In resolutions declaring their lack of confidence in University of Alaska President Jim Johnsen, faculty members at the Anchorage and Fairbanks campuses claim they understand the budget crisis facing the university.
I'm confident they don't.
The Anchorage resolution said "the UAA Faculty Senate recognizes the financial problems facing the university," while the Fairbanks resolution said the "UAF Faculty Senate recognizes the financial problems facing the university."
With all of this recognition, they failed to mention the governor, the Legislature, the collapse in oil revenue, the gigantic state deficit and tens of millions in university budget cuts over the past three years.
These conditions have created a political situation that would place any occupant of the UA president's office in an impossible position.
The faculty senators disapprove of the "Strategic Pathways" implementation and say their ideas have not been given enough credit. Johnsen responds that administration officials have worked with faculty members all along the way and many have served on review committees.
If this were a case of internal university politics, it would be one thing. But this is more about external events than faculty members realize.
Cutting costs and jobs, eliminating programs and looking for ways to consolidate programs on an expedited basis will never be popular. The budget cuts mandated by the Legislature have required a reaction time measured in months, not years, which is clearly a source of discontent.
The UAF resolution said the "holistic needs of the university have been repeatedly drowned out by the demands of narrow interest groups and short-term political considerations."
That may be true. But if the faculty senators really want to do something about this, they need to directly deal with the budget specifics and take on the Legislature and governor.
Senate leaders want to cut the next overall state budget by about $300 million, starting off by lopping 5 percent from the university, K-12 schools, as well as the health and transportation departments.
For the university, this would mean a reduction of its budget from $325 million to about $309 million. This is down from $375 million three years ago. This would mean more reductions in UA programs and greater unrest among faculty members.
The faculty senators did not suggest an income tax, sales tax or use of Permanent Fund earnings in their resolutions condemning the president's performance.
Frank Jeffries, who teaches business administration at UAA, wrote that the president is "willfully ignorant" of the warning signs of a crisis. I think the president and the regents are fully aware of the challenge and the need for action.
I also think Jeffries is wrong that a way to save $20 million to $30 million is to get rid of the statewide administration that performs functions for the 17 campuses across the state. This would follow the Oregon model of doing away with a centralized system, he said.
The reason this won't save $20 million to $30 million is that the general fund budget for the statewide office is $18.4 million, down $10 million from four years ago. And assigning more tasks to UAF, UAA and UAS will mean higher costs at each school.
If faculty members want to be constructive, they need to declare they have no confidence in a system of perennial budget cuts.
Columnist Dermot Cole can be reached at dermot@alaskadispatch.com.
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