Baylor Announces Budget Reductions, Staff Raises
Baylor University department heads are being notified today that due to lower-than-expected fall enrollment, the balance of operating expenses for the 2003-04 fiscal year will be reduced by 25 percent, effective immediately. Unspent capital budgets will be reduced by 75 percent. Baylor's fiscal year began on June 1.
While operating and capital budgets will be cut, administrators have approved staff raises that will be comparable to the increases faculty received for 2003-04. The university-wide pool for staff raises reflects a 2 percent increase, although individual staff raises, which are based on merit, will vary.
"Our first priority in adjusting our expenses to reflect our revenue realities was to take care of the dedicated staff who serve our faculty and students," said David R. Brooks, vice president for finance and administration. "In an environment where many of our peer institutions - public and private - are having to deal with actual year-over-year budget reductions and have had to lay off faculty and staff, we are very grateful that we are able to meet these challenges by reducing the rate of increase in our operating budget."
With the reductions, Baylor's 2003-04 budget still represents a 10 percent increase over 2002-03. The increase in this year's budget has funded additional financial aid and scholarships, new faculty and staff positions and academic program enhancements. Since the Baylor 2012 vision was implemented in 2001, the university has added almost 200 new faculty and staff positions, funded creation of a new Honors College, as well as construction of a new science facility, the first on-campus housing in 40 years, and additional parking and office space.
In addition to the reductions in operating and capital budgets, the university is implementing a "soft" hiring freeze. All staff positions that have gone unfilled since June 1 are frozen until next fiscal year. Ten of those 25 positions were newly created positions.
Any staff positions coming open during the remainder of this fiscal year will need to be approved for refilling by the division head, the vice president for human resources and enrollment management and the vice president for finance and administration. No position upgrades and no additional positions will be approved for the remainder of the fiscal year.
"Although these reductions are necessary, I am confident in the resourcefulness of Baylor's faculty and staff in continuing to provide the level of quality service that is the university's hallmark," Brooks said.