Author: Office of the Chancellor

The UW-Green Bay Office of the Chancellor e-mailed the following memorandum from Chancellor Miller to the UW-Green Bay campus community on Tuesday, September 12, 2017. The memo acknowledges the effects of recent hurricanes impacting the southern United states and the UW-Green Bay students serving in the National Guard deployed for disaster relief efforts.

UW-Green Bay Students Serving in National Guard Called In for Hurricane Irma Relief
To: University Community
From: Gary L. Miller
Date: September 12, 2017

The UW-Green Bay Office of the Chancellor e-mailed the following memorandum from Chancellor Miller to the UW-Green Bay campus community on Wednesday, September 6, 2017 announcing a restructuring of the Chancellor’s Council on Diversity and Inclusive Excellence.

Chancellor’s Council on Diversity & Inclusive Excellence
To: University Community
From: Gary L. Miller
Date: September 5, 2017

The UW-Green Bay Office of the Chancellor e-mailed the following memorandum from Chancellor Miller to the UW-Green Bay campus community on Friday, August 18, 2017 reflecting briefly on the recent events in Charlottesville, Virginia near the campus of the University of Virginia.

Response to Recent Events
To: University Community
From: Gary L. Miller
Date: Friday, August 18, 2017

The Faculty and Staff Fall 2017 Convocation kicks off the academic year at 10 a.m. Wednesday, August 23, in the University Union’s Phoenix Room.

Convocation

Date:  Wednesday, August 23, 2017
Time: 10 a.m.
Location: Phoenix Room, University Union
Program:

• Introduction of new faculty and staff
• Introduction of Named Professorship recipient
• Presentation of Founders Association Awards for Excellence
• Remarks by Chancellor Gary L. Miller
• Remarks by Tia Brown McNair, VP, Office of Diversity, Equity and Student Success, AAC&U

* This year’s Fall Convocation will not include a meal.

Ice Cream Social

Time: 1 p.m.
Location: Leona Cloud Commons, University Union

RSVP online by August 16

The UW-Green Bay Office of the Chancellor sent the following e-mail message from Chancellor Gary Miller and Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs & Campus Climate Eric Arneson to the campus community on Wednesday, September 6, 2017.

Dear UW-Green Bay Campus Community,

In recent days we have heard a great deal about the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program and the Executive Branch’s request to end the program. UW System President Ray Cross has conveyed the concerns of our campuses to President Trump (see UW System DACA letter to President 8-30-17) and is pledging our support in working with legislators on a bipartisan solution.

UW-Green Bay echoes the System’s commitment to work to protect our students. We will keep you informed as the DREAM Act or other legislation moves forward to appropriately and compassionately support those impacted by the program.

We know this is a stressful and frightening situation for students and families who may be affected by recent actions.  UW-Green Bay cares about the well-being and success of our students and will provide as much support as possible during this time.  Our students are the cornerstone of our campus community and we value and appreciate each and every student.

We affirm our pledge to support all students and encourage any students with concerns to reach out for help via our Phoenix Cares program (www.uwgb.edu/phoenix-cares) or our Division of Student Affairs and Campus Climate (studentaffairs@uwgb.edu).

In addition, Marissa Leza De Rosa, UW-Green Bay’s bilingual admissions advisor, is presenting information about DACA on Monday, September 11, from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. in the Christie Theatre, University Union. She will speak about what is DACA, what might change with the new regulation, and who to contact to advocate for undocumented students and employees. The presentation will leave time for questions and comments. As with other Inclusive Excellence events, this is free and open to students, employees and the public. For more information, please contact Stacie Christian at christis@uwgb.edu.

Additional Resources

My Undocumented Life
This website offers up-to-date information and resources for undocumented immigrants who are navigating the university/college setting. It provides information about scholarship opportunities that are open to undocumented students, strategies for navigating the educational system, information on how to apply for DACA/Advanced Parole, news on DAPA, and more.

National Immigration Law Center
The National Immigration Law Center (NILC) is an organization in the U.S. exclusively dedicated to defending and advancing the rights of low-income immigrants.

DACA Information
This U.S. Government page provides information on requesting consideration of deferred action for childhood arrivals (DACA).

Thank you.

Gary L. Miller
Chancellor

Eric Arneson
Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs & Campus Climate

The UW-Green Bay Office of the Chancellor e-mailed the following memorandum from Chancellor Miller to faculty and staff on Wednesday, July 12, 2017 announcing the appointment and charge of a newly-created Strategic Budgeting Committee.

