Dive Brief:

• UW officials say that data showing declines in statewide teacher education program enrollment in the University of Wisconsin System isn't indicative of the situation at UW-Madison.
• In recent years, UW-Madison has reportedly seen only seen "little to no" decline in specific programs, but not an enrollment decline at large.
• Programs seeing small enrollment declines were elementary education, music education, science education and earth science education, though other programs, like social studies education, have seen increases.

Dive Insight:

The enrollment declines aren't surprising to some given Wisconsin's political atmosphere when it comes to teachers and other state employees, but enrollment could bounce back once the political pressure and accompanying "stigma" recede. School of Education Associate Dean Cheryl Hanley-Maxwell, however, doesn't believe the statewide decline is the result of the Act 10 law, which made drastic changes to the collective bargaining rights of public employees like teachers. She notes that students pursuing teacher education certificates weren't included in the statistics, perhaps skewing them downward slightly.