Prompted by disruptions at the University of Wisconsin-Madison which culminated in the activation of the Wisconsin National Guard in February 1969, the members of the Legislature felt obligated to inform themselves and the people of any activities occurring on campus which violated the laws and policies of the state. Senate Joint Resolution 20, as amended, adopted on February 27, 1969, established a special joint committee to study disruptions on the Madison campus and at other public higher educational institutions in the state. The committee was directed to study recent disruptions, reviewing their causes, the events, and the results, make recommendations, and report back to the 1969 Legislature. The committee held public hearings and received testimony from university and community officials as well as from students.
The incident which gave rise to so much legislative concern began on the Madison campus on February 7, 1969, when a group of black students presented the university administration with a series of demands. Various demands and grievances had previously been presented to the university as early as November 1968. A student strike of university classes ensued, increasing in intensity daily. On February 12, the Wisconsin National Guard was activated, and after a peak of activity on February 13, student participation in the strike gradually waned. By February 15, the black students called off the strike.
After conducting public hearings, the committee issued a report that was harshly critical of the university, campus security, and the students. The committee concluded: the university administrative structure should be completely reviewed with a view toward decentralization to encourage more responsiveness; faculty members who participated in or led the protest should be disciplined; the university failed to anticipate the problems and as a result responded inadequately; the university security force performed inadequately; student standards of conduct were unclear and inadequately enforced; public funds, equipment, and facilities were used to advance the strike which was deplored; university discipline procedures were inadequate; and the university failed to take responsibility for the actions of its students in the community. Specifically, the committee recommended passage of Senate Bill 592, Senate Bill 691, Assembly Bill 953, and Senate Bill 367. A summary of each of these bills is included in the text of the final report. Both Assemblyman Stanley York and Senator Carl Thompson dissented from the majority report.
