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Task force tackles ECU budget reduction

By Josh Humphries
The Daily Reflector

Wednesday, February 11, 2009

East Carolina University, along with the rest of the UNC system, is facing budget reductions that could affect any number of operations.

The newly formed budget task force met with ECU faculty and staff Tuesday night n the Hendrix Theater to gather recommendations on how to operate more efficiently in advance of potential state funding cutbacks.

Faculty members discussed a range of topics with the budget task force from reducing energy costs to salary cuts.

In an effort to find every way possible to reduce costs without cutting positions, Chancellor Steve Ballard formed the task force to make recommendations to the Chancellor’s executive counsel to reduce the budget.

Ballard said Tuesday about 75 percent of budgets in the various university departments go to personnel.

“Budgets are very personnel driven and it allows very little to look at otherwise,” Ballard said.

With state reversions in the current budget year, departments have already been trying to cut costs.

“Every unit has given back significant operating money at this point.

“The units have very little operating money to give back right now,” said Provost Marilyn Sheerer.

Ballard said UNC President Erskine Bowles is working to make sure that any budget cuts to the university system are not recurring so that when the economy picks up ECU and the other universities will not be behind where they were before the current state budget deficit.

“There is a political strategy, if we can get this compromise we will not sacrifice the fabric of our institution,” Ballard said.

The faculty balked at suggestions to increase class sizes and offer fewer courses per semester.

Several members of the faculty said large classes in certain subjects are impossible.

But students may find it harder to get into the classes they need to graduate on time if the faculty is reduced and fewer classes are offered each semester.

These issues are being discussed at every campus in the system. Many schools are facing considerable reductions in faculty based on budget predictions.

Gov. Beverly Perdue asked the UNC system to prepare budgets with 3 percent, 5 percent and 7 percent reductions.

A reduction of 7 percent could mean the loss of millions of dollars in funding to each university across the state and may mean job cuts at some schools.

ECU is trying to avoid cutting any jobs, said ECU spokesman John Durham.

“Looking ahead, we are making every effort to avoid cuts or lay-offs,” Durham said.

“It all depends on how severe the cutbacks are in terms of state appropriations, but we have seen this coming.”