Look at the media memo from Mike Rindo, executive director of University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Communications, for exact figures of the budget.

Rep. Jeff Smith was elected to represent Eau Claire, Dunn, Pepin, and Pierce county residents.  Contact him with any questions or concerns.

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UWEC students benefit despite budget woes

Sarah Hicks was sitting at her computer working on a graphic design assignment when an e-mail popped up.  It was from the University News Bureau, and normally Hicks doesn’t read these e-mails.  However, something caught her eye. 

The first sentence read, “You may have seen or heard news reports this morning quoting Gov. Jim Doyle as saying that the University of Wisconsin System campuses may not be able to open for the second semester if a new state budget is not passed.” 

Hicks sat there in astonishment.

Once Hicks grasped what could happen, she yelled for her two roommates to hear, “School better not be closed, I only have one semester after this until I graduate!”

Hicks received the e-mail on Oct. 17, but she didn’t have to worry long before Doyle signed the 2007-09 Wisconsin State budget on Oct. 26.  What the state budget does is balance the state government’s incoming money with its priority spending needs.

Government officials were almost four months late in approving the budget, but University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Chancellor Brian Levin-Stankevich believes this is the best budget for UW-Eau Claire since the tragic Sept. 11, 2001. 

UW-Eau Claire received $48.8 million to fund the redevelopment of the Davies Center.  Chris Nielson, former chair of the Davies Exploratory Committee, was very happy with the amount of money allotted to the reconstruction of the Davies Center. 

Davies Center (Photo by: Zosia Burkard)

“The building is like a cave, the ceilings are too low and it’s too small for the students that are currently here,” Nielson said.  

He continued on to say that the building is starting to fall apart with fire, water, central air, and electrical systems all in need of replacement.   

Other areas that received funding include additional staff and equipment for the NanoSTEM Initiative, additional staff and expansion of the satellite nursing program at Saint Joseph's Hospital in Marshfield, and added staff for the education department.   

The budget proposes a challenge in the form of a $25 million deficit for the entire UW System over the two year period.  UW-Eau Claire’s share of this biennium’s budget deficit compared to last year is $1.2 million. This means that UW-Eau Claire received $1.2 million less than last year and will need to find ways to make up for the lost funds.                                         

Levin-Stankevich explains, “When you get your budget documents and one of the items says minus $1.2 million for two year, you have to fill that in somehow by moving money from other places in order to make it zero.” 

Rep. Jeff Smith, D-Eau Claire was in support of both the governor’s first and final budget proposal.  Smith supported the $48.8 million toward the renovation of Davies, another $1.8 million for the NanoSTEM Initiative, and additional funding towards the nursing and teaching programs.  Smith said that he is proud that both parties were finally able to reach a compromise, but he is even prouder of the benefits that this budget provides for his district.
 
Smith is up for re-election in the upcoming 2008 election; however, no opponent has announced candidacy yet.

According to Nate Williams of Rep. Smith’s Office, “Smith’s next goal for education is looking at ways to change the school funding formula which affects how much state aid each public school district receives from the state.  He is looking at ways to change the formula to make aid more fair for more districts, help the districts that need the most help, and provide some targeted property tax relief to homeowners.”

Kirsten Kukowski, Communications Director of the Republican Party of Wisconsin responds, “Everyone says the current formula is wrong. What they really mean is their schools need more money at the expense of others, whether it’s the taxpayers or other schools. The formula discussion rarely gets beyond this point.  It will be interesting to see what schools Smith thinks are getting enough money.”

Kukowski also states the general Republican philosophy on education is “to find a system that offers local governments flexibility to find innovative ways to bring efficiency, accountability, and discipline to their schools.”

However, she gave no specific future plans or actions the Republican Party plans to take in regard to education.

Levin-Stankevich is quite happy with the budget, but he is already looking ahead to the 2009-11 budget to replace Brewer Hall.  The university will pursue planning funds this biennium through the State Building Commission to start construction as opposed to waiting another year to design and plan Brewer Hall. Eau Claire has not built a facility in over 20 years. 

“For a long time this campus has not been aggressive in pursuing new buildings,” Levin-Stankevich said.  “We need to start doing that now.”