UW-L braces for further cuts

Mike Nelson is worried.

As dean of the College of Science and Allied Health at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, he has had to increase class sizes in most courses.

He lost 10.4 faculty and staff positions during the past few years and is not expecting funds for any new hiring.

He has to absorb the faculty, staff and students from all but the education department from the College of Education, Exercise Science, Health and Recreation, which was dismantled in April during an earlier round of reductions. And he knows new cuts are looming.

"I'm as discouraged as I've been in 35 years in higher education," he said. "I just can't understand why the university system keeps getting cut after cut after cut."

The entire University of Wisconsin System has taken significant hits in the past several biennial budgets. Since 2002, the system has seen a loss of $300 million in state aid.

Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle's proposed state budget for 2005-07 would trim another $65 million. About $1.7 million of that would be shouldered by UW-L, which also would absorb a net loss of about 20 employees and annual tuition increases of 5 percent to 7 percent.

The Republican-controlled Legislature's Joint Finance Committee voted last week to reduce Doyle's budget proposal by an additional $40.3 million by cutting funding to hire additional faculty and reducing proposed increases for financial aid. It would give the UW System $9 million more in state funding over the next two years for the system's 13 public universities and 13 two-year colleges.

Ron Lostetter, UW-L's vice chancellor for Administration and Finance, said the finance committee proposals would mean slicing another $900,000.

"We're cutting off bones now," Lostetter said.

Lostetter said he wouldn't know the final overall UW-L budget for fiscal year 2006 until October or later, but estimates it will be about $129 million. While that is $4 million more than the 2005 budget of $125 million, the university will see a "fraction of a percent" increase in state funds, he said.

The majority of the increase would come from federal grants and aid, service fees and in auxiliaries such as food service and the bookstore, he said.

Lostetter said the university will have to shift funds out of student support, administrative and instructional areas to fund utilities, fringe benefits and debt service.

"We have little or no control over fringe benefit and utility costs," he said. "When the state does not provide funding for these areas, we have to pay the bill by cutting other areas."

The cuts have been providing headaches for months. Provost Elizabeth Hitch said until last week, she was sitting on 160 contracts, most of them instructional, waiting until the budget picture got clearer.

Since she's not sure when that will be and many of the people were contracted to teach classes already in the fall schedule, Hitch said the contracts were signed and the university will deal with the consequences after the fact.

Chancellor Doug Hastad would not name specific programs that may have to shoulder cuts but said UW-L is known for certain programs and while "pruning those programs would not be a prudent thing to do, it will be extremely challenging to hold those harmless when trying to cut nearly $1 million."

Hastad doesn't anticipate lawmakers will finish the budget by July 1, the start of the new fiscal year, but he hopes more details will be available in coming weeks.

Hastad said he thinks elected officials in both houses want to restore some of the funding, and hopes they voice their opinions in their respective caucuses.

Copyright La Crosse Tribune Jun 09, 2005
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