Alumni statement of support for the University of Wisconsin-Madison

There is clear and overwhelming evidence that a strong University of Wisconsin is integral to the economic well-being of the state of Wisconsin. Here are just some of the facts:

• The University of Wisconsin-Madison is responsible for creating almost 75,000 jobs in the state.
• The university’s presence generates nearly $347 million annually in state and local tax revenue.
• UW-Madison’s impact alone on the state’s economy is $4.7 billion, more than 10 times the state’s annual investment.
• The Southern Growth Policies Board named UW-Madison as one of the top 12 research universities in the nation for fostering state and regional economic development.
• UW-Madison tuition rose by more than one-third in the last two years. We now risk putting the cost of a university education out of reach for most of Wisconsin’s citizens.
• The state’s per capita income is $30,898, below the national average of $31,632 and about $3,500 less than Minnesota’s. In 1969, Wisconsin and Minnesota were even. Barriers to higher education limit the number of college graduates in the work force and hold down needed gains in Wisconsin per capita income.
• As other universities cherry-pick our brightest, most productive faculty, we risk statewide economic decline. During the past year alone, outside job offers to our faculty nearly doubled, and our ability to selectively retain those faculty with counter offers has steadily declined.

We must not let more budget cuts cripple the university and the economic welfare of the state. I urge you to make the University of Wisconsin a priority in the state budget.

Sincerely,