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May 4, 2009
Dear Students, Faculty and Staff:
This weekend’s Board of Trustees meeting marked
an important milestone in the budget planning we have undertaken as a community this
year. I write to let you know of the decisions that have been reached as well as
the work that will occupy us in the coming weeks and in the next academic year as
we make the transition to operating within new budget parameters.
Having carefully reviewed and expressed confidence in
the April 13 budget reduction plan,
the board voted to approve an operating budget of $190.5 million and a capital budget
of $25.9 million for 2009-10. This reflects a reduction of $10.4 million from original
operating budget projections. As you know, we have planned for the potential of $30
million in reductions over two years, if necessitated by continued losses in endowment
returns and other factors. At this point, it seems highly likely that at least $20
million of the proposed reductions will be inevitable and will need to be in effect
by July 1, 2011.
One of the most difficult areas of our planning involved
the reduction or elimination of positions. As part of its budget deliberations, the
board approved an enhanced severance program for employees whose positions are being
eliminated. The program includes at least 60 days’ notice and severance pay
of at least 10 weeks’ base pay plus supplemental payments linked to length
of service. Employees whose positions are eliminated will also be offered outplacement
services and career counseling. Although many of the reductions will not take effect
until later in 2009 or 2010, we plan to notify all affected employees by early June
2009 so as to offer as much time as possible for them to find new positions, whether
at Smith or elsewhere.
Although it is difficult at this time to provide as
many specifics as some of you might like, I want to offer what detail I can on the
budget areas of greatest interest:
- Salaries and benefits: Following
a salary freeze in 2009-10 for all administrators, faculty and staff, the plan
allows for a modest salary increase in the following year for employees earning
less than $75,000. This would be brought forward for board approval next year in
the context of their voting the 2010-11 budget. While the plan largely protects
employee benefits, I am appreciative of the many benefits-related comments I have
received from all sectors of our community and am committed to a comprehensive
review of the college’s benefits and their long-term role in employee recruitment
and retention, so as to determine their appropriate level and composition.
- Libraries: As noted in my April
27 letter, Josten Library will remain open in 2009-10, with reduced staffing
and hours, while we engage in a master planning process for the libraries. The
master planning will address such questions as the role of branches in the college’s
overall library system, the optimal location of back-office functions, opportunities
to enhance study and learning spaces, and the overall financial impact of consolidating
libraries.
- Chapel restructuring: To develop
a model best able to serve the diversity of faith traditions and spiritual practices
that today’s students represent, Dean of the College Maureen Mahoney and
Dean of Religious Life Jennifer Walters will consult next year with student religious
and diversity leaders, as well as faculty and other key leadership.
- Institutional diversity: I have
decided to hold the director of institutional diversity position vacant for two
years. This decision was motivated by two goals: 1) to save positions of people
currently employed at the college, and 2) to give time for the community to assess
whether our current conception of the position is the right one for Smith’s
needs and aspirations. In the meantime, Adrianne Andrews will shift her responsibilities
from ombudsperson to advisor for equity complaints; Serena Harris, human resources
specialist, will take responsibility for our affirmative action plan and for monitoring
staff searches; the Provost’s office will monitor faculty searches; and Jennifer
Walters, along with her role as dean of religious life, will serve as assistant
to the president for diversity and equity, with the responsibility of overseeing
programmatic and community diversity initiatives. Additionally, I am establishing
and will chair a diversity council to advise me and keep me informed of progress
on diversity issues. The council’s members are Adrianne, Serena, Jennifer,
L’Tanya Richmond, director of multicultural affairs, Laura Rauscher, disability
services director, Carolyn Jacobs, dean of the School for Social Work, a faculty
representative charged with diversity initiatives in the curriculum, and the SGA
Diversity Chair.
- Energy conservation and sustainability: Throughout
our planning process, one of the strongest themes of the many suggestions you brought
forward was to focus on sustainability and resource conservation. I am pleased
that our budget incorporates anticipated savings of some $900,000 through a range
of projects in areas such as lighting, heating, insulation, refrigeration and water
conservation. These will be enacted over the next two years.
- Health services: For 2009-10 Health
Services will be open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday, with overnight and
weekend coverage being provided through on-call practitioners and Cooley Dickinson
Hospital, as it currently is at night. Through ongoing conversations with the Five
Colleges, it is possible we could develop some shared health services positions
in the future.
- Public safety: The proposal to share
the management of Smith’s public safety operations with those of Mount Holyoke
and Hampshire remains under active consideration and is being discussed with the
other colleges. We expect to be able to announce a final decision soon.
The budget framework laid out this year will continue
to guide the Advisory Committee on Resource Allocation (ACRA) in its work in the
coming years. The Committee on Mission and Priorities (CMP), meanwhile, will be engaged
in taking forward the major strategic initiatives of The Smith Design for Learning,
which have implications for the shape of the faculty and any faculty hiring we would
do several years from now in strategic and essential areas. CMP is also the group
that will advise me on facilities reduction, an important area of budget savings.
Once the buildings are identified, we will need to make plans to relocate the functions
and programs in them. Both ACRA and CMP have student, faculty and staff representation.
As they take forward the work begun this year, we will continue to offer opportunities
for community comment and discussion.
I have been asked by the board, and particularly the
chair, Cornelia Mendenhall Small ’66, to convey thanks to the Smith community
for the comprehensive and serious way in which the budget reduction process was undertaken.
Many of our peer institutions have not yet begun to tackle the long-term financial
decisions that lie in their future; our doing so enables us to focus on significant
future development of the college. The board’s support for our plan is rooted
in a number of key factors: that it protects Smith’s commitments to financial
aid and the excellence and diversity of the student body; that it gives priority
to energy savings and sustainability; and that, overall, it preserves the ability
of the college to continue to deliver a superb education. Their confidence in Smith
and its future was further underscored by a vote at this meeting to begin a fundraising
campaign, effective July 1, 2009, with a working goal of $500 million, to ensure
the excellence of the college for future generations.
As we approach the end of the semester, I wish each
of you a wonderful summer and look forward to engaging with you on these important
matters when we return in the fall.
Sincerely,
Carol T. Christ |
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