A committee of University of Wisconsin faculty and staff was established last week with the purpose of evaluating and structuring how international studies are organized and governed at the university. 

After receiving a letter last week from more than 100 UW faculty members, University Committee Chair Brad Barham created the committee to resolve questions about organization within the Division of International Studies. The committee is made up of an array of UW faculty from all different schools and colleges. 

The committee met for the first time Feb. 7, led by chair and professor of geography Kris Olds. Division of International Studies spokesperson Kerry Hill said the committee is in its beginning stages of development and is still in the process of getting organized. The recent need for structure in international studies has two causes, Hill said. Primarily, UW has grown largely internationalized. 

“Years ago, international programs were pretty limited to language programs,” Hill said. 

In the past decade, however, he said it has spread immensely across campus into various schools and colleges like the Law School and the School of Education. 

In a UW statement, Interim Chancellor David Ward spoke to the spread of international studies.

“From the Chinese Champions Program to the more than 80 languages taught here, international efforts are increasingly critical to our mission, and it is important that we manage them as effectively as possible,” Ward said in the statement.

The second reason that sparked the review was recent federal cuts in Title VI grants. As a part of the budget reform, the federal government cut back 47 percent on grants that largely funded programs housed in the International Institute at UW, Hill said. As a result, UW’s eight national resource centers – the most resource centers at any university – took a large hit. 

The resource centers include the African Studies Program; the Center for East Asian Studies; the Center for European Studies; and the Latin American, Caribbean and Iberian Studies Program. According to Hill, there is no indication those funds will ever be restored. 

Because of the budget cuts as well as the spread of internationalization, Hill said the committee hopes to formulate a plan sooner rather than later regarding the governance and budgeting of the international studies programs. 

“Given we are facing significant reductions and even the elimination of state and federal funds, time is of the essence,” a statement said, quoting the letter Barham received from UW faculty. 

Hill said the committee is expected to make suggestions for improvement based off the UW mission. 

“We are looking forward to what kind of recommendations they can come up with,” Hill said.

A report of the committee’s progress is expected this spring.