A former Wisconsin governor and progressive proponent of the University of Wisconsin System died of respiratory failure at the age of 81 earlier this month.

Lee Sherman Dreyfus, a Republican and staunch supporter of the UW System, is credited as being an integral part of the merger of Wisconsin?s universities in 1971.

?Lee was the person that really got the idea of the merger going, along with (former Wisconsin governor) Pat Lucey,? said Ken Lindner, Department of Administration secretary under Dreyfus. ?He proposed the merger at the governor?s budget hearing. It was the first time that [the idea of the merger] was really brought forward publicly.?

Dreyfus earned three degrees at UW-Madison and served as a professor of speech and broadcasting from 1962-1967 before serving as chancellor at UW-Stevens Point.

Many within the old UW System were opposed to the Wisconsin State school system and the University of Wisconsin school system merging, Lindner said.

?The state system had nine four-year schools and four two-year schools, and UW was Madison, Milwaukee, Green Bay and Parkside,? Lindner said. ?Given the reputation of UW-Madison, they were hesitant to take in another group because [they thought] it would dilute the excellence. That didn?t happen at all.?

Although he was elected the 40th Wisconsin governor, serving one term from 1979-83, Dreyfus was not the Republican Party?s first choice in that race. According to Lindner, the former governor talked about spending less money and having a smaller government, but the positions he took were those most would not.

?He didn?t follow the Republican Party playbook at all times,? Rep. Scott Suder, R- Abbotsford, said. ?We were still proud he was our governor, but did we always agree? No.?

While Dreyfus was an advocate of the UW System, some members of the Wisconsin Republican Party do not entirely agree with him, according to Suder. The party is trying to sort out the problems which have evolved within the system since Dreyfus left office, he added.

?UW needs some reform, but they have to meet us halfway,? Suder said. ?Some of those things have occurred, and some we are still working on.?

However, the major problem the UW System faces is the lack of support from the Republicans in power, according to Rep. Spencer Black, D-Madison.

?[Dreyfus] often had progressive values when it came to education,? Black said. ?Education is a striking example of the dramatic change in the Republican P arty, which has become much further to the right.?

Dreyfus held to the traditional Wisconsin belief of empowering the average person by making high quality education available to everyone, Black added.