SUNY Potsdam President Suzanne Smith announced Tuesday that the university will be cutting up to 14 degree programs and eliminating an unknown number of faculty and staff positions.
The university needs to reduce its annual structural deficit of $9 million. Smith gathered the community inside Snell Music Theater to hear how the administration plans to begin tackling the problem.
"We have failed to address the problem in any substantial way for far too long," she said. "Yes, I recognize that state support has not kept pace with our needs. And yes, I understand that we're facing increased costs in the coming years. But we must confront this stark reality. There will be no bailouts. This challenge is ours and ours alone to solve."
SUNY Potsdam’s enrollment has declined by 43% since 2010. At the same time, staffing numbers have not changed.
"Once monthly salaries are paid, Potsdam is already in debt, with nothing left to fund other day-to-day operations," Smith said. "This is clearly not sustainable."
She said the new goal is to build the budget around a steady enrollment of about 2,500 students — about as many students as are enrolled for this semester.
Smith announced that 14 academic degrees are up for elimination. All students will be able to complete their degrees before programs are discontinued, she said.
The programs include:
• Art history (BA)
• Arts management (BA)
• Biochemistry (MS)
• Chemistry (BA and BS)
• Dance (BA)
• French (BA)
• Music performance (MM)
• Philosophy (BA)
• Physics (BA)
• Public health (BS and MS)
• Spanish (BA)
• Theater (BA)
The more popular undergraduate music performance major will remain intact.
Interim Provost Alan Hersker said the administration will be working with faculty to decide which programs to discontinue.
"What we'll be doing in the next two weeks is meeting with stakeholders for each of those programs to present the data that we used to make these decisions, but also to get their input," Hersker said. "I think we're really taking a holistic approach to this. A lot of these programs are interdependent."
The President's Council will make the final campus decision. According to the tentative plan SUNY Potsdam has released, decisions on program cuts will be sent to SUNY System Administration for final approval on October 23.
Smith said this will lead to faculty and staff cuts.
"We are making difficult but necessary decisions for our campus as a whole based on hard facts and given our limited resources," she said.
Smith said the university will accomplish some of its cuts through retirement and attrition.
"The foundation has graciously allotted funds for a voluntary separation program to be implemented as a part of our plan. Retirements and attrition will significantly impact the number of reductions that take place. So this program will be key to our success," she said.
Two buildings on campus — Dunn Hall and Knowles East, West and South — could be closed under the downsizing plan.
The union that represents SUNY faculty and staff said the situation shouldn’t have gotten this bad and that there are other ways to fix the financial problems.
"What SUNY is doing now is undertaking cuts that are being done under the gun have a financial crisis. And that will lead to mistakes," said United University Professions President Fred Kowal.
Kowal said SUNY has money from the state budget to handle this year’s deficit, which would give them time to make better long-term decisions.
"Get rid of the deficit, put the institution on solid financial ground, and then let's all sit down and make a plan going forward in terms of making the institution strong," he said. "Not crisis management, or crisis planning, but well thought out long-term strategic planning that will most benefit all stakeholders."
SUNY Potsdam is a major anchor of the St. Lawrence County economy, employing hundreds of people. According to university officials, it generates $350 million in economic activity.
Greg Gardner, a SUNY Potsdam business professor and chair of the faculty senate, said faculty and staff have known cuts were coming but had been in the dark until the formal announcement.
"Many of our worst fears have proved to be true," Gardner said. "And so now, I think there's a great deal of anger and resentment. There's a lot of shock, just at the scope. utting 14 programs, some of which have been on our campus for many, many years. That's an almost unprecedented event on our campus."
He said faculty are going to work to have as much of an impact as they can have on decisions to cut programs.
"We will go through the process of responding to these trying to see if we can shape the decisions in any way," Gardner said. "I think there's very little chance of that, but we will do what we can."
SUNY Chancellor John King was at the announcement and said these changes should have happened a lot sooner. He said while the scale of the financial problem at SUNY Potsdam is unique, campuses across the SUNY system and the country are facing similar challenges. Several colleges, including Cazenovia College in central New York, have closed their doors completely.
"We have to take an honest look at 10 years of enrollment change. And over the long term, Potsdam can be a healthy, sustainable, 2,500-student campus, but that means the expenses have to match," King said.
SUNY Potsdam’s President Suzanne Smith said the ultimate goal is to make the university sustainable, not just to get it through the current crisis.
"This is not a decision made lightly," Smith said. "But it is a decision that must be made if SUNY Potsdam is to survive into the next century and to thrive as I know we can."