Utah State University has announced a regimen of budget cuts and administrative changes to offset most of the $4 million in state funds the school lost for the coming fiscal year. The cuts, although modest compared to those imposed in the previous two years, will still be hard on the university, according to President Stan Albrecht.
"Less difficult choices were identified and eliminated long ago and each additional cut has taken us closer to operations that reflect our core missions as an institution," Albrecht wrote in a message Monday to faculty and staff. "We have worked hard to minimize impacts on our human resource base."
To come up with recommendations, Albrecht this spring convened a budget reduction committee chaired by Provost Ray Coward. The group proposed a list of cuts, some of which Albrecht plans to implement July 1.
They include trimming funds for such programs as technology commercialization, international education and computer information literacy; moving the computer science department from the College of Science to the College of Engineering; eliminating two open mid-level administrative posts for a savings of $220,000; and reorganizing the office of student services.
Albrecht also plans to cut a pro rata share from all the university's colleges and units. Those on the main Logan campus will forfeit $347,000, while the former College of Eastern Utah, now called USU Eastern, will lose $303,000. The Utah Agricultural Experiment Station and the Cooperative Extension Service lose $461,300, and the Utah Water Lab forfeits $33,100.
The committee is reviewing additional proposed cuts that would affect the Utah State University Press, the College of Natural Resources and the USU offices in downtown Salt Lake City, according to the president's message. It is also looking at long-term strategies for cost reduction, such as outsourcing selected services, identifying low-enrollment majors and graduate programs for possible elimination, and centralizing business functions.
"We have gone through a challenging time, yet have been able, I believe, to protect the core missions of our university and to maintain our momentum in becoming a university of increasing quality," Albrecht wrote.
