Day Two News Summary
The UW System Board of Regents elected new leaders on Friday, selecting Guy A. Gottschalk of Wisconsin Rapids as president and Toby E. Marcovich of Superior as vice president.
Gottschalk, chair of the Regents’ Business and Finance Committee and member of the Regents’ Executive Committee, succeeds Jay L. Smith as president of the board. Gottschalk began his seven-year term as a UW regent in 1998.
Marcovich, chair of the Regents’ Personnel Review Committee, succeeds Gerard A. Randall, Jr., as Regent vice president. Marcovich begin his service as a UW regent in 1997 and previously served as chair of the Regents’ Business and Finance Committee.
Smith looks back, looks ahead
In his last report to the regents as board president, Regent Jay L. Smith reflected on past accomplishments, discussed future challenges and offered recommendations for the years ahead.
Smith said top future challenges for the regents include securing adequate funding for the university system, maintaining competitive salaries for faculty, staff and system executives, more study of best practices, and continued building of state relationships and partnerships.
Smith urged the board to continue to press state leaders to grow funding for the university; become more engaged in building Wisconsin’s economy; meet more often with and gather “intelligence” from students, faculty, staff, business leaders, and elected officials at the local, state and federal levels; and maintain and enhance its strategic planning efforts.
“I want to thank all the members of this board for their hard work, dedication and political courage,” Smith concluded. “You’ve stood up for the university and its needs and that will be long remembered by the university community.”
The terms of Regents Smith and Alfred De Simone ended in May, but because no successors have been named they continue to serve on the board.
Jay Smith’s full remarks
Resolution of Appreciation for Jay Smith
Chief budget officer leaves UW System
Associate Vice President for Budget and Planning Kathleen R. Sell attended her last regents meeting this month. She is leaving UW System after 19 years to become a faculty member at UW-Madison.
UW System President Katharine Lyall praised Sell for her dedication to the university and her diligence in shepherding 10 biennial budget requests. She and others noted that Sell attended close to 200 regents meetings in her career.
“Best of luck in the classroom – and remember, I know where to find you,” Lyall joked with Sell.
Resolution of Appreciation for Kathleen Sell
Building a New Kind of University
Chancellor Nancy Zimpher updated the regents on UWM’s efforts to build a new kind of university during a Friday morning presentation.
Zimpher told the board that national rankings used by U.S. News and World Report magazine and others are skewed against urban research universities, which serve large numbers of non-traditional students who take longer to complete their educations because of work and family commitments.
Zimpher said a new metric is needed to better gauge the accomplishments of urban universities. She urged the board to continue its strong support of UWM’s mission to become the nation’s premier urban research institution of higher education.
“We are in this together,” Zimpher told the regents. “This is a collective task.”
Resolution of appreciation for UWM
Other Action
The board on Friday approved several resolutions from the Business and Finance, Education and Physical Planning and Funding committees. They include:
- Contractual agreements at UW-Madison with Glaxo Wellcome Inc., Novartis Pharma AG and Dow Chemical Company.
- A food service contract at UW-Green Bay.
- A strategic plan and assessment strategies to address student alcohol and other drug abuse.
- A new undergraduate program in environmental studies at UW-Oshkosh.
- A charter school proposal at UWM.
- Renaming the UWM Division of University Outreach to the School of Continuing Education.
- The $5 million UW-Madison Weeks Hall addition.
- The $550,000 UWM Student Union Atrium Floor Replacement project.
- Approval for UW-Platteville to accept the gift of a Swine Center and to use existing state funds for a revised Dairy Center Replacement Project.
- The $26 million Fine Arts Center Remodeling and Addition project and projects to expand and repair parking lots at UW-Stevens Point.
- Authorization for UW-Extension for a 10-year lease of radio tower space for WVSS-FM public radio near Menomonie.
Board Cancels July Meeting
The regents agreed on Friday to cancel their July 2002 meeting. The next scheduled board meeting is Aug. 22-23 at UW-Madison.
