Dear campus community,

As we navigate the budget situation together, I want to thank you for the honest and courageous conversations we are having across campus and within the community. I ask you to take to heart my call for all of us to help shape and shepherd the message of our university.

While units, divisions, and departments are having discussions on what budget reductions mean on a collective level, I know that – individually – we all have thoughts and concerns about the future. When wrestling with these questions, it’s natural to speculate about the “what-ifs.” The quickest way to suppress this instinct is to let your concerns be known and to seek accurate information from reliable sources. When you have questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out. I encourage you to talk with your supervisors and other colleagues who can provide you with accurate information as we move through the budget process. I want each person to have their personal contemplative and conceptual understanding of the information and to ensure they are getting it from the most trusted source.

Finally, share what you learn. You can help positively amplify UW-Whitewater by sharing factual information, both on campus and with our stakeholders in the community. These conversations are your articulated understanding. If you can understand it yourself and can then share it with others, you have a deeper understanding. On the evening of Tuesday, Feb. 11, we held a robust conversation with community members. I asked that they, too, seek out accurate information to better share the powerful story that is UW-Whitewater.

Meanwhile, the conversations continue, and your voices are critical. As stated earlier, we want you to stay engaged. We will be announcing additional listening/information sessions in the coming weeks. Thank you for all you do for our students and for UW-Whitewater.

Dr. Dwight C. Watson

Chancellor