Several colleges and universities across New Hampshire and Vermont are experiencing budget shortfalls. While Dartmouth's concerns stem from the 18-percent drop in its endowment, other schools that rely more heavily on tuition as opposed to their endowments are concerned that fewer students will be able to pay their college expenses in light of the economic recession.
State funding for the University of Vermont is being reduced by $2.5 million, for a total budget of $39.5 million, Ted Winfield, associate vice president for finance and administration, said. The university receives 8 percent of its budget from the state.
The university has cut both the men's varsity baseball and women's varsity softball teams and laid off 16 staff members to cope with the budgetary shortfall, Winfield said. Thirty additional employees have been notified that their position may be eliminated if revenue decreases further, he added.
No faculty cuts were made, but the university will not fill faculty positions that are currently vacant, Winfield said.
"We're working hard to ensure the things we're doing to trim expenses won't have a dramatic impact on services," Winfield said. "Part of what we're expecting is for the student faculty ratio to go up."
Dartmouth announced earlier this month that no cuts will be made to any of Dartmouth's intramural, club and varsity athletic teams. The College, however, laid off 60 employees.
Students and faculty at UVM have held demonstrations to oppose the cuts, according to UVM sophomore Sam Natale, who added that students have expressed concerns that some faculty positions may be eliminated in the future.
"Students are worried if they are working with professors on projects [that the professors] may get cut," Natale said. "The effect is more about the faculty being lost."
Fifty-five percent of UVM's budget is funded by student tuition, Winfield said, adding that student interest in the university remains strong.
"It's hard to gauge whether student ability to get loans and alternative financing not provided by financial aid will restrict ability to pay," Winfield said. "So, if that becomes an issue to a greater degree, there is the risk that enrollment levels would plateau or potentially go down."
At Colby-Sawyer College, a private liberal arts school in New Hampshire, 80 percent of the budget is financed by tuition and student fees, making student's ability to get loans important to the college, Doug Lyon, Colby-Sawyer's treasurer, said.
Colby-Sawyer is also experiencing difficulty borrowing, as banks are "less open" to making loans, he said.
Colby-Sawyer is not laying off any staff members and is searching for several full-time faculty to hire for next year, despite losing 30 percent on its endowment as of Dec. 31, 2008, Lyon said.
Colby-Sawyer relies on its endowment for approximately 2.5 to 3 percent of its operating budget, as opposed to Dartmouth, which relies on endowment funds for 35 percent of its day-to-day expenses.
"We are in the midst of looking at everything in terms of next year's budget," Lyon said. "We will try to go into next year as lean as possible, but as a small, tuition-driven institution, we go thorough this every year."
The University of New Hampshire is anticipating a 3-percent decrease in state funding for next year, David Proulx, assistant vice president for financial planning and budgeting, said. State funding comprises 14 percent of the university's operating budget, or $69 million, he said. Student tuition and fees represent approximately 55 percent of the operating budget, Proulx added.
As at UVM and Colby-Sawyer, UNH officials are concerned about students' ability to pay tuition. Officials are also concerned that decreasing home values and unemployment will place "more pressure" on the university's financial aid program. Proulx said.
"What I'm sensing is there is more pressure on [students] to find resources to pay for college," he said.
UNH sophomore Haley Plifka said she has taken several jobs to meet the demands of the economy.
"To help out with tuition, I chose to become a [residential advisor], which is a $9,000 tuition cut," she said.
Plifka said she does not believe that administrators has gathered sufficient student feedback about budget cuts, citing the university's decision to close one of the student dining halls for three days each week.
UNH's budgetary discussions are in the early stages, Proulx said, adding that the university will send an e-mail in the next couple of weeks to solicit ideas from faculty, staff and students about budget improvement.
