Fall Break won’t be very relaxing for U college deans, who will spend the majority of their week off figuring out where they can trim their departments’ budgets by 4 percent.
“This is a tough one,” said Steven Ott, dean of the College of Social and Behavioral Science. “There’s no fat left this year. We’re already cutting into the meat and, if this continues, we’ll be cutting into the bone next year.”
The U administration, including the president’s office, also faces a 4 percent cut, but U spokeswoman Coralie Adler said decisions about how and where cuts will be made are still pending.
College deans have been given until Oct. 24 to finalize cuts, which are a direct result of statewide 4 percent budget reductions. Higher education alone saw a $34 million decrease in state funding, with the U taking the brunt of the cut at $10.5 million.
Among the colleges hardest hit by the reduction in state funding is the School of Medicine, which could face cuts on two fronts. The school is already dealing with a $1 million cut, but could see additional shortfalls in 2010 because of cuts to Medicaid.
U Vice President for Government Relations Kim Wirthlin said U hospitals and clinics could face a $2.5 million deficit in state Medicaid reimbursements in 2010.
“It’s a double-whammy,” Wirthlin said. “It’s going to hit the School of Medicine pretty hard.”
According to an unscientific, ongoing survey on The Daily Utah Chronicle’s Web site, 57 percent of students polled preferred that the cuts come from administrative salaries. But College of Humanities Dean Robert Newman said the cuts will likely come in a variety of departmental adjustments, such as not filling vacant instructor positions and hiring fewer graduate assistants. Newman added that the U made similar cuts in 2002 without harming student services.
“Our goal here (is) to protect our students,” he said. “All departments and programs need to take a hard look at what is working well and what isn’t.”
The Utah Science Technology and Research initiative, a statewide program that has brought dozens of researchers from across the world to the U, is also facing a 4 percent cut. USTAR spokesman Michael O’Malley said the cuts will likely manifest in the form of a temporary hiring freeze, further underscoring the impact of the economic crisis in virtually every U.S. job sector.