities provide much more than classes. There is an expectation that academic support services such as libraries, career centers, and academic advising will be of high quality, and that our technology will be current enough to enable students, staff and faculty to make the most of instructional media and computer resources. As with universities across the country, we have added many other services in response to the demands of our students, and to enhance their learning: to name just a few, learning and tutoring centers; programs to engage students in the life of the campus and surrounding community; and counseling, health, fitness and wellness programs. And, we run a small town here with police services, recycling, utilities, roads, grounds, buildings, and the like. Services are where the cuts are hitting hardest. This translates into safety (fewer police officers), longer waits for advising (ratios of students to advisers are rising); reduced library services (no library professional staff available in the evening); and longer waits for help with computer problems (fewer support personnel). aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaTOP OF NEXT COLUMN |
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We,
all of us together, must reverse this trend. Short-term, the effects are hardly
visible, and we work very hard to try to keep the effects invisible to our students
and the public. But over time, the cumulative and compounding effects build to
the point where, once they become visible, it is almost too late. We wake up one
morning to find that the great system of higher education that Wisconsin has been
so proud of is adrift in mediocrity. When I lay awake at night worrying about the future, I return to our campus, though, and count our strengths. UWGB is not simply waiting for some change in the climate. We have a clear vision of where we are going, we are building the community connections and regional partnerships to get us there, and we are laying the groundwork on campus to reach our shared goals. Feeling in control of our future is half the battle, and we have that battle won. I’ll end on a personal note. One of my great joys this past year has been the “Northern Sun Belt.” In Michigan, it was gloomy and dark. Air coming across Lake Michigan picks up lots of moisture. That makes for many dark and cloudy days. People told me I would enjoy the Wisconsin sun, and they were right. I’ve come up with my own term for it — the “Northern Sun Belt”— and I would recommend it to anyone. So, to all of you in the “Northern Sun Belt,” thank you for your interest in UW-Green Bay. I also thank Chancellor Shepard for providing me this opportunity, and for his outstanding leadership of Green Bay’s University of Wisconsin. He is terrific to work with, and we’re fortunate to have his leadership at this critical time. I am happy to be here, and I look forward to the year ahead. If you have suggestions, comments, or questions, please don’t hesitate to e-mail me at HammersS@uwgb.edu. Sincerely,  Sue K. Hammersmith |
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