 "Photo: FIle")
Who knew a barrage of letters, phone-calls and a massive protest could wake up the folks in the gold dome?
It seems that Georgia legislators have finally opened their eyes and ears.
In an e-mail sent about a couple of weeks ago to UWG faculty, staff, and the SGA president by UWG president, Dr. Beheruz Sethna, the House Appropriations Committee met to vote on its recommendations for the FY 2011 budget.
Fortunately for the University System, the House version is very similar to the Governor's recommendations for the operating budget.
“There will be substantive budget cuts, they will be nowhere near the draconian $300 million for the USG which had been predicted,” said Sethna.
The Committee preserved the formