University of Nebraska-Lincoln Chancellor Rodney Bennett speaks to Nebraska lawmakers on his campus. Dec. 7, 2023. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner)
LINCOLN — University of Nebraska-Lincoln administrators mapped out $27.5 million in proposed cuts that faculty say will be “devastating” to a campus that has already endured $75 million in cuts over the past six years.
UNL Chancellor Rodney Bennett detailed the cuts Friday, including $7.7 million from eliminating six degree programs, $5.5 million expected from buyouts for long-term tenured faculty, $4.6 million from a 1% reduction in state-aided budgets, $3.8 million in “efficiencies” from top administrative offices and four colleges, $2 million from merging four academic departments into two schools and $550,000 less for graduate assistantships.
The plan also seeks “targeted philanthropy” to backfill $2.5 million in mandated tuition remissions, a goal the university hopes to address over the long-term with state lawmakers.
‘An awful day’
John Shrader, president of UNL’s Faculty Senate, said the timeline to offer feedback on the cuts, by Oct. 10, is tight, and he said the damage could take years for the university to repair, “if ever.”
“The professors and the Extension and staff and students have not caused a $27.5 million deficit, but we’re paying for it,” Shrader told the Nebraska Examiner. “We’re the ones who are going to be deeply impacted.”
He added: “It’s just an awful day for the University of Nebraska, no matter how you look at it.”
John Shrader, president of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Faculty Senate and an associate professor in broadcasting and sports media and communications. (Photo courtesy of John Shrader/UNL)
Jessie Brophy, president of the UNL Staff Senate and director of external engagement and partnerships at the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources, said that while the Staff Senate recognizes the need for the reductions, staff are deeply concerned about the impact.
“We are committed to representing staff perspectives, supporting our colleagues, and maintaining open communication as the process moves forward,” Brophy said in a statement.
Student leaders for the Association of Students of the University of Nebraska and Graduate Student Assembly did not immediately respond to requests Friday for comment.
Proposed cuts
The academic programs proposed for elimination are:
In the case of the Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, which includes geology and meteorology and climatology, “high-performing faculty” may qualify for rehire in other UNL units “to preserve educational pathways and research expertise.”
The Department of Statistics is a stand-alone department. Undergraduate data science degrees in the College of Arts and Sciences and College of Engineering would be retained.
The Departments of Entomology and Plant Pathology would be merged under the proposal, as would the Departments of Agricultural Economics and Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communication (ALEC). If approved, faculty from the two units would devise a combined name and plan in the spring.
Additionally, there would be fewer graduate assistantships available in the College of Arts and Sciences ($325,000) and College of Engineering ($225,000).
University of Nebraska-Lincoln Chancellor Rodney Bennett speaks at University of Nebraska President Jeffrey Gold’s investiture ceremony. Sept. 5, 2024. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner)
University officials, keeping in line with a promise by NU President Jeffrey Gold, vowed that any students in eliminated programs — freshman or otherwise — would be able to complete their degrees, though making it happen might require compressed timelines or program modifications.
The cuts also would eliminate the remaining $850,000 in state-aided funding for UNL’s Office of Student Life, which a UNL spokesperson said would likely include a mix of programmatic reductions, operational efficiencies and salary impacts. That total is less than 1% of the office’s total budget, which includes student fees, housing and dining.
The Colleges of Business, Engineering, Fine and Performing Arts and Journalism and Mass Communications would need to find a combined $1.1 million in administrative and staff “efficiencies.”
Bennett’s office, as well as the top academic office and business and finance division, would need to find $2.69 million in unidentified “efficiencies.”
An eye toward ‘efficiencies’
While it’s unclear what these “efficiencies” might look like, some deans have previewed the efforts.
UNL budget reduction proposal
$7.7 million, academic program eliminations
$5.5 million, buyout program for tenured faculty (anticipated savings)
$4.61 million, reducing all state-aided budgets by about 1%
$2.69 million, executive administrative and staff “efficiencies”
$2.5 million, unfunded tuition waivers covered with “targeted philanthropy”
$2 million, department realignments/mergers
$1.1 million, administrative and staff “efficiencies” across four colleges
$850,000, reductions to the Student Life division
$550,000, fewer graduate assistantships in College of Arts and Sciences and College of Engineering
Dean Shari Veil of the College of Journalism told her college that the “efficiencies” will mean fewer electives, some larger class sizes and additional course sections more dependent on demand and waitlists that might determine whether to offer more sections of courses.
While the journalism college faced no proposals to eliminate majors, Veil said the college will still look at revising its curriculum for “stronger connections” across majors and new courses.
“None of these changes will alter our core mission: to nurture curious and creative minds to thrive in the ever-changing media and communication professions,” Veil said in an email Friday.
Dean Andrew Belser of the Hixson-Lied College of Fine and Performing Arts told faculty and staff something Bennett’s announcement did not: that his college will look at combining its two performing arts schools — the Glenn Korff School of Music and Johnny Carson School of Theatre and Film — to work more collaboratively under a shared director.
Belser said the reorganization brings new opportunities and the ability to “open the door to exciting new collaborations,” such as joint projects, shared production support and faster integration of emerging media arts.
“While this reorganization is, in part, a necessary response to budgetary realities, it is designed to make our college stronger and help us better prepare students for the 21st-century creative workforce they are entering,” Belser wrote.
