UW-Madison Chancellor Carolyn â??Biddyâ? Martin urged the state to give the university flexibility and modest investment needed to sustain its greatness in troubled economic times Thursday during her first public address since taking the helm of the stateâ??s flagship university.
Martin addressed a crowd of hundreds in the Kohl Center during a reception to welcome the campusâ?? 28th chancellor. Martin, who received her doctorate from the UW and formerly served as provost at New Yorkâ??s Cornell University, officially took over for Chancellor John Wiley on Sept. 1.
While Martin described her first two months on campus as â??joyful,â? she also described the difficulty of setting an ambitious agenda for the future of the UW amidst grave economic uncertainty. Gov. Jim Doyle announced last week the state could be facing a budget shortfall of more than $3 billion.