UWM Named One of the Top ‘Best Neighbor’ Universities for its Role in Strengthening the Urban Economy

MILWAUKEE – In a widely praised ranking of U.S. colleges and universities, the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM) was named one of the nation’s Top 10 “best neighbor” urban institutions for its role in strengthening the local economy and improving the quality of life in Milwaukee.

Compiled from research by Evan Dobelle, president of the New England Board of Higher Education and a four-time university president, the new list, called “Saviors of Our Cities,” recognizes institutions for their “careful strategic planning” and “thoughtful use of resources” to champion urban issues.

It is a standard of measurement that is glaringly absent from the traditional college rankings found on the newsstands each fall, said Dobelle. “I felt there needed to be some balance because those (other rankings) are weighted too heavily on money,” Dobelle said. “And I got tired of the party school issues.”

“Serving the community in which our university resides has long been a strength at UW-Milwaukee,” said Chancellor Carlos E. Santiago. “It is very gratifying to know that efforts made across our campus toward partnerships, social and economic change, and public service have been recognized to be among the nation’s best.”

The “Saviors” list represents hundreds of other campuses whose communities have come to rely on them, Dobelle said.

“The extraordinary efforts of these and other colleges have given a sense of confidence and hope as well as stability to cities that would otherwise be struggling in a world of mergers, downsizing and global outsourcing that has eroded the traditional urban economic base,” he said.

Inclusion on the list is based on 10 criteria that were designed to accommodate scale in terms of the size of the institution, student population, amount of endowment and population of the immediate city. They include such measures as dollars invested through campus foundations and annual budgets, the involvement of faculty and students in community service, and the difference they have made on local students’ ability to attend college through K-12 partnerships.

UWM’s dual priorities of economic support through research and social support through diversity and access are values that embody the spirit of Dobelle’s list. An expert in higher education and cities and a former president at the University of Hawaii, Dobelle has been a longtime advocate of service learning and campus diversity.

UWM’s “Access to Success” program, established this year, matches incoming students with resources tailored to help them successfully complete their degree.

Dobelle said he was impressed by the initiatives that took shape under the community engagement plan called The Milwaukee Idea, such as the launch of service learning courses and the School of Education’s partnerships with the Milwaukee Public Schools to improve instruction to the city’s urban youth.

He also praised the College of Nursing’s community health clinics, and said the efforts were made more significant by the attention they have gotten from local business leaders. More than 10,000 school children from inner-city neighborhoods have enrolled in UWM’s Pre-College Programs.

With some support from the UW System and the state, UWM invested $6.5 million to put The Milwaukee Idea initiatives into motion, said Ruth Williams, associate vice chancellor for academic affairs. But beyond the financial investment are countless organizations and businesses that benefit from leadership or expertise from UWM faculty and staff or from graduates, she adds.

The list resulted from research Dobelle embarked on after giving an address to the National Press Club in 1998 called “Stepping Down from the Ivory Tower.” Since the list was released in early August, it has been widely covered in the mass media, appearing in outlets such as CBS online, the New York Times, the Boston Globe and National Public Radio.

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