From: Administrative E-Memo (memofrom@Colorado.EDU)
Date: Wed Apr 07 2010 - 16:17:11 MDT
Date: Wed, 7 Apr 2010 16:17:11 -0600 (MDT) From: Administrative E-Memo <memofrom@Colorado.EDU> Subject: Budget Update
TO: Boulder Campus Faculty, Staff, Students,
and Administrators
FROM: Office of the Chancellor
SENDER: Philip P. DiStefano, Chancellor
DATE: April 7, 2010
SUBJECT: Budget Update
April 7, 2010
Dear campus community members,
During these challenging economic times I have kept you apprised of our
campus budget situation since I was appointed Chancellor nearly a year ago,
and before that as interim Chancellor. Today I would like to inform you of
the budget reductions I have submitted to CU President Bruce Benson to be
considered by the Board of Regents at its April 22 meeting.
Due to the worst economic recession in our lifetime, the University of
Colorado systemwide has lost 58 percent of its state funding since last
July. As a result, the University of Colorado at Boulder cut its budget by
$12.9 million in July 2009 and now must take another $9.4 million effective
July 1, for a total of $22.3 million.
We lost 33 faculty and 42 staff positions in fiscal year 2010 and we will
lose another 23 faculty and 37 staff positions in FY 2011 for a total of 135
positions over two years - 93 of which are currently unfilled vacant
positions.
Hiring and appointing authorities who anticipate budget impacts on
classified and exempt professional positions are asked to contact the
Department of Human Resources at 303-492-6475.
No one relishes cutting the budget or losing dedicated people. But doing so
with our students' and the university's highest priorities in mind will help
us emerge from this difficult period with our mission and vision intact just
as we have in the past.
I know this has been a difficult two-year process for the university
community. Colleagues have lost their jobs, wage freezes and increased
health insurance costs mean less take-home pay, and as positions go unfilled
and others are eliminated we are all asked to do more with less.
While federal stimulus money has propped us up for two years, it is
scheduled to disappear next year. Tuition increases approved by the Board of
Regents last week will help, but they cannot make up for the loss of state
revenue.
As I mentioned in my State of the Campus address in October, we have
exhausted opportunities to make across-the-board reductions by nibbling at
the margins of all programs as we have in the past. Today's budget
environment has required us to make strategic cuts to minimize impacts on
the quality of education and access to our nationally prominent educational
and research programs.
Although these difficult reductions are shared across nearly all campus
units, some contributed more than others as we took advantage of
opportunities for planned and voluntary early retirements, unfilled
vacancies, and opportunities to consolidate and reorganize where
appropriate.
These were difficult choices, but they were accomplished by relying upon
CU's best qualities: cooperation, collaboration, and entrepreneurship. I
have arrived at these reductions in collaboration with the senior vice
chancellor and chief financial officer, provost, vice chancellors and deans
in consultation with the Academic Affairs Budget Advisory Committee, the
Boulder Faculty Assembly's Budget and Planning Committee, the Chancellor's
Executive Committee, and student government representatives.
Working together, we took a three-pronged approach of revenue enhancements,
operating efficiencies and strategic expense reductions. Specifically these
include:
--reorganizing and economizing Arts and Sciences curriculum and departmental
Offerings
--seeking efficiencies as well as new career and educational opportunities
by bridging the School of Journalism and Mass Communication with ATLAS
--shifting general fund support for research in Arts and Sciences,
Engineering, Law and Business to self funding
--shifting funding for college-specific alumni relations staff from the
general fund to auxiliary sources
--eliminating Indonesian language courses and moving funding of Hindi
courses to grant support
--redesigning acquisition contracts for library materials
--relying more on electronic business by eliminating printed campus
directories, course catalogs, view book, and visit brochures and by better
utilizing online employee training
--creating savings in position downgrades
--consolidating information technology purchases and equipment and bundling
contracts
The March state budget forecast provided a glimmer of optimism as revenue
did not decline for the first time in several quarters. Recognizing that the
forecast is only a snapshot in time and that it could change, we are
expecting a long and bumpy economic recovery. We must be conscious that our
work may not be complete as we closely monitor the funding situation over
the next one to two years.
However as the economy improves we will strategically fill positions and
make modest investments to remain competitive and transform our university
for the 21st century global environment.
This effort, difficult as it has been, positions us to strengthen the
quality of education at CU-Boulder and move ahead with bold initiatives in
our Flagship 2030 strategic plan. I am confident that better days are ahead.
I appreciate your professionalism and dedication in these austere times.
Sincerely,
Philip P. DiStefano
Chancellor
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