Communications Policies Statements for publication

Copyright

The Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System is the copyright owner of electronic and print materials created by University of Wisconsin departments. Include the copyright symbol and the year of publication: © 2006 Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System

EO/AA (Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action) Compliance Statement

State and federal regulations, as well as university policy, require that certain information appear on University of Wisconsin–Madison publications, demonstrating the university’s commitment to equal opportunity and accessibility. The EO/AA compliance statement must appear on all University of Wisconsin–Madison publications. There are three official versions:

an abbreviated version for posters, postcards, or other publications with severe space limitations
a medium version used most often
a long version for use in catalogs and employee information

Abbreviated Version (for posters and other cases with space limitations)

The University of Wisconsin–Madison is an equal opportunity and affirmative action educator and employer.

Medium version (recommended for most publications)

In its resolve to create teaching and learning environments that support diversity, UW–Madison will ensure compliance with federal and state laws and campus policies that provide separate prohibitions against discrimination based on race, color, creed, religion, sex, national origin or ancestry, age, or disability. State law additionally prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation, arrest or conviction record, marital status, pregnancy, parental status, military status, or veteran status. The application of specific state prohibitions on discrimination may be influenced by an individual’s status as an employee or student. Department of Defense personnel policies governing enlistment and commissioning of armed forces personnel and awarding of Reserve Officer Training Corps scholarships to UW–Madison students do discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation. The University of Wisconsin Board of Regents and UW–Madison faculty, staff, and student governance groups have registered their strong opposition to this discrimination and urge the Department of Defense to change its policy. University policies also prohibit harassment on the basis of ethnicity.

Inquiries concerning this policy may be directed to the appropriate campus admitting or employing unit or to the Equity and Diversity Resource Center, 179A Bascom Hall, 500 Lincoln Drive, Madison, WI 53706‒1380; 608/263‒2378; TTY 608/263‒2473.

Long version (for college catalogs, prospective student materials, and other publications if space permits)

True learning requires free and open debate, civil discourse, and tolerance of many different individuals and ideas. We are preparing students to live and work in a world that speaks with many voices and from many cultures. Tolerance is not only essential to learning, it is an essential to be learned. The University of Wisconsin–Madison is built upon these values and will act vigorously to defend them. We will maintain an environment conducive to teaching and learning that is free from intimidation for all.

In its resolve to create this positive environment, UW–Madison will ensure compliance with federal and state laws protecting against discrimination. In addition, UW–Madison has adopted policies that both emphasize these existing protections and supplement them with protections against discrimination that are not available under either federal or state law.

Federal and state laws provide separate prohibitions against discrimination that is based on race, color, creed, religion, sex, national origin or ancestry, age, or disability. State law additionally prohibits discrimination that is based on sexual orientation, arrest or conviction record, marital status, pregnancy, parental status, military status, or veteran status. The application of specific state prohibitions on discrimination may be influenced by an individual’s status as an employee or student.

Department of Defense personnel policies governing enlistment and commissioning of armed forces personnel and awarding of Reserve Officer Training Corps scholarships to UW–Madison students do discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation. The University of Wisconsin Board of Regents and UW–Madison faculty, staff, and student governance groups have registered their strong opposition to this discrimination and urge the Department of Defense to change its policy.

University policies create additional protections that prohibit harassment on the basis of cultural background and ethnicity.

The McBurney Disability Resource Center is the primary campus resource for students and guests with disabilities. Program goals include providing academic, physical, and electronic access for students in an environment emphasizing variations, not limitations. McBurney staff members work in conjunction with students, faculty, and staff in developing disability–related service recommendations including, but not limited to, alternative testing, note takers, interpreters, and Brailled, electronic or audio–taped course materials. Additional services include disability–related counseling, self–advocacy training, and promotion of disability issues and accommodations. The center also provides disability–related training, information, and referral for university staff and faculty and serves as a clearinghouse for resources on disability issues.

Students seeking accommodations should request assistance from the center as soon as possible. McBurney staff recommend that requests for textbooks in alternative formats and interpreters be made a minimum of four weeks before classes begin. Verification of need is based on disability documentation provided by the student. Faculty may request support from McBurney staff in evaluating and providing accommodation requests. If students feel they have experienced discrimination or wish to appeal a denied accommodation they can refer to the Student Disability Accommodation Request Appeal Process available from the center or at http://www.wisc.edu/wiscinfo/policy/disability.html. For assistance or more information, contact the McBurney Center at 608/263‒2741 (voice) 608/263‒6393 (TTY), 265-2998 (fax), 1305 Linden Drive, Madison, WI 53706, www.dcs.wisc.edu.

Funding statement

For projects that use private, nonuniversity funds, when possible, please include the following statement about the funding source:

“This publication was published with private funding.”

Mission statement

UW–Madison’s mission is “to provide a learning environment in which faculty, staff, and students can discover, examine critically, preserve, and transmit the knowledge, wisdom, and values that will help ensure the survival of this and future generations and improve the quality of life for all.” For more information, visit www.chancellor.wisc.edu/mission.html.

The following phrase may be used as needed:

“To create, integrate, transfer, and apply knowledge.”

UW–Madison overview text

The following two copy blocks can be used by campus units that wish to include an overview of UW–Madison in publications or other communications.

Short version

The University of Wisconsin–Madison is a public, land–grant institution that offers a complete spectrum of studies through 12 schools and colleges. With more than 41,000 students from every U.S. state and 120 countries, UW–Madison is the flagship campus of Wisconsin’s state university system. UW–Madison is a formidable research engine, ranking fourth among U.S. research universities for total research and development expenditures. Faculty, staff, and students are motivated by a tradition known as the “Wisconsin Idea”—that the boundaries of the university are the boundaries of the state and beyond.

Longer version

In achievement and prestige, the University of Wisconsin–Madison has long been recognized as one of America’s great universities.

On a lakefront campus that is considered one of the nation’s most picturesque, this public, land–grant institution includes a complete spectrum of liberal arts studies, professional programs and student activities. Many of its programs are hailed as world leaders in instruction, research, and public service.

The university traces its roots to a clause in the Constitution of the State of Wisconsin, which decreed that the state should have a prominent public university. In 1848, Nelson Dewey, Wisconsin’s first governor, signed the act that formally created the university, and its first class, with 17 students, met in a Madison school building on February 5, 1849.

From those humble beginnings, the university has grown into a large, diverse community, with about 40,000 students enrolled each year. These students represent every county in Wisconsin, as well as countries from around the globe, making for a truly international population. Both throughout its history and today, the university has sought to bring the power of learning into the daily lives of its students through innovations such as residential learning communities.

UW–Madison is the oldest and largest campus in the University of Wisconsin System, a statewide network of two doctoral and 11 comprehensive universities, 13 freshman–sophomore transfer colleges, and an extension service. One of two doctorate–granting universities in the system, UW–Madison has the specific mission of providing “a learning environment in which faculty, staff and students can discover, examine critically, preserve and transmit the knowledge, wisdom and values that will help ensure the survival of this and future generations and improve the quality of life for all.”

The university seeks to achieve these ends through innovative programs of research, teaching and public service. Research at UW–Madison has fed a steady stream of inventions and life–improving ideas, from fuel–efficient engines to cutting–edge genetic therapies. Students, faculty, and staff are motivated by a tradition known as the “Wisconsin Idea,” described by UW President Charles Van Hise in 1904. He declared that he would “never be content until the beneficent influence of the university reaches every family of the state.” The Wisconsin Idea permeates the university’s work and helps forge close working relationships between university faculty and students and the state’s industries and government.