Today, I recommended to Universities of Wisconsin President Jay Rothman that the Board of Regents discontinue the program of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s (UWM) College of General Studies (CGS) and its three academic departments: Arts & Humanities, Math & Natural Sciences, and Social Sciences & Business, pursuant to Regent Policy Document (RPD) 20-24. Read a PDF of the recommendation letter.
This decision weighs heavily on me, as the impact is profound, affecting 32 dedicated tenured faculty members, their families and communities, as well as many other dedicated CGS staff. This process has been underway in some form for months. Last fall, President Rothman directed the closure of UWM at Washington County, which prompted UWM to examine CGS’s future in a new context. A UWM work team was formed to address the closure, including how to strengthen programming at UWM at Waukesha. This led to findings that there is no viable path for UWM at Waukesha. In March, President Rothman directed the closure of UWM at Waukesha and the College of General Studies, and UWM then announced the program closure to the campus community.