Wisconsin is rich with resources, and none are greater than our young people. 

Our history of investing in higher education is perhaps our greatest commitment as a state. Since its inception, the transformative impact of our UW System has been felt across our state and around the globe. 

For decades, Wisconsin prioritized funding UW – knowing that it was the most important thing we could do to develop our workforce and innovate for our future. Our public universities attract people from the Great Lakes region and beyond because our institutions offer quality educational opportunities and affordable tuition. 

For that reason, business leaders have historically been eager to establish businesses in our state, knowing that they will have a wellspring of talented UW System graduates to choose from, no matter the field. We continue to see the benefits of our dynamic milieu of higher education in every community in our state. For example, UW-River Falls is the new home of the Farm & Industry Short Course, a successful program that highlights River Falls’ excellence in providing hands-on education for our future farmers and agricultural professionals.

We have a century of research and results, making it clear that education boosts our economy: investing in higher education leads to family-supporting jobs in our communities.

Despite the indisputable successes of our UW institutions, we’ve seen damaging disinvestment by lawmakers over the last several decades, which has greatly accelerated over the last 12 years of unchecked Republican rule. This disinvestment always comes with excuses and often partisan culture wars. The most recent example is Assembly Speaker Robin Vos’ tantrum about efforts to ensure that our universities are welcoming to, and inclusive of, all students. 

Diversity, equity, and inclusion programs help first-generation college students, veterans returning from service, women in STEM, single parents attending night classes, and many other students on every campus in the state. Despite their success, in the most recent budget, these programs were scapegoated when Vos and his allies cut $32 million from our UW Campuses

Our universities help people establish careers, facilitate career transitions, and make valuable contributions to their communities. The Universities of Wisconsin give people the ability to establish financial security for themselves and future generations, while building a vibrant economy throughout our state.

The last few years have been difficult, but our state can still make the right choices to give people and communities hope. Our campuses are forming innovative partnerships with employers, governmental organizations, and nonprofits that will serve our state for decades to come. They are pursuing these partnerships despite the Republicans-led legislature’s efforts to undermine and underfund public higher education.

Whether it be innovations in the Fox Valley paper industry from UW-Stevens Point or UW-Madison helping EXACT Sciences develop lifesaving colon cancer screening, Wisconsin’s public universities continue to embody the best of the Wisconsin Idea. Wisconsin became the agricultural giant that it is in part because of our commitment to water conservation and soil health, made possible by research and collaboration among farmers and faculty at the Universities of Wisconsin.

Unfortunately, Speaker Robin Vos seems to despise UW-Madison and our entire UW System more than he loves the state of Wisconsin. It’s a sad state of affairs when no legislative Republicans are willing to stand up to Speaker Vos, even though their constituents directly benefit from investments in UW. 

Speaker Vos’ latest canard is currently holding long overdue raises for UW employees unless each campus ends all diversity and inclusion efforts. This is a demand that no Fortune 500 company would agree to and that our schools simply cannot accept. 

Finally, to confront the challenges of our workforce shortage, fight climate change, and meet our state’s growing healthcare needs, we need to ensure that everyone who seeks a high-quality public education can receive it – that every UW campus can serve the tens of thousands of promising students who seek to further their education and participate in our economy. We need investments in social work and nursing programs, mental health care, childcare, education, scientific research, engineering, agriculture, and sustainability.

The Universities of Wisconsin are the crown jewel in our state’s public education system. We must support our public higher educational institutions if we are to have any hope of addressing our current economic and workforce challenges, and to lay the groundwork for a brighter future for generations to come.