Academic Staff Executive Committee Minutes 12-18-2025

Approved 01-15-26

ASEC Agenda

1:00 – 3:30 p.m., Thursday, December 18, 2025

https://uwmadison.zoom.us/j/97722653207

Members present: Richard Barajas, Aaron Crandall, Hanna Blazel, Alissa Ewer (chair), Terry Paape, Nicole Senter, Diane Stojanovich, Nola Walker

Guests: Lucien Gerondeau, Patrick Sheehan, John Zumbrunnen

The meeting was called to order at 1:01 p.m.

The minutes of December 4 were approved.

General Reports

ASEC Chair Alissa Ewer reported on the recent standing committee chairs meeting. Each committee provided an update, including priorities for the year. Chair Ewer attended the Big Ten Collaboration on Staff Advocacy meeting. Topics of discussion included budget uncertainty and layoffs. Representatives from the other Big Ten institutions noted they do not have an organization comparable to the Academic Staff Professionals Representation Organization (ASPRO). The group is collecting comparative data on merit increases and cost-of-living adjustments at Big Ten universities.

Secretary of the Academic Staff Mallory Musolf reported that the Open Seat Food Pantry recently launched a temporary Rapid Request Mailing List (https://forms.gle/YzThfqgp15T393UX8). Members of the campus community who sign up will receive notifications about requests for immediate assistance.

Liaison Reports

Richard Barajas reported that the School of Nursing Committee on Academic Staff Issues (CASI) is focused on onboarding new members to the CASI and increasing staff awareness of the committee. They are also working on their five-year self-study report.

Nola Walker reported that the Campus Planning Committee has two meetings scheduled for the spring semester. In an effort to reduce the number of overall meetings, each session will be structured to emphasize actional items.

Aaron Crandall reported that the Districting and Representation Committee continues to work on districting logic now that Unit, Division, Department, Subdepartment (UDDS) no longer exists.

Chair Ewer reported that the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research CASI is working to have Vice Chancellor for Research Dorota Grejner-Brzezinska attend an upcoming meeting. The committee also approved changes to their bylaws and five-year self-study report.

Guest: John Zumbrunnen, Interim Provost

The Division of Teaching and Learning has been charged with developing a strategic plan to advance student academic success. This directive is informed by recommendations from the Undergraduate Student Experience Ad Hoc Working Group and the transition following the sunsetting of the Division of Diversity, Equity, and Educational Achievement.

The Board of Regents voted to authorize UW–Madison to create a new college, the College of Computing and Artificial Intelligence. The School of Computer, Data, and Information Sciences will be reorganized into this new standalone college. Next steps will focus on working through the governance process to move departments and finalizing administrative and budget arrangements. A dean search is planned for spring.

A UW System policy on instructional workload is anticipated for January 2026. UW–Madison will need to adopt its own policy. The Faculty Educational Workload policy currently exists on campus. Campus will require an instructional workload policy for faculty and academic staff.

Business

• Semester check-in

ASEC brainstormed ways to build community beyond its regular meetings and plans to host a lunch in early spring.  

Looking ahead, ASEC aims to foster greater bidirectional engagement with leadership during future meetings.

• ASEC subcommittees update

The subcommittees will conclude their work. Moving forward, any topics previously addressed by the subcommittees will be discussed with the full committee as needed. Chair Ewer requested that each subcommittee prepare a summary of its accomplishments for review at the ASEC meeting on February 19. If additional issues arise, ASEC may convene a subcommittee, and members with availability will address the matter as appropriate.

Guest: Patrick Sheehan, Chief Human Resources Officer, Office of Human Resources (OHR)

Finance@UW is a free professional development program for campus employees with financial roles and responsibilities. The Finance@UW cohort begins in early 2026. Cohort participants are required to attend sessions from 9am-12pm over four consecutive weeks. Sessions cover the following topics: principles of institutional finance, budgets, accounting, and revenue. The Finance@UW Conference will take place on March 17. OHR is also planning to offer new workshops for finance employees in fall 2026.

Phase one of LinkUW launched in early December. Discussions with prospective units for phase two are underway, with more active engagement planned for early 2026.

The requirements for flexible work arrangements (FWA) remain unchanged. OHR is aware of FWA reporting challenges in Workday.

Business

• Resolution in support of students

ASEC plans to invite the Associated Students of Madison’s Justice, Equity & Belonging Committee to learn about their priorities and current activities. ASEC also plans to engage with Campus Dialogue and Reflection leadership.

• February Assembly Agenda

Vice Chancellor for Finance and Administration Rob Cramer will present at the February Assembly meeting.

Meeting adjourned at 3:33 p.m.

Minutes submitted by Mallory Musolf, secretary of the academic staff