Meeting the 2011-2013 Additional Budget Cuts

Memo from Chancellor Sorensen
October 26, 2011

My previous memo indicated that UW-Stout is facing additional budget cuts of $2.53 to $4.35 million for the current biennium.  We currently are exploring our options and alternatives for meeting this challenge and will share those with the campus as soon as they are available.

In the interim, we must put measures in place to ensure we give ourselves the maximum flexibility to meet the proposed budget cut:

Read more...

Hiring

All hires, except those that are federally funded, must be approved by the Chancellor. Only those positions deemed critical to the mission of the university will be approved. All classified and unclassified recruitment forms will be routed to the Chancellor for his review. This provision also includes emergency/temporary hires, positions less than half-time and limited-term employees. Graduate assistants, student help positions and federally funded positions are not affected by these guidelines.

Travel

All out-of-state travel (including international travel) must be approved by the Chancellor or his designees: Provost Julie Furst-Bowe for Academic and Student Affairs and Vice Chancellor Ed Nieskes for Administrative and Student Life Services. Anyone not in these divisions will have their out-of-country travel reviewed by the Chancellor. Travel to the Twin Cities area is not considered out-of-state.

Major purchases

All purchases over $5,000 that are not federally funded need to be approved by the division administrators: the Chancellor, Provost or Vice Chancellor Nieskes. This approval needs to be granted before a purchase order is issued. Any major purchase should be deferred at this time if it is not critical to the mission of the university. 

This is a serious budget situation that will have effects across campus. We will do everything possible to protect the quality of education that our students receive. But we are reviewing all of our operations and expenditures to find the reductions to meet these extensive budget cuts. These provisions will stay in effect until further notice. Thank you for your cooperation.

Budget Forum 2011 - Video


"Budget Committee to consider $123M in cuts," WISC-TV, Feb. 15.
The Legislature's budget-writing committee is set to approve about $123 million in cuts across state government, more than a third of which would fall to the University of Wisconsin System...

"UW students will voice budget concerns on Wednesday," WKOW-TV, Feb. 15.
College students will voice their concerns about the University of Wisconsin System budget on Wednesday. University of Wisconsin students from Madison, Fond du Lac and Milwaukee are coming before the state Legislature's Joint Committee on Finance at 12:30 p.m. Wednesday afternoon...

"Cuts to UW disproportionate, unfair," Column, Badger Herald, Feb. 14.
Today, the Joint Committee on Finance will hold a hearing regarding the disproportionate budget lapse to the University of Wisconsin System. It is proposed that the UW System take a $65.6 million cut, 38 percent of the total lapse. This, after the System received a $250 million cut in the current biennial budget, bringing UW funding down to 7 percent of the total state budget...