LITTLE ROCK – Arkansas State University System institutions will keep tuition and fees steady for students this fall while reducing budgeted expenses by almost $14 million or 5% in anticipation of lower state revenue and possible enrollment losses.The move came Thursday by the ASU System Board of Trustees in a video conference meeting to approve the $279.8 million system budget.
“The situation we face today is why we work so hard to build and maintain healthy, financially stable institutions,” Welch says. “We’ve chosen to make difficult spending decisions rather than use reserve funds. We spared our faculty and staff from salary cuts and furloughs, and we kept tuition and fees steady for students and parents facing financial uncertainty.
Welch said the spending cuts, while appropriate and necessary this year, would not be sustainable. Institutions will put on hold capital projects and also scale back deferred maintenance projects, professional development and travel. Hiring freezes will also be in place, he added.
“While we budgeted for lower enrollment to be conservative, our campuses will be working tirelessly to recruit traditional students and adults who want to pursue more education and training for new job opportunities,” Welch says. “Adults who have a two-year, four-year or professional degree continue to fare much better in the job market.”
The ASU System opted not to budget state funds appropriated in Categories C and D in the Revenue Stabilization Act, he says, also noting that federal CARES Act funding was helpful but did not make up for state budget cuts.
Arkansas State University in Jonesboro budgeted $203.5 million, a decrease of $5.9 million or 2.9%, with expectations of a $5.2 million decline in state revenue and a $6.2 million drop in tuition and fees. The largest cuts are by ASU-Beebe, a $1.9 million or a 7% reduction to $27 million, and ASU-Newport, a $1.4 million or a 8.3% reduction to $16.9. While no institution will provide overall merit or cost of living raises, some will provide additional pay for faculty promotions and all will comply with the state-mandated minimum wage increase for certain classified employees.
In other business, the board approved:
• The system’s request to borrow up to $5.3 million to develop and implement the Enterprise Resource Planning system for all member institutions. The effort to consolidate the system into a single ERP system provides the opportunity to access shared services, facilitate cooperative buying and increase collaboration.
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