MILWAUKEE — Students at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee continue to voice opposition weeks after the university announced plans to consolidate eight cultural and resource centers into one facility.
On Friday, Milwaukee County Supervisor Justin Bielinski called for the university to reverse its decision, writing that it was made with little student input.
The decision has sparked protests on Thursday by the Students for a Democratic Society, and calls for reversal from students who say the centers provide crucial support and community on campus.
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"I felt very welcome, very inclusive, it was like my family, it felt like home, it felt like a second place to get away from all the chaos that's going on in the world," said Sierra Lee, a UWM student who has used the centers since arriving on campus.
"Being a student and utilizing those resource centers and that cultural centers, you didn't come to us directly and say hey how do you feel about this," Lee said.
Bielinski is calling for three specific actions: pause implementation of the consolidation plan, conduct robust and transparent student engagement sessions, and commit to preserving the identity and integrity of each cultural and resource center.
In an emailed statement, a university spokesperson said students "will continue to find the support and community they are looking for on campus" and that "UWM is actively seeking input from the entire campus community in shaping the new center."
Isaiah Martin, a UWM student who attended one of the university's input meetings, said the sessions miss the point of student concerns.
"The whole meeting was about what we want our new center to look like, and the whole point of that meeting is we don't want a new center, we have what we already want to be honest," Martin said.
Martin hopes for a reversal before the change becomes final in fall 2026.
"If we lose our spot and our spaces, who knows what they're going to do to other spaces and other schools," Martin said.
This story was reported on-air by Brendyn Jones and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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