USU Supports Gov. Herbert's Budget Plan, Albrecht Says

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by Chelsey Gensel in The Utah Statesman, Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2010

 

USU President Stan Albrecht discussed upcoming budget cuts with the Associated Students of USU (ASUSU) Executive Council at its Tuesday [Feb. 2, 2010] meeting.

 

Albrecht said he met with Utah Gov. Gary Herbert earlier in the day to talk about the governor’s budget proposal, which includes a 3 percent cut this year but no additional cuts in 2011. The total amount will be about $13 million, but the Utah Legislature is considering other proposals that could raise the number to about $34.3 million, Albrecht said.

 

“That’s a worst case scenario,” he said, “but what I think you will see happen is the Legislature ending up with something a lot closer to the governor’s budget.”

 

Albrecht said he felt that the Legislature has a slightly different philosophy than the governor does about higher education spending.

 

“The legislature wants to cut, then restore,” Albrecht said. “But the governor would rather not cut in the first place.”

 

The governor also seems more comfortable using one-time funds, such as the Rainy Day Fund, to help alleviate cuts in higher education, Albrecht said. If the Legislature’s budgets are passed, it could mean up to a 12 percent reduction in course offerings and 435 university employees lost, Albrecht said.

 

Restoring the quality of the university after such drastic cuts would take “a generation to rebuild,” Albrecht said.

 

It is important the Legislature understands the impact of cuts on students if it were to take these “draconian measures,” Albrecht said, and the university supports the governor’s budget plan.

 

“If anyone asks, we love the governor’s budget,” Albrecht said.

 

In other matters, the council discussed some organizational changes within student services. The Council of Student Clubs and Organizations (CSCO) is working to condense its manual, so it will be more user-friendly. The goal is “so people will use it and aren’t scared of it,” said Krista Bustamante, Campus Diversity and Organizations vice president.

 

CSCO is also considering name changes.

 

Vice President for Student Services James Morales presented structural changes in the division of student services as a whole. Six organizations that currently stand alone within the division will be combined under one umbrella called the Access Center, Morales said. It will add a management element to each of the six as well as ease cooperation between them, he said.

 

“We want to restructure student services to better fulfill our land-grant mission, to really emphasize our commitment to access and diversity,” Morales said.

 

He said it will make student services a more “cohesive team” and provide support to all of the service areas, including veteran; re-entry; Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender and Allies (GLBTA) and multicultural students.

 

Morales said that as of July 1, Michelle Bogden, interim director of the Women’s Resource Center, will be appointed as the director of the Access Center.