Leaders at SIU-Carbondale announced some of their plans in an effort to make 19 million dollars in permanent cuts because of the ongoing budget impasse.
The plan includes a reduction in the workforce.
In an email sent to the university community Wednesday, Chancellor Brad Colwell says 51 civil service workers and two non-tenure track faculty will be laid off. The appointments of 24 non-tenure track faculty and two administrative professional staff are not being renewed and some AP staff are moving to term appointments.
SIU-C spokesperson Rae Goldsmith says timing dictated the announcement of more civil service worker layoffs.
"So, you may see some additional cuts in the future in some other areas. The cuts to civil service we're focused today on because of our contractual obligations to give notice."
Goldsmith says they were able to cut down on the number of layoffs by sweeping 158 vacant salary lines into a central pool.
"It's good that we didn't have to cut as many individuals as we thought we would, although certainly any individual cut is painful, both for the individual and for the university. But, it also means if you look back to when we last had a full budget that we will be into next fiscal year about 400 positions down."
Goldsmith says vice chancellors across campus have been working to find ways to cut their budgets for the past few months. She says great pains were taken to make sure students were not greatly impacted.
"We did what we could to make sure that we were in a position to offer courses within the academic units. So, the academic units took, in most cases, lesser cuts than some of the more supportive units."
Goldsmith says Academic Affairs took a 4-percent cut in its total state budget, the School of Law 5-percent, Athletics 19-percent and Economic Development 20-percent.
She says if legislators approve a stopgap budget for the current fiscal year or a budget for the upcoming fiscal year, it will not affect these permanent cuts.
"If there is a budget passed, it's important to understand that we built these 19 million dollar cuts on the assumption that there would be a budget. So, it is almost certain, even if a budget is passed, we will need to go forward with these cuts."
The remaining balance to reach the 19 million dollars in savings is to be covered by reductions in equipment, supplies and contracts, travel and around 200 fewer student work opportunities.
