Spring 1997 - Digitized Resources Murphy Library University of ...

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Judith L. Kuipers
Chancellor
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The governor and legislators are currently
working on the 1997-99 biennial budget. A
critical part ofthat budget, for the University
of Wisconsin-La Crosse, is funding for new
faculty to serve new allied health programs.
Implementation of
health programs became
part of the university's
strategic plan based on a
1992 study by a Rural and
Urban Underservice Task
Force. The study found
declining access to primary
care throughout
rural Wisconsin. State
health profession education
programs were not
producing.enoughprofes:
sionalsto meet health care
needs. Later, a UW System
lateral audit of allied
health programs at seven
campuses concluded that
two institutions, UW-La
Crosse and the University
of Wisconsin-Milwaukee,
should expand allied
health offerings.
Basedon the findings of thosestlldies,the
university expanded its efforts and reallocated
$650,000 into our allied health programs.
This allowed the university to implement a
new master's degree in physical therapy
along with a physician assistant bachelor's
degree program. The university also
Judith Kuipers has served as Chancellor of the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse since 1991.
received an entitlement for a bachelor's in
occupational therapy and a $303,000
Department of Health and Human Services
grant.
The key to the success of these new
programs is a $2.25 million
funding request in the
1997-99 biennial budget
for new faculty (14 at UW­
La Crosse and 13 at UW­
Milwaukee). If funding is
not approved, the new
allied health programs will
be limited.
With approved funding,
UW-La Crosse students in
the allied health programs
will realize many opportunities
for health care
careers in Wisconsin (more
than 4,000 additional jobs
for physical and occupational
therapists are projected
by 2005). At the
same time the university
will help alleviate future
health care shortages for
rural Wisconsin citizens.
Your direct or indirect support of these
new initiatives will move UW-La Crosse into
the 21st century.
As always,. thank you for your past and
future interest in the university.
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