It’s commencement time at UW Colleges
One UW-Richland grad knew her next stop.
UW-Richland kicked off commencement season at UW-Colleges with graduation ceremonies May 10. UW Colleges Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic and Student Affairs Greg Lampe gave the graduation address.
Chancellor Ray Cross will give the commencement addresses at UW-Rock County on May 17, UW-Fox Valley on May 21, and UW-Fond du Lac on May 23.
UW-Baraboo and UW-Marshfield/Wood County will hold their ceremonies on May 19. UW-Marinette students will graduate May 21. There will be four commencement events on May 22 for UW-Barron County, UW-Manitowoc, UW-Marathon County and UW-Sheboygan.
UW-Fond du Lac, UW-Washington County and UW-Waukesha will hold their ceremonies May 23.
Find UW Flexible Option updates, video and infographic via new website
The UW Flexible Option team at Continuing Education, Outreach and E-Learning (CEOEL) invites you to visit and explore the new Flexible Option website at http://flex.wisconsin.edu/ and to submit questions via an online form.
The team will regularly share news from advisory group meetings, updates from the leadership, links to published media stories and other posts of interest to faculty, staff, media and students. The “Faculty & Staff” section includes, for example, the role of advisory groups in the development of the UW Flexible Option, while the ”Prospective Students” section includes a link to a video overview. The “News & Media” section links to a UW Flexible Option infographic, information sheet prepared for legislators and a series of articles written by UW-Extension Interim Provost Aaron Brower, CEOEL Dean David Schjebal and UW-System’s Rebecca Karoff in the e-journal Evolllution.
Opee Awards Ceremony
UW-Extension’s Local Government Center was honored with the Political Openness Award at the Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council’s annual Openness Awards (“Opees”) April 24, 2013, in Madison. The Opees recognize individuals and organizations that highlight public access and openness to government in Wisconsin.
The Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council noted that the Local Government Center has been educating public officials about the state’s open records and meetings laws for 21 years through workshops for town, county, city and village officials and presentations to local government groups. The center also makes information accessible to officials and the public through fact sheets, webinars and online resources. Details are included in a news release.
Chancellor Ray Cross accepted the award on behalf of the Local Government Center. “For the past 20 years, my colleagues at the Local Government Center, along with the Wisconsin Towns Association, the League of Wisconsin Municipalities, the Wisconsin Counties Association, and attorneys from the Wisconsin Department of Justice, have been working to dispel the myths of how government operates with facts and education,” Chancellor Cross said. ”Whether it’s presenting in town halls, supper clubs, or church basements, or developing videos and fact sheets, or through telephone conversations, these educators have helped countless local officials adopt not only the letter of the law, but the spirit of the law.”
Pictured here from L-R are Dan Hill, local government specialist at the Local Government Center specialist; Chancellor Ray Cross; Phillip Freeburg, local government specialist at the Local Government Center; Bill Leuders of the Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism; and Chuck Law, the director of the Local Government Center. Please head here to view more pictures from the ceremony.
Grow leadership skills by shadowing the chancellor
Ryan Anderson, director of instructional design and development for Continuing Education, Outreach and E-learning (CEOEL), is your latest colleague to shadow Chancellor Ray Cross. Anderson, who spent Monday, April 29, with the chancellor, said that his role at CEOEL prompted his decision to shadow Chancellor Cross.
“As a leader, I know that it’s critical for me to grow myself in a similar fashion to how I expect my team members to grow,” Anderson said. “With that in mind, I greatly appreciated the opportunity to observe and interact with Chancellor Cross.”
If you are interested in the shadowing opportunity, send a brief request to ray.cross@uwex.uwc.edu along with your dean or supervisor’s approval.
You can watch the archived Town Hall on UW System’s cash balance
About 220 UW Colleges and UW-Extension faculty and staff participated in an April 25, 2013, Town Hall Meeting on the size, source, use and political ramifications of the UW System program revenue balance carried over from Fiscal Year 2012.
The temporarily archived webcast is still available for viewing. A captioned version will be posted later at: http://uwex.uwc.edu/chancellor/townHall/
The April 25 Town Hall Meeting began with a presentation by Chancellor Ray Cross, Vice Chancellor for Administration and Finance Steve Wildeck and UW-Extension Provost and Vice Chancellor Aaron Brower from the Pyle Center in Madison, which was available for viewing statewide via Mediasite or videoconferencing.
They reassured the audience that UW System did not mishandle money and that the cash balance carried over is not out of line with comparable university systems.
Regarding the question of whether the cash balance could be used for a pay plan, they explained that:
- Reserves are one-time, non-recurring.
- Reserves, which are generated from many sources, ebb and flow.
- Reserves can’t fund permanent salaries.
- Permanent salary increases must be supported by a permanent and predictable revenue source.
They also noted the messages they – and UW Colleges and UW-Extension deans and directors – are sharing with elected officials:
- An explanation of the local campus/division impact
- A request to not harm students, faculty or staff
- The need for a pay plan for faculty and staff
- The need for flexibilities
Chancellor Cross recognizes that, because of the last-minute nature of the Town Hall Meeting, not everyone could participate. In addition, those who did may not have had a chance to ask their questions.
“I want to keep the dialog going, so I invite you to email questions directly to me,” he said, explaining that he will address those additional questions and concerns in an upcoming Chancellor’s Chatter to faculty and staff.
You can send questions and comments to: ray.cross@uwex.uwc.edu
Links that may be of interest:
- The April 19, 2013, Legislative Fiscal Bureau memo to the State Legislature’s Joint Committee on Finance that raised questions about the program revenue balance
- Reaction from the United Council of UW Students
Mark Lange named DEED executive director
Mark S. Lange, former director of the Edward Lowe Foundation, has accepted the position of executive director at UW-Extension’s Division of Entrepreneurship and Economic Development (DEED). In a news release, UW Colleges and UW-Extension Chancellor Ray Cross noted Lange’s business background as well as his expertise in small business. “He brings a wealth of experience in the area of growing small businesses, as well as launching them,” Chancellor Cross said. “The potential for increasing jobs in Wisconsin is greatest through second-stage companies, and that’s his area of expertise.”
On learning about his appointment, Lange said, “I’m very excited for the opportunity to join the people, places and programs that make up the University of Wisconsin-Extension. The good people and programs already in place provide the basis for exceptional service, and I sense a readiness for growth and change that will help us to build a vibrant and well respected statewide entrepreneurial ecosystem.”
Additional details about Lange are provided in his resume.
Your last chance to nominate others for the Chancellor’s Awards
Remember that nominations for the 2013 Chancellor’s Awards are due Friday, May 3. We encourage you to nominate your UW Colleges and UW-Extension colleagues and partners for their outstanding work this past year. All you need to do is fill out the easy application form and email two letters of recommendation.
The Chancellor’s Award categories are:
- Wisconsin Idea Award
- Friend and Advocate Award
- Career Award
- Award for Excellence in Community Engagement
- Award for Excellence in Program Collaboration
- Award for Excellence
Please click here to learn more about the awards and the application process.