Vice Chancellor Laurent Heller called the meeting to order at 3:30 p.m.  

Automatic Consent: The Academic Staff Assembly minutes of Monday, October 14, 2018, were approved. 

Heather Daniels read the memorial resolution for Patrick Heinritz.

David Darling provided an overview about major building projects at UW-Madison.  There are currently 9 major building projects happening on campus including: Chemistry Addition and Renovation; Witte Hall Renovation and Addition; WIMR Addition; SERF Replacement; Meat and Muscle Biology Lab; Hamel Music Performance Center; Dairy Research Center; Engineering Hall Structures Lab and Hoofers Dock and Deck Replacement.  There are also two projects in design: Bascom Hall Utilities Project and the Parking Garage at Vet Med.

The budget request for the new biennium includes 6 projects: Bascom Utilities Phase II; Sellery Hall Addition and Renovation; Veterinary Medicine Addition and Renovation; Gymnasium/Natatorium Replacement; Kohl Center Addition and Renovation and the Camp Randall Stadium Renovation/Field House Repairs.  There are also 38 Capital Renovation Projects.

Vice Chancellor Darling provided an overview of the campus capital selection process. Both the Campus Master Plan and the School/College/Division Master Plans are taken into account in deciding what projects to move forward.  Projects are discussed with deans. The Campus Planning Committee ends up selecting about six projects to move forward to the Chancellor.  The Chancellor submits final requests to the Board of Regents, who ultimately finalize the project list and send it to the state. The Governor makes recommendations to the Legislature. It takes approximately two years for a project to be in a signed budget and an additional 5-8 years for it to be completed.

There is a lot of deferred maintenance on campus. Deferred maintenance is maintenance that should have been performed and has not yet been performed. The campus has about $1.5 billion in deferred maintenance, and it is growing at a rate beyond the current budget. 28% of the buildings are in good condition.

Mark Walters shared information about the upcoming Benefits Survey.  The survey will collect information on what employees prefer in the benefits area.  They are looking to enhance benefits in the future.

The electronic survey will be coming out on Monday, November 26. There will be communications introducing the survey to the campus via email, Inside UW and Working@UW.  They will be doing paper copies of the survey for English Language Learners.

The data will be used along with the Benefits Valuation Analysis to determine options for future benefits packages. 

Mark shared sample survey questions. The first question will ask people about the five most attractive benefits they saw when they started UW-Madison and the five most attractive now.  The survey will also include questions about pay.

There will be a longer section where employees will be asked to indicate the most valuable benefit in a grouping and the least valuable. Another part of the survey will ask about financial wellness.  The last part of the survey will have some open responses where individuals can add comments about benefits they were not asked about.  The survey should take about 20 minutes.

There are nine members on the Nominating Committee.  The main task of the committee is to nominate academic staff for committee vacancies and put together slates for committee elections. The Secretary of the Academic Staff recently sent out the annual survey on committee interests. Academic staff are encouraged to indicate their committee interests on the survey and update them as their interests change.  This past year the Nominating Committee nominated 105 academic staff for 85 open committee positions.

Kevin Niemi provided ASEC’s report.  A written report was distributed at the door. The call for the Academic Staff Excellence Awards has been sent out.  Nomination packets are due on Friday, January 11.  The Benefits Survey will be sent out electronically on Monday, November 26.  Highlights from the ASEC report include discussing if and how to incorporate UW-Extension academic staff into UW-Madison appointments and election slates this spring; brainstorming ways the Target of Opportunity (TOP) program could work for academic staff (it is currently used to recruit faculty from under-represented groups); and reviewing the current differences in the leave benefits between university staff and academic staff.

Kevin also recognized committee chairs who finished their service last year.  These include: Jason Jankoski, Co-Chair, Compensation and Economic Benefits Committee; Shane Hubbard

Co-Chair, Ad Hoc Committee on Research Scientist Titles; Bruno Browning, Vice Chair, Academic Staff Executive Committee; Megan Spurgeon, Co-Chair, Ad Hoc Committee on Research Scientist Titles; Rebecca Beebe, Co-Chair, Nominating Committee; Jennifer Heintz, 

Co-Chair, Nominating Committee; Sharon Kahn, Co-Chair, Nominating Committee; Deb Brauer, Co-Chair, Personnel Policies and Procedures Committee; and Nick Ewoldt, Co-Chair, Professional Development and Recognition Committee.

Jenny Dahlberg provided the report for ASPRO. ASPRO works across the UW System. Mallory Musolf, Kevin Niemi and Jenny all serve on the board. They are working to increase ASPRO membership. Membership fees go toward hiring a lobbyist to represent the academic staff at the state capitol. 

Lindsey Stoddard Cameron (ASEC) moved that the Academic Staff Assembly approve the resolution and rescind the previous Statement on Consensual Relationships. Seconded. Motion approved.

Laurent Heller thanked the Assembly for their service to the University. There has been a lot that has happened in his office since he was last at the Academic Staff Assembly. A group was formed to help the campus plan and respond to protests.  He launched a strategic plan for the areas within the purview Vice Chancellor for Finance and Administration. One big project is to redo the fiscal and human resources systems. He doesn’t have permission to start this yet, but he is aggressively pursuing approval to do so.

Vice Chancellor Heller presented data on salary adjustments not including the pay plan. Schools, colleges, and divisions continue to supplement central funding that is put forward for salary adjustments. During the fiscal years of 2016, 17 and 18 63% of academic staff received a pay increase (these are academic staff employed all three years). All other employee groups had percentages that were higher than academic staff.   

The most common reasons for academic staff pay adjustments may include performance, promotion, equity, market and temporary.

There have been two years of the bonus program. It was supplemented by other funds. Last year, about $6 million in bonuses were paid out.

Adjourned at 4:57 pm.