Spring Break
OSU may see 10 to 30 percent budget cuts
Students can voice their opinion by attending OSU Day in Salem on April 21
Makenzie Marineau
Issue date: 4/9/09 Section: News
With an agenda to inform people of the budget and tuition update based on legislative actions, ASOSU President Ryan Mann opened up Wednesday night's meeting with the intent to have an open discussion regarding changes in OSU's budget.
"The main focus of this meeting is really to influence people to get involved and [to help make] students and people in our OSU community aware of how the budget cuts will affect everyone and how you can get involved," Mann said.
With the troubles in the economy and the giant budget cuts schools are seeing, OSU hasn't felt the impact of the state funding reductions just yet. At the beginning of this year, all schools in the Oregon University System were required to create a plan for the potential 30 percent reduction in state funding for the 2009 to 2011 fiscal year.
The possible cuts would be $25 million at 10 percent or up to $75 million at 30 percent for OSU's annual education budget. OSU will not know the actual reduction until the state's next revenue forecast is announced in May and a finalization of the budget is announced in June.
In the time before May's revenue forecast, OSU student leaders are advocating for student involvement. Activities are planned to get students, faculty, teachers and community members involved in pursuing the budget cut issues with state legislators.
OSU will potentially be seeing a decrease in student services, increase in tuition, decrease in faculty and reduction in salaries. Some OSU administrators have already taken pay cuts voluntarily. If OSU was put into the 30 percent state funding reduction scenario, there would be a 9.6 percent increase in tuition, meaning students would be paying an extra $424 for 15 credit hours or about $140 for every credit hour.
"This isn't a run of the mill cut - when we're talking 20 to 30 percent, the university is going to be reshaped. No way is it positive, but we're trying to see it as an opportunity to really look hard at all our programs," Mann said.
"The main focus of this meeting is really to influence people to get involved and [to help make] students and people in our OSU community aware of how the budget cuts will affect everyone and how you can get involved," Mann said.
With the troubles in the economy and the giant budget cuts schools are seeing, OSU hasn't felt the impact of the state funding reductions just yet. At the beginning of this year, all schools in the Oregon University System were required to create a plan for the potential 30 percent reduction in state funding for the 2009 to 2011 fiscal year.
The possible cuts would be $25 million at 10 percent or up to $75 million at 30 percent for OSU's annual education budget. OSU will not know the actual reduction until the state's next revenue forecast is announced in May and a finalization of the budget is announced in June.
In the time before May's revenue forecast, OSU student leaders are advocating for student involvement. Activities are planned to get students, faculty, teachers and community members involved in pursuing the budget cut issues with state legislators.
OSU will potentially be seeing a decrease in student services, increase in tuition, decrease in faculty and reduction in salaries. Some OSU administrators have already taken pay cuts voluntarily. If OSU was put into the 30 percent state funding reduction scenario, there would be a 9.6 percent increase in tuition, meaning students would be paying an extra $424 for 15 credit hours or about $140 for every credit hour.
"This isn't a run of the mill cut - when we're talking 20 to 30 percent, the university is going to be reshaped. No way is it positive, but we're trying to see it as an opportunity to really look hard at all our programs," Mann said.
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