Concerns about Miami University's budget and lack of student scholarships are being taken to a new level as faculty have gathered to sign an open letter to the board of trustees to make a statement.
A statement was drafted by Karen Dawisha and Steve DeLue, both professors from the political science department, edited by many others and signed by 120 faculty members from all divisions and colleges of the university, preceding the letter's official release Friday, Sept. 25.
The letter outlines concerns about a changing academic culture at Miami and a dwindling budget some faculty members feel could be spent more wisely.
"Generally, we like the ideas for new buildings that are out there," DeLue said. "They're all good ideas, but you can't do everything and you can't do it all at once. You need to prioritize."
DeLue and Dawisha believe the university should focus more on academics and the quality of faculty in this economic climate, rather than new buildings since they feel the old buildings are working satisfactorily.
"Every time you add a brand new building, you add a lot of upkeep and costs down the road," Dawisha said.
Dawisha said the argument is not the university versus the business school.
"It's not about anybody beating anybody else," Dawisha said. "The core mission is getting as good of students as we can coming in and making them better."
President David Hodge said he sees the letter as a request for reassurance that the university is handling its money in a smart way.
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"I think the motivations are that it's a time of challenging uncertainty and people want some reassurance," Hodge said.
One of the main concerns stressed by Dawisha and DeLue was the future construction of the Bicentennial Student Center.
"It's going to raise your costs at the end of the day," DeLue said. "You may have to raise tuition to compensate for the costs. In some ways I feel bad because maybe these decisions could have been made differently a few years ago, but there's no excuse for not entering the process at this point."
Hodge said a new student center, however, would be crucial to student success.
"Given what modern college and university life is like, a student center turns out to be a very important facility to accommodate student activities which are important to them," Hodge said.
Hodge said the current Shriver Center is more of a campus center than a student center and that it was designed for a university less than half the size of what Miami is today. He added that members of the Associated Student Government (ASG) brought the importance of this new building to his attention. Not having a student center that is competitive to other universities could be detrimental to Miami, according to Hodge.
"While the campus visit is very important, the student center is one of the top two or three visuals of what student life is like," Hodge said. "It's the energy and activities of what they (prospective students) see inside there."
Hodge stressed that construction, specifically that of the new student center, has already been put on hold, and the university is only proceeding when it has a fiscally responsible plan.
"We've made the decision to continue the planning process," Hodge said. "We're still identifying what is needed. We still haven't had an accurate assessment as to what the center will cost. What we've been doing over the last year is examining alternatives to drive the costs down."
DeLue and Dawisha think the money that would eventually go toward the student center would be better as salaries for high-quality faculty members or used for student scholarships.
Dawisha said at a faculty assembly, she was informed students chose not to attend Miami because of the lack of merit scholarships. She also said she hoped the university would keep the number of full faculty.
"We're clearly going to have to do more with financial aid, and we need a strategy that's going to be more effective," Hodge said.
Dawisha said the newly implemented furlough policy could be very beneficial to faculty.
"I'm in favor of the furlough," Dawisha said. "I'd rather take a pay cut than lose faculty. I haven't talked to a single faculty (member) against it, but we don't want that (saved) money going into a new building."
DeLue said he was concerned new construction would impact the academic budget, as both he and Dawisha feel academics are the most important aspect of Miami.
"We were told if we build these buildings it won't impact the academic budget, but there's all kinds of reasons to say they will," DeLue said. "What you do in one place affects what you do in another."
Hodge agreed academics are the university's highest priority, and that cuts and changes in one area of the university will inevitably affect other areas as well. He added, however, that there might have been confusion about the university's financial health after a presentation at the faculty assembly Sept. 15.
"When the market was inflated, we looked good," Hodge said. "When it went in the opposite direction, it looks much worse than it really is. It is a very poor measure of what our institution's health really is."
Hodge said debt is still a concern, but the university is open to people's concerns.
"One of the things we try to do is be as transparent as possible," Hodge said. "We share everything we know."
DeLue, however, said he thinks the university could step back and re-check its planning.
"Everybody is well-intentioned," DeLue said. "Everyone wants the best for this institution. Once they get started, people don't question it. In light of the fiscal situation at this university, maybe we better slow things down again and take another look."
A statement from faculty members
US News and World Report recently ranked Miami University No. 8 in Undergraduate Teaching in National Universities.*The faculty of this university is rightly proud of this achievement, which is at the core of Miami's mission. However, we are concerned about our ability to deliver a high quality education in the future as a result of the university's growing debt burden, a burden that already has produced staff cuts, non-replacement of faculty, and a furlough policy.
Recent building projects, which now include the renovation of residence halls and a student center, are worthy in principle, particularly residence hall renovation, but we seek assurance that these projects will not lead to growing debt, increases in student costs, or further cuts in the academic budget.
As part of this budget, we are concerned about the decline in funding for student scholarships. We believe that we cannot, in our fiscal climate, maintain both a fine academic culture, with top-rated students, and go further into debt for buildings. Keeping the cost of coming to Miami down, and maintaining funds for recruiting the best students, are, for us, a higher priority than these projects at this time.
We have transmitted a more detailed letter, with 120 signatories, drawn from full professors, directors, chairs, endowed chairs and university distinguished professors to the Executive Committee of Senate, the President, his cabinet, and the Board of Trustees, and we look forward to working with them to uphold Miami's core mission.
*http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/national-ut-rank
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