Arbor Update

Ann Arbor Area Community News

Notes on University Budget Cuts

18. July 2004 • Ari Paul
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The University has released more information on the upcoming budget cuts.

A press release lists:

Examples of spending cuts in the FY05 budget include:

• A total of 122 regular staff positions and 40 faculty positions have been eliminated across campus, most through attrition but with some staff layoffs. These cuts are on top of 275 staff positions and 50 faculty positions eliminated last year.

• The University Library has reduced late-night reference hours and pared current journal holdings by 840 titles, and monograph purchases by 5,000 titles.

• Information Technology Campus Initiatives (ITCI), which developed and encouraged information technology to improve the learning environment, is being dissolved for a savings of $1 million.

• The 2004 Michigan Road Scholars Tour was suspended. The program was designed to educate the faculty to the unique characteristics of our state and its people, and to foster University-community partnerships around Michigan.

• Building Services personnel are being moved to the day shift, and offices will be cleaned less frequently—every other week rather than weekly—to reduce overtime and shift premiums, saving $881,000 in Plant Operations.

• The Business School reduced the number of sections of certain courses and raised enrollment caps on others. The result is 32 fewer sections of courses, 25 fewer adjunct supplemental faculty members, and a savings of $1.5 million. Similarly, other academic units across campus are reducing course sections, increasing course sizes, and reducing reliance on adjunct and visiting faculty.