College to Start Cutting Bone

Council members from throughout Clark gathered to address the bleak budget news Nov. 2 and to keep abreast of the financial crisis.

In a College Council meeting led by Vice President of Administrative Services Bob Williamson, members were confronted again with the ugly truth that a college-wide revenue shortfall of more than $2 million is forthcoming.

Acting as President Bob Knight's representative, Williamson didn't pretend to have all the answers, instead choosing to confront the issues directly.

"We're way past fat," Williamson said of the fiscal squeeze at Clark. "We're cutting bone."

Williamson pointed out that the state has cut $10 billion out of its budget over the last few years. He added that during an Oct. 27 press conference, Governor Gregoire warned that she will likely include taxes in her upcoming budget proposal to the Legislature.

Lawmakers in Olympia have yet to confirm how big the cuts will be. The figures for state revenue will be made public tomorrow. As indicated in an email update from Knight, Gregoire will present her official budget proposal to the Legislature sometime before the 30-day special session that begins Nov. 28.

Council members were presented with a rubric Nov. 2 to assist members in prioritization of functions and services at Clark. The rubric is broken up into nine categories that ask questions regarding efficiency, necessity and how beneficial specific services are to the college as a whole.

The rubric itself was the subject of much debate at the meeting. Association for Higher Education President Kim Sullivan voiced concerns over the seemingly arbitrary makeup of the category weights.

"To what extent did the state budget influence your discussion of ‘strategic plans'? Or did it? Do you think it should?" Sullivan asked Williamson and company, to which Williamson admitted that the strategic plan was developed prior to the "economic collapse and erosion of state funding."

Williamson later agreed that Sullivan's point was valid and should be explored further, though he expressed confidence in the current rubric.

The 2011-12 Budget Process and Tentative Timeline handed out at the meeting sets a date of Dec. 13 for the Executive Council review of College Council, ClarkNet and ASCC feedback. Until then, council constituents will provide budget feedback via Clark's intranet interface, ClarkNet.

Assuming the state's special legislative session ends before the new year, the timeline requires submission of final budget reduction recommendations by Jan. 25. The presentation of these recommendations then goes to Clark's Board of Trustees.

Rubric's aside, steps need to be taken by the state before an all-out panic attack ensues. The first thing that needs to happen is tomorrow's announcement of the revenue. Sometime later, Governor Gregoire will propose her budget plan. Finally, the state will convene for an unknown period of time to finalize the all-cuts budget, but council members are hopeful our elected officials will get out in time to enjoy the holidays with their families.

Until then, no cuts are final and the only safe programs, according to the rubric, are the ones required by law and the ones that make enough money to keep the college's head above water.