Lansing - MSU President M. Peter McPherson has laid out a package of university program reductions that could become reality if lawmakers approve a 6.5-percent state funding cut.
At a House appropriations subcommittee hearing Wednesday, McPherson said the proposed cuts would force MSU to eliminate the Department of Agricultural Engineering and the counseling psychology doctoral program. The graduate-level audiology program would be gradually eliminated.
In his testimony, McPherson said MSU will save "tens of millions of dollars" by eliminating these programs. Gov. Jennifer Granholm's proposal would slash about $30 million from state money allocated to MSU.
"There are a number of other areas where we won't take on new students," McPherson said.
There already is a moratorium on admissions for the counseling psychology program.
But the president said he will not allow reduced state funding to impact MSU's most vital research programs.
"What we're saying is that there are core strengths," he said. "We have a very important research and problem-solving role in the world - we can't harm that in any way."
The magnitude of the possible program cuts reflects the impact of MSU's Tuition Guarantee. In 1994, MSU pledged to keep tuition guarantees at or below the expected rate of inflation. The guarantee was amended in fall 2000. Tuition rates have increased by more than 8 percent in each of the last two years.
From 1994 to present, MSU has foregone $45 million in tuition revenue that other Big Ten universities received in the same time frame.
In addition to dropping academic programs, MSU Extension's workforce would be reduced from 700 to 525 employees, affecting programs across the state. Thirty research faculty positions and 80 graduate assistantships would be cut from the Michigan Agricultural Experiment Station.
Despite these program cuts, McPherson said some programs will receive increased funding from the university.
"Spanish is exploding," he said.
Leaders from University of Michigan, Oakland University, Michigan Technological University and Saginaw Valley State University also gave presentations before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Higher Education.
U-M President Mary Sue Coleman said more than 200 faculty positions will be cut. Michigan Tech President Curtis Tompkins said officials cut the school's 83-year-old football program to save $350,000.
After each university leader discussed their program cuts, subcommittee members asked them how much tuition rates would increase at their institution if Granholm's proposed cut to higher education went into effect.
Leaders from Oakland and Saginaw Valley said their increases would hover around 10 percent, while Tompkins said Michigan Tech's tuition will increase "in excess of 20 percent."
McPherson could only quantify MSU's tuition hikes in terms of Tompkins' estimate.
"I see nothing anywhere near that," he said.
"I think we were able to make the case that the way we've held down tuition over a sustained period of time was really unusual."
Joey Guillen can be reached at guillenj@msu.edu.
