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The Badger Herald

Independent Student Newspaper Since 1969

The Badger Herald

Independent Student Newspaper Since 1969

The Badger Herald

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Doyle plans to aid UW

Gov. Jim Doyle said he plans to aid the University of Wisconsin System by including a $225 million investment in state universities and colleges in his forthcoming biennial budget, according to an exclusive interview with the Associated Press.

Doyle said the money would be used to help the UW System graduate more teachers, nurses and engineers.

Other financial contributions Doyle promised in his budget include investments aimed at increasing faculty and the number of adult students systemwide, increasing UW-Green Bay's enrollment and an investment in UW-Milwaukee's research capacity.

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Exact dollar amounts for the separate investments are currently unknown.

"I think it's really good news for Wisconsin," UW System spokesperson Dave Giroux said. "[It's a] plan centered around needs of our students and needs of our state."

Ultimately, Giroux said the money would improve economic prosperity for the entire state by helping state universities graduate more students.

Rep. Spencer Black, D-Madison, who sits on the Assembly Committee on Colleges and Universities, echoed Giroux's praise for the governor's proposed investments.

"I'm glad to see the governor is proposing more money for the university," Black said. "They haven't received adequate funding for a number of years."

Black added he is glad tuition rates would remain low and would not increase faster than inflation rates.

Phone calls to Rep. Stephen Nass, R-Whitewater, who chairs the Colleges and Universities committee, and other legislators seeking comment were not returned by press time.

Giroux said the UW System's Growth Agenda is supported by much of the Legislature and is also gaining support from the public sector.

"We've heard a lot of positive signals coming from both sides of the political aisle," Giroux said, "and most notably from business and community leaders from around the state."

Giroux added he didn't know the specifics of the governor's plan, but said the budget doesn't implement a systemwide policy and instead bases the investment upon the needs of each university.

"It's not based on one cookie-cutter approach," Giroux said, "but rather the needs for each region."

Examples of these regional needs include expanding UW-Milwaukee's research institutions and retaining in-demand faculty researchers at UW-Madison, Giroux said.

Black agreed with Giroux's sentiment and said he believed that without the proper funding, Wisconsin schools such as UW-Madison would not be able to stay competitive.

"We very much need to see an increase in funding for our university if it's going to remain one of the great universities of the country," Black said.

Giroux said he was excited to see an increase in funding for the nursing, teaching and engineering programs, which he said are falling behind due to a lack of finances.

"These are very expensive programs to run and without investment … we must turn down fully qualified applicants," Giroux said. "They're high demand specific workforce sectors where we are seeking to put more students into those programs."

Giroux said he believs Doyle has done a good job putting the agenda in motion, but added that the proposal is now out of the governor's hands.

"The governor has shown some strong leadership," Giroux said. "Now it's our job to make a convincing case to the Legislature."

— The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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