UW System Clipsheet

June 24, 2009

Note that some links may expire. If you need assistance with a specific article, please contact us at clipsheet@uwsa.edu

UW System

"UW System considers how to fit in furloughs," La Crosse Tribune, June 24.

University of Wisconsin-La Crosse biology professor Anne Galbraith typically uses the day after Thanksgiving to grade 40 to 80 six-page papers on the genetics of fruit flies. Forcing her this year to take the day off without pay as part of mandatory state employee furloughs only pushes the workload to another day, she said Tuesday…The state released guidelines Tuesday on the 16 furlough days all state employees will take in the next two years as part of Gov. Jim Doyle’s plan to close a $6.6 billion budget deficit…But it will not be possible for UW campuses to close on all of the dates because of the academic calendar, UW System President Kevin Reilly wrote in a letter to the campuses Tuesday…

On Campus

"Allow UWSP to plan nursing degree program," Column, Stevens Point Journal, June 23.

Our state faces a growing nursing shortage, and central Wisconsin is particularly hard hit by it...Earlier this month, we in the central Wisconsin delegation to the state Legislature took a step toward addressing the problem by adding to the biennial budget a long-sought-after provision that authorizes UWSP to plan for a Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing (BSN). When implemented, a UWSP BSN would increase the number of nursing professionals in central Wisconsin... (Authors: Rep. Louis J. Molepske, Jr., and Rep. Sue Vruwink)...

"Wisconsin Badgers sports: Sweeney to leave Athletic Department," Wisconsin State Journal, June 23.

Vince Sweeney has played the role of pioneer numerous times during his long tenure as an administrator with the University of Wisconsin Athletic Department… That trailblazing experience should serve Sweeney well in his newly created post as UW vice chancellor for university relations…UW chancellor Biddy Martin said she's counting on Sweeney's communications background and multi-layered involvement with the school to reach out to its many constituents, including state lawmakers, federal agencies, alums, CEOs and all those who call Wisconsin home…

"Athletic department loses key player behind the scenes," Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, June 23.

When you think of UW athletics, you don't think of Vince Sweeney, but UW's senior associate athletic director for external relations has played a vital role in the athletic department's growth over the last 20 years…Beginning Aug. 1, he'll begin work as the university's vice chancellor for university relations, a newly created position that will call for him to coordinate the university's strategy for developing relationships with various groups on and off campus…

"Kelly Nolan murder: Two years later," NBC15-TV, June 23.

…The mystery of what happened to 22-year-old Kelly Nolan began with a mother's plea two years ago. Nolan, a UW Whitewater communications major who was working in Madison the summer of 2007, was last seen the early morning hours of Saturday, June 23rd…

"UWSP graduate gives fire station statue fresh look," Stevens Point Journal, June 24.

The Boy and the Boot statue, outside Stevens Point Fire Station No. 1, has suffered numerous acts of vandalism in the 114 years it has been in the city…But the Stevens Point Fire Department isn't taking any more chances. The department commissioned a recent University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point graduate to refurbish the original pewter statue and cast a new, cement one…

State

"Gov. Jim Doyle's budget cuts would close state offices for four days," Associated Press, June 24.

Don't count on getting a new driver's license the day after Thanksgiving. The Division of Motor Vehicles, along with other state offices, will likely close that day under the governor's plan to furlough state workers.  Gov. Jim Doyle has ordered 16 unpaid furlough days over the next two years as a way to help close a $6.6 billion state budget shortfall. The idea of shutting down state government offices to help achieve that came Tuesday as part of a list of options for state agencies to meet the order. State offices are already closed for seven holidays each year…

"State government to mostly shut down for four days a year as part of employee furloughs," Wisconsin State Journal, June 24. 

…State government would mostly shut down for four days a year as part of employee furloughs aimed at fixing the state budget deficit. "We are anticipating that most of state government will be closed down during these days," said Jennifer Donnelly, director of the Office of State Employment Relations. Some state facilities such as prisons, universities and health care units may not be able to shut down on those days and would remain open, Donnelly said…

"Carroll University seeks to move graduate programs to off-campus building," Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, June 24.

Amid surging undergraduate enrollment, Carroll University is seeking to move its graduate programs to an off-campus building that formerly housed a telephone company call center…

National

"Easing a college financial aid headache," New York Times, June 24.

The Obama administration is moving to simplify the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or Fafsa, a notoriously complicated form that asks students seeking financial aid for college as many as 153 questions…

"New plans will free up the 'Free Application' for student aid," USA Today, June 24.

Education Secretary Arne Duncan is announcing plans today to simplify the application process for federal student aid, including a feature that lets some users skip irrelevant questions and a proposal to eliminate other questions. It also would allow families to use tax-related information they already provide to the IRS…One goal is to ease the burden on the 16 million students and families a year who gather up bank statements, investment information and other documentation needed to fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA. It asks as many as 153 questions, depending on a student's circumstance. Another is to encourage more low- and middle-income students to apply for aid…

"New law to help in paying back college loans," CNN, June 24.

…Her less-than-anticipated income means that it is difficult for her to make her student loan payments for the nearly $80,000 in debt she accumulated getting through college. Morgan is looking at a new law that goes into effect July 1 that would help her cap her student loans at 15 percent of her adjusted gross income. Then, if she completes 10 years of public service, her loans would be dropped completely...The College Cost Reduction and Access Act that created the new Income-Based Repayment program was signed into law in 2007 to help make student loan payments more manageable…

"Simplifying in Stages," Inside Higher Ed, June 24.

As consensus has built around the need to simplify the federal financial aid form (and the recognition that that is just part of the answer to really simplifying the financial aid process), proposals for doing so have ranged widely, from shrinking the Free Application for Federal Financial Aid significantly to eliminating it outright.  Simplifying the aid process has been a central plank of President Obama’s aggressive agenda to increase college going and completion, and on Wednesday, Education Secretary Arne Duncan will lay out the administration's plan for doing so in his first appearance before the White House press corps…

"Education Dept. plan would make it easier to apply for student aid," Chronicle of Higher Education, June 24. 

Education Secretary Arne Duncan is expected to announce a plan today to make it easier for students and their families to apply for federal financial aid. Simplifying the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or Fafsa, the form the government uses to assess student need, is a goal President Obama repeatedly pitched as a candidate on the campaign trail... (paid subscription required)

"U of M board to vote on tuition fees, job cuts, stadium alcohol," Associated Press, June 24.

University of Minnesota regents are set to vote on a proposed budget today that increases in-state tuition for undergraduates about 3 percent. The budget also eliminates over 1,200 jobs, mostly through early retirements and leaving open positions empty. The budget also calls for a 7.5 percent tuition increase for most graduate students. University President Robert Bruininks said 60 percent of students who pay in-state tuition rates actually will see their bills go down next year because of federal stimulus money and other aid...

"An experiment in merit-based student aid is likely to end," Chronicle of Higher Education, June 24.

…But the Obama administration has no plans to renew the Bush-era competitiveness grants and their companion, the National Smart Grants, beyond their 2011 expiration date, meaning a likely end for America's short-lived experiment with merit-based federal financial aid. Instead, the administration will focus its resources on the popular Pell Grant program, which is strictly need-based… (paid subscription required)

"Largest states should get the greatest share of college-completion funds, group suggests," Chronicle of higher Education, June 24.

If America is to reach President Obama's goal of having the world's highest proportion of college graduates by 2020, a $2.5-billion grant program he has proposed should focus on vastly expanding degree-attainment rates in the nation's largest states, says a report by the National Center for Higher Education Management Systems… (paid subscription required)