University Lectures Policies & Procedures

1. Units eligible to request funding are:
   1. Academic departments;
   2. Officially recognized interdepartmental programs, centers, and institutes; or
   3. Registered student organizations with an application endorsed by an academic department. (Please note that the department will be responsible for handling the financial disbursements of the lecture expenses.)
2. Any eligible unit, as defined above, can submit a maximum of two lecture requests per year, with the provision that the proposed lectures cannot take place during the same semester.
3. Requests must have the co-sponsorship of at least one other department, program, or student organization to assure wider publicity and to make the best use of limited resources. Soliciting multiple co-sponsoring units, especially those that provide funding, will strengthen the proposal. (The co-sponsoring unit(s) may still apply for separate support from the Lectures Committee).
4. Lectures must take place during the fall or spring semesters or the 8-week summer session.
5. Proposals must be received prior to the date of the lecture.
6. Lectures must be free and open to anyone in the university community.
7. Lectures may be in person or virtual. In-person lectures must be held at an accessible location on or immediately adjacent to the campus.
8. Requests must be for a specially organized lecture that is not part of a regularly scheduled class. The committee will not support a guest or substitute lecturer for a university course under any circumstances.
9. Lecture topics should be of interest to students, preferably in multiple disciplines, and lectures that appeal to wider audiences are encouraged.
10. The committee does not provide funds for lecturers who lecture under contract for commercial agencies or who earn their living as professional lecturers.

Proposals are submitted online and accepted for the following deadlines:

1. February 15
2. April 15
3. September 15
4. November 15
5. December 15 (2024 only)

Proposals may include requests for the following expense types: honorarium, travel expenses, lodging, meals, and captioning. Please adhere to the following policies:

1. All expenses must follow UW-Madison and Universities of Wisconsin policies, including choice of vendor.
2. All air travel must be booked through Concur. Fares should be based on economy class, 30-day advance purchase.
3. The Lectures Committee can grant funding for one night of lodging and one day of per-diem meals . If the lecturer provides other services of a public nature (i.e., university-wide) on an additional day, the sponsor may request additional lodging and meal funding with a full justification. There is no guarantee additional funding will be approved.
4. Funds for live captioning and CART services can be requested. Interested units must work directly with the McBurney Disability Resource Center to make arrangements. If someone requests a disability-related accommodation request for the lecture, then the cost of CART services will be funded centrally through the McBurney Center. https://mcburney.wisc.edu/interpreting-captioning-requests/

All other lecture expenses (e.g., venue, receptions) are the responsibility of the sponsoring unit. Some exceptions may exist for lectures that make use of specialty funding (see the proposal form for options).

Proposals must be approved by the primary sponsor department chair or director before they will be accepted by the committee.

The Lectures Committee evaluates proposals based on the following criteria:

1. Lecture qualifications (see above);
2. Level of interdisciplinary support, including financial support;
3. Audience size realistically anticipated;
4. Level of the lecture’s contribution to the academic mission of the university; and
5. Stature or expertise of the speaker.

The Lectures Committee expects that submitters will seek funding from other sources before requesting committee support. The committee expects the sponsors to provide half of the total funding amount for the event, and, if this is not achievable, to provide an explanation for why they need a greater amount of funding from the committee.

The Lectures Committee decision will be communicated approximately three weeks after each deadline.

The department is responsible for making all arrangements and paying all expenses up front. If a proposal is approved, Lectures Committee funding is provided AFTER the event.

Upon submission and approval of the post-lecture report, expenses are reimbursed via non-salary cost transfer initiated by the department. The post-lecture report is due by June 1 and cost transfers must be submitted by the end of the fiscal year. Expenses that do not adhere to university regulations will not be reimbursed.

The sponsoring unit(s) is responsible for the publicity of the lecture, including an announcement to relevant student audiences, and should use the University Lectures logo when acknowledging the committee’s contribution.

If the sponsoring unit wishes to record the lecture, they must receive written permission from the speaker. A variety of lecture recording resources exist across the UW campus; contact DoIT for assistance with recording and/or streaming.

If the date of a lecture must be changed from the date indicated on the Lectures Proposal, a written notice of the change must be submitted to the Lectures Committee. If the date falls outside the academic year for which the lecture was approved, a request for an extension of the funds must be made. Prior authorization from the committee is required for extensions outside the initial academic year. If prior authorization is not obtained, the Lectures Committee may withdraw its support of the lecture, and the sponsoring units will bear the full financial responsibility for its costs.