Task Force posts findings on future of graduate education at UW-Green Bay

UW-Green Bay is falling short of meeting the regional needs of Northeastern Wisconsin when it comes to graduate education, and addressing that gap will require concerted Universitywide effort to better fund, market and expand master’s degree offerings. That’s how the special Graduate Education Task Force frames the issue in its 70-page final report, posted today at the Chancellor’s website, click here to read.

UW-Green Bay currently ranks last among UW-System schools in master’s degrees granted as a proportion of total degrees granted. The task force report offers a comprehensive review of current offerings, identifies key funding and staffing issues, and explores potential market opportunities moving forward. The Task Force offers an array of action items to enhance master’s degree enrollment, but says a limiting factor remains the current funding structure. “The structure of the University that creates competition between the graduate and undergraduate programs for the same, already inadequate, pool of resources must be changed,” the report says. “Graduate programs at the very least need operating budgets or a centralized administration structure focused on graduate program growth.”

The Graduate Task Force was chaired by Prof. Mathew Dornbush. Members included Kelly Franz, Susan Gallagher-Lepak, Aeron Haynie, Tim Kaufman, Mike Marinetti, Judy Martin, Rebecca Meacham, Tim Meyer, Adam Parrillo, Meir Russ, Jaida Samudra, Dan Spielmann and Patricia Terry.