Impact Summary of State Budget Reductions

Updated March 1, 2010

Budget Reduction Strategy

Since the initial state budget reductions in the fall of 2008, Georgia Tech has placed an emphasis on preserving its core missions of teaching, research, and public service. To that end the Institute has imposed differential budget cuts on administrative units, which to date have absorbed substantially higher reductions than academic units. Georgia Tech requested that all units reduce expenditures on personal services as well as discretionary components of the budget such as travel, training, supplies, and equipment.

Hiring and Reclassifications

A hiring and reclassification moratorium has meant filling only critical vacancies, upon the approval of the provost and executive vice president. Reductions as of the end of February 2010 total 286 positions as indicated below:

Personnel Reductions Due to Budget Reasons (administrative positions - no faculty):
FY2009 Total	89
FY2010 through February 2010	10
Total filled positions eliminated	99
Total Full-Time Equivalent Positions Eliminated (including filled positions above):
	2-year total FY2009- FY2010
Faculty	-41
Support staff and administrators	-242
Total positions eliminated	-286

Academic Units

Georgia Tech has made every effort to minimize the impact of cuts on colleges. However, budget reductions taken to date have resulted in increased burdens for faculty, reduced support and services to undergraduate students, and reduction in employment opportunities for graduate students.

Over the past four years—fall 2006 to fall 2009—Georgia Tech's enrollment has increased by 13 percent from 17,935 to 20,291. During this time period, the following have been results related to class offerings:

• Course Sections: The number of freshman and sophomore course sections ("lower division") have declined by 54, or 8 percent, from 703 to 649 over four years. Course sections for "upper division" students have remained even, despite enrollment increases.
• Average Enrollment: The average enrollment for course sections has increased for both lower and upper division students by 10 percent and 12 percent, respectively. The average section sizes have increased from 47.7 to 52.5 (or 4.8) for the lower division and 25.6 to 28.7 (or 3.1) for the upper division.

The workload on faculty has increased dramatically due to dwindling budgets. The situation is depicted by faculty headcount in relation to credit hours taught. Over the past three fall semesters (2007, 2008 and 2009), the number of faculty has declined by 11, from 1,130 to 1,119. During this same time period, the number of credit hours taught has increased by 5 percent, or 9,191 hours.

Student Services

Reductions to date:

• Dean of Students Office - eliminated four graduate assistants and two professional positions
• Career Services - restructured department and eliminated two positions
• Ferst Center for the Arts - eliminated one staff position, reduced box office hours
• Student Success Programs - reduced salary lines
• Campus Recreation Center - reduced salary lines
• Student Leadership Program - reduced operating expenses
• Vice President of Student Affairs office - reduced operating expenses
• Student Affairs Development - reduced operating expenses
• Counseling Center - no reductions in staff

Library

FY2009 and FY2010 reductions have required the Library to cancel 672 titles ($335,000), reduce book purchases by $500,000 per year, and reduce monograph purchases from $534,000 in FY2008 to only $45,000 in FY2010.

Service Hours:

The library has not cut any hours to date because library staff believes that it would be a tremendous hardship for students. The library may be forced to revisit this issue in the future if additional cuts are made. In the meantime, the library is in the process of consolidating three separate service desks into one desk to help cover the loss of five positions in FY2009.

Facilities Operations and Maintenance

The Facilities operating budget was reduced by 8.7 percent or $2.3 million in FY2009 and an additional 3 percent, or $750,000 in FY2010. The department also cut 42 positions last year, including 17 layoffs. Selected facilities operations have been curtailed or eliminated. Some of those activities include:

1. Reductions in custodial and grounds support activities
2. Reduction in maintenance and repair contracts totaling $250,000
3. Elimination of window washing contracts
4. Restrictions on new landscape plantings
5. Painting refreshment limited to services that can be provided by in-house staff
6. Preventative and deferred maintenance projects have been delayed or cancelled

Economic Development: Enterprise Innovation Institute

The Enterprise Innovation Institute (EI²), considered a "B" unit, previously experienced a $2.6 million reduction in its $13 million general operating budget this year and last. In addition, the governor's FY2011 budget also has proposed elimination of the Seed Capital Fund, budgeted at $2.5 million. EI² also has previously eliminated six of the original eighteen offices over the past few years, with others downsized due to budget cuts.

Risk Management: Accountability, Health, and Safety

To date, there have been concerted efforts to minimize the impact on health and safety programs and "control" functions in the following areas:

• Public safety (police)
• Environmental health and safety
• Grants and contracts (research) administrative support
• Student counseling services
• Student health services
• Internal audit