MADISON — The University of Wisconsin-Green Bay could hold part of the solution lawmakers are looking for as they try to address declining enrollment on UW campuses across the state.
Outside of the flagship UW-Madison campus, most UW schools have been struggling to attract new students. They’re teetering on the edge of what higher education experts are calling a “demographic cliff.”
Birth rates in the U.S. plummeted during and after the Great Recession. Now, roughly 18 years later, that has resulted in a shrinking poolof high school graduates heading off to college. Some projections estimate that enrollment could shrink as much as 15% over the next decade.
Despite those challenges, UW-Green Bay reported record enrollment numbers this fall. Testifying at a hearing of the state Senate’s universities committee on Wednesday, Chancellor Michael Alexander attributed that success to the school’s efforts to reach nontraditional students.
“I think the reason our enrollment is going up is because we are actually not telling the student to make that choice,” Alexander said. “We’re not telling you to not go straight into the workforce.”
For UW-Green Bay that has meant more flexible class offerings, embracing part-time learners and adapting degree programs to what local employers say they need.
“We have two options: We can try to recruit more people to come to Wisconsin, or we can simply take the population that is here and make sure more of them are trained for the jobs of the future. I believe the latter is easier and probably more effective,” Alexander said.
Informational hearings like the one Alexander testified at on Wednesday are just one facet of the debate in Madison over the future of Wisconsin’s public universities.
Earlier this year, UW officials asked for an extra $855 million in the next state budget. They say the money will fund increases in employee salaries, keep tuition affordable – especially for students from low-income families – and cover the budget gaps created by lower enrollment. Democratic Gov. Tony Evers has backed the university system’s request.
Meanwhile, a panel of experts has spent the past few months exploring ideas for how lawmakers could change the way UW schools are funded and governed. The legislation they recommend could come up in the new legislative session that begins in January.
