Sent on behalf of Provost Mun Choi:
The University of Connecticut is in an exciting period of transformation. With new investments from the state and the growing reputation in research and education, UConn is an institution of choice for top faculty and staff and talented students. With the advent of a bold academic plan supported by the investments from Next Generation Connecticut, we will continue to grow and thrive as a top public university.
During the summer of 2014, we will circulate a call for proposals for initiatives to support the academic vision and faculty hiring for FY16. We are also committed to meeting increased teaching needs due to the growth in enrollment. We anticipate that proposals will be due in early fall of 2014 with final selection later in the semester.
In the midst of these exciting developments, we are also actively addressing a structural deficit. A number of different factors have led to this deficit, including a decline in state appropriations in recent years ($32M) and increases in fringe benefit rates ($14M), both of which are beyond our control.
Due to its size, addressing this structural deficit will require a multi-year strategy and the cooperation of units in virtually all corners of the university. We need to both reduce expenses and grow revenues to achieve our academic mission. With careful planning, we were able to close the deficit in FY14 (which began in July 2013) without affecting academic units. For FY15 (which begins in July 2014), we began working closely with deans in January to develop an effective deficit mitigation plan. Many units contributed to this effort and in the end, we were able to continue with a great majority of faculty and staff searches. There is still more work to do, however, and we are committed to continuing to work collaboratively with deans and unit leaders to find solutions.
To that end, we’ve asked the deans to develop a 3% deficit mitigation plan to help address the FY16 deficit (which begins in July 2015). We made this request now to provide units with ample time to plan accordingly and make careful decisions to minimize the impact to the academic mission.
By addressing the structural deficit now, we’ll keep the university on sound financial footing for the future as we realize the goals of the academic plan and Next Generation Connecticut.
I thank you for your support.
For more information, contact: Office of the Provost at provost@uconn.edu