What If Higher Education Looked Different?
An Open Letter to Northeast Wisconsin,
Higher education is facing an existential crisis. As technology rapidly changes how people learn and work, higher education has been slow to react. At the same time, increasing percentages of the country are questioning whether attending college is worth it. The standard models for the delivery of higher education are outdated.
UW-Green Bay is facing this reality head-on by leading the educational change needed for the betterment of our community.
The founders of UW-Green Bay presented the need for change in higher education in the 1960’s. Their planning document promised to deliver the following:
“The new campus will be strongly innovative and experimental…. The key figure will be the student in his role as learner. He, rather than the professor, will have the initiative and primary responsibility in the learning process. This implies independent study, self-pacing, credit by examination, open-stack libraries, and the widespread use of electronic teaching devices, which will be available day and night. By handling many routine training and information-imparting tasks, teaching machines will free professors for more meaningful intellectual contacts with students in lectures, laboratories, and formal and informal discussions.”
The spirit of these words continues to resonate at UW-Green Bay. As we face rapidly changing times, we must ask ourselves, “what if?”
What if we continue to double down on the idea that every person is a potential learner over their lifetime, not just at age 18 with stellar high school academic credentials? We know that every person can grow at any time in their life and that each person needs different modes of delivery and personalized end goals for their education.
What if we accelerate how we are transforming UW-Green Bay to relate to the world of a modern student by celebrating credentials and flexible learning as much as degree completion? To do this successfully, we have committed to a cadence of continually evolving our programs to respond to student demand and community needs. In a world with generative artificial intelligence, we are intentionally building human connection as part of the educational experience. We are ensuring students are prepared to use technology effectively and responsibly when they leave our institution in ways that can advance their careers.
What if inquiry, creativity, and entrepreneurship are embedded in all classes to protect the value of a broad-based education in a world where technology allows unlimited access to information? Information is everywhere. Knowing what to do with it is not.
What if we boldly redefine higher education as not about being above or better than someone else? It is about maximizing each individual’s personal growth, helping a student find a problem they are curious about and want to solve, or helping someone rise higher than they ever thought possible.
What if we link arms with the community by connecting faculty and staff expertise and research in ways to help regional businesses, non-profits, and other educational institutions solve local problems and thrive? Our excellence in community engagement makes us an important driver of the economy while improving the quality of life for everyone who lives in our region.
What if we build a new door and make it even easier for every type of learner to enter, transfer to UW-Green Bay or get their education while they are already in the workforce?
What if we stop arguing over which is better or needed more, a technical college or a university degree? Our region needs more of both. This is the goal of an access institution.
What if more people realized you don’t need to leave your community for a great education? Students attend regional comprehensives like UW-Green Bay more than any other kind of university because they are accessible, can get you anywhere, and reduce cost while adding value.
What if we continually value relevance over tradition and find joy in the fact that change at UW-Green Bay is not a finite event? Instead, we embrace change as our continual reality.
UW-Green Bay was built for this moment in education. We will define excellence on our terms. Our end goal is not to become world class–it is to be world class at delivering an education that is relevant to the people of Northeast Wisconsin and our state. We will not compete with other educational institutions. Instead, we will partner with anyone to provide more value to our students and our communities.
UW-Green Bay will continue to show up humbly each day and make bold decisions to ensure we grow UW-Green Bay’s impact as an affordable and relevant educational resource for all who want to learn. We don’t stop at “what is,” we continually ask, “what if?”
I believe in this university and the people who live in this region. Together, we are built to RISE.
Mike Alexander
Chancellor