by Alison Norman, MSCSA Director of Policy

The largest discussion item at September’s Board of Trustees meeting was the impact of the legislatively enacted $5 million cut to the Office of the Chancellor.  $4.5 million of that cut will be addressed with the removal of 41 Full Time Equivalent (FTE) staff positions from the Office of the Chancellor.  Many of these positions will be eliminated through attrition or early retirement, but there will be layoffs.  Apart from staff reductions, the impact of the cuts also include the elimination of MnSAT, a realignment of IT services, and the elimination of the MnSCU magazine.  The remaining $500,000 from the legislative cut will be dealt with by restructuring the floor plan at the Office of the Chancellor and removing a floor of office space from the rental agreement.

The Board also addressed its budget outlook for next year.  Because of the uncertainty surrounding the gubernatorial election and the significant differences in the candidates’ budget proposals, the Board has decided to delay its public meeting on the system’s funding request until after the election.  However, the Board did hear the Chancellor’s “emerging proposal,” which asks for the system’s forecast base.  MSCSA and MSUSA also shared their ideas regarding the system’s funding request.

Finally, each Board Committee finalized its strategic goals for the year.  The Committee goals all take into account the changing political, economic, and educational climate and are designed to help the system become more successful into the future.