Departments should only be forced to cut 3 percent
Interim University President Kathy Wilbur said last week that every department at Central Michigan University will have to propose cutting its budget by 3, 6 or 9 percent by Feb. 8.
The percentage cut from every department depends on the maximum amount of money the university can save without significantly hindering a program.
CMU should try its best to cut just 3 percent from each department it can and think of new ways to save money beyond budget cuts.
Budget cuts are not a surprise these days with Michigan’s struggling economy; departments should have been expecting them.
But knowing what’s to come doesn’t make choosing what to cut out of a department any easier, and the difference of a few percentages can potentially cripple a department.
If every department was expected to cut 6 percent or more, it could damage the academic integrity of the university as a whole.
With each academic year, students are forced to pay more but receive less. Tuition increased 4.6 percent last July, and will most likely increase again before the next academic year.
Cutting academic resources drastically while increasing tuition doesn’t make much sense as a business model and will drive prospective students away from CMU.
CMU is going to have to find other ways to raise money besides raising tuition every year if it expects to maintain a thriving college campus.
By being smarter with how money is being spent, the university can appeal to alumni for higher donations that won’t be squandered on needless things.
There are other ways, too, the school can raise its capital without asking for more money.
A single department at the University of Washington saved more than $1,000 a month by getting rid of landline phones.
Rhodes College in Memphis saved $725,000 a year by allowing a few students to teach as professionals.
Some universities are hiring students during the summer to do renovations and landscaping, eliminating the need for professional services.
It is that kind of innovative thinking CMU needs to implement so budget cuts can remain low and tuition rates can only raise bearably, if at all.
The cuts are inevitable, and will most likely continue for the next few years.
But without tracking how money is being spent and making sure it’s reaching its full potential will only continue the vicious cycle of higher tuition and budget cuts.
The only guarantees will be a drop in enrollment and academics — two things that can decimate a university.
