President Lou Ann Simon delivering the bad news
An overflow crowd jammed the Michigan State University Board of Trustees meeting that featured the announcement of proposed cuts required by the dramatic reduction in state money coming to the university. President Lou Ann Simon explained the drastic situation that necessitates these unwelcome cuts.
Simon said that her choice was between raising tuition by 10% instead of 5% or making these cuts. A press release issued after the meeting noted that the recommendations affect 30 programs and 600 funded positions. “Forty-five percent of those are positions that have been held open during the last 18 months in anticipation of budget reductions, while 36 percent would result from not re-appointing fixed-term employees and 19 percent from layoffs.”
The latest recommendations are now available on MSU’s Shaping the Future” website. Click here for a PDF of Provost Kim Wilcox’s presentation on program and unit cuts.) The full listing of academic cuts is posted below.
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President Simon |
Provost Kim Wilcox |
Highlights of Provost Wilcox’s Presentation
Proposed Department Reorganizations
- College of Agriculture moving from 13 departments to 6 departments and the Kellogg Biological Station
- College of Arts and Letters to unite French, Classics & Italian with Spanish & Portuguese to create a Romance Language department
- College of Natural Science to close Geological Sciences department
- College of Communication Arts and Sciences to close Communicative Sciences & Disorders* (*Master’s program in Speech and Audiology to be moved to the Department of Communication)
- Reconfigure administrative responsibility for the four basic science jointly administered departments (Biochemistry, Physiology, Pharmacology & Toxicology and Microbiology)
Program and Department Reorganizations
- Change joint administrative responsibility for the School of Planning, Design and Construction from the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources (CANR) and the College of Social Science (CSS) to only CANR
- Change joint administration for the Departments of Food Science and Human Nutrition and the Department of Entomology from the College of Natural Science (CNS) and the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources (CANR) to only CANR
- Move administrative responsibility for the Nutritional Sciences major from the College of Natural Science (CNS) to the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources (CANR)
Program Disinvestments
- College of Arts & Letters - American Studies –All levels
- College of Communication Arts & Science -Retailing –All levels
Recommended Discontinuations
While programming in the following areas will be sustained, the individual majors, minors, and specializations listed are recommended for discontinuation.
College oversight of several other areas of programming will be realigned.
Doctoral Programs
- College of Natural Science
- Environmental Geosciences
- Geological Sciences
Education Specialist
- College of Education
- Education specialist degree in Curriculum, Instruction and Teacher Education
- Education specialist degree in K-12 Educational Administration
Master’s Programs
- College of Agriculture and Natural Resources
- Interior Design and Facilities Management
- College of Arts & Letters
- Theatre (M.A. only)
- College of Education
- Counseling
- College of Music
- Voice Performance, Jazz Studies (within M.M. in Jazz Studies)
- College of Natural Science
- Computational Chemistry
- Environmental Geosciences
- Geological Sciences
- Zoo and Aquarium Management
- College of Social Science
- Family Studies
- History -Secondary School Teaching
- Interdisciplinary Studies in Social Science: Global Applications
- Marriage and Family Therapy
- Research Methods in Clinical Psychology (concentration within M.A. Psychology)
Graduate Specializations
- College of Agriculture & Natural Resources
- Agribusiness (Master’s level Specialization)
- College of Social Science
- Applied Development Science (Interdepartmental Master’s level specialization and Doctoral level specialization)
- Food & Agricultural Standards (Master’s level specialization and Doctoral level specialization)
- Security Management
Undergraduate Majors
- College of Agriculture & Natural Resources
- Analytical Foundations (concentration within B.S. Fisheries and Wildlife)
- Environmental Soil Science
- Environmental Economics & Policy –Planned conversion to specialization
- Plant Pathology
- Technology Systems Management
- College of Arts & Letters
- Classical Studies
- Broad College of Business
- General Business Administration –Pre-law
- College of Natural Science
- Earth Science
- Environmental Geosciences
- Geological Sciences
- Geophysics
- Physics & Geophysics
- Statistics
- College of Communication Arts & Sciences>
- Communicative Sciences & Disorders
- College of Music
- Voice Performance, Jazz Studies (area within B.M. Jazz Studies)
- College of Veterinary Medicine
- Veterinary Technology
- College of Agriculture and Natural Resources
- Marine Ecosystem Management
- Broad College of Business
- Information Technology
- College of Social Science
- Canadian Studies
Administrative Support
Reduction of approximately 50 administratively titled positions across academic units in Deans’ and related offices
General Changes
- University Relations
- Smaller unit refocused toward institutional-level communications for branding and marketing
- Close Print Shop and replace with specialized purchasing agents
- Controller’s Office and Purchasing
- Realign sources of funds and reduce use of general fund
- Alumni Chapel and Union
- Realign sources of funds and reduce use of general fund
- Health care
- Under discussion with faculty and collective bargaining groups (wants 10% cut in costs and annual increases capped at 5%)
- Administrative fee
- Increase administrative fee by 1% beginning July, 2010
- Energy conservation
- Conservation plans implemented
- Evaluating efficiency of selected units
- Purchasing, information technology
- Service centers
- Restructuring programs
- Neighborhood concept
- Student health services under review
- Educational Assistance Program
- Consolidate Human Resources noncredit courses
- Negotiate new agreement for benefits with unions
- Purchasing
- Mandate the use of strategic contracts with vendors to reduce costs
- Suspension of selected allowances - Illustrations include:
- Travel-related reimbursements
- Funding for employee recognition
- Reviewing assignment of costs to appropriate budgets
- Fringe benefits
- Implement a plan to decentralize GF benefit pool after EBSP implemented
- Delaying construction and maintenance projects to generate reserves
Click here to view the press release on the proposed changes issued by University Relations (added 10-31-09).
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