Long-term fix sought
Bennett, in a video message Friday to the campus, said that while UNL and the broader NU system offer a significant return on investment — estimated at $10 for every $1 — UNL has faced declining revenues. That includes net tuition, fewer state funds than anticipated and sharply rising costs for utilities, health care, property and liability insurance.
He said UNL’s structural deficit has “compounded over time” with the latest plan meant to “help safeguard against repetitive budget reduction cycles” by eliminating the $21 million deficit but also finding $6.5 million more to trim.
Shari Veil, left, dean of the UNL College of Journalism and Mass Communications, with humanitarian and 1964 UNL graduate Jane (Tenhulzen) Olson. (Courtesy of University of Nebraska Foundation)
Leslie Reed, UNL’s public affairs director, described the additional cuts as “proactive reductions to better position UNL for the future, so it can break out of this cycle of budget cutting.”
“I am hopeful this work will allow UNL more time to implement long-term strategies for financial sustainability,” Bennett said.
Reed said she was unaware how much of UNL’s cuts are meant to help NU with a systemwide $20 million deficit, which Gold has acknowledged would prove “incredibly painful.”
Since late June 2020, UNL has weathered $75 million in cuts. Bennett joined UNL in July 2023.
Bennett said he appreciates the “sacrifices” many UNL community members have made, including repeatedly being asked to do more with less, which he acknowledged is unsustainable. But the chancellor, whose contract is currently slated to expire at the end of this fiscal year, said now is the time “to boldly reimagine our future.”
Future investment
Top campus leaders evaluated programs and campus areas on quantitative and qualitative data, Bennett said. A university website says the data included program strengths, state needs and workforce alignment.
The metrics also had an eye toward a long-term goal to have UNL rejoin the prestigious Association of American Universities, Shrader said. UNL was voted out in 2011 after 100 years as a member.
The AAU particularly praises research and research funding, with campus leaders looking at awards, book publications, citations, unit growth and more.
Shrader, an associate professor in broadcasting and sports media and communications who joined UNL in 2017 said he worries for students and noted that while state leaders repeatedly say they want a Big Ten, Research 1 (R1), first-class university, investments have lagged behind, sometimes at the level of “uninvestment” or disinvestment, he explained.
“We need investment to make this a first-class university, and every year we don’t do that, we slip a little farther behind,” Shrader said.
Executive, legislative fights
Part of the budget deficit for NU as a whole also comes as state appropriations have slowed under Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen, who took office in 2023 after serving as an NU regent for a decade.
Pillen has been harder on his alma mater, proposing this January to cut NU’s budget by 2% in the first year of a two-year budget cycle. The NU Board of Regents had requested a 3.5% budget increase in each of the two fiscal years.
Advocates for the University of Nebraska system host the annual “I Love NU Day” at the Nebraska State Capitol. They are joined, at center, by State Sens. Danielle Conrad of Lincoln and Teresa Ibach of Sumner. March 6, 2024. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner)
In the end, negotiations between Gold and Pillen and legislative will landed at a smaller 0.625% increase this current fiscal year and a 1.25% increase on top of that slower-growing total the following year.
Reed did not answer a reporter’s question on what steps Bennett has taken to engage with state leaders or philanthropic donors, endeavors Gold has been more public about.
Bennett told the Examiner in 2023 he had been accustomed to being at the Mississippi Capitol about three days a week during its legislative session while he led the University of Southern Mississippi. He had suggested he would do the same in Lincoln.
Reed did not directly answer the Examiner’s question of whether Bennett would seek a contract extension before his contract expires June 30. She said Bennett is committed to leading UNL “toward new levels of excellence well into the future.”
“He expects to continue to serve as long as he is called upon,” Reed said.
‘Long-term consequences’
Sarah Zuckerman, an associate professor of education administration and president of the UNL chapter of the American Association of University Professors, urged campus leaders and regents to reject Bennett’s plan, which she called “extremely short-sighted.”
“They don’t take into account the long-term consequences of closing programs and letting faculty go who are uniquely valuable to the state of Nebraska,” Zuckerman said.
Jessie Brophy, president of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Staff Senate and director of external engagement and partnerships at the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources. (Photo courtesy of Jessie Brophy)
Many faculty speaking to the Examiner also questioned what happens if fewer than expected tenured faculty take the voluntary separation package. Faculty aged 62 or older who have been with NU for at least 10 are eligible. The deadline to apply is Sept. 30.
Most faculty and staff received no pay increases this year due to budget cuts and because UNL has no employee unions, unlike faculty in Omaha and Kearney.
‘Set the stage’
Bennett encouraged the UNL community to offer feedback on the budget reduction plan to UNL’s Academic Planning Committee, an internal working group that includes faculty, staff and students. Feedback is due Oct. 10 and is expected to include public hearings.
The chair of that committee declined to comment Friday and directed questions to Reed.
“We have the opportunity to set the stage for the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s next 155 years, and your voice in shaping our future matters,” Bennett said.
Shrader said that while UNL is not a big university, it has a “nice, hard-working community here that impacts the State of Nebraska as much as or more than any other institution in the state.”
“When you do things like this, it can be nothing but detrimental to all of us,” Shrader said. “It can be nothing but a negative impact on every single one of us.”
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