In June the UW–Oshkosh, Fox City Campus will close for good. It will join 5 other associate-degree granting UW campuses that have closed since 2023. These closures are mandated by Universities of Wisconsin President, Jay Rothman. And these closures have locked out non-traditional students from higher education and the cost of this will stretch across generations. 

To talk about the impact of these closures, host Douglas Haynes is joined by Ken Brosky, who directed the documentary, Closure: The Dismantling of Wisconsin’s Colleges. They talk about the mission of the University of Wisconsin colleges including the Wisconsin Idea which is the notion that everyone in the state is entitled to the fruits of higher education. Two year schools are delivering on this mission, but those that haven’t closed are in danger of closing. 

Brosky’s documentary tells a story about budget cuts, the neglect of small campuses, and what communities are losing when these campuses close. It’s also a story of frustration with high-level decision makers who prioritize short term gains but who are really deciding who gets to have access to college. We also hear clips from the documentary that demonstrate just how significant these campuses are to the students who attend them.  

Ken Brosky is the director of Closure: The Dismantling of Wisconsin’s Colleges. He is an Assistant Professor in the College of Integrated Studies at UW-Whitewater at Rock County in Janesville. 

Featured image: a still from the documentary, Closure. 

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