ASMSU members consider potential department cuts

Almost two weeks after proposals to discontinue dozens of MSU departments and programs were announced by MSU officials, ASMSU’s Academic Assembly took the matter into consideration Tuesday at its general assembly meeting.

ASMSU is MSU’s undergraduate student government.

At the Oct. 30 Board of Trustees meeting, MSU Provost Kim Wilcox outlined several potential department and program cuts that would help the university reduce its operating budget by about $50 million, or 10 percent, during the next two years.

Potential cuts included discontinuance of the departments of Communicative Sciences and Disorders and Geological Sciences as well as 30 additional majors, specializations and programs.

Academic Assembly representatives from various colleges discussed concerns ranging from how cutting departments and programs will affect the overall budget, possible loss of alumni relations from the cuts and how the cuts will academically affect students. Mary Burleson, Academic Assembly’s vice chairperson for internal affairs, told representatives to brainstorm ideas during the next few weeks in order to present an official view regarding the cuts and to reinforce the view with
facts.

“We need to choose a view … and we need to back it up,” Burleson said at the meeting. “How is cutting (these programs) going to make us a better university? What is cutting (these programs) significantly going to contribute to the budget?”

One representative, Mandy Griffin of the College of Natural Science, raised the question of how cutting certain departments or programs might affect other majors that require students take classes in those
areas.

“I want (the administration) to show us it’s going to be OK for other programs if these are cut,” Griffin said.

ASMSU officials did not return requests Wednesday for further comment.

The proposed cuts will filter through different university governing bodies, such as the University Committee on Academic Policy, in the coming weeks and months before being finalized.

Wilcox recently told the Executive Committee of Academic Council cuts could occur by the end of the spring semester. The departments and programs that might be on the chopping block likely will have admissions moratoriums placed on them.

The Board of Trustees has the final say in whether departments are cut and Wilcox and MSU President Lou Anna K. Simon have final say over program cuts, which include majors, minors and specializations within a major.

University spokesman Terry Denbow said the university continues to be transparent during the process and will field comments and criticisms from students, faculty and staff. He said the best thing for anyone with concerns about potential cuts to do is analyze the situation and know the facts behind the recommendations before passing judgment.

“This is a time when people are going to have input, they’re going to be listened to and they’re going to be reacting to the recommendations,” Denbow said. “We’re going to be transparent.”