Everyone acknowledges that we're in very tough economic times. The state of the economy has created some uncertainty for Seton Hall University, as it has for other colleges and universities. As the economy has shrunk, enrollments at private colleges have declined while at the same time the need for financial aid has increased. In response to these challenges, the University has prudently reduced its overall operating budget. These budget reductions will have some affects on IT services at the University. While the specific cuts and their impacts are still being finalized, some of the affects will likely include:
- Faculty laptop computers: Faculty and eligible academic administrators whose laptops are provided through the University's Mobile Computing Program will have their laptop computers replaced every three years, rather than the current two year replacement cycle.
- Computer Labs: Desktop computers in the public computer labs maintained by IT will be replaced every three years, rather than the two year replacement cycle. The hours of certain labs may be be reduced.
- Faculty Grants: The operating budgets for internal faculty grants from the TLT Center will be reduced. Some grant initiatives such as the Faculty Innovation Grants and the Student Undergraduate Research Fund may be suspended.
- Internet2: The University's membership to Internet2 may be discontinued, and its connection to Internet2 may be reduced or eliminated.
- Support Services: The current hiring slowdown may result int he elimination of open positions. This in turn will mean that some services may take longer. For example, more laptop repairs may be done off campus rather than in our repair shop, taking longer for those repairs to be completed.
We ask for the patience and support of the University community as our IT services are adjusted to reflect the University's overall budget reductions and the current fiscal outlook for higher education. Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns regarding these issues, or if you have any suggestions as to ways IT can further reduce the budget.
Steve Landry, CIO
email: cio@shu.edu
Thanks Dr Laundry for: Re: Impact Of University Budget Cuts on IT Services announcement.
I support this decision 100%. I think it is a great idea.
Having a strong Economics and Accounting back ground,I totally agree with your decision in cutting down some of our spending. Here is my reasoning, why I think this is a good idea:
As we are going through the tough economic times, we all need to be cautious and make adjustments.
This economic melt down has cracked the entire world. It is a chain reaction.Campanies, financial institutions,and many organizations are folding down. So I can say, our superiors are on the right track, making right decisions.
Management decisions may sound tough, and may not be welcomed positively, but I think, we all need to be vigilant and realistic with our departmental spending, and be aware of the environmental factors, that impacts our Institution. This is a "crunch time".
and yes 3 years for refresh is very appropriate.
Faculty and some academic eligible administrators that are used to 2 years refresh, should all support this decision.
In my own opinion, I commend all our superiors, by taking this measure to avoid massive job loss, like we have seen in other organizations. I just hope all members of University community, sees sense in this measure, as it is very important.
This measures will not only save our jobs, but put a contingency plan for our organization.
Cut spending is a way to go. As the president of SHU, Monsignor Robert Sheeran, pointed out in his memo on the economic crisis, about Salary Increase freeze, we all need to understand that, by freezing our salaries, our jobs are being saved.
Monsignor Robert Sheeran said, in his memo:
"In an attempt to maintain current jobs, we will suspend salary increases (for all non-union employees) for the 2010 fiscal year. This has been a very difficult decision to make but I assure you that, in our desire to avoid layoffs, it is a necessary one."
I hope all members of our community acknowledges that, our Institution is a non profit organization,and mostly depend on fundings from outside donors.
We can definately expect a sink, depending on who our donors are, and if, some of them had a bad impact with this economic melt down. That is just looking at the nation financial big picture.
I see this measure to be very effective and appropriate, if we want our institution to continue running, this is perfect.
When all the economic dust settles, we will revert back to normal. For now we all need to tieten our belts.
Funds from tuition alone,is not enough to cover all our University expenses.
I think this approach is very safe, because we are looking at the big picture,and what may happen down the road.
I support this strategic plan by, our CIO,and the executive cabinet of the University for the decisions that are being put in place. We should all rally behind and support this decision.
On the other hand,as an observation, I think,people tend to go back to school when they are out of employment, and therefore we should expect to see a lot of finacial Aid requests.
Your measurers are welcome Dr laundry.
Almost forgot. Question?
What has been the procedure, for the desktops that are replaced every 2 years in public computer labs? Do we give them back to the vendor or do we keep them? Also that applies to the laptops? If faculty and eligible Administrators are getting new laptops every 2 years, what happens to the old one.Do they keep the laptops, or do they give it back to Shu?
I commented because,I know this is a very important topic that we should all acknowledge, and will lead to positive results.
I also acknowledge that this is a crunch time, and we all need to be aware of it.
We all need to work as a team to go through this difficult time, by paying attention to the environmental factors that impacts our community and Institution.
Thanks
Belliah Theise
IT Budget Manager
SHU