Archives
Simpson expects state budget cuts
By KEVIN FRYLING
Reporter Staff Writer
President John B. Simpson appeared before the Faculty Senate on Tuesday to talk “clearly and bluntly” about the ongoing budget process in Albany and its implications for UB and for public higher education across the state of New York.
The unexpected resignation of former Gov. Eliot Spitzer, as well as ongoing debate and discussion in the Legislature over the 2008-09 budget, suggests looming cuts for many state agencies, including SUNY, Simpson said.
“It seems pretty clear that we, as part of SUNY, will receive a budget cut,” he said. “The magnitude of that cut is uncertain, but I think I can say that it is clear to me that this is not a year in which our budget will increase—it is a year in which our general operating budget will decrease.”
“Considerable disagreement” exists over how much money the state has to spend, he added, noting that differences between the revenue forecasts of the executive branch, Assembly and Senate, as well as various “maneuvers” among state legislators, will influence the final funding outcome for UB, even after passage of the budget.
“These are important because what’s proposed to be spent—and therefore what enters the budget—also determines on the other end what funds will be available for capital construction planning and what funds will be available to operational enterprises, such as the University at Buffalo,” he said.
Yet, while Simpson said Spitzer’s resignation and the lack of revenue in the state are “anything but good things for this university,” he also emphasized that UB’s long-term strategic planning process—including the identification of strategic strengths and creation of UB 2020—began not just as a plan for physical growth, but as an academic planning process largely independent of the state Legislature.
“I would not prefer to go through all the difficulties that we’ll likely have to face this year if, in fact, our budget is cut—and cut by a substantial amount,” he said. “But when it comes to events we can control ourselves—which is our sense of who we are and where we’re going and what we’re planning to do—that remains utterly unaltered by events that occur in Albany, and over the long term, I still have as much optimism and commitment for where this university is headed as I did six months ago.”
In other business, Gerald Schoenle, chief of university police and chair of the UB Personal Safety Committee, screened “Shots Fired,” an instructional video produced by the Center for Personal Protection & Safety and recently purchased by university police to educate faculty and staff about the appropriate actions to take in case of a shooting on campus.
While the chances of being killed by a shooter on a college campus are far less than being struck by lightning, Schoenle said University Police still plan to incorporate the video into a larger lesson plan for faculty and staff on how they can protect themselves and others in the rare instance of gun violence breaking out on campus.
In response to a request for feedback on the video, Bonnie Ott, associate professor of architecture, School of Architecture and Planning, suggested University Police consider offering the presentation to certain graduate students, as well as faculty and staff. She said she has had to refer several distraught students to counseling services over the course of 20 years of teaching, including an incident in which a graduate assistant uncovered a threat of suicide in a student essay.
“I just wanted to bring up to you that this is a place within our work environment where we’re possibility at risk,” she said, noting concerns about available resources for instructors who feel one of their students requires the assistance of a mental health professional.
Schoenle replied that QPR (Question, Persuade, Refer) training—a behavioral intervention program that focuses on helping distressed students access professional help—is available to all interested faculty and staff through Counseling Services. He also pointed out that Student Affairs operates a weekly “students of concern committee” whose mission it is to collect information from the university community about at-risk students in order to prevent them from falling through the cracks.
Also during Tuesday’s meeting, William Wachob, assistant dean for resource management in the School of Nursing, and Domenic Licata, instructional support technician in the Department of Visual Studies, College of Arts and Sciences, spoke in support of the proposed UB Recycled Paper Purchasing Policy. The proposal calls for all general purpose 8.5” x 11” white copier and printer paper purchased by all units within in the university to be 100 percent, post-consumer content processed chlorine-free recycled paper.
After rejecting a revision of the policy’s language that was proposed by James Campbell, professor and chair of the Department of Political Science, who objected to its “lack of flexibility,” among other concerns, a majority of senators voted to endorse the policy.