The UW System exists to help the State of Wisconsin. I have been a resident of Wisconsin my entire life. Shrinking our budget, when we need to invest in Wisconsin talent to win the war for talent, would have serious consequences. A thread:
Jay Rothman
1,032 posts
Jay Rothman
@JayORothman
President of the Universities of Wisconsin.
Former chairman and CEO of the law firm Foley & Lardner LLP.
- It’s time to stop hopscotching around the need to invest in WI’s workforce challenges. A clear example: UW universities have increased graduates in STEM and health care fields by over 30% in the past decade and now nearly 4 in 10 grads are in those fields. 1/
- I came into my role with great respect for the UW System. But now I believe that I underestimated the real impact our family of 13 universities has on our state. Wisconsin would look significantly different and less appealing without our 13 universities.
- The Universities of Wisconsin are pleased to once again offer Wisconsin resident students of modest means an opportunity to attend a UW tuition-free through the Wisconsin Tuition Promise. 1/
- Replying to @JayORothmanWe don’t have enough engineers, nurses, data scientists in our state. These jobs are going to leave Wisconsin unless they are filled here. I know that from working in the private sector. The competition for talent is real and it is urgent. 2/
- Today, I am announcing that we have a new identity: the Universities of Wisconsin.
00:00 - Becky has contributed enormously to the success of UW-Madison and the University of Wisconsin System. We are grateful to have benefited from her leadership at UW-Madison. 1/3
- Replying to @JayORothmanAs we move into a technology driven knowledge economy, the investments we make or do not make now will define Wisconsin’s future. 4/
- Replying to @JayORothmanThe reductions being discussed in the face of a $7 billion budget surplus and compelling needs for increased investment will have consequences to the access and affordability students and families have come to expect of Wisconsin’s public universities. 5/
- Replying to @JayORothmanWe remain optimistic and believe there is bipartisan support for investing in higher education so that Wisconsin can compete in the war for talent. 7/7
- Replying to @JayORothmanSimply put, there is no reason these investments cannot be made. Tens of thousands of students and their families are counting upon the legislature to partner with our universities to provide these opportunities. 3/3
- Replying to @JayORothmanI look at the gulf in terms of what the UW System requested in its budget – which was 1/2 of inflation – & what is being discussed by some in the legislature, and it is really serious. 3/
- Replying to @JayORothmanWe recently retained an independent firm to help look at our structural deficits, and state funding will determine the access we can provide now and into the immediate future. 6/