The University of Wisconsin has an illustrious history as one of the best public universities in the world. UW is consistently ranked among the top 40 universities in the world and has a pedigree of producing alumni who rise to the very top in their given fields. Part of this comes down to the university’s ability to attract faculty members of the highest quality, lifting UW’s prestige and providing its young undergraduates with a private school education at public school cost.
However, Gov. Scott Walker’s budget amendments have put the esteem of the UW system under severe stress. Walker’s budget asks the university to absorb some $94 million in budget cuts over the next two years, with the result that faculty salaries are dropping – not to mention the inevitable layoffs that accompany a budget cut of such magnitude.
The salaries earned by UW faculty are already low in comparison with other public universities of comparable size. The average salary of a UW professor is $40,000 less than the salary earned at UCLA, $30,000 less than they would earn at Michigan, and almost $20,000 less than the average salary at Illinois. There has been an exodus among the university’s distinguished faculty – history professor Jeremi Suri, widely considered one of the eminent academics in his field, left his post at UW over the summer to move to the University of Texas-Austin, where he was given a raise of $100,000 on the salary he was earning at UW.
To many Wisconsinites, all of this may seem to be a load of nonsense – how can professors earning six figures complain about their salary in a state where the median per capita income is less than half that? But for the students at UW, as well as the UW System itself, the consequences are dire.
The UW System depends on incoming students for a large proportion of its income – especially those from outside Wisconsin, who pay almost three times as much in tuition with the expectation that they are getting a first-rate education. About one in three UW students are from out of state, and they provide an invaluable chunk of the university’s revenue. If UW is going to continue to attract these out-of-state students who pay a premium for a UW education, it must invest in its faculty. This investment will be reflected in university rankings, which will influence the out-of-state students who come to Madison expecting the best.
For the students as well, the state government’s paucity of investment is a worrying sign. The average total cost of a four-year undergraduate degree is around $100,000, so students are expecting to get an education that will provide a sizable return upon graduation. A lot of students looking to pick up well-paying jobs will hope that having UW on their resume will help them get a leg up on their competitors in the employment market. But if the university cuts its budget and professors leave en masse, UW’s ranking will fall and so too will the job prospects for anxious graduates.
When asked about why he chose to leave UW, professor Suri remarked, “If our institution isn’t given the resources or allowed more flexibility from state oversight, we’re going to be stuck in place.” While the second part of his recommendation has been taken up – the university has been given more financial independence from the state – the issue of resources has not been adequately addressed. While the university gains a lot of money from alumni donations – more than $310 million in 2010, down from almost $600 million just five years ago – this is not enough to finance the operations of a university with over 40,000 students and 2,000 faculty members.
UW Chancellor David Ward has a gargantuan task on his hands. Just how he plans to reform the university’s finances without compromising the quality of the faculty remains to be seen, but one thing is for sure – he can’t do it without some compromise on the part of a recalcitrant state legislature. Former Chancellor Biddy Martin didn’t help matters; Martin sided with Walker in advocating cuts to the university’s budget, only to leave UW in the summer and join Amherst College, where she no doubt received a handy raise for her troubles. Whether or not Ward is able to gain some concessions from the state Legislature on the budget cuts is likely to be crucial to his chances of keeping the university in good shape. But given the parsimonious attitude co-opted by Republicans over the past few years, it will be a tough ask. Of course, the other option is to recall Walker and install a new governor. Just saying.
Shawn Rajanayagam ([email protected]) is a senior majoring in political science and American studies.
