Dear CSULB Faculty and Staff:
By now you've probably heard that CSULB faces the most serious budget cuts in our 60-year history. These budget cuts have demanded a lot from all of us. We have worked to keep you informed of budgetary news on the federal, state and system levels over the past several months because we firmly believe that campus decisions are made best when everyone is kept updated.
This update, therefore, was not created due to some groundbreaking news or because we have a great deal of new information to report, but was written to simply inform you as more of a status update.
First, we want to remind you of the communication activities developed to share information with you about this year's (2009-10) budget, and what we know at this time regarding the coming year (2010-11).
A presentation explaining the 2009-10 and 2010-11 budgets has been developed to share information with as many groups as possible. Recognizing that not all faculty and staff are members of the many organizations or committees on campus, this presentation will also be made at a number of general sessions where everyone is welcomed to attend. The times and locations of these sessions are:
These presentations are for educational purposes and attendance is voluntary.
A Budget Central Website is accessible from the campus home page. This site includes information about both the 2009-10 and 2010-11 budgets as well as furloughs. (Actual Budget Central site is www.csulb.edu/budgetcentral).
The October 23 Academic Senate Retreat will focus on the current budgetary situation facing CSULB. This session will offer major contributions as we consider how to implement budget reductions.
Currently, due to projected revenue shortfalls, California is facing an approximate $8 billion state deficit which may or may not be addressed in this fall term. There have been attempts to call a "Special Session" of the legislature to tackle this issue, but so far little information has emerged specifically addressing the deficit.
There is also some budget news from outside the CSU. Recently, the University of California Board of Regents set the stage to approve a student fee increase of $585 for undergraduate students and $654 for academic graduate students (this category excludes professional schools such as law, business, and medical) effective this spring. Further, the Regents will be voting to approve an additional $1,344 increase for undergraduate students and $1,506 for academic graduate students for next fall. In total, UC's annual undergraduate fees will increase from $7,788 this fall to $10,302 for fall 2010, or 32 percent. These figures reveal the distortion caused by quoting only percentages when comparing UC and CSU fee increases: CSULB's total annual undergraduate fees for fall 2009, including our Student University Fees and all other mandatory students fees, is $4,370–including the 30 percent fee increase enacted by the CSU Board of Trustees this past spring and fall. While we are all distressed by the need to replace the loss of state funding with student fees in the CSU, it should be remembered that we remain a "best value" for our students.
Furthermore, I am pleased to report that due to the federal reauthorization of the Higher Education Act, which was passed in the summer of 2008, and the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), or as it is more commonly known the "Federal Economic Stimulus Act," CSULB students have received the largest single-year increase in federal student aid since the mid-1960s. This fall our students received a net increase of nearly $25 million more dollars in federal student aid support. Additionally, approximately 450 more students received this federal assistance this fall despite our enrollment decline of nearly 2,200 students. Also, CSULB students received a net increase of $3.1 million more in Cal Grant funding this fall when compared to last fall. In aggregate, more CSULB students received the largest amount of federal and state aid in our 60-year history (totaling $27.2 million more than last fall). Depending on the outcome of the current Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act (SAFRA) as it heads into the U.S. Senate, our students could be positioned to receive another significant increase in the coming year.
Additionally, I want to report on the construction projects on campus because it can seem counter- intuitive to spend money on new buildings while discussing budget cuts. As you know, the new Hall of Science and the Student Recreation and Wellness Center have been underway for months. The Hall of Science is funded by state construction funds that are available to the campus only for this specific project. The Student Recreation and Wellness Center is funded with separate financing that will be repaid by student fees voted on and approved by our student body specifically for this purpose. These fees do not begin until the facility is completed. Also, beginning this month is the new School of Nursing facility expansion, located next to the existing Nursing building. This new facility is also funded with state construction funds that are available to our campus only for this specific project, along with some non-state, privately generated college funds saved specifically for this purpose. If CSULB decided to cease construction on either the Hall of Science or the Nursing facility, the state construction funds would revert to the Chancellor's Office and would be reallocated to another campus for a state-approved project. If the Student Recreation and Wellness Center construction ceased, so would our ability to borrow dollars as the student fees were approved only for the Recreation Center project.
Finally, Friday, October 9 is another "State Budget Closure Day" on our campus. The campus will be "shut down" this Friday, and we all appreciate the amount of work and patience that you have exhibited in managing this unprecedented outcome created by our state legislature.
As noted above, we hope you will take advantage of the many general budget presentations and the available information found on our "Budget Central" website. Please know that I strongly believe that CSULB is a community of dedicated, caring professionals who are capable of facing this financial situation and assuring that the institution that emerges has changed by necessity, but has maintained our purpose and integrity.
Thank you for all your continued support. Go BEACH!
F. King Alexander
President
