To UTC Faculty and Staff,

Two months ago I presented to the UTC Budget Committee a proposed budget
for Academic Affairs for 2004-05. As part of that presentation, I was
instructed to recommend approximately $129,000 in cuts from the
noninstructional programs under my authority, and to identify any
additional internal reallocations that could be made to increase the
proportion of funding dedicated to instruction.

At that time I proposed to the Budget Committee that the subsidies
currently being provided by the University to the Challenger Center and
Cadek Conservatory be eliminated, and that the subsidy provided to the
Children's Center be reduced by one-half. These reductions would have
covered the entire $129,000 budget cut required of Academic Affairs, and in
addition they would have redirected more than $300,000 to instructional
programs.

Since I submitted my proposal to the Budget Committee, two things have
occurred that have caused me to reconsider the proposed course of action.
First, although it was my expectation that the Budget Committee would
consider the proposal, hear from representatives of those programs and from
members of the community who would be affected by the cuts, and vote on a
recommendation with respect to the proposal, that discussion has not yet
occurred. It is now drawing close to the beginning of the next fiscal year,
and any drastic change in the financial operations of these three units at
this late date can be expected to create havoc for the employees and
customers of those programs.

Second, since I submitted my proposal to the Budget Committee, I have
learned that a separate proposal has been suggested to add an instructional
enhancement fee that would generate an estimated $860,000 to the Academic
Affairs budget for 2004-05 and thereafter. In light of this additional
revenue, of which I was not aware when I presented my budget proposal, the
urgency of the internal reallocation of funds from these three units is no
longer an issue.

As a result, I am modifying my proposal. There will still be cuts in the
budgets of these three programs, but they will be more modest in size and
will be phased in over a period of years, to lessen the impact on the users
and to allow more time for planning. Based on the recommendation of an ad
hoc committee that has considered the issue of subsidies to all
noninstructional units on our campus, I will ask each of these three units
to reduce the amount of its subsidy by 10% for the next fiscal year, with
continuing reductions of 10% for each of the following four years -- a 50%
reduction phased in over five years.

I thank you for your patience and understanding as we work through the
difficult process of establishing our financial plan and budget priorities
for the coming year. I am grateful for the comments I received from many of
you, and for the time you took to understand and contribute to the campus
budget planning process.

Sincerely,

John Friedl


John Friedl, Ph.D., J.D.
Provost and Vice Chancellor
for Academic Affairs
The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
102 Founders Hall, Dept. 5555
615 McCallie Avenue
Chattanooga, TN 37403-2598
Phone: (423) 425-4633
Fax: (423) 756-5559
Email: [log in to unmask]