Supporting Materials
Resolution of Commendation for Jay L. Smith
University of Wisconsin Board of Regents
June 7, 2002
WHEREAS, Jay L. Smith has benefited the citizens of Wisconsin with distinguished leadership during his two-year term as president of the University of Wisconsin Board of Regents; and
WHEREAS, under his leadership, the UW System has earned an increase in state GPR support and the best capital budget in many years, despite the state’s extreme fiscal problems; and
WHEREAS, Regent Smith has instituted annual Regent planning sessions that have helped focus the energies of the board and UW System staff on key issues including building the UW’s resource base, economic development and quality education; and
WHEREAS, he worked with the president and chancellors to enhance the university’s efficiency, to continue progress toward reducing credits to degree, to realize better retention and graduation rates, to improve minority student recruitment and retention and to institute new degrees and academic programs; and
WHEREAS, under his leadership, the Regents have become more proactive and connected to the campuses and external partners through such innovations as the Regent’s legislative committee, UW Day in the Capitol, the adopt-a-campus program and Regent Partnership Awards; and
WHEREAS, under his leadership, the UW System has recruited seven outstanding new chancellors and an excellent senior vice president for academic affairs; and
WHEREAS, working with UW System President Katharine Lyall, he has brought to successful fruition two statewide economic summits, each attended by close to 1,000 people intent on creating a brighter economic future for the state; and
WHEREAS, that activity resulted in a stronger focus on the economy in the university’s budget planning process, and in campus and extension based programs aimed at growing the state’s workforce in crucial fields and serving local business needs; and
WHEREAS, Regent Smith led efforts to build new bridges for the university with business leaders, K-12 education, the technical colleges, state agencies and the counties and municipalities where UW campuses are located; and
WHEREAS, his time, energy, dedication, collegiality, sense of humor and courage to tackle tough issues have set a high standard for future leaders of the board;
BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED, that on behalf of the citizens of the state and on behalf of a grateful university community, the University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents highly commends Regent Jay L. Smith for his extraordinary leadership and impressive achievements as President of the UW Board of Regents.
Gerard Randall, Vice President
UW Board of Regents
Katharine C. Lyall, President
UW System
Resolution of Commendation for Kathleen R. Sell
University of Wisconsin Board of Regents
June 7, 2002
WHEREAS, Kathleen R. Sell has served the University of Wisconsin System with great dedication and distinction for 19 years beginning as a senior budget planner; and
WHEREAS, she has served as the chief budget officer for the university system since 1986 and for fifteen years as Associate Vice President for Budget Planning & Chief Budget Officer; and
WHEREAS, in that role, she has effectively managed a professional staff responsible for the operating and capital budget, market research and planning and development of the biennial budget, and has advised the president, chancellors and the board on budget development and implementation; and
WHEREAS, she has successfully shepherded eight UW System biennial budget requests through the state budget process that have allowed the UW System to provide opportunities for thousands of Wisconsin students; and
WHEREAS, she is seen as a national leader in public university budget matters and is a role model and mentor to many in the profession including the budget officers on the UW campuses; and
WHEREAS, she also served in the mid-90’s as Special Assistant to the President and Chief of Staff for the Board of Regent’s Study of the UW System in the 21st Century; and
WHEREAS, her leadership on that project, on the EM-21 planning and most recently on “Building Our Resource Base” helped chart the present course for the university system; and
WHEREAS, with her background in teaching both at the high school and college level, she has brought a special understanding of the needs of faculty and instructional staff to her role as chief budget officer; and
WHEREAS, she has worked effectively as a staunch supporter of higher education with others in state government and has been wonderful and supportive colleague, mentor and friend to her associates;
BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED, that the University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents commends Kathleen R. Sell for her lifelong passion for education and her enormous contributions to the UW System and the citizens of Wisconsin, and extends sincere best wishes on the occasion of her transition to a full-time teaching assignment in Integrated Liberal Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Gerard Randall, Vice President
UW Board of Regents
Katharine C. Lyall, President
UW System
UW-Milwaukee: Resolution of Appreciation
Whereas, the Board of Regents is very pleased to have been invited to return to UW-Milwaukee where Chancellor Zimpher and UWM faculty, staff, students and campus partners are engaged in building a whole new kind of university; and
Whereas, it is inspiring to learn more about the university’s creative and distinctive programs designed to meet Wisconsin’s educational, economic and environmental needs; and
Whereas, the visit has been enriched by the interesting presentations made to the Regents on the value of residence life, on the student technology services program, on future facility plans, and on continuing progress and innovations of the Milwaukee Idea; and
Whereas, the Board appreciated the opportunity to attend a special reception sponsored by the UWM Alumni Association and the UWM Foundation, to hear a performance by talented faculty and students from the Peck School of the Arts, and to visit the impressive renovated Sandburg Residence Hall facilities;
Therefore, be it resolved that the Board of Regents hereby thanks Chancellor Zimpher, the UWM campus community, the Alumni Association and the Foundation for a particularly interesting and enjoyable visit.