MADISON Wis. – University of Wisconsin System President Kevin Reilly is challenging campuses to find new ways to graduate more students as part of a long-range plan to increase the number of degree-holders in the state.
Dr. Reilly said he wants the system of 13 four-year universities and 13 two-year colleges to increase the number of degrees issued by 30 percent by 2025. That would bump the number of graduates up from the current 26,000 per year to 33,700 and produce 80,000 more graduates in the next 15 years, he said.
The system must act, Reilly said, for the good of the state’s economic future.
With more degrees comes higher personal income and a better quality of life, Reilly said, echoing a theme that has been part of his message in his tenure leading the system since 2004. He is expected to present his goal Thursday to the Board of Regents during a meeting in Fond du Lac.
Achieving the goal would increase the percentage of Wisconsin adults with college degrees from 34 percent to 50 percent, a level currently enjoyed in top-performing countries such as Canada and Japan, he said.
To get there, campuses must improve graduation and retention rates, embrace new course delivery methods and receive additional state investment, he said. Some will expand enrollment, but key growth will come from recruiting a deeper cut of underrepresented populations such as minorities and low-income students and helping them finish, he said.
Reilly said campuses must also appeal to more working adults who want to finish degrees by giving credit for what they have learned already and offering more compressed courses and more distance education programs.
