A newly proposed state legislative bill would alter the government structure at the University of Wisconsin System with the goal of improving decision making power with those who teach and support students most directly.
The bill, introduced by State Representative Jim Piwowarczyk, aims to increase participation in the University of Wisconsin (UW) government beyond tenured Ph.D. faculty, giving instructional academic staff a stronger voice in curriculum and budget decisions.
Under the current government structure at most UW campuses, decision making authority is almost exclusively among elite, tenured professors with doctoral degrees, even though instructors without doctoral degrees often carry more classroom hours and bring valuable experience.
Wisconsin Right Now says this definition of “faculty” excludes many instructors who teach skills courses and focus on development from serving on executive committees in their department that determine course offerings, hiring, and budget. (RELATED: University of Wisconsin Chancellors Receive Pay Raises Amid Financial Challenges)
The bill would revise state statutes regarding “shared governance” at UW System institutions, allowing instructional academic staff, many of whom are master’s level professionals with extensive experience, to serve on governance bodies and vote in decisions traditionally reserved for “elite” faculty.
Proposals in both the Assembly and Senate have been introduced that seek to follow these ideas. This bill could improve educational quality by raising the opinions of instructors closest to students’ and their needs.
Critics of US government changes say that altering the “shared governance” could reduce the academic standards or the university tradition of faculty control. Groups like the American Association of University Professors have documented tensions at UW and elsewhere when governance structures evolve amid financial pressures and shifting legislative priorities.
The bill comes as UW System institutions also adjust to recent legislative actions on teaching workload policies and other reforms. 2025 Wisconsin Act 15 established minimum teaching credit requirements for faculty and instructional staff. (RELATED: WisconsinEye Faces Imminent Shutdown as Funding Crisis Worsens)
