Author: jplucas

Senate Republicans were said to be weighing a $40 million cut to the University of Wisconsin System and across- the-board cuts to several state agencies but had yet to introduce long-awaited budget amendments by late Thursday.
Among the revisions, Republicans were preparing a dramatic change to the way the state collects and spends money, requiring any revenue that exceeds specified levels go into a special fund off-limits to legislators unless the governor and three-fourths of the Legislature approve using the money.

The world of the University of Wisconsin is so insular that you get the feeling officials donââ?¬â?¢t see what all the complaints are about when they try to justify something like a ââ?¬Å?backup job.ââ?¬Â

It�s perfectly normal to them, it seems. If a high-level administrator is failing at his job, has somehow embarrassed the university or just wants a different job, he already has a built-in plan for another job. It�s at a lower salary, sure, but it might not involve any actual work.

MADISON – Former Dane County Circuit Judge Susan Steingass will lead a probe into whether a University of Wisconsin-Madison administrator looked for another job while he was on paid sick leave, UW officials said Thursday.

There’s now an independent investigation looking into all of the issues surrounding a former U-W vice chancellor. U-W spokesman Brian Mattmiller says Chancellor John Wiley and System president Kevin Reilly have picked Madison attorney and former judge Susan Steingass to investigate the Paul Barrows controversy.

A law professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison has been selected to lead what is described as an independent investigation of Paul Barrows, but there were concerns Thursday over how independent and how extensive the investigation would be.

When Paul W. Barrows announced in November that he was stepping down from his administrative position at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, he cited ââ?¬Å?changing family circumstancesââ?¬Â and said he would use his eligible leave time while preparing for a career change. The university press release included praise for Barrows for his work as vice chancellor for student affairs.

Gov. Jim Doyle is urging Senate Republicans not to take out their anger at top UW-Madison officials by further cutting the university’s budget.

Waukesha – Mayor Carol Lombardi has urged Gov. Jim Doyle to veto a plan for merging two college campuses in the Milwaukee area, saying that the move toward consolidation stems from “more politics than practical study.”

Madison – For the second straight day, Republicans who control the state Senate on Wednesday failed to round up the 17 votes needed to pass their version of a 2005-’07 state budget.

Amid speculation they were considering deep cuts to the University of Wisconsin System, Senate Republicans on Wednesday continued to hunt for a budget compromise that limits spending but doesn’t gut vital programs.
For the second day in a row, Senate Majority Leader Dale Schultz, R-Richland Center, said he was optimistic members were close to an agreement and would soon bring the budget to the floor for a vote, perhaps today.

WAUKESHA – Several University of Wisconsin-Waukesha professors held an emergency meeting Monday to discuss what they believe is an impending merger between their campus and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

A state lawmaker says it appears the University of Wisconsin-Madison wanted to cover up the reasons for former vice chancellor Paul Barrows’ demotion.
Meanwhile, the UW regent president appealed for patience while the UW System considers a review of what happened.

When applying for a senior position at the University of Texas at Austin, told search committee members that his leave from the University of Wisconsin was physician advised, according to Marilyn Kameen, chair of the Texas search committee.

27 News first uncovered thousands of dollars in questionable, publicly funded sick leave, paid to former UW-Madison Vice Chancellor Paul Barrows, at his annual salary rate of more than $191,000.

In a published report, Barrows claimed he was never sick.

27 News has obtained documents which raise more questions and Governor Doyle said answers from UW-Madison officials should be immediate.

For UW-Madison junior Dylan Rath, the case of absentee administrator Paul Barrows is symptomatic of a continuing problem at the university – students paying more but getting less than they deserve.

“We need an administrator on campus so they are ready to deal with student issues, not looking for another job or focusing on personal problems,” said Rath, who also helps lead the student government at UW-Madison, where tuition has increased by $1,400 in the past two years.

David Walsh, the president of the University of Wisconsin-Board of Regents, said Tuesday that university officials are considering an independent investigation of Paul Barrows, the embattled UW-Madison official, and the university’s handling of him.

Walsh’s comment came as Barrows, who has drawn fire for taking a seven-month paid leave and for allegations of misconduct, said UW-Madison was not in a position to conduct a fair investigation of the allegations because its chancellor, John Wiley, told him last week: “quit or I’ll fire you.”

IN RECENT BUDGET CYCLES, the University of Wisconsin has experienced significant cuts as state leaders struggled to overcome multi-billion-dollar deficits. To make up a portion of the shortfall, university officials enacted stiff tuition increases. Meanwhile, UW leaders have bitterly criticized the state’s decision to limit resources, claiming the system is being damaged and will not be able to keep its best and brightest professors and administrators.

Well.

The University of Wisconsin-Madison on Monday denied Paul Barrows’ contention that he made several requests to return to the university during a seven-month paid leave that has sparked outrage in the state capital.

An ousted top University of Wisconsin-Madison administrator says his doctor never signed off on his extended sick leave, during which he continued to collect his annual $191,000 salary.

University of Wisconsin Chancellor John Wiley has one story of what is behind the controversy involving former Vice Chancellor Paul Barrows.

Barrows has another story.

University of Wisconsin System officials can thank their lucky stars that the Assembly didn�t beat up on their budget with the Barrows case for boxing gloves.

Paul Barrows was the University of Wisconsin-Madison vice chancellor of student affairs who kept his annual $191,000 salary while on sick leave for what now look like less-than-honest reasons.

About 20,000 Wisconsin state employees will give up an across-the-board pay raise for most of 2003-2005 to cover the increased cost of health insurance if they approve a tentative labor agreement next month.
Instead, the workers would get a 1-percent salary increase for only the last three weeks of June. That wouldn’t provide much extra pay, but it would build the raises into workers’ base pay when bargaining for the 2005-2007 contract begins.

The University of Wisconsin Board of Regents will review the university’s policy on administrative leave and back-up appointments, Regent President David Walsh said on Friday.

The review will come after lawmakers raised concerns about a seven-month paid leave taken by former UW-Madison Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Paul Barrows