The State Board of Higher Education is bracing itself for another round of potential budget cuts, which would sap the Oregon University System’s ability to adequately meet its ever-increasing enrollment demands.
The Board approved plans last week for 5 and 10 percent budget reductions to the OUS. The Legislative Fiscal Office requested the projections from all state agencies in light of the economic recession and the uncertainty surrounding the passage of state ballot
Measures 66 and 67.
OUS spokesperson Di Saunders said the measures, which go to a special election vote on Jan. 26, were the main reason for the request from the fiscal office.
“If the measures don’t pass, the hit to OUS would be in the 5 to 6 percent range,” she said. “That’s the primary concern.”
But Saunders said even if the measures did pass, they might not cover all of the budget shortfall. She said revenue forecasts and other bills introduced in the state legislature’s February session would also affect OUS funding.
According to an OUS press release, a 5 percent cut would lead to a $37.6 million OUS budget reduction, a loss of 267 full-time equivalent employees and a loss of ability to serve about 900 in-state students.
The 10 percent cut would lead to a $75.2 million OUS budget reduction, a loss of 651 full-time equivalent employees and a loss of ability to serve about 3,000 students.
The 5 and 10 percent cuts would reduce funding to the University for the 2009-2010 fiscal year by about $3.2 million and $6.4 million, respectively.
University Senior Vice President and Provost Jim Bean said the University, which only receives about 8 percent of its budget from the state, would be affected by the cuts, but not severely. The main results, he said, would be more a aggressive talk about tuition increases, limited faculty hiring and a probable loss of the Oregon Opportunity Grant.
The Oregon Opportunity Grant, the largest state-funded, need-based college grant Oregon offers, was facing the chopping block last year before the University back-funded it. Bean said the University wouldn’t be able to do so again should the cuts occur.
The restrictions on enrollment, which would affect in-state freshmen and transfer students, come at a time when demand for college education in Oregon is at an all-time high. A record 91,580 students enrolled in the Oregon University System this school year.
Saunders said there was simply no way to accommodate more students at this point without diminishing quality and straining facilities.
“You can’t continue to add students without adding funding,” she said. “And we are expecting significant enrollment increases in the fall. Something’s gotta give.”
Bean said that enrollment restrictions at the University were unlikely.
“The University is currently still in a growth phase,” Bean said. “It’s very unlikely that we’d put a cap on Oregon students. There might be raised admission hurdles, although having been an Oregon high school student, I’m loath to do that.”
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