The Board of Regents discussed the University’s fate in the face of grim 3.2 percent budget cuts at a meeting in the SUB Tuesday. The cut amounts to about $9.6 million less from the state.
“Unfortunately that pales in comparison with what may be coming,” Regent Don Chalmers said. “Potentially another 5 percent. We also have to fill the hole (from) that one-time money we got from the stimulus package … I think that number is close to $12 million.”
Paul Roth, executive vice president for the Health Sciences Center, said the University is scaling back graduate student employment.
“We are looking at some substantial financial crises,” Roth said.
“Taking some of the biggest hits in face of the cuts are graduate students. Letters from various departments all related the same thing: Graduate student employees are being cut.”
During the public comment section of the meeting, four graduate students spoke out in support of graduate student employment.
Megan McRobert, GPSA council chair, defended the graduate students’ role in education. She estimated that 50 percent of classes are taught by people pursuing a graduate degree, though there are no official numbers.
“I think it’s incredibly interesting that we’re here today talking about a new baseball stadium at the same time that we’re talking about cuts in academics,” she said.
McRobert was referring to the planned $4 million renovation to the baseball field, which was also discussed at the meeting.
Regent President Raymond
Sanchez said that the funds used for construction are not the same funds used for other services.
“Severance tax money cannot be used for general operations,” Sanchez said. “It is a separate item that is meant for capital improvements.”
Nevertheless, attending students expressed concern about how money is being spent.
“I understand that there are different lines of funding but it is hard … to hear that that kind of money is being spent on a sports facility,” graduate student Jakob Schiller said. “I think that now is the time for creative thinking on how to proceed so that education is the No. 1 priority of this University.”
While the budget dips, some numbers are going up.
As of this school year, Roth said the University saw a 5.3 percent increase in student enrollment, making the student population on main campus close to 27,700 students. He said students are also taking more credit hours than in past semesters. This enrollment increase qualifies UNM for additional state funding.
In the letters from departments, offices also offered to cut phones lines and share administrative assistants to save on costs. Richard Wood, president of the Faculty Senate, presented the letters to the regents.
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“The budget cuts that we face pose a really grave risk to UNM’s core mission,” he said.
Mark Peceny, chair for the Department of Political Science, wrote a letter on behalf of his department, which is being asked to take a $52,672 cut.
“I would prefer to give up the 3 percent raise I am receiving as a department chair before any of my colleagues face reductions in their own salaries or before I break a promise of support to any of our graduate students,” Peceny wrote. “I will have to break some promises in the spring.”
