March 18, 2008

 

To:       Faculty, Staff, and Students, USF St. Petersburg

 

From:  Karen White

 

Re:      Budget picture

 

To the students and faculty, welcome back from Spring Break!  I hope you had an enjoyable week and return with new zeal for the semester. 

 

As each of you knows, the budget picture of the state and our nation continues to decline. In response to projected reductions in our state budget, USFSP is utilizing a number of mechanisms to study the current budget and define areas where savings will be gained. 

 

Many good ideas for savings have come from our own faculty, staff, and students and I encourage everyone to continue submitting ideas for review at ideas@stpt.usf.edu.  Energy savings is an area where we can better serve our environment and save real dollars in the budget.  A number of ideas have been submitted in this area including turning off lights as you leave a room and turning off computers as you leave for the evening or weekends.  I ask that we implement these ideas immediately.  

 

Moving forward on broader issues, all divisions of the university are participating in creating budget reduction scenarios. Although a difficult process, these scenarios provide a baseline for considerations and information on the impact to the organization.   The University Budget Council, guided by Chris D’Elia and Ashok Dhingra, developed a document of guiding principles that will guide us in making ultimate decisions.  I know that these processes are difficult and thank each person who participated.  I was very gratified to hear from all campus leaders and constituencies that we value our colleagues and desire fair and equitable treatment for all who may be impacted.

 

In addition to valuing the fair treatment of all colleagues, the guiding principles include:  continuing progress toward strategic goals, commitment to quality of the student experience and student learning, support of research and creative activity, and protecting the financial integrity of the university.  We can anticipate seeing the final draft of this document posted on the Budget Council website later this week.

 

In light of the current budget projections, it is ever more important that we continue with our Strategic Planning process. I thank Frank Biafora and the Strategic Planning Steering Committee and all who participated in the university-wide retreat for their ongoing work and applaud their decision to continue the discussions in greater depth.  You will receive notification of a seven  community forums to be held in coming weeks on five topics to include: 1) masterplanning and resources, 2) the student experience: academic and student life, 3) inclusion and campus community, 4) community (metropolitan) synergy, and 5) USFSP academic programs: present and future. Five will be held at the noon hour and two in late afternoon to accommodate the schedules of the broadest number of people.  I invite each of you to participate with me.

 

We are in some of the most difficult financial times ever encountered at USF St. Petersburg.  One of the historic strengths of our institution is that we are a community of teacher/scholars, staff and students who come together to create a positive atmosphere. We will be tested in the coming year to maintain our spirit and enthusiasm through a time of declining resources. I ask your assistance to continue in a positive direction and maintain a climate of mutual support.