The purpose of this is memo is to update you on the continuing efforts of UW System Administration in response to the recommendations made in the Board of Regents 21st Century Study: Teaching Academic Staff in the UW System. The study is available on-line at: /acss/teach.htm.

Last April, teams from each of the 15 UW institutions attended a daylong forum that focused on instructional academic staff issues. In particular, teams discussed ways to better integrate Instructional Academic Staff (IAS) into institutional life. A summary of the forum is available on-line at /acss/ias/. One of the suggestions that came out of the forum - and also recommended in the Teaching Academic Staff study - was to reconsider the policy that required institutions to indicate in their course timetables whether courses were being taught by faculty, instructional academic staff or teaching assistants. This policy was a result of a recommendation made in the 1993 Report of the Governor's Task Force on University of Wisconsin Accountability Measures, and has been part of the UW System's annual Accountability for Achievement Report. In fall, UW System President Katherine Lyall appointed an Accountability Task Force that was charged with reviewing this and other accountability indicators. We have learned that the task force will recommend in its report to the Board of Regents that institutions should no longer be required to identify instructors' personnel classifications in course timetables. The report is expected to be presented to the Board of Regents at its June meeting.

Another topic that was addressed at the forum and identified in the study was the issue of titling. Concern was expressed that the title "Instructional Academic Staff" did not reflect national titling trends. There was interest in exploring a new title that would better reflect the true nature of the position. At its March meeting, the Board of Regents approved a series of staffing principles. The principles were adopted to guide UW institutions over the next decade in

rebuilding the instructional core as current faculty and academic staff retire. One of the principles is that titles for non-tenure-track instructional and research staff will be revised to reflect national titling trends. We will soon be developing a process to implement this idea.

The other major area of focus in the Teaching Academic Staff study concerned personnel policy matters. It was not immediately clear to us how best to approach this very complex topic. To help guide our efforts, a small discussion group was formed with representatives from the faculty, instructional academic staff and administration. The group narrowed the focus of the discussion to three primary areas: titling, hiring and job security. Based upon the recommendations made in the study and on feedback we heard at the forum, we know that institutional policies and processes regarding these areas vary. Before proceeding with any formal systemwide discussion of other personnel topics, we have been asked to conduct a survey of the institutions to better understand current practices. To accomplish this, we have scheduled a meeting of campus academic personnel officers for March 24, 2000. We hope to learn a great deal more about campus policy, process and practice as it relates to IAS titling, hiring, and job security. It is my hope that this information will help us determine what IAS personnel issues need to be addressed and how best to address them. This may lead to future workshops, forums, informational publications and/or other types of dissemination strategies.

We will continue to keep you informed of our progress by updating the IAS web site and by regularly reporting at the meetings of representative groups such as the Faculty Representatives and Academic Staff Representatives. The Teaching Academic Staff study outlines many important recommendations for both UW System Administration and individual institutions. I urge you review the study if you have not already done so. Please contact me at 608-262-6717 (lrubin@uwsa.edu) if you have any questions about these continuing efforts.

Katharine Lyall, President
David J. Ward, Senior Vice President
David Olien, Senior Vice President
Chancellors
Provosts
Sharon James, Associate Vice President
George Brooks, Associate Vice President
Frank Goldberg, Associate Vice President
Academic Personnel Officers

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