"Budget Reallocation Process"
A Message from Acting President Emerson Fly
To UT Faculty and Staff at all campuses
August 13, 2001

Since the General Assembly has overridden Governor Don Sundquist's veto of
the appropriations bill, the University of Tennessee now has a concrete
budget for the current fiscal year.

Your 2.5 percent salary increases will be retroactive to July 2001. But
just because we've gotten salary increases doesn't mean everything is OK.
Far from it. We are seriously concerned about the university's funding for
the remainder of this fiscal year and beyond. As you may know, sales tax
collections are lagging budgetary expectations, and no further budgetary
allocations will be authorized until this situation is clarified.

Until the state can generate additional revenues, our state appropriation
will not improve. We are hopeful a solution can be found, but we can't
manage a statewide university with more than 40,000 students and 12,000
employees on hope. We must avoid further deterioration of quality in our
essential programs. This university is long past the point where it can be
all things to all people. We must establish our priorities and direct our
dollars accordingly.

In response to a legislative directive to look at how higher education can
"operate more efficiently and with more limited resources," I have asked
each UT chancellor and vice president to appoint a task force to identify 4
to 6 percent of its operations that can be reduced or eliminated and the
resources reallocated to higher priorities. Undergraduate education will be
the top priority at Chattanooga, Knoxville, and Martin. This is not about
doing new things, but rather about insuring that our dollars are invested
in shoring up the quality of our highest priority programs.

This process, carried out by people from your own part of the
university--not by the administration in Knoxville--will result in clear
priorities, show us in what areas our dollars would be best spent, and help
us shore up quality in those important areas.

Your chancellor or vice president will let you know the task force members
for your campus or institute and how the group will work. These groups will
welcome your input. The groups will report to me by mid-October, and the
university must report to the legislature by January 1.

I would be less than honest if I did not tell you that this process may
result in the loss of positions or programs. We will try to do what is
necessary to effectively manage this university while causing as little
disruption as possible to our number one asset--our people. There's an old
aviator by the name of Charlie Nelson who once said, "If you can't afford
to do something right, be sure you can afford to do it wrong." At UT we no
longer can afford to be "all things to all people" if our funding does not
increase.

In conclusion, I appreciate the comments many of you have sent me in
response to these e-mail messages. It isn't possible for me to respond to
each of you, although I wish I could. I very much value your thoughts, your
encouragement, and your feedback. Thank you.






























Chuck Cantrell
Director, Office of University Relations
University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
201 Founders Hall
Chattanooga, TN 37403

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Voice (423) 755-4363
Fax (423) 755-5299