Overview
- Jay Rothman, who leads the 25‑campus Universities of Wisconsin, disclosed in letters obtained Thursday that regents told him to resign or be fired and he refused.
- The Board of Regents held a closed emergency meeting Wednesday to discuss a personnel matter involving university leadership.
- Board President Amy Bogost said the board is considering the system’s future and declined to discuss personnel details.
- It remains unclear whether regents can dismiss the president without cause, with a UW spokesperson reviewing state law as most regents declined public comment.
- Republican state Rep. David Murphy on Friday criticized the secretive process and urged the board to explain its loss of confidence or halt the effort, underscoring high stakes as UW faces enrollment drops, branch campus closures, and the pending exit of Madison’s chancellor to Columbia University.