As we reach the middle of the semester, preparations are well underway for many of the celebrations we look forward to each spring. The University Achievement Awards Celebration, taking place May 15, allows us to honor just a few of the outstanding faculty members who make California State University, Long Beach an exciting, dynamic learning institution. We also look forward to the Faculty Retirement Luncheon in May, which provides an opportunity to honor the distinguished careers of our outgoing professors and the first All-University Research Celebration on May 1. Jim Till, associate vice president for research and external support, is leading this effort and will soon be providing faculty with additional information.
While spring is a time to recognize our outstanding faculty, students and staff, it also requires us to examine our resources for the upcoming fiscal year. As you know, we are facing difficult budget challenges. The Governor has proposed strict budget cuts to the California State University system, translating into a potential loss of $16 million for CSULB for the 2008-09 year.
The Resource Planning Process (RPP) Committee, which includes faculty and staff from all divisions, is meeting regularly to develop budget recommendations for the President. Mary Stephens, vice president of the Division of Administration and Finance, David Dowell, vice provost for planning and budgets, and I will be making a brief presentation at Academic Senate on Thursday afternoon on the CSULB budget outlook and RPP planning to date.
In addition, I have already taken several steps to ease the impact of the budget reductions on the fall semester. Because summer is our most expensive semester in terms of cost per student, we have reduced the summer budget by 40 percent, saving nearly $2.2 million. I have also asked college deans to be very active in seeking efficiencies in instruction and instructional support for next year and to identify college non-state resources that can be used to mitigate reductions.
Despite these difficult times, we remain dedicated to protecting the quality of education for our students and minimizing the impact of reductions on our faculty and staff. I remain committed to support for new tenure track faculty in their first three years at levels already announced, to scholarly and creative funding already committed and to sabbaticals already announced. Next year’s new student enrollment will decline by about 1,000 students, but continuing student enrollment is expected to increase. Overall, we will maintain about the same level of fall and spring enrollment and we remain committed to diversity in our student body.
Together we will get through these challenging times and move forward. Our campus community is comprised of a very talented group of faculty, staff and administrators who care deeply about our students and the preservation of our core mission.