Faculty Senate statement on budget and university structure
by Michelle Saport |
Dear UAA Community,
As Chancellor Sandeen announced yesterday, she has been directed by President Johnsen to identify $50 million in cuts that UAA could make to help meet the current $134 million budget shortfall across the UA system.
On behalf of the Faculty Senate Executive Board, I want to share our appreciation for her leadership and commitment to transparency and shared governance as she shares the planning documents that will be used to guide this difficult discussion. As she noted in her message to the UAA community, these are preliminary planning documents and final decisions have not been made.
The Executive Board also supports the effort by Faculty Alliance, a shared governance group of faculty leadership from UAA, UAF, and UAS in recommending increased involvement from the chancellors at each university in making budget decisions and guiding the direction of the UA system. (Read the letter from Faculty Alliance to the Board of Regents.)
As we move through these challenging, uncertain times, we will remain committed to a transparent process that includes clear criteria and evidence-based, data-informed decision making while giving the UAA community the opportunity to have input throughout the process.
Sincerely, Scott Downing UAA Faculty Senate President