UW System President Ray Cross speaks to students at UW-Stout
Facing a likely vote by the UW Faculty Senate next week, on a resolution expressing lack of confidence in his leadership, University of Wisconsin System President Ray Cross went to bat for faculty on Thursday.
Speaking at a forum on the UW-Stout campus in Menomonie, Cross said that the task of the UW-System — and its faculty — is to prepare the state for the future.
“We don’t have a very rosy future when we speak ill of, devalue, disrespect the people who do that,” Cross said, adding that he has spoken with numerous state legislators who believe that the work load for faculty needs to be increased. “No, it doesn’t,” he said.
“If you see the response to the no-confidence vote, they don’t understand what that means,” Cross said. “It doesn’t fit into their world.”
The resolution condemns Cross and the Board of Regents for supporting new tenure policies. The majority of faculty oppose the changes, which weaken protection against layoffs.
The UW-Madison Faculty Senate is scheduled to meet next Monday, May 2nd, at 3:30 p.m. in Bascom Hall, and will consider the resolution at that time.
“It could be approved as written, it could be modified by amendment, and of course there’s a possibility that it could be voted down as well,” said the resolution’s author, sociology professor Chad Alan Goldberg.
Editor’s note: This story was updated to correct the date and time of the faculty senate meeting.