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Rensselaer in Brief
Debra Hamilton passes away
Assistant Dean of Students for Disability Services Debra Hamilton passed away on January 12, 2009 after a brief illness. Hamilton worked for the Institute for over 23 years, advising the RPI community, serving as an advocate on behalf of students, faculty, and staff, and aiding the Institute in its planning, renovation, and new construction of facilities to assure access for all members of Rensselaer.
Dean of Students Mark Smith said in an e-mail to the RPI community, “Her legacy is the countless lives she has touched and improved by her sheer determination and commitment to positively affect the quality of life for Rensselaer students, staff, and faculty.”
A memorial service is to be held on the Rensselaer campus, which will be scheduled by her family in the near future.
Smith said, “She will be greatly missed by faculty, staff, students, and the Capital District Community Foundation for whom she was an articulate, compassionate advocate for people facing a range of disabilities.” Universities respond to economy
In a recent e-mail, President of Carnegie Mellon University Jared L. Cohon detailed steps that the university was taking to address the financial crisis. He forecasted, by the end of the fiscal year, a 30 percent drop in the endowment with “slow recovery in value thereafter.”
Cohon previously announced a salary freeze for the next year and increased review of new hires; however, he said these actions were “not enough to respond fully to the economic challenges we are forecasting over the next three years.” The university will now be implementing a reduction in the centrally funded portion of academic and administrative units’ annual operating budgets, as well as putting a freeze on starting any new capital projects on campus.
While Cohon is not asking departments to eliminate jobs, he said that “staffing decisions may come into play as departments decide how best to achieve these cuts.”
Cornell University is suffering from a similar situation. The university’s Board of Trustees voted unanimously on January 24 to adopt a set of proposals to protect it from the economic situation. The university will be drawing approximately $150 million in reserves over the next two fiscal years to strengthen the institution’s cash flow, as well as drawing $35 million from the endowment for undergraduate financial aid.
Cornell will also be reducing expenditures on both its Ithaca and New York City campuses. Though the priority is to avoid layoffs wherever possible, the president has acknowledged that some of the cuts will result in additional job losses. The university will also be suspending its Salary Improvement Program, as well as raising tuition by 4 percent. Finally, the institution is extending its campus construction pause through June 30.
Wesleyan University of Connecticut has lost approximately $15 million in their endowment, and their administration is closing that deficit with a variety of strategies. In addition to cutting the budget across departments and raising tuition slightly for next year, there is a freeze on faculty and staff salaries in effect as well as enrolling an additional 30 students for each class year. |
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