Archive for June, 2012

The missing message about universities and society.

Thursday, June 28th, 2012

The role of public higher education in a rapidly changing world rose to prominence  last week with two developments:  the University of Virginia’s governance debacle (see local commentary here) and the announcement of Gov. Scott Walker’s Flexible Online Degree initiative.

As noted in the previous article by another contributor, these two events have more in common than one might surmise from the above.  Both highlight the growing problem of affordability of four-year degrees, and both have their roots in the notion that the traditional model of university education has become outdated and inefficient.  In both cases, online education as a substitute for bricks-and-mortar lecture halls is/was touted as a solution. (more…)

Posted in College costs, Online education, State-University Relations, The University Budget, The University System, The Wisconsin Idea, UW Extension | No Comments »

A Charter School for the University of Wisconsin? Questions about the new UW Flexible Degree Program

Thursday, June 28th, 2012

Two events, each with potentially great repercussions for public higher education, came out of the blue last week. While one – the ouster of the President of the University of Virginia – was closely followed nationally and on this campus, the other – the announcement of a “flexible degree” model offered through UW-System/ Extension that, in the words of the Governor’s office, “will transform higher education in Wisconsin” received somewhat less attention than one might expect.

And yet the similarities are striking.  In both cases, changes in education at a renowned public university are supposed to be implemented virtually overnight to fix a host of vaguely defined problems.  And in both cases, the magic cure is to be found in online teaching and in other unspecified educational technologies. (more…)

Tags: ,
Posted in Flexible degree, Online education, State-University Relations, The University System, UW Extension | 1 Comment »

Urgent: Amendment to restrict government employee participation in scientific conferences

Thursday, June 21st, 2012

The following disturbing message from the American Geophysical Union, a major professional organization, was passed on to S&W.   If you value the participation of government scientists in the broader scientific community and, especially, in scientific conferences, then you should not only read this message, you should contact your representatives in the Senate to make your opinion known, as government employees do not have the freedom to do so themselves.  (Links to the actual amendment language will be posted if and when they are made known to us.)

To put these restrictions into perspective, some of the most visible and respected scientists in the area of global climate change are NASA employees, and they could be limited in their ability to continue participating in important non-governmental scientific conferences related to this subject matter.  Similar things can undoubtedly be said about scientists from other government organizations involved in health, environmental science, or technology.

Note that Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) is one of the co-sponsors of the amendment in question.  - Editor (more…)

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment »

Some observations on the UVA debacle.

Wednesday, June 20th, 2012

The following was written by Judith Burstyn, professor of chemistry and former chair of the University Committee at UW-Madison. An abbreviated version appeared in today’s Chronicle of Higher Education.  The full piece is reprinted here (and also at EduOptimists) in its entirety with her permission.

Apparently, at today’s University of Virginia, business values trump all. There is a troubling recent trend toward viewing all public institutions in market terms, where value is measured by dollars produced. In recent years, UW-Madison has felt this too, as some of our leaders focus on efficiency via new “flexibilities.” But universities are not businesses. The proper role of universities is the creation of knowledge for the public good, and education of the new generations of citizens and leaders for civil society. Business management approaches are ill suited to nurture the intellectual expansiveness that underlies great scholarship and deep learning. Reliance on narrow, industry-driven curricula simply won’t do. Great universities encompass a wide variety of disciplines, methods and perspectives, irrespective of the marketability of the knowledge they create. Nourishment of the young minds of our future leaders is invaluable to our country, and the University of Virginia and UW-Madison are shining examples of excellence in this regard. I worry that this excellence is at risk. (more…)

Posted in Shared governance | 1 Comment »