Campus Budget
Chancellor's Budget Update to Staff
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January 26, 2009
To: UMass Amherst Staff
As we start a new semester faced with unprecedented budget difficulties here at UMass Amherst, I thought I would share information directly with you, our staff members, on how our institution is preparing to deal with our current financial crisis, and again seek your input in the ongoing budget process.
As you all know from past messages from me and from news media accounts, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is facing a multi-billion dollar budget shortfall in the next fiscal year. The projected budget deficit at UMass Amherst for the coming year is in excess of $45 million. Already the budget cuts this year amount to nearly $15 million. Clearly we face a significant challenge, and we will need changes in our organization, creativity from our employees, and hard work with fewer resources to meet reductions of this magnitude.
While our primary focus remains preserving academic quality and providing the best education possible, we also recognize that maintaining a high-quality and effective support staff is critically important in operating a great university. We are justifiably proud of the quality of our staff at UMass Amherst, as well as their service to the institution.
I was in Washington D.C. last week working in support of the federal stimulus legislation and advocating for the critical assistance it could provide to the university. As I said in a similar note to faculty, I believe we must argue forcefully for support of public higher education, and we will do just that. I know that all of you join me in the belief that the public’s interest is served by bolstering higher education, and that funding to our public colleges and universities is among the most effective ways to boost our national economy. At the same time, we as a university must pursue all options that mitigate the impact of serious swings in public funding for the institution, and preserve the necessary funding to operate a top- quality public research university.
Economic indicators have continued to worsen over the past few months, as has the long-term outlook for our nation’s economy. But, just as our newly inaugurated President said in his first address to the nation last week, we must face these challenges as a united nation, and, working together, we will weather this storm. I know that these are uncertain times, and that there is cause for concern, but I believe similarly that our university community can come together and meet our challenges.
I met with the leadership of the unions on our campus early in this budget process, and we have arranged a follow-up meeting with this group tomorrow. Also, I want to remind all staff members that we have created a special budget web site at www.umass.edu/chancellor/budget.html that has a great deal of information. On this site, there is a link to an email to provide thoughts, suggestions, and feedback, and we’ve received hundreds of responses already.
As we continue our planning process, I want to encourage you again to share your insights through this mechanism. I truly believe that we’re better able to face the serious challenges that confront us if we are all engaged in developing the solutions. While it is my responsibility to make the final decisions based on the best interests of the entire campus, I am committed to hearing from all segments of the university while developing the best possible solutions to some very difficult problems.
Here on campus, I anticipate receiving recommendations from the Budget Planning Task Force – comprised of faculty, staff and students – by mid- February. The Governor’s budget recommendations will be made public this week, and the Board of Trustees will make their tuition and fee decisions at the end of February. At around the same time, the federal stimulus legislation should be completed, and the role of state government in distributing federal stabilization funds should become clearer. We are working hard on all these fronts, and will keep the entire campus posted on any developments.
Once we have gathered all relevant information and reached decisions, I plan to share with the entire campus the overall plan we have developed to deal with the budget cuts. I anticipate reporting to you about this plan by the end of March, although some parts of the plan may be known earlier. To make any decisions on the budget sooner would not allow us to take into account all the variables we must consider. To wait longer will not give us the time we need to effectively manage the changes we must make to deal with this serious budget crisis.
These times are challenging for all of us, and as I know you’ve heard from me before, this is not the circumstance I would have chosen to start as Chancellor here at UMass Amherst. In my short time here, however, I have been impressed by the quality of the people at the institution and their loyalty to its mission. Over the next few months, we will all need to come together to reaffirm our commitment to the university and to help UMass Amherst get through this difficult period.
I look forward to hearing from many of you, and seeing you on campus, in the coming weeks.
Chancellor Robert C. Holub
