SUNY Potsdam set to trim 59 jobs
POTSDAM — SUNY Potsdam has put 59 full-time-equivalent positions on the chopping block as part of a proposal to cut $7.5 million from the college's $40.3 million operational budget. The reduction plan was released to the campus Tuesday.
President John F. Schwaller said that the proposed cuts represent the college's best estimate for how much lower state funding will be for the 2010-11 fiscal year.
"The financial and emotional turbulence of these times has taken its toll on our community. Given the choices available to us, and the limited tools at our disposal, I believe that we have developed solid solutions to the budget shortfall," Mr. Schwaller said in a statement to the college community. "No one can minimize the pain and uncertainty that such difficult choices generate."
SUNY Potsdam's budget reduction plan would save $4.7 million through cutting personnel, both full- and part-time, across the campus. About $1.7 million of those reductions would come from cutting down on courses taught by adjunct faculty and trimming temporary service positions in business and student affairs.
In all, the university expects to cut 34 positions among its 547 academic affairs employees, and 25 jobs from the 284 positions in other divisions.
"Up to this point, the campus has done everything in its power to retain personnel, which is our greatest asset. The budget cuts, however, are forcing the college to consider, 'OK, how do we strategically give students what they need and minimize the loss of personnel?'" SUNY Potsdam spokeswoman Deborah L. Dudley said. "It's not an easy equation. The realities are quite harsh."
Most of the cuts for full-time personnel come through attrition, Ms. Dudley said. The college is choosing not to hire replacements for some jobs after employees leave and has extended a voluntary severance package to 15 employees who are choosing to retire early or quit.
"We have not been given the tools, such as lay-offs and retrenchments, to act in strategic ways," Mr. Schwaller wrote. "The reductions to academic affairs will severely limit our ability to offer additional sections of high demand courses since we will have very little money to spend on adjuncts and other forms of temporary service."
With fewer instructors and fewer course offerings, there is a real possibility that some students will not be able to graduate in a timely manner, Mr. Schwaller said.
The proposal includes one-time reductions in the college's International Initiative subsidy and the Resident Hall Utility support. SUNY Potsdam will pay for those funds out of room rates paid for by students for this fiscal year.
Mr. Schwaller said he plans to reduce his travel to an "absolute minimum," and his office will not have funding for special projects this year. The university also will cut back on refreshments and decorations at commencement.
Cuts to the physical plant budget will mean that college won't be able to clean its buildings or landscape its grounds as often, and will have to curtail purchases of tools and equipment.
The college will shift more sports costs to an athletic fee funded by students, while SUNY Potsdam teams will have to travel less and cut back on equipment. The college has also eliminated its tennis team.
SUNY Potsdam will greatly reduce funding for out-of-class student activities and programs as part of the proposal.
Mr. Schwaller said that he tried to protect the admissions and college advancement departments as much as possible, because the university needs to recruit more students in order to increase revenue and needs to rely on its fundraising activities now more than ever.
Reductions in academic affairs will translate into shorter hours for the college library, computer labs and tutoring centers, he said. SUNY Potsdam also will have to cut back on hiring student workers.
The college would not fill two open dean positions as part of the proposal.
"I have faith in our community, in the strength of our common purpose, and that we will emerge from these times a stronger, more focused and more purposeful institution," Mr. Schwaller said.
SUNY Potsdam prepared the budget blueprint months ahead of time in order to better plan for a tight state budget. The college will reformulate its plan as it learns more from the state.
"All that is being planned now is based on an estimated budget coming out of Albany. We are waiting for more concrete numbers, so things may change even from this time on," Ms. Dudley said. "The deans have been asked to work on extremely conservative estimates. Given the climate, we feel it's best to be very cautious."
