Ohio University - Athena Yearbook (Athens, OH)

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University budget troubles: a time to reconsider by Chris Stewart Editors note: Chris Stewart is a junior and was one of two undergraduate students chosen to serve on the University Budget Committee Ohio University passed through one of its gravest crises in modern history this year— two servere budget reductions. An enrolment Joss of nearly 1,200 students fall quarter sharply reduced the university ' s fee income. Mid-year budget adjustments had to be made to the amount of $1.9 million. A previously unknown group called the University Budget Committee (UBC) was assigned the task of re-adjusting the university ' s expenditures. The committee was appointed by the president and consisted of all the senior administrators, two undergraduates and one graduate student, an academic dean, a branch campus representative, three faculty members and a representative of the administrative senate. The chairman is the universitv treasurer. During the first budget crisis two additional students, one faculty, one administrator and the university ' s ombudsman, were temporarily added to augment the work. The UBC met intensively for three days in late October. A closed door, three to four hour meeting, was set aside and the committee was to recommend to the president action he may take to solve the problem. The re-adjustment was further compounded by the fact that 40-50 per cent of the current budget had been expended. Also, the faculty and staff cover 80 per cent of the entire university budget and is committed for a full year. Contracts cannot be broken mid-year. Twenty per cent of the budget consists of essential day to day items such as power energy Two alternatives were left to the committee:

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MS. SOWLE A five minute walk from the president ' s office is the office of a petite, attractive blonde, who has been said to have more influence on presidential matters than anyone else within the university autocracy. Kathryn Dix Sowle, does more than entertain guests at 29 Park Place and as she explains, there is not any one role of the president ' s wife. Obviously the main job is the official and semi- official entertainment Uj nit; uni veisny. nullum the president ' s home is also her responsibility. But Ms. Sowle claims the role is a changing she said, it is thought of in terms of the social activities. I think you can take it beyond that. Katie, as she is most often called, definitely takes it beyond that ' . A graduate of Northwestern University Law School, Ms. Sowle is chairman of the committee on elections, education, welfare, and the bill of rights, has taught communication law at Ohio University, is a member of the Athens Human Relation Commission, has lobbied and testified for the passage of the Equal Rights Amendment, and has also been active statewide in the area of newsmen ' s privilege. With all her involvements, •a » r» 1 I l j have time for anything else. But in describing herself, she says she is first wife and mother, and then occasional writer, teacher, and feminist. Ms. Sowle feels her family is able to share the effect We do many of the public things together to the extent that the children want to. Our attitudes to our private life is that we don ' t make a great distinction between our private and public lives. If you did, you would always be torn. We look on the university as our private lives taking into account larger groups. 1 don ' t think any of us behave any different in our private lives than we do in our public. It ' s a very large family. Ms. Sowle further explained that you do have to work at it. I don ' t mean to sound as if it isn ' t a concern, because it is. Although Ms. Sowle refers to her position as a job, it is not in terms of financial compensation. I look on it as a job and approach it as a job. There will come a time when executive wives will be paid. The day is coming where more nnr) mnrp nrpsiHpnt ' s wives will be following their own careers. If an institution wants her time, they ' ll have to compete financially for her time. DR. SOWLE 21

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1. Tap what is referred to as soft money This is unspent money that has been carried over from the previous year and ear-marked for special projects. It also covers money that has been building up in speical university accounts for projects or programs that are self-substaining and in .some instances made a profit. These accounts are calJed rotary accounts. 2. Reduce or eliminate items such as office supplies, travel, departmental reserves, or terminate hiring of non-academic employees. The committee incorporated both alternatives. Its first action was to estimate the amount of money to be cut which was judged to be almost $2 million. The total amount was reduced by taking money from several areas considered university-wide. The UBC took its mission with great seriousness but could not reach an accord suitable to all of its members. Division existed between the academic members, the support services such as student life, the physical plant, and the branch campuses. The three students stood in the middle with no immediate vested interests except a high quality of academic and student life services programs. Prior to the re- adjustment period in late October, none of the students had any experience with budgets or even university administration. They voted on many facets of the university including the retention of part or all of WOUB-AM FM and TV, elimination of the subsidy to the dormitories (possibly forcing a fee hike, a reduction in food services and the partial or complete reduction of the resident life assistant ' s program), scaling down of the intercollegiate athletics (possibly resulting in the elimination of a major sport such as football or a series of minor sports such as soccer and hockey), elimination of administrative support units, and reduction of salary increases for contract personnel. A ten day series of meetings only resulted in a fairly divided committee. The president felt the UBC had not fully performed its tasks and called a special meeting in which each member was to explain to him his feelings on the dividing of the university ' s financial resources. It was to be an informative meeting for him and also accountability session of the UBC ' s deliberation. It was broadcasted live over WOUB-AM. The six hour show succeeded in alerting the university community to its severe budget crisis. Within a short period of time Dr. Sowle released a major reorganization of the entire university. The president eliminated a number of high administrative positions and reduced money to the student life areas. BUDGET 23