By Signe K. Skinion

SIUC Chancellor John C. Guyon says a possible University-wide hiring freeze before June 30 is a result of enrollment problems not a recent budget proposal by SIU President Ted Sanders.

Guyon, who said Monday the possible hiring freeze would result from Sanders’ proposal, is now saying the freeze would be a result of declining enrollment.

Advertisement

These are two separate issues here, Guyon said. One issue is the president’s budget and planning document, and the second is that we need to set aside resources to deal with a declining enrollment. There will be no hiring freeze under the president’s proposal.

Sanders said miscommunication about the budget proposal impact caused a sense of disagreement between he and Guyon.

Guyon said there are three changes currently facing SIUC, but only one has to do with this fiscal year.

The first is the income fund shortfall, Guyon said. The second is the president’s budget and planning, and the third is the Illinois Board of Higher Education fiscal recommendation for 1997. The one that has to do with this year is the income fund shortfall which deals with the decline in enrollment.

Sanders said his budget proposal does deal with enrollment problems, but he said the proposal would not cause a hiring freeze.

Enrollment is down, and that is clearly in the document (budget proposal), Sanders said. And you have to understand that if you don’t have the enrollment numbers, you don’t have tuition income.

Sanders said the main problem he sees with this fiscal year is a recent IBHE tuition waiver cap that limits the number of students who will receive full-ride scholarships through the University.

Advertisement*

If we go over the IBHE cap this year, there will be monetary penalties imposed on the University, Sanders said. We will live within 3-percent limitation, but if we don’t get the situation corrected in the 96 fiscal year, we will have to pay every year from here on.

Sanders said the current tuition waiver at SIUC is at 4.7 percent, which is 1.7 percent higher than IBHE is allowing now.

Guyon said as long as the University is over the 3 percent tuition-waiver cap, IBHE can cost SIUC around $1.5 million.

A tuition waiver is a University payment of a students’ tuition while they are attending SIUC.

Guyon said that he did not have the number of tuition waivers for this year, but the waivers cost between $350,000 and $400,000.

University enrollment is a major contributor to University funding, but the Illinois government gives the base of the University budget, University officials said.

C. Michael Williams, executive director of Budgeting and Information Resources, said the bulk of University funding comes from state appropriations, but the figures have not been laid out yet.

The proposal is still in generalities right now, Williams said. The figures have not been released yet because there hasn’t been a detailed meeting.

Sanders said his proposal takes the IBHE funding recommendations for fiscal year 1997 as a base budget for his plan.

According to IBHE recommendations, SIUC is tentatively scheduled to receive $192.9 million for fiscal year 1997.

Joe Foote, dean of the College of Mass Communication and Media Arts, said Guyon is responsible for enrollment problems, and he said his college is going to suffer because of it.

The hiring freeze has to do not with the president’s proposal but with the chancellor’s problems with not meeting the enrollment shortfall, Foote said. I was informed today by Chancellor Guyon that my college will be losing $150,000 next year so that money can be reallocated to meet the enrollment shortfall.

Guyon said the hiring freeze and other possible changes are being discussed now and, if enacted, should only last until the end of this fiscal year.

We are very hopeful that there won’t be any reallocation for next year, because by July 1, we hope the budget will increase, Guyon said. These changes are just a finishing out of this year.