Strategic Budgeting Committee and Charge
To: University Community
From: Gary L. Miller
Date: Wednesday, July 12, 2017

The UW-Green Bay Office of the Chancellor e-mailed the following memorandum from Chancellor Miller to faculty and staff on Wednesday, June 7, 2017 announcing the appointment and charge of a newly-created Web Strategy Committee.

Web Strategy Committee Appointments and Charge
To: University Community
From: Gary L. Miller
Date:Wednesday, June 7, 2017

The following is an opinion column written by UW-Green Bay Chancellor Gary L. Miller for publication May 11, 2017 in the Green Bay Press-Gazette and USA Today Network-Wisconsin.

I recently had an opportunity to glimpse into the mind of UW-Green Bay founding Chancellor Ed Weidner.  After years in storage, a massive watercolor of Dr. Weidner’s original master plan concept for the University was restored and hung in our archives.

The piece is a visualization of his dream for a large public university, a center of creative and intellectual activity, responsive to the ever changing dynamics of the state and the region.

I thought a great deal about Chancellor Weidner’s dream this week as the Greater Green Bay Chamber rolled out a set of strategies for economic development in Green Bay and Brown County.

The eleven initiatives of the plan strike at the heart of the opportunities before this community: build on our strengths in manufacturing, our relationship with the Packers, the native entrepreneurial spirit of the region, a forward-thinking vision for downtown and a unique confluence of leadership vision to make Green Bay a source and attractor of the talent of the future.

But, the report includes something else very important.

It includes two clear messages to higher education and to the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay in particular.

The first message is a strong declaration that the future economic prosperity of this region depends on our ability to develop, recruit and retain high-skilled talent – a goal that absolutely depends on our higher education institutions.

This clear affirmation of the essential role higher education plays in sustaining the commonwealth is what the community founders of UW-Green Bay believed more than 50 years ago.  This is most welcome and, frankly, rarely heard in higher education these days.

The second message in this report is one of the most extraordinary and unique communications I have ever seen a community extend to a public university.

In a direct and caring way, this community is saying to the University it fought to establish fifty years ago:  “You need to change.”

The report is clear:

“…the role of UW-Green Bay needs to be elevated.”

“Green Bay needs a large, growing university with a broader range of programs (especially engineering, science and technology programs) and a greater emphasis on research and technology commercialization.” 

 The report also calls for intensified collaboration among the higher education institutions in the area with a renewed focus on innovation and talent development.

At 2420 Nicolet Drive, we have head the message loud and clear.

We are already taking action now to move forward the goals of the strategic plan:

• UW-Green Bay, NWTC and the Green Bay Area Public Schools have launched Turbo-Charge, a program to prime the talent pipeline by offering every high school senior in the Green Bay Area Public schools at least 15 hours of college credit before graduating from high school
• UW-Green Bay, Brown County and The Einstein Project have partnered to raise the funds to make the new Science, Technology, Engineering and Math Innovation Center a reality on the UW-Green Bay campus.
• Working with our County partners we are moving the concept of the Phoenix Innovation Park, a 63 acre high-tech, innovation development onto the University’s campus.
• We are moving ahead vigorously to win approval for the BS in Mechanical Engineering at UW-Green Bay from the UW Board of Regents.
• Working with partners we are very actively planning a presence in downtown Green Bay inside the emerging innovation district there.
• Jeff Rafn at NWTC and I, along with our chief academic officers, have signed a charter committing ourselves to a significantly enhanced partnership between our institutions. This effort, called “Crossing the Bridge,” is well under way with several reciprocal meetings of key administrators and faculty.  The effort has resulted in joint programming between all four of UW-Green Bay’s colleges and NWTC.
• In a recent memo to the faculty and staff at UW-Green Bay I announced the University would begin a process this fall to reexamine the select mission statement of UW-Green Bay to better align the University with the changing workforce and quality of life needs of this region.

Chancellor Weidner dreamed of a large and fully engaged public university in Green Bay.  The community that invited him here continues to share his dream.

I have no intention of letting Chancellor Weidner down.

The UW-Green Bay Office of the Chancellor e-mailed the following memorandum from Chancellor Miller to faculty and staff on Friday, May 12, 2017.

Commencement and Beyond
To: University Community
From: Gary L. Miller
Date: Friday, May 12, 2017

Consultants, brought in to work with area businesses to create an updated strategic plan for the Green Bay Area Chamber of Commerce, highlighted the necessity to grow and expand UW-Green Bay at a roll-out event on Wednesday, May 10, 2017. Noting that economic development has changed over the years and that talent is the new currency, the plan puts an enormous emphasis on the expansion of public education in Northeast Wisconsin, with specific focus on UW-Green Bay.

Chancellor Miller spoke at the event, sharing with business leaders the University’s support for the plan and optimism for the future.

Chancellor Miller’s remarks

I am extremely excited to be here this morning and to be part of an extraordinary community-wide effort to articulate a clear framework of economic growth and prosperity in Green Bay and Brown County.

It is also a great honor to represent my colleagues Dr. Jeff Rafn, President of Northeast Wisconsin Technical College, Dr. Tom Kunkel, President of St. Norbert’s College, Dr. Matthew Hunsaker, Dean of the Medical College of Wisconsin and Dr. Connie Boerst, President of Bellin College.  Together we represent nearly 20,000 undergraduate and pre-professional students.  Our goal is to graduate all of these students and to retain them in this area in good jobs. We are all about workforce and talent development. It is important to acknowledge the leadership of Laurie Radke, Peter Zaehringer, Mark Higgins, members of the Chamber Board, and, of course, John Karras and his colleagues from Tip Strategies.  Thank you for your leadership.

Before I comment on the Plan and Initiatives 4 and 5, permit me to make a brief observation as a relative new-comer to this great community. I have never lived and worked in a place presented with more extraordinary game-changing opportunities than we have before us in this community. Nor have I ever seen a more committed group of business and community leaders. The eleven Initiatives presented in this report do not represent a simple wish list. In each Initiative there are specific actions and significant community leadership in place to attain the major goals. If these goals are met—and I believe they will be—this region will be transformed in a way that will make it one of the most attractive places in the country to live and work.

Now, a few comments about the report. This report contains three very important messages for the higher education sector in Green Bay.

The first message is a strong declaration that the future economic prosperity of this region depends on our ability to develop, recruit and retain high-skilled talent and that goal absolutely depends on our higher education institutions. This clear affirmation of the essential role higher education plays in sustaining the commonwealth is what the community founders of UWGB believed 50 years ago.  This is most welcome and, frankly, rarely heard these days.  Thank you.

The second message is the community expectation that we will intensify the collaboration among the higher education institutions in the area with a renewed focus on innovation and talent development. We strongly agree.

The third is a message to UWGB.  It is one of the most extraordinary and unique communications I have ever seen a community extend to a public university. In a direct and caring way the community is saying to the University it fought so hard to establish fifty years ago:  “We need you to change.”

The report is clear:

“…the role of UWGB needs to be elevated.”

“Green Bay needs a large, growing university with a broader range of programs (especially engineering, science and technology programs) and a greater emphasis on research and technology commercialization.” 

Indeed, the report is very specific about what is needed:

“Re-mission UWGB to be a larger, more R&D-focused, broader-reaching university.  Its long-term trajectory should place it on a track to become a significantly larger institution with more research and technology, similar to what UW-Milwaukee has become.” 

I want you to know at UWGB and throughout the higher education sector here we have heard the message loud and clear.  We are taking action now to move forward the goals of the strategic plan.

• UWGB, NWTC and the Green Bay Area Public Schools have launched TurboCharge, a program to prime the talent pipeline by offering every high school senior in the Green Bay Area Public schools at least 15 hours of college credit before graduating from high school.

• We are moving ahead vigorously to win approval for a bachelors in Mechanical Engineering at UWGB—something this community has wanted for 30 years. We will need your help for this. There will be start up costs. We will be calling everyone in this room asking for your support. Please open your doors and see us.

• UWGB, Brown County and The Einstein Project have partnered to raise the funds to make the new STEM Innovation Center a reality on the UWGB campus.

• Working with our County partners we are moving the concept of the Phoenix Innovation Park, a 63 acre high-tech, innovation development on the UWGB campus.

• Working with partners we are very actively planning a presence in downtown Green Bay inside the emerging innovation district there.

• Jeff Rafn at NWTC and I along with our chief academic officers have signed a charter committing ourselves to a significantly enhanced partnership between our institutions. This effort called “Crossing the Bridge” is well under way with several reciprocal meetings of key administrators and faculty.  The effort has resulted in joint programming between all four of UWGB’s colleges and NWTC.

• In a recent memo to the faculty and staff at UWGB I announced the University would begin a process this fall to reexamine the select mission statement of UWGB. This process has the full support of our Council of Trustees.

My colleagues and I enthusiastically endorse the new strategic plan. We are committed to doing our part to achieve the goals of the plan.  We know we have much more to do. We are deeply appreciative of this community for its support of higher education. We promise to undertake the kind of self-reflection and change you have recommended.

Thank you. Go Phoenix! Go Packers!