ALBANY - The State University of New York budget proposal that calls for no tuition increase but 12 percent more in spending and the hiring of more unionized instructors was criticized Monday as unnecessary and unaffordable.
“Chancellor (John) Ryan's proposed 12 percent spending increase, at a time when state finances are strained to the breaking point, shows once again that it is high time for a reality check at SUNY,” said SUNY Trustee Candace de Russy. She said Monday that Ryan “cowed” to the demands of the politically powerful instructors' union and to campus administrators.
The nearly $5.6 billion budget proposal is scheduled to be voted on Wednesday by the Board of Trustees.
From there it will go to Gov. George Pataki. Pataki has pledged to have a lean 2006-07 executive budget proposal in January with tax cuts while filling a $2.5 billion deficit, although a spokesman emphasized that wouldn't have to threaten holding the line on tuition. Pataki's budget will then go the Legislature.
Ryan said his proposal will help make SUNY “exceptional.” It would provide more full-time faculty and other campus financial support, some of it as cash incentives to improve timely graduation rates and student performance.
It was immediately applauded by the student-backed New York Public Interest Group and the United University Professions union that represents most SUNY employees.
“For years, we've been urging the SUNY Board of Trustees to act as advocates for the university,” said UUP President William Scheuerman. “We're pleased that the board has adopted our approach in its 2006-7 budget request.”
De Russy, however, has long criticized her board for failing to save money through efficiencies before seeking more taxpayer funding or tuition. She said redundant programs should be closed, some campus aid should be tied to student performance in publicly available report cards, and teaching loads should be increased. She said requiring instructors to teach more classes and abandon some unnecessary research could ease or eliminate the need for more instructors. She also called for more online classes across SUNY.
De Russy said the accountability measures in place or proposed by Ryan “are perversely designed to avoid academic comparability systemwide, for fear of embarrassing campuses that are low-performing, and thus parents and students remain in the dark about the actual quality of education on different campuses.”
De Russy isn't alone. On Monday a New York Post editorial referred to it as “SUNY's botched budget,” criticizing Ryan for spending the newspaper called “creative accounting.”
Ryan's proposal to hire more full-time faculty is a longtime objective of the union and student groups. Part-time or adjunct instructors don't advise students or hold office hours and a shortage of full-time instructors has been blamed in part for a lack of enough class offerings for students to graduate on time.
SUNY spokesman David Henahan said Monday that the faculty work load is comparable to national averages and that SUNY faculty members publish at a rate higher than the national average. He also said the school has eliminated about 350 programs between 1995-2003 and is seeking more funding for campuses and instructors because of record growth in enrollment.
Henahan noted that SUNY's energy purchasing program, for example, saves nearly $2 million a year and 130 measures taken since an internal efficiency report have saved more than $7.5 million.
Ryan's budget also calls for a $122.6 million over three years for the Excelsior Research Faculty Initiative. The program's goal would be to attract and pay 200 new researchers and retain top current researchers with pay and other compensation. The funding would pay for full-time faculty salaries and equipment and provide a 20 percent match to campuses that secure federal research grants.
Henahan said the Excelsior program is projected by SUNY to bring $61 million to the state economy in its first year and create jobs.
Ryan doesn't propose increasing tuition, which was last raised in 2003 by $950 to the current $4,350.
The nearly $5.6 billion budget proposal is scheduled to be voted on Wednesday by the Board of Trustees.
From there it will go to Gov. George Pataki. Pataki has pledged to have a lean 2006-07 executive budget proposal in January with tax cuts while filling a $2.5 billion deficit, although a spokesman emphasized that wouldn't have to threaten holding the line on tuition. Pataki's budget will then go the Legislature.
Ryan said his proposal will help make SUNY “exceptional.” It would provide more full-time faculty and other campus financial support, some of it as cash incentives to improve timely graduation rates and student performance.
It was immediately applauded by the student-backed New York Public Interest Group and the United University Professions union that represents most SUNY employees.
“For years, we've been urging the SUNY Board of Trustees to act as advocates for the university,” said UUP President William Scheuerman. “We're pleased that the board has adopted our approach in its 2006-7 budget request.”
De Russy, however, has long criticized her board for failing to save money through efficiencies before seeking more taxpayer funding or tuition. She said redundant programs should be closed, some campus aid should be tied to student performance in publicly available report cards, and teaching loads should be increased. She said requiring instructors to teach more classes and abandon some unnecessary research could ease or eliminate the need for more instructors. She also called for more online classes across SUNY.
De Russy said the accountability measures in place or proposed by Ryan “are perversely designed to avoid academic comparability systemwide, for fear of embarrassing campuses that are low-performing, and thus parents and students remain in the dark about the actual quality of education on different campuses.”
De Russy isn't alone. On Monday a New York Post editorial referred to it as “SUNY's botched budget,” criticizing Ryan for spending the newspaper called “creative accounting.”
Ryan's proposal to hire more full-time faculty is a longtime objective of the union and student groups. Part-time or adjunct instructors don't advise students or hold office hours and a shortage of full-time instructors has been blamed in part for a lack of enough class offerings for students to graduate on time.
SUNY spokesman David Henahan said Monday that the faculty work load is comparable to national averages and that SUNY faculty members publish at a rate higher than the national average. He also said the school has eliminated about 350 programs between 1995-2003 and is seeking more funding for campuses and instructors because of record growth in enrollment.
Henahan noted that SUNY's energy purchasing program, for example, saves nearly $2 million a year and 130 measures taken since an internal efficiency report have saved more than $7.5 million.
Ryan's budget also calls for a $122.6 million over three years for the Excelsior Research Faculty Initiative. The program's goal would be to attract and pay 200 new researchers and retain top current researchers with pay and other compensation. The funding would pay for full-time faculty salaries and equipment and provide a 20 percent match to campuses that secure federal research grants.
Henahan said the Excelsior program is projected by SUNY to bring $61 million to the state economy in its first year and create jobs.
Ryan doesn't propose increasing tuition, which was last raised in 2003 by $950 to the current $4,350.
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