Approved 05-08-25

ASEC Minutes

1:00 – 3:30 p.m. Thursday, May 1, 2025

https://uwmadison.zoom.us/j/94062364316

Members Present: Richard Barajas, Aaron Crandall, Alissa Ewer, Andrew Lokuta, Albert Muniz (chair), Terry Paape, Nicole Senter, Diane Stojanovich, Nola Walker

Guests: Gillian Drummond, Sue Fritts, Lucien Gerondeau, Kiara Hibler, Jennifer Mnookin, Jennifer Noyes, Julie Scharm, Emily Reynolds, Bill Tischler, Scott Wildman

The meeting was called to order at 1:00 p.m.

The minutes of April 24 were approved.

General Reports

Albert Muniz, ASEC Chair, reported that the shared governance group discussed the status of the letter and a draft charge for a campus academic freedom taskforce. The Ad Hoc Committee on Age in the Workplace co-chairs shared a draft report with ASEC leadership to review and provide feedback.

Mallory Musolf, Secretary of the Academic Staff, reported that nominations are open for the ASEC chair and vice chair positions.

Liaison Reports

Aaron Crandall reported that the Office of the Secretary of the Academic Staff will administer elections for the School of Education Committee on Academic Staff Issues.

Alissa Ewer reported that UW System shared governance representatives meet tomorrow. They will meet with Universities of Wisconsin President Jay Rothman. Alissa invited ASEC to send questions for that meeting.

Business

• May Assembly Agenda – for vote

ASEC discussed the possibility of holding a special meeting. Motion to approve the May Assembly agenda (Crandall). Seconded. Approved.

Convene in Closed Session Pursuant to Wis. Stats. 19.85(1)(c), and (f) to Discuss Nominations to the Academic Staff Appeals Committee; Area Review Committee-Administration/Student Services/Library; Area Review Committee-Biological/Medical Sciences; Area Review Committee-Humanities/Social Sciences; Area Review Committee-Physical Sciences/Engineering; Distinguished Status Review Committee; and the Labor Codes and Licensing Advisory Committee and Appointments to the Campus Transportation Committee; Dean of Students Advisory Committee; Committee on Disability Access and Inclusion; Health Care Advisory Committee; Immigration and International Issues Committee; Information Technology Committee; Nominating Committee; Recreation and Wellbeing Advisory Board; Retirement Issues Committee; Student Misconduct Panels; Undergraduate Recruitment, Admissions, and Financial Aid Committee; University Curriculum Committee; University Libraries Committee; University Research Council, and Committee for Women in the University. (Barajas). Seconded. Approved.

Motion to Reconvene in Open Session (Stojanovich). Seconded. Approved.

Business

• Appointments and Nominations – for vote

Motion to appoint Diane Mayerfeld to the Campus Transportation Committee; Michele Smith to the Dean of Students Advisory Committee; Jen Cole to the Committee on Disability Access and Inclusion; Bil Schneider to the Health Care Advisory Committee; Christina Eddington to the Immigration and International Issues Committee; Lisa Johnston to the Information Technology Committee; Sara Rodock to the Nominating Committee; Nicole Jennings to the Recreation and Wellbeing Advisory Board; Sherry Holcomb to the Retirement Issues Committee; Meghan Chua, Kaley Grunwald, Erin McGowan, Erin Strange, and Amy Zwaska to the Student Misconduct Panels; Jorge Zuniga to the Undergraduate Recruitment, Admissions, and Financial Aid Committee; Scott Hartman and Joanna Wangerin to the University Curriculum Committee; Bria Judkins to the University Libraries Committee; Alfonso Del Rio to the University Research Council; and Stephanie Van Pay and Carol Van Hulle to the Committee for Women in the University (Ewer). Seconded. Approved.

Motion to nominate Sarah Kuba, Nandita Nanchal, Nicholas Oleksy, April Schulz, and Tianlu Yuan to the Academic Staff Appeals Committee; Eliot Finkelstein, Kelli Hughes, and Sheila Stoeckel to the Area Review Committee-Administration/Student Services/Library; Ruthanne Chun, Betsy Elsmo, and Christoph Mans to the Area Review Committee-Biological/Medical Sciences; Erlin Barnard, Scott Mellor, and Murray to the Area Review Committee-Humanities/Social Sciences; Daniel Den Hartog, Mark Friesen, and Noriko Kita to the Area Review Committee-Physical Sciences/Engineering; Pamela Doolittle, Mark Friesen, Noriko Kita, Christine Pfund, and Radu Serban to the Distinguished Status Review Committee; and Kelly Moran to the Labor Codes and Licensing Advisory Committee (Paape). Seconded. Approved

Guest: Jennifer Mnookin, Chancellor

Chancellor Mnookin thanked ASEC for their governance service. This time of year, there are honors and awards celebrations, including the Academic Staff Excellence Awards. Chancellor Mnookin reflected on the awards ceremony and expressed appreciation for the exceptional work of academic staff across the campus.

The Spring 2025 Commencement speaker is sports columnist and UW–Madison graduate Jason Gay. Donna Shalala, former UW–Madison Chancellor and U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, and Jim Sensenbrenner, UW–Madison law school graduate and former member of the U.S. House of Representatives, will receive honorary doctorate degrees at the commencement ceremony on May 9.

In April, campus broke ground on the Phillip A. Levy Engineering Center. Morgridge Hall will be completed soon, and it is expected that classes will start this fall in the building.

At UW–Madison, all 27 international students and alumni had their Student & Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) records reinstated.

It is a challenging time for higher education in the U.S. Experts on campus and in Washington, D.C. are tracking current federal activities. Chancellor Mnookin is one of nearly 300 signatories to sign the April 22, 2025 letter from the American Association of Colleges and Universities titled “A Call for Constructive Engagement.

Last week, the chancellor and Universities of Wisconsin President Jay Rothman testified before the Joint Legislative Audit Committee regarding the Legislative Audit Bureau’s (LAB) Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Audit. The chancellor expressed appreciation for the LAB’s efforts to understand the work being done on our campus to prioritize an environment where everyone can succeed. She also recognized opportunities for improvement to ensure all on campus can reach their full potential.

The aim of the Undergraduate Student Experience Working Group is to understand what is working well to support students on campus, what are the gaps, and define values to support these efforts and make changes accordingly. The intent is to be more data driven and intentional for students to graduate, meet their goals, and feel a sense of belonging.

The Universities of Wisconsin will launch the Faculty and Instructional Academic Staff Survey on Freedom of Expression, Academic Freedom, Viewpoint Diversity, and Civil Discourse in fall 2025. There will be information sessions and opportunities for input. The chancellor has not had an opportunity to weigh in.

Guest: Sue Fritts, Executive Director of Talent Management, Office of Human Resources

The Office of Equity, Inclusion, and Employee Well-Being (EIEW) in the Office of Human Resources
(OHR) previously facilitated BIPOC and BIWOC employee network gatherings. In the current environment of funding uncertainty and as part of the campus-wide budget scenario planning exercise, OHR reviewed funding allocations within their unit. As part of the review, they decided to stop organizing and providing lunch for the gatherings. By no means are staff restricted from gathering to hold these events. This change creates an opportunity for employees to take charge of the network and future events.

OHR acknowledged ASEC sharing a recently developed resource for students: https://basicneeds.students.wisc.edu/. OHR updated the EIEW website that covers similar resources for staff and encouraged ASEC to have staff experiencing basic needs issues reach out to their local HR for support.

ASEC shared that staff are interested in developing a remote work community of practice. OHR provides tools on how to create a community of practice.

Business

• Topics for Guests:

Provost: SEVIS records; visiting international faculty; ICE activity

VPFSA: Spring 2025 Academic Staff Chats; Intersection of VPFSA role and federal activities; RISE hires and staffing needs; career progression for academic staff

OHR: academic staff position data, including transfers of department staff positions to shared service units; OHR support for staff transitions; equity and notification period for academic staff layoffs

Meeting adjourned at 3:29 p.m.

Minutes submitted by Mallory Musolf, Secretary of the Academic Staff