The University of Wisconsin-Green Bay will suspend in-person classes at its Marinette campus, according to a letter from Chancellor Michael Alexander.
Enrollment at the Marinette campus was at 213 in the fall semester, down from 305 in 2018-19. The enrollment compares to 404 at UW-Green Bay’s Manitowoc campus and 436 at the Sheboygan campus.
“Despite initial enrollment gains, we recognize that persisting on the current path will inevitably lead to closure. Instead of waiting for a closure, we have chosen to proactively rethink our approach to maintain a meaningful presence in Marinette,” Alexander said in the letter. “In the fall, we will keep classrooms with streaming capabilities active for courses that are taught at Marinette or coming to Marinette from other UW-Green Bay locations.” That means there may be some instances where professors are teaching students in-person from classrooms in Marinette, however, those classes will also be streamed to students who attend other UW-Green Bay locations.
There were 14 in person during the fall 2023 semester.
Marinette County owns the buildings on UW-Green Bay’s Marinette campus and has leased it to UWGB since 1967.
The lease is supposed to end in 2042, but can be terminated on June 30 of any year if “appropriations by the legislature are insufficient to permit the continued operation of the university” or “state legislation concerning higher education in Wisconsin involves a fundamental change in the university’s branch campus program.”
Read the full letter from UW- Green Bay Chancellor Michael Alexander to faculty and staff:
“Our conversations with the county are still occurring, but our internal conversation has become public prior to us completing negotiations,” Alexander wrote. “We will not comment on the ongoing discussions. However, today I am sending you the draft communication we were working on that reflects the internal conversations we had back in November so that we are transparent internally and externally on our intentions.”
In collaboration with Marinette County, we are working to make a paradigm shift to redefine how we will measure success, provide value to our constituents, and invest in UW-Green Bay’s location in Marinette.
Alexander said the university has been committed to offering select four-year degrees in Manitowoc, Marinette and Sheboygan and avoided directly competing with the former UW Colleges that were merged with the UW system in 2021 and that offer two year degrees and certificates.
While Manitowoc and Sheboygan have shown increasing enrollments, Marinette has not.
Alexander wrote: “We will increase our investment in Marinette based on three pillars. First, we know that the people in Marinette value the Herb Williams Theatre. We do, too, and therefore will invest further to make it the flagship theatre northwest of Green Bay. Second, the location will serve as an access point for students and community members for educational resources. We will expand camps, non-credit educational offerings that are responsive to the requests of the community, and learning opportunities through our Lifelong Learning Institute.Third, we plan to invite third party access to facilities that can enhance the capital investment Marinette County has made at the location. We are working to sign a new agreement with Marinette County that will ensure that we can make great use of the infrastructure at the campus.”
