GOP Speaker of Assembly Robin Voss is withholding $32 million in funds to UW System schools in an inhumane effort to abolish diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs across the board.
The push to remove the use of DEI programs across the UW System stems from what many have labeled as an act of racism. However, Voss is not the first politician to put forth effort in eliminating DEI program funding. Both Republican Governors Ron Desantis of Florida and Greg Abbott of Texas have signed laws banning the use of DEI measures involved in student enrollment and faculty employment decisions.
“In June, the GOP-controlled Wisconsin Legislature cut funding to the UW System by $32 million, which was the amount Republicans identified as going toward so-called DEI efforts at UW’s 13 campuses over two years,” according to the Associated Press (AP).
The same time news broke about the $32 million funding cut, the state legislature simultaneously approved, “pay raises for 34,000 university employees of 4% this year and 2% next year,” AP News reported.
Democratic Gov. Tony Evers used the little power he held against Voss’s committee (6-2 Republican) to save 188 DEI positions at risk, but he could do no more to override the decision to defund those programs.
Voss has been quite vocal about his decision to withhold funding to UW schools and was quoted saying he won’t release a nickel of funds until all DEI programs are eradicated.
“I don’t think that they deserve to have any more resources until they accomplish the goal,” Vos told WisPolitics.com on Friday. “Not a nickel. When I say a nickel, that’s what I mean.”
The removal of DEI program funding from UW campuses is not another conflict of political party interest, but a neglect of human rights. Diversity, equity and inclusion programs care for more groups of students than what the GOP party focuses on.
Voss told the Wisconsin Radio Network that, “for the past 10 years the left has used every bit of their resources to indoctrinate – and to burrow like a tick – inside the university system where it’s really hard to get at it.”
This, however, is just not the case. DEI programs are not a political manner enforced by the left. The DEI programs assist with learning impaired students, disabled students, first-generation students, low-income students, students of color, female students and students who identify with the LGBTQ community. This program is meant to ensure that all students get an equal opportunity in and out of the classroom.
Providing impaired students with the opportunity to learn at their own pace is not a matter of politics. Allowing indigenous students to connect with their cultural identity through the university should not be a topic of debate. The DEI program does so much to make an accommodating, inclusive space for those who need it. The removal of this program would harm the futures of so many students across the entire UW-System.
Voss has claimed the DEI program is a way for leftists to indoctrinate their views on students. Yet without the DEI program there would be no Veterans Resource Center. Surely Voss couldn’t have meant to defund a program, according to UWO, that was created to help “empower our veterans, service members and military spouses and dependents with the tools necessary for achieving their academic goals.”
And surely Voss didn’t know that revoking these funds could potentially end programs such as the TRIO Student Support Services (SSS) and TRIO Student Support Services STEM (SSS STEM) made to help first-generation students, as well as low-income students. Programs such as these ensure students are provided with advice on how to finance their education, have an opportunity to connect with other students with similar circumstances and receive guidance with career exploration.
The matter of defunding DEI programs across 13 UW System campuses is a paradigm of power. Robin Voss is holding money hostage that UW schools aren’t financially able to replenish themselves. Faculty are being forced to face up to 10% pay cuts for the next two years with forced, unpaid furlough days.
UW System universities are facing some of the worst financial debt they have in history, and yet, power-hungry Voss is choosing to throw a childlike tantrum over the defunding of a program that does more for students than he will ever be able to.
UW System President Jay Rothman is an advocate for promised pay raises for faculty and funding to keep DEI programs running.
“We continue to have discussions with the Speaker and appreciate that there are differing views on (DEI),” Rothman told AP News. “We believe we can work through these issues without adversely affecting employees and their families.
Meanwhile, Evers called a legislative session to approve a $1 billion package that includes $66 million for the UW System, $365 million for child care including making the pandemic-era Child Care Counts Program permanent, and $243 million to provide up to 12 weeks of paid family leave for Wisconsin workers starting in 2025, reported AP News.
As of lately, the UW System is undergoing an abundance of change and hearing a lot of empty promises. Faculty and students are faced with immense uncertainty surrounding their salary, their job and their future.
Voss has it all wrong.
DEI programs are not some rampant ideology being forced down the throat of college kids. It is not even a matter of politics. It is a way for universities to support students who need a little extra assistance in order to succeed. Not every student was given equal opportunities, but the DEI program works to level the gap on those who fall short.
Stop punishing universities for creating an environment equitable for all students of all backgrounds. It is so much more than what meets the eye (the GOP eye to be specific). There are far greater issues in this world (in the state of Wisconsin alone) than a program designed to help college kids succeed.
