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UW System president highlights Direct Admit gains, budget work and federal rule changes
Summary
UW System President Wachter told the Board of Regents the Direct Admit Wisconsin program is driving retention and enrollment gains, previewed budget negotiations for the 2027–29 biennium, and flagged federal rulemaking on tuition transparency and accreditation as areas the system is monitoring.
UW System President Wachter told the Board of Regents on July 1 that the system is actively engaged in developing a budget proposal for the 2027–29 biennium while continuing to expand access programs that keep students in Wisconsin.
Wachter highlighted Direct Admit Wisconsin, an early admissions program for high‑school juniors, citing internal evaluation figures: 77% of eligible students said Direct Admit made them more likely to stay in Wisconsin for college, and 67% said it made them more likely to enroll in a four‑year institution immediately after high school. Wachter said about 510 of 804 Wisconsin high schools are currently participating and that the system expects to send roughly 40,000 admission offers to the 10 participating institutions between August and October for fall 2027.
"It's delivering on the promise," Wachter said, describing Direct Admit as part of broader budget and access strategies. Board members pressed for more outreach: Regent Bogost asked whether additional high schools are joining and whether the system has a strategy to recruit nonparticipating districts. Wachter said staff continue targeted outreach to districts such as Superior and noted participation differences tied to local opt‑in versus opt‑out policies for students. Vice President Rai offered to share a list of nonparticipating high schools so regents could assist outreach efforts.
Wachter also announced that the Wisconsin Institute for Public Policy and Service (WHIPS) has relocated to UW–Eau Claire to expand student engagement and community‑focused research across central and western Wisconsin.
On federal developments, Wachter told the board the U.S. Department of Education released new student tuition, transparency and earnings accountability rules tied to provisions of HR 1 and that the system expects additional rulemaking on uniform guidance and accreditation in the coming months. "My team continues to work in close collaboration with leaders at each of our universities to ensure both awareness and understanding of these changes," Wachter said.
Wachter said the system will continue stakeholder consultations on the biennial budget and provide more details to the board in August.
Next steps: staff will continue outreach on Direct Admit participation, compile nonparticipating‑district lists for regents, and return budget proposal details at the August meeting.
