Tornado Alley (PROG)

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Scott Walker backtracks from striking 'truth,' 'human condition' from Wisconsin Idea

Not hard to win 3 elections when you have all the selfish rich old white dudes and a slew of clueless mouth breathers supporting you. Hope the asshats are happy now.

Read more: http://host.madison.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/scott-walker-backtracks-from-striking-truth-human-condition-from-wisconsin/article_a4ca4220-7211-5fc8-b2b9-0ab5313c6937.html#ixzz3QpED9POV


Facing a massive backlash, Gov. Scott Walker retreated Wednesday from a proposal to wipe out the language at the foundation of the Wisconsin Idea.

"The Wisconsin Idea will continue to thrive. This was a drafting error. The final version of the budget will include the Wisconsin Idea," Walker's spokeswoman, Laurel Patrick, said in an email.

Walker had made the proposal in his 2015-17 budget plan introduced Tuesday.

University of Wisconsin System President Ray Cross issued a statement: “Thanks to the Governor for his commitment to the Wisconsin Idea.”

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It's survived more than a century. It's just one paragraph deep in state law but has proudly defined Wisconsin universities as anchored to the communities they serve statewide and has distinguished the University of Wisconsin System from competitors nationally.

It's called the Wisconsin Idea, and it may be no more as Gov. Scott Walker quietly proposed altering the cherished policy in his budget, striking key parts about outreach to the state, the pursuit of truth and the improvement of the human condition in favor of language that defines the campuses more narrowly as agents of workforce development.

Gone: "Inherent in this broad mission are methods of instruction, research, extended training and public service designed to educate people and improve the human condition."

Gone: "Basic to every purpose of the system is the search for truth."

Gone: "...to extend knowledge and its application beyond the boundaries of its campuses."

Walker would add language to the opening sentence specifying the universities' responsibility as economic engines, adding the line, "to meet the state's workforce needs" to a sentence about developing human resources.

He has also proposed a controversial $300 million cut to the System coupled with more autonomy for the universities. The change in wording to the Wisconsin Idea has no funding implications and does not suggest specific changes to programs or people at the 26 campuses of the UW System.

Walker's office didn't respond to requests for comment about proposed change. But reaction was swift and widespread.

UW-Madison chancellor Rebecca Blank, who as a candidate for the job spoke of her admiration for the Wisconsin Idea, said on Twitter: "The Wisconsin Idea is -- and always will be -- central to the mission of this university," she wrote.

"Wisconsin must not abandon this core principle and value," said Ray Cross, president of the University of Wisconsin System, in a statement. "We will work to preserve the Wisconsin Idea in every form."

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, said he doesn't support the change.

“If there’s going to be a rewrite of the mission statement of the University of Wisconsin, there must be a robust public discussion before any changes are made," he said in a statement.

Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald, R-Juneau, said he was still evaluating the proposed changes and didn't offer a comment Wednesday.

111 years old

The Wisconsin Idea was developed by UW-Madison president Charles Van Hise in 1904 and is oft-cited by higher education leaders nationally as a model.

"The Wisconsin Idea was very much a part of every conversation we had with candidates," said David McDonald, a longtime history professor who led the chancellor search that resulted in Blank's hiring. "It's absolutely fundamental to our identity."

It involves the concept that university resources, teaching programs and discoveries should be relevant and beneficial to every resident of the state. It's been the intended model for university activities for more than 100 years but its manner of expression has changed with the times.

Since 1985, UW-Madison has sponsored an annual Wisconsin Idea seminar, a weeklong bus tour of the state for new employees, recently tenured faculty and other staffers. The university arranges stops at farms, factories, prisons and other institutions to meet state residents and be reminded of the university's outreach mission.

McDonald said he learned of the change on Wednesday morning with no prior knowledge it was coming.

"You’d think that changing a cornerstone document about our mission would merit a bit of debate before a unilateral amendment," he said.

Walker, a likely presidential candidate, has angered university officials and teachers of late not just with proposed budget cuts, the largest two-year hit in the statewide System's history, but also with comments suggesting professors don't work hard enough. The criticism of universities could help him in Iowa, a key early state in the 2016 presidential contest, according to a Wednesday story in the Wall Street Journal.

Read more: http://host.madison.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/scott-walker-backtracks-from-striking-truth-human-condition-from-wisconsin/article_a4ca4220-7211-5fc8-b2b9-0ab5313c6937.html#ixzz3QpDPBlpn


http://host.madison.com/wsj/news/local/govt-and-politics/scott-walker-strikes-truth-human-condition-from-wisconsin-idea/article_a4ca4220-7211-5fc8-b2b9-0ab5313c6937.html