UW-Eau Claire announced that the faculty member involved in an on-campus incident on Tuesday has been removed from their role as department chair. A department chair is a limited appointment leadership role within each academic college at the university, and they serve at the discretion of the provost and college dean. The faculty member, who is currently on administrative leave pending the outcome of an investigation, was the focus of a complaint filed by students who were offering information about the spring election. UW-Eau Claire is a polling location for the city of Eau Claire. The Universities of Wisconsin is conducting the investigation into the incident. The statement below was shared with media following Tuesday’s incident. “I am deeply concerned that our students’ peaceful effort to share information on campus on Election Day was disrupted. UW-Eau Claire strongly supports every person’s right to free speech and free expression, and the university remains committed to ensuring that campus is a place where a wide variety of opinions and beliefs can be shared and celebrated. Civil dialogue is a critical part of the university experience, and peaceful engagement is fundamental to learning itself. We are working with the Universities of Wisconsin and the Office of General Counsel, which is conducting a comprehensive investigation of this matter. The faculty member involved has been placed on administrative leave pending that investigation.” — UW-Eau Claire Interim Provost Michael Carney (fb)

Statement issued by Interim Provost Michael Carney regarding the Election Day incident on-campus: “I am deeply concerned that our students’ peaceful effort to share information on campus on Election Day was disrupted. UW-Eau Claire strongly supports every person’s right to free speech and free expression, and the University remains committed to ensuring that campus is a place where a wide variety of opinions and beliefs can be shared and celebrated. Civil dialogue is a critical part of the university experience, and peaceful engagement is fundamental to learning itself." "We are working with the Universities of Wisconsin and the Office of General Counsel, which is conducting a comprehensive investigation of this matter. The faculty member involved has been placed on administrative leave pending that investigation.” (fb)