Deans weigh in on College Based Fee delays

The chancellor’s announcement that College Based Fees (CBF) would be put on hold has caused Cal Poly administrators to rethink college expenses.

In March Cal Poly students voted to approve an increase in CBF in order to prevent cuts in classes and classroom equipment.

Erik Fallis a representative of the chancellor’s office said the reason Cal Poly cannot increase the CBFs are to ensure that all California State Universities (CSU) remain affordable.

“Given the current budget climate, a moratorium has been placed on campus-based fee increases for all 23 campuses,” he said. “This is meant to maintain access and affordability for students to the greatest extent possible given this year’s reduction in state support.”

Cal Poly administrators think that it is a mistake to treat every one of the CSU campuses in the same way.

Both Dr. Deborah Valencia-Laver, the Associate Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and R. Thomas Jones dean of the College of Architecture and Environmental Design said Cal Poly is unique from the other campuses because Cal Poly has a higher graduation rate that many other CSUs. Upper division students cost more because there are more classes required and because upper division classes usually cost more.

The whole CSU system is being affected by this economy, but Jones warns against an attempted fix across the system. “A one size fits all fix, when we have 23 unique campuses, seems inconsistent with CSU progress,” he said.

“(Chancellor Reed] )is concerned with potentially creating a two-tiered system in the CSU system,” Valencia-Laver said.

Other administrators at Cal Poly also see problems with the system moving together.

“There is an egalitarian spirit in the state of California that would like to see a rising tide raise all ships,” Robert Koob, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at Cal Poly said. “Cal Poly, for whatever reason, seems to be rising faster or sinking slower.”

One large impact Cal Poly could see if the CBFs are not approved is a severe reduction in the summer school program.

“We almost certainly will not be able to have a state-supported summer school,” Koob said.

Although the state may not support it Cal Poly will still try to provide an open university or continuing education, Koob said.

“It will certainly be more costly if it works,” Koob said.

There have been cuts already because of the budget deficit.

The College of Liberal Arts, which holds a large portion of Cal Poly’s general education courses, have very few members of their lecture staff left, even prior to the CBF delays, said Valencia-Laver.

“We’ve lost faculty and staff,” Valencia-Laver said, although she claimed to not know how many.

And there are more impacts to come.

The CBF delay, “will affect the availability of classes in major courses and GEs,” Valencia-Laver said.

In addition, specialty GE courses and other College of Liberal Arts enhancements will be lost as well, she said. These reductions will most likely be greater in the winter and spring quarters.

“Where (CLA) feels it more keenly is that in the past the CLA CBFs have been less,” she said.

The College of Architecture and Environmental Design is already working with a million dollars less in their budget and an excess of students, said Jones.

“I’m deeply disappointed by the CBF delay,” Jones said. “From my framework it doesn’t make sense.”

As a high-cost college Jones said the College of Architecture and Environmental Design is being more negatively affected with a percentage budget cut. In order to not cut classes or students, professors in the college, who are already on furlough, are teaching more classes for even less money.

The Dean of the College of Science and Mathematics, Philip Bailey said that some aspects of the department have been sacrificed due to the budget cuts and will continue to go downhill without the CBF increase.

“The College Based Fees would be one of the only things keeping our department up with the latest equipment,” he said. “It will be very difficult continue at the same level that we have been if the fees are not increased.”

The department has seen an estimated 12-15 percent decrease in the budget, Bailey said. Bailey estimated that the base budget last year for the department was 26 million and that the department has saved 3 million due to the budget cuts and furloughs.

The main things that are being affected in the college of math and sciences are access to classes, purchasing and updating equipment, and supporting student and faculty research projects.

As of this year, the department has not spent any money on equipment and money allocated toward summer research projects was also decreased. As of next year, student research projects might be completely stopped, Bailey said.

While some aspects of the department will be greatly affected, the amount of class time for students is expected to stay the same, Bailey said.

“Some students won’t be in classes that have the ten percent and some will. Some professors can move their schedules around so that class time is not affected,” Bailey said.

The department will do its best to maintain the same level of academics, but it will be a struggle, Bailey said.

“Disappointed is the best way to put it. Students voted on it and now it is being taken away. I even talked to students and told them that the fees would be increased.”