Chadwick left the meeting in a somber mood.
“The allocations are going to have a very significant impact, on services and facilities,” he said. “When you’re looking at well over a $600,000 cut, you have to take into consideration that being a service organization, there are going to have to be cuts in FTE.”
As the meeting comes to a close, the members of the finance board debate whether or not they were fair to Wardenburg in relation to the simple passage of the UMC’s proposed budget. Tsuda in particular felt it was “short-sighted” of the board to make the Wardenburg cuts when the UMC appeared to be in better financial condition.
It is to be noted that these decisions will now be sent to the Legislative Council for approval.
A motion is proposed to approve the UMC budget in the form of its current allocation minus $45,214, the amount saved because of a drop in bond payments, for a grand total of 5.2 million dollars in student fees. It passed 5-0-1.
The debate now begins on the UMC budget proposal.
“Raising prices like that would be the kiss of death,” said UMC director Carlos Garcia, regarding possible cut scenarios including food price increases at the UMC.
The motion was proposed, after returning from a recess, to approve a budget of 0 percent flat rate plus $27,000, with an earmark for Wardenburg’s COURAGE program. This scenario is more than $600,000 below what Wardenburg initially requested. In a vote of 3-2-1, this has been approved.
“It’s going to be tough for Wardenburg to provide the level of care it does for students with this decision. They are going to see a lot of the things they value gone,” said a dejected Leroue in the hall after the vote. “Honestly, we are on this board to advocate for students, we are trying to go to (the Finance Board) to say that these are programs they hold in esteem.”
“The results will be seen for years to come,” said Health Board Chair Jade Sorget, a junior psychology major.
Chadwick left the meeting temporarily and then returned.
Greguras suggested that an additional $100,000 be allocated to Wardenburg in addition to their preferred budget.
“Why not a million?” asks a bewildered Martinez.
“These numbers are to pay for their failures,” Leg. Council Rep-at-large Scott McEachron, a senior history major, said to gasps of the audience members in the room. “In my mind, a deficit is a failure. I’m sorry.”
Members of the finance board scramble to crunch the numbers.
This motion fails 2-3-1.
The finance board and the members of the Wardenburg health board continue to butt heads over the potential budget cuts for Wardenburg.
“We all acknowledge that Wardenburg has to change. What if, we fund their unduckables by cutting them $100,000 as they can absorb that $100,000,” Additon said.
“This is the only time the Legislative Council has; this is the time when we feel we get to put our input into the equation.” Martinez said. “We don’t think that the STAR program is something you should be doing. We feel that community health can be reduced.”
“The board is definitely committed to re-evaluating its programs,” Chadwick said in a plea to the finance board. “Certainly folks here can be involved in that. Right now, we are involved in an identity crisis,. I’ve had confrontations with the board, and they are more than interested in doing that this spring, but we just don’t have all the answers right now. I’ve only been in this position for three months.”
As the entire budget proposal of Wardenburg comes up for debate, fierce words fly and the strong emotions of all parties involved are brought to the fore.
“We don’t want to fall behind the train, we want to stay with it,” said Leroue. “We are lacking in the Big Twelve in the amount of funding we receive. As a board, as students, we feel these are important programs to fund. It’s not a matter of cutting everything or cutting nothing, there is a middle ground. It’s important to look in between.”
STARS advocates argue the program will become self-funding in a few years.
“This is not the right way to go,” Martinez said after explaining that he had never seen a program become self-funding that had promised to be.
Finance board member Catherine Greguras, a junior accounting major, said, “As a student body, we should be supporting each other; I would rather pay to help their problem now than see them go to AA later. It benefits society as a whole.”
“You’re comparing apples to oranges when you compare AA to STARS,” said Leroue in response to President Martinez’s assertion that a student could still go to AA if STARS no longer exists.
Tri-executive Aitchison asks why students, who continue to have problems with substance abuse despite their involvement in STARS are still a part of the student community. He debated the necessity of helping such students.
“I’m just questioning why these students are providing for them,” he said.
Wardenburg’s new STARS substance abuse program now comes up for discussion.
“Last semester they saw 35 students, which was much lower than their goal of 100, but this year they hope to reach 6o. It provides support for students fighting addiction.it provides students with options,” said Leroue. “If eliminated, this takes away (student) support on campus (for recovery).”
Martinez inquires why the health board has not approached Vice Chancellor Ron Stump for support and funding for this program. Chadwick retorts that Stump did not feel he had the funds to support it, even though he personally supported the program.
“We just need an increase in student flow, and that’s coming,” said Leroue to inquiries over claims by health board that STARS will soon be self-sufficient.
The slide show of proposed budget cuts moves on to an analysis of the MusculoSkeletal clinic that is also facing cuts. President Martinez brings up a debate over the value of this clinic. Chadwick argues if the clinic were cut or charges for service were established, then preventative medicine and home remedies of the clinic would be lost and students might worsen their condition rather than pay.
“We are the envy of the Big XII programs,” Leroue said of Wardenburg’s health care program. “It’s a unique thing for us to have that no one else has.”
However, UCSU Tri-executive Andrew Aitchison, a senior anthropology major, asks for statistics or information rather than just saying, “we’re better.”
“Wardenburg is in many ways leaps and bounds above the Big XII,” said Leroue.
Leroue goes on to explain that the community health program, currently on the chopping block, is vital to preventative health care for the campus at large. Leroue holds his own in defense of the community health program and its connotations to the budget.
Chadwick, who runs both the Rec Center and Wardenburg, opens discussion of the Wardenburg budget with a discussion of the $10 proposed increase for the formerly free HIV tests provided by Wardenburg and moves on to discuss the cuts proposed for the community health program that helps give CU one of the best Big XII student health programs.
Wardenburg Health Board representative Matt Leroue takes the table to discuss the benefits of the community health program and its effects on students. If a 0 percent budget increase is approved by the council, major effects will be had on the community health program as is portrayed in a presentation created by Leroue, a senior MCDB major.
Additon moves to approve a 0 percent budget. There is some debate over removal of the skate shop upgrade. However, in the end the motion is seconded, receives a vote of 3-2-1 and passes.
The Rec Center, which was expecting to go negative from the “unduckable” proposal, received a surprise that they gained over $60,000 in unduckable fees, or fees necessary for the continued running of the Rec Center at current levels. This is not the final decision however, as all decisions will now be sent for review by the UCSU Legislative Council.
As a transition is made in the conference room, emotions fly over the last decision.
President Joe Martinez of the UCSU Legislative Council and Finance Board member is especially upset at the decision.
Jon Tsuda, Director of Student Organizations Finance Office, asks Chadwick about the skate shop.
After turning off his ringing phone, Chadwick suggests finding outside sources of funding for various programs, to prevent all items costing students.
The Rec Board asks for a treasurer’s loan of $120,000 with interest rates between 4 and 5 percent.
Mathur asks about the one time cost of replacement of condensation pumps in the Rec Center regarding how this number would be filled in next year’s budget. The Rec. Board responds that it is up to the finance board.
A motion is made by Maren Additon, assistant to the Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs, that a skate shop upgrade be cut from the Rec Center’s capital list – a decrease of $23,000 – as well as cutting the Rec Center’s Mountain Rental program.
The motion is seconded by finance board member Ryan Keane, a senior finance major.
Vice Chancellor assistant and Finance board voting member Maren Additon discusses retraction of her motion amidst chaos of confusion over certain numbers and budget proposals and discussions from last Saturday’s meeting
Additon pulls her motion.
Student Rec Center Director and Assistant Vice Chancellor Gary Chadwick and representatives from the rec. center moves to the table.
Finance Board Chair Amit Mathur, a senior finance major, calls the meeting to order at 5:20 p.m.
Tension clouds the room amidst a scene of camaraderie and laughter.
Motion to approve minutes from last meeting has been passed.
Motion passed to make the Rec Center budget hearing first order of business.
