Washington County explores 'merging' UW-Milwaukee Washington County into Moraine Park Technical College

If Washington County Executive Josh Schoemann had his way, his county would have one college campus.

Students currently have two local options: the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Washington County or the West Bend campus of Moraine Park Technical College.

The Washington County Board on Wednesday is expected to consider whether to recommend "merging" the two institutions together in a way that would effectively shutter UW-Milwaukee Washington County.

The vote is purely advisory, with no enforcement mechanism forcing either institution to do anything and a lease between the county and UW System still in place. But if passed, it would mark the strongest public response by a county among the dozen grappling with the future of their local UW branch campuses since learning last fall about UW-Platteville Richland.

With enrollment at UW-Platteville Richland down to fewer than 60 students, UW System President Jay Rothman announced the end of in-person classes after this spring semester. UW System officials have pledged to maintain some sort of UW presence in Richland Center, though the plan appears to be focused on online education.

In the eyes of many in the Richland Center community, UW System dictated the essential closure of their campus. The decision also leaves Richland County in a bind about what to do with its seven soon-to-be empty campus buildings.

How UW-Platteville Richland's demise has played out is exactly what Schoemann is trying to avoid.

"This is us ripping the Band-Aid off," Schoemann said. "We are attempting to control our own destiny and have a say in how shared resources should work."

Plan calls for one community college concept

Schoemann put together a task force to study the future of higher education in Washington County. Most members were local government or business leaders. One administrator from UWM and another from Moraine Park Technical College served on the task force as non-voting members.

The group's recommendation is light on specifics but calls for one community college in West Bend operated by Moraine Park Technical College.

The plan isn't about saving Washington County money, Schoemann said. Resources going to support the UW campus would be redirected to the technical college.

"Folks who may be saying this is a de-facto closure — no, that’s what happening in Richland," he said. "This is our way to have a say."

Proposal puts Moraine Park Technical College in charge

Moraine Park and other technical colleges have historically focused on training workers in the skilled trades, leaving the two-year UW campuses as the place to pursue associate's liberal arts degrees. A few technical colleges, including Milwaukee Area Technical College, have offered both. But it wasn't until last year that the UW Board of Regents signed off on allowing all technical colleges to do so.

The move, according to the task force, put technical colleges in direct competition with UW branch campuses.

Geography doesn't help. The two West Bend campuses are just a couple miles apart.

Neither do demographics. The West Bend School District, a major feeder to the campuses, has about 500 high school seniors this year but only 350 kindergartners, Schoemann said.

Enrollment at UWM-Washington County is much lower, with about 271 full-time equivalent students in 2021-22. Moraine Park Technical College had about 2,400 last school year, though the number enrolled on the West Bend campus wasn't available before publication.

The funding and governance structures of the two schools differ.

The UW Board of Regents oversees UWM-Washington County, which is funded primarily by stagnant state funding and tuition, which had been frozen for more than a decade. Annual tuition increases by $214 next school year to nearly $5,000.

Moraine Park Technical College is run by a local district board and has local taxing authority. Annual tuition is roughly $4,300. The task force said merging the schools into Moraine Park would keep in place or even enhance the existing base of property tax support.

Washington County already has ideas for UW campus building

Schoemann said he's not "overly concerned" with finding a new use for the UW campus. Unlike the Richland campus that includes seven buildings, UW-Washington County occupies just one.

Since the task force's plan was first reported by Wisconsin Public Radio, Schoemann said he's been approached by local developers about ideas for the space, such as a private high school. He also said West Bend School District may be interested.

UWM-Washington County's faculty call for a pause

The task force doesn't specify what to do with UWM-Washington County faculty, some of whom have tenure protections written into their contracts.

The task force raises the possibility of some employees moving over to Moraine Park. The report notes the average base salary at the technical college is $92,000 compared to $60,000 at UW.

In a letter to the Washington County Board, a group of concerned employees at UWM-Washington County and UWM-Waukesha asked for the vote to be tabled until more details are available. The group said both campuses have been subjected to reorganizations and mergers without due diligence or transparency, leading to enrollment decline.

"We ask that you not repeat the same fraught process," the letter said. "Instead of expediting a haphazard merger that neither (UWM branch campuses) nor Moraine Park Technical College asked for, please collaborate with us to improve and build upon our existing services so we can continue to provide a high-quality university education in Washington County."

The professors called for more input from the schools and community. They also raised questions about continuing the campus' research enterprise, which relies on access to UW resources and provides broader benefits to the community. Recent projects have evaluated the effectiveness of the county's drug court and analyzed blue walleye biology.

School leaders weigh in

UWM struck a similar tone in calling for more discussion and involvement. University spokesperson Liv Hwang said UWM had "no influence" over the Washington County Board resolution but is open to conversation. She also said the school has made significant investments in the campus since it merged with UWM in 2018 and has repeatedly affirmed its commitment to students and employees.

Moraine Park Technical College President Bonnie Baerwald said her school has the facilities and employees to provide services to all existing and future UWM-Washington County students.

"We don't see a need to formally merge anything," she said, but Moraine Park would welcome the opportunity to work more closely with four-year schools.

Contact Kelly Meyerhofer at kmeyerhofer@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter at @KellyMeyerhofer.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Washington County considers UW branch campus, technical college merger