RO Helps Implement Campus-Wide Initiatives

The Office of the Registrar has been helping implement various, new campus-wide initiatives this fall, helping the university improve on addressing racial inequities and ensure accountability of the Badger Pledge. Division of Student Life “Our Wisconsin” implementation In her July 8th blog, ‘Addressing Racial Inequities on Campus’, Chancellor Blank committed to making the completion of the ‘Our Wisconsin’ inclusion training program mandatory for all new, entering undergraduate students, starting this fall. To support our partners in Student Affairs in fulfilling this commitment, the Office of the Registrar enhanced the process that was built when we collaborated with UHS on the mandatory AlcoholEdu and U Got This! programs. In less than a month from the Chancellor’s blog, the RO had modified the technical process, identifying the population of new students who need to complete the mandatory programs and transferring their data to the Canvas courses created for each program. The RO also created a service indicator/hold, which will be placed on the records of students who haven’t completed the program in the fall term. This prevents them from enrolling in Spring 2021 courses until their Our Wisconsin completion is recorded. With this, the RO modified the process whereby a student’s program completion automatically triggers the release of that service indicator/hold.   Supporting Dean of Students efforts for accountability of the Badger Pledge with querying As part of UW–Madison’s Smart Restart initiative, the Division of Student Affairs, the Office of Compliance, and the Dean of Students Office have asked students to sign a “Badger Pledge,” which commits them to wearing a mask inside university buildings and public spaces, socially distancing themselves, practicing good hygiene, attending gatherings sparingly, and staying informed of university and local policies. To help our colleagues in their efforts to follow up with those students who haven’t participated in the Badger Pledge, the Office of the Registrar is providing data-on-demand for various student populations, as well as assisting with reverse address look-up in an effort to identify students who may live at addresses that have been identified as hosting gatherings in violation of Dane County Public Health guidelines.