The suspension or discontinuation of an academic program impacts academic divisions and units, faculty, and staff, as well as students. This policy addresses the importance of communicating such decisions and ensuring the quality of the program is maintained throughout the teach-out period.
All academic units that seek to suspend and/or discontinue an academic program
A proposal to suspend admission to or discontinue an academic program is the result of one or more of the following:
In all cases, suspending admission or discontinuing an academic program requires the same open and transparent process, communication, documentation of concurrence by other interested and affected units, and participation in shared governance as is required to gain approval for a new program. The suspension or discontinuation of an academic program involves consultation and communication with a wide range of academic, administrative, and student support units and must be managed to minimize any adverse impact on current or prospective students, and on faculty and staff. Appropriate and timely notice must be given to all interested parties. Faculty and staff are to consult with their respective dean's office; Data, Academic, Planning and Institutional Research; the Office of the Registrar; the Graduate School; the Office of Undergraduate Advising; and student governance groups, among others.
This policy requires the following for suspension or discontinuation of an academic program submitted via a Lumen Programs proposal:
Advanced planning is necessary to fully consider students who are in the pipeline and may be making college choices based on academic programs available at UW-Madison.
A teach-out plan is required to meet the commitment made to currently enrolled and prospective students admitted to the program, as well as to those students who were at one time enrolled in the academic program and stopped out.
Currently enrolled students who have declared an intention to complete the program must be supported with courses, advising, and other services to complete the program. The faculty must plan to continue teaching required courses or make reasonable exceptions to those requirements to facilitate student completion of the requirements. In some cases, the faculty may need to adjust program requirements to maintain quality throughout the teach-out period. Such a change in curricular requirements may require approval by the school/college curriculum committee.
Prospective students, e.g., new freshmen, transfer students, or graduate students, who selected the program on the application for admission and who received offers of admission, or those who have otherwise been formally advised preceding the program’s proposal for suspension or discontinuation, must be informed of the program’s status, and must be advised of other program options, if applicable.
Stopped-out students will not be readmitted to a degree/major program that has been suspended or discontinued. The teach-out plan must describe how stopped-out students will be supported to find an appropriate new major/degree program.
UW-705 Academic Staff Policies and Procedures Chapters 5 – Layoff for Reasons of Budget or Program
UW-810 Faculty Policies and Procedures Chapter 10 – Layoff or Termination
UW-1001 Change of Application/Admission Status for Master’s Level Degree/Major Program
UW-1008 Policy on Low Award Producing Academic Programs
05-17-2012, 06-22-2018, 11-29-2019, 04-26-2023