Why I support the Wisconsin Idea Partnership

Below is a letter that I sent to the members of the Joint Committee on Finance, to my own Senator and Representative, and to President Reilly and the members of the Board of Regents. While at times I feel my opinion is in the minority at Madison, this feeling also compels me to speak out.

I would like to express my opposition to the University of Wisconsin, Madison’s “New Badger Partnership.” While I have some concerns about the public authority model, I believe it is most important to avoid splitting Madison from the rest of UW-System. For this reason, I favor the Wisconsin Idea Partnership as proposed by President Reilly and the Regents.

I am currently both a graduate student and academic staff at UW-Madison. My studies involve using a number of library tools which are licensed at the System level. My work in the Academic Technology department of the Division of Information Technology, however, has given me greater insight into why the UW System works better as a whole.

I am currently Madison’s “backup” member of the System Learning Technology Development Council. This role has led me to deep and meaningful collaborations with other members of System. One might think that the flagship would have the most to offer our System peers. Quite the contrary!

Madison’s partnership with UW-System has impacted learning technology in ways that we could not have done alone – and this impact ultimately is felt by faculty and students in instruction.

Last week, I attended the President’s Summit which was host to presentations on teaching by faculty and staff from around the System. This sort of information sharing is what makes public higher education in Wisconsin strong.

Please put your support behind the Wisconsin Idea Partnership.