After much discussion with leaders from the Division of Extension, Dean Glenda Gillaspy will reorganize the way the CALS leadership team works with Extension. CALS is eliminating the associate dean for extension and outreach administrative position and adding extension responsibility to the associate dean for research position, currently held by Troy Runge.

“As the college asks departments and programs to be responsible with administrative positions and find ways to improve efficiency, I am also committed to innovation in our administrative structures,” says Dean Gillaspy, “I see an opportunity to streamline our administrative leadership so that CALS research and extension programs are more closely aligned. This allows CALS to more efficiently leverage the strength of our world-class Extension faculty,  whose extension work is driven by their research programs.” 

Runge’s position will expand to include extension work, in partnership with the Division of Extension, as the associate dean for research and extension. Runge will lead program planning in collaborative areas of CALS and Extension, including faculty hiring. 

Gillaspy also notes that many other land-grant colleges like ours already have combined responsibilities for research and extension activities in a single associate dean position.

“Extension’s partnership with CALS has seen many positive changes since the restructuring of Extension in 2017 and the transition of Extension to UW–Madison in 2019; this is yet one more of those positive changes,” said Dean of Extension Karl Martin. “I have a great deal of confidence in our amazing group of Extension specialists in CALS and their ability to serve the people of Wisconsin. This will only be enhanced with a closer connection to CALS research as Troy Runge takes on this important role.”

Martin adds, “Extension has an amazing team of leaders working with Troy, including Extension’s Associate Deans Patrick Robinson and JulieAnn Stawicki, as well as Assistant Deans Heidi Johnson, Tricia Gorby and Benoy Jacob.”

Outgoing Associate Dean for Extension and Outreach Doug Reinemann was the first to serve in this role since Cooperative Extension moved from the UW–Extension campus to UW–Madison in 2019. Reinemann’s role was different from prior Extension faculty to serve in that role in CALS, mostly notably because leadership of Extension agricultural programs within the Division of Extension is now the responsibility of Director of the Agriculture Institute Heidi Johnson and Associate Dean for Agriculture, Natural Resources & Community Development Patrick Robinson.

Following Extension’s move to UW–Madison, then-Provost Karl Scholz announced a plan for Extension-funded faculty to have tenure homes in existing UW–Madison academic departments (rather than Extension hiring new faculty within their organization) and the Division of Extension as the home for academic staff-led programs and positions. Since then, Extension-funded academic staff positions in CALS have been slowly transferring to the Division of Extension through retirements or other reorganizations. This approach with tenured faculty located in CALS departments and academic staff in Extension institutes will continue moving forward.

Many things will remain the same in the Extension/CALS partnership: 

• Extension will continue to fund Extension faculty positions with tenure homes in CALS’ academic departments – both current and future positions.
• Decisions about future faculty positions will be made jointly by leaders in CALS and Extension.
• People in Extension-funded faculty roles will continue to receive support for grant administration, human resources and business services from their department and CALS offices.
• International agriculture outreach work, which has long been occurring in CALS, will continue to grow and expand in CALS Global.
• Requests for new faculty positions funded by Extension should continue to be made during the annual department meeting between the dean’s leadership team and the department chair. Dean Gillaspy and Associate Dean Runge will work with Extension to approve and finalize any new positions.
• Extension-funded faculty who request alterations to their positions (either increasing or decreasing extension effort) will continue to work through their chair, who will consult with the associate dean for research and extension on those changes.