ISU may face budget cuts

ISU administrators are bracing themselves for the Indiana General Assembly's final decision on budget cuts for the university.

The legislators' vote in April will follow last November's recommendations by the Indiana Commission for Higher Education to reduce appropriations by $2.8 million, said Diann McKee, vice president for business affairs and finance and university treasurer.

Soon after, Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels suggested a further cut of $2.6 million, McKee said.

McKee emphasized that the reductions were just recommendations.

"Nothing has been finalized at this point in the process," McKee said.

ISU President Daniel J. Bradley said the cuts would not be equally distributed or applied "across the board." If the General Assembly's decision differs from that of the governor, adjustments could be made.

Meetings are scheduled within the next week to "tell our managers" how much they should expect to cut in specific areas, Bradley said. This March, those officials will update the administration on their responses to the cuts.

When the final budget is ready in June, Bradley said he would like to see a "leaner organization" where "everyone gets what they need."

Appropriations from the General Assembly cover two fiscal years, Bradley said. Sixty percent of ISU's budget is provided by the state, with the remaining 40 percent coming from tuition. The university's mission is to always put students first, Bradley says. Faculty and staff layoffs will try to be avoided.

"We really try to look at this as a temporary situation," Bradley said.

College of Business Dean Nancy Merritt said her department is treating the impending cuts as a chance to "strategically position" the university over the long term.

"In the College of Business, we see this time as an opportunity to significantly improve the types and quality of our program offerings, to more efficiently provide an enriched learning environment, to recruit and support good students, and to support the development of our faculty and staff members," Merritt said.

Specifically, the department may have to reduce the number of faculty members and cut funding for those who teach part-time, Merritt said.

"An obvious impact is that class sizes increase, although we are not at the point of moving to very large class [sic], such as those of some of our competitors," Merritt said.

Some faculty members may be asked to take on extra courses, Merritt said.

In the College of Education, administrators have already "reverted resources" for the following two fiscal years to accommodate unfilled staff positions, said Brad Balch, dean of the College of Education.

"To meet this reversion commitment, programming and departmental restructuring has been necessary, as well as faculty load restructuring," Balch said. "Future attrition through retirements, resignations and separations will also need to be considered as a part of future budget planning."

College of Nursing, Health and Human Services Dean Richard Williams could not say what kind of impact the cuts would have without knowing the specifics.

"I can say this, the cuts will make us do business a lot differently," Williams said.