MADISON, Wis. (AP) - Gov. Scott Walker proposed Tuesday cutting the University of Wisconsin System’s resident undergraduate tuition by 5 percent, allowing students to opt out of paying some fees and handing the system $42.5 million in new state aid contingent upon meeting certain performance standards. Other UW proposals Walker unveiled include:
-Requiring university regents to establish policies for monitoring faculty and academic staff teaching workloads. The policies would have to reward staffers who teach more than the standard load. David Vanness, president of the UW-Madison chapter of the American Association of University Professors, said the requirement isn’t fair. Faculty members do most of their work outside the classroom, he said.
-Requiring students to get an internship or other work experience before graduation. The regents would have to develop policies to determine whether a student has met the requirement.
-Requiring the university to provide pathways for earning degrees in three years, a move Walker’s office said could save students up to $25,000 by reducing tuition and increasing earnings.
-Increasing financial aid by $700,000 for students taking Flex Option courses. The Flex Option program allows nontraditional students to earn college credit by demonstrating real-life knowledge through online tests.
-Creating five new Flex Option programs in high demand fields, including a program to help K-12 teacher aides become teachers and nursing assistants become registered nurses.
-Doubling the number of credits that transfer between the Wisconsin Technical College System and UW System schools. Beginning in the 2018-19 academic year, at least 60 core general education credits would transfer.
-Spending $100,000 to support Alzheimer’s research at UW-Madison.
-Spending $200,000 to expand the Wisconsin Rural Physician Residency Assistance program. The program, administered by UW-Madison, provides financial support to rural hospitals, residency programs and health systems.
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