Budget Reduction 2009
Dear Colleagues,
As promised, I am returning to you immediately following the close of the 2009 Legislative session with the updated CNM Budget Reduction Plan. You can also view my video address on this topic by clicking here.
Back on Sept. 30, 2008, I wrote the first note to you about the likelihood of oncoming state appropriation reductions for CNM. As we anticipated, there are significant state appropriation reductions – or in other words, budget cuts – coming CNM’s way for both this year (FY2009) and next year (FY2010). Since sending out that note in September, we have made a concerted effort to provide you with straight talk about our budget situation through e-mail, ongoing meetings and budget forums. Today I want to lay out CNM’s final budget reduction plan based on the decisions made during the 2009 Legislative Session.
These are difficult times and we have all been impacted by the economic challenges our country is facing. We have watched both large and small companies fail throughout our state and the country. Some of us have family, friends, neighbors or acquaintances who have lost jobs and homes. Universities and colleges around the country are experiencing the largest budget reductions in their histories. In comparison, CNM is fortunate. Although it’s not going to be easy, I’m confident that CNM will endure these difficult times better than most of our partners in higher education across the country. But we will need your support.
Within the Budget Reduction Plan, you’ll find the budget decisions for CNM, which we hope will carry us through fiscal year 2010. The decisions included in the current budget reduction plan ensure CNM employees that there will be no layoffs due to the current budget situation. I’m also pleased to say that so far CNM has avoided reducing compensation, including the college’s contributions to employee benefits.
When you take a look at the accompanying budget reduction plan at the bottom of this letter, please keep in mind that there was much more behind these decisions than simply reducing CNM’s budget to get us under the wire for the near future. The input and suggestions we received throughout the past few months inspired us to be steadfast in our common values and honor the priorities outlined in CNM’s Strategic Direction. Through these budget decisions, we are setting the stage for a more focused pursuit of our most important missions. CNM is a healthy institution, but in this new age we must evolve, become leaner and more agile, and refocus with more intensity on the reason we exist – to educate students and prepare them for successful careers.
These budget reduction decisions will strengthen our organization, increase our endurance in the event that we face more budget cuts in the future, and sharpen our focus on increasing student success. I’m confident these decisions will pay off for all of us in the future, especially when our budget turns in the other direction.
CNM has tried its best to be as transparent and forthcoming as possible in this budget reduction process. And moving forward, we will continue to collaborate with the CNM community when new challenges come our way.
I want to sincerely thank many of you who contributed so many great ideas on ways to reduce costs and streamline operations at the college, many of which are included in our budget reduction plan. I also understand that change is difficult and some of these decisions may impact some of you more than others, although the decisions will affect everybody. I ask for your patience and understanding as we all move forward together. This is a time of change for the college, but I’m hopeful that we can begin this new journey without disturbing the flow of the student experience.
As I have stated before, CNM is an extremely proud college full of heart, integrity, hope, ingenuity, caring and courage. I have no doubt this college will emerge from these challenges stronger than ever.
Kathie Winograd
