Approved 09-08-22

ASEC Minutes

2:00 – 4:30 p.m. Thursday, September 1, 2022

260 Bascom Hall

https://uwmadison.zoom.us/j/93936751067

Members Present: Donna Cole, vice chair; Tim Dalby; Stephanie Elkins; Alissa Ewer; Julie Hunt Johnson; Stephanie Jones; Albert Muniz; Lindsey Stoddard Cameron

Guests: Lesley Fisher, Luisa Gerasimo, Lucien Gerondeau, Karen Massetti-Moran, Paul Seitz, Patrick Sheehan, Scott Wildman

The meeting was called to order at 2:01 p.m.

The minutes of August 25 were approved.

General Reports

Donna Cole, ASEC Vice Chair, reported that UW System President Jay Rothman met with UW-Madison governance leaders on August 30. Representatives from academic staff, faculty, university staff, and students were present. The group discussed a variety of issues related both to individual groups and to the institution as a whole. Mallory, Donna, and Jake met with Patrick for their monthly meeting. Topics included remote work, the Job Rotation group, and standardized exit interview questions.

Jake Smith, Secretary of the Academic Staff, reported on the Leadership Breakfast, which had extended time for small group discussions on potential initiatives that the university could undertake. Paid family leave was a common theme. The Ad Hoc Committee for Academic and University Staff Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion voted to finalize their report. The chairs will present the report at a future Assembly meeting. Jake also reported on a request of ASEC from the LGBTQ+ Committee. The committee has requested support for a proposal for a full-time position to serve as a liaison for faculty and staff LGBTQ+ resources. ASEC will put a letter of support together in response to the committee’s request.

Liaison Reports

Stephanie Elkins reported that the International Division CASI is working on criteria related to the PMDP process within the division. They consulted with Stephanie and Jake on questions related to how other divisions craft their criteria.

Guest: Paul Seitz, Director of Strategic Initiatives, Office of the Vice Chancellor for Finance and Administration

Paul presented information related to the West Campus District Plan. There will be public information sessions with UW-Madison, University Research Park, and Perkins & Will (the planning firm) held on September 14 and 15. This plan is similar to the Campus Master Plan but on a smaller scale. In pursuing new resources to advance the institution’s mission and generate economic impact, the goal of the real estate initiative is to generate revenue to invest back into the teaching, research, and outreach mission. This work dovetails with our work in industry and corporate partnerships, and is done in keeping with the principles established by the Revenue Innovations Study Group, with a particular focus on supporting the work to “enhance diversity, equity, and inclusion; healthy communities; and our obligation to sovereign Native Nations.” To that end, the group is consulting with Brenda Gonzalez, Aaron Bird Bear, and Omar Poler. The West Campus District Plan is the first major initiative under the new real estate strategy. Ideas include ways to advance research while simultaneously creating a more visitor-friendly environment. There are a number of stakeholders for this area, including UW Health, the VA Hospital, and other federal agencies, who are seeing similar needs. There have been conversations about the need for more lab spaces as well as transportation/mobility issues. Paul and others are meeting with the joint campus area committee to assess potential impacts on other nearby communities. Initial discovery stakeholder engagement sessions are in process, with a Board of Regents update in late 2022/early 2023, and a goal of delivering a final district plan to the Campus Planning Committee, campus leadership, and the Board of Regents in Summer 2023. ASEC noted concerns about potential pushback based on traffic and congestion impacts to nearby neighborhoods, as well as both parking and availability of green space in the area.

Business

·       Shared Governance Letter

ASEC reviewed a revised draft of the letter and made additional changes. The draft will go to the University Committee and the Central Committee for their review.

Guests: Patrick Sheehan, Interim Chief Human Resources Officer; and Karen Massetti-Moran, Director of Total Rewards, Office of Human Resources

OHR is working through some of the opportunities with the campus remote work policy as we navigate this for the next year. Many divisions are in the process of renewing their annual remote work agreements right now, due to when the policy was originally implemented. The HR reps have been communicating with employees and supervisors. OHR is in the process of looking at more granular data on how remote work agreements are being implemented. OHR is also working on a proposal outlining risks and strategies for individuals working in other states, with consideration paid to benefits that might be offered in other states. International remote work requires its own strategy

Regarding next steps on potential changes to the campus policy, there needs to be a refresh from current leadership on principles and values around remote work. OHR has been hearing concerns about equitable implementation of the policy, and they are working on communication around this. Areas that are being considered for updates include reimbursement for university-mandated travel, guidance for reimbursement of costs of offsite workspaces, international and out of state remote work, and adding clarity around ongoing remote work (currently, agreements are executed annually). Apart from these, OHR is working on a survey about remote work. There has been discussion on whether the survey should be administered in a centralized or decentralized manner. ASEC supported central administration of the survey.

Patrick met with Chancellor Mnookin and UW System President Rothman to walk through legal considerations and look at a possible proposal for a paid family leave policy. Paid parental leave is the top area to address from the previous benefits survey. UW-Madison and UW System are working to assess priorities and address potential benefits changes. Patrick is looking to have more conversations with senior leadership about these broader areas in the next several weeks. He also hopes to have standard exit/stay interviews in place by the end of the calendar year.

UW-Madison is continuing its discussions with UW System regarding progression. Madison is looking at is supervisors reviewing staff on an annual basis and strategizing on what kinds of salary adjustments can be made. One of the new compensation specialists is helping to build that long-term strategy, and the HR reps are in the process of reviewing a proposal on this. Having specific competencies are crucial to avoid preferential treatment. There is also the question of OHR more closely monitoring how performance funds are being distributed. Karen will also be meeting with Research and Sponsored Programs to talk about how we can ensure academic staff funded on soft money will receive funding from compensation exercises going forward.

Business

·       September Assembly Meeting Agenda – for vote

Tim will present the ASPP Ch. 2 changes at the September meeting. Motion to approve the September Assembly meeting agenda (Dalby). Seconded. Approved.

·       Topics for Guests

Provost: expectations for deliverables on DEI group with Deans; check-in on impacts of Dobbs decision

VCSA: questions on promoting peer inclusivity for classroom; update on Wiscard availability for non-traditional students

VPFSA: HIB reporting centralization efforts; professorial titles; initiatives for the year; staff climate survey, DEI curriculum committee

Meeting adjourned at 4:35 p.m.

Minutes submitted by Jake Smith, Secretary of the Academic Staff