The State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry is preparing for the proposed budget cut to SUNY schools. ESF officials hope to reduce the effect of the cuts by decreasing spending.

Gov. David Paterson’s budget, announced Jan. 19, included several cuts as a result of the state’s $7.4 billion deficit. The SUNY cut comes in the wake of the $90 million mid-year cut that the school system is still recovering from, said Joe Rufo, vice president for administration at ESF.

‘Tuition and state aid make up most of the revenue,’ he said. ‘So it’s a big deal.’

The $148.8 million cut is one of many ESF has dealt with over the past few years, Rufo said.

‘I understand we are in tough fiscal times, but there are other ways to find savings,’ said John View, director of financial aid at ESF. ‘(Legislators) are all culpable. They are all guilty of sticking their heads in the sand and not doing their jobs.’

Paterson also announced the Public Higher Education Empowerment and Innovation Act Jan. 15, which will give SUNY colleges more freedom and flexibility to set their own tuition and spend money without state approval. The act will also keep revenue on campus rather than being reallocated by the state, Rufo said.

With the act, ESF can adopt a policy that would have tuition increases equal to the rate of inflation, rather than the double-digit increases of the past. This will allow students to budget their finances more accurately, Rufo said.

While some hailed this act as historic and positive, others saw it as an easy way for Paterson to force universities to increase tuition to combat the budget cut.

‘He put the gun to SUNY’s head,’ View said. ‘He didn’t want to have to dirty his hands and recommend a tuition increase.’

To deal with the cut, ESF will try to reduce spending by decreasing energy costs. ESF plans to install several energy-conservation measures to save $325,000 a year. New projects, such as the Gateway building, which will house spaces for workshops, conferences and conventions and will feature a wildlife exhibit ESF has collected, will also contribute to energy cost reductions, Rufo said.

‘The new Gateway building is going to have a combined heat and power generator, which will replace 60 percent of the steam we currently use, and we’ll save a significant chunk of money in the range of $150,000 a year,’ Rufo said.

While Rufo said he is optimistic about reducing energy costs, there are other areas where decreased spending will be more difficult. Labor costs make up 65 percent of ESF’s total expenses, and cuts to faculty and staff are painful and difficult, he said.

‘As a college, we are very labor intensive,’ Rufo said. ‘It’s not like you can just turn off a light switch or reduce travel.’

ESF will also review its financial aid department to ensure that money is being put to the best use possible, Rufo said.

Others at ESF see a more difficult path ahead.

Academic services will have to be cut eventually, said View, director of financial aid. The cuts will most likely come as tuition increases for students and there is a reduction in the number of adjunct faculty members, he said. It will be difficult for students to fulfill all course requirements in time for graduation with fewer adjunct professors to teach courses, View said.

While View said he doesn’t worry about the number of students applying to ESF, he said he is concerned about what would happen to the student body of ESF if tuition increases and financial aid decreases.

‘I don’t think we’ll see a decrease in people coming to SUNY,’ he said. ‘What we will see is the face of the students who come to SUNY changing drastically.’

View said the diversity of ESF will suffer because there is a correlation between low-income and multicultural students, who would not be able to afford higher tuition.

‘Students who could break out of the cycle of poverty won’t be able to (attend ESF),’ View said. ‘This is their access to public education, and it’s no longer affordable to the public.’

View said he thinks the cuts are unfair and will hurt the state’s economy in the long run. If public schools were to be as expensive as private schools, there would be little advantage to going to a state university, he said.

‘We want to keep talented young folks in New York, and if SUNY is the same cost as Penn State or the University of Virginia, people will say, ‘The cost is the same. Why not go there?’ and chances are, they won’t come back,’ View said.

ESF’s tuition is not likely to increase to the cost of a private university, said Robert French, vice president for enrollment management and marketing.

‘The gap between the two right now is so large,’ French said. ‘And with that kind of differential, it would take a long period of small increases to ever reach that high level.’

jlsiart@syr.edu

Published on January 26, 2010 at 12:00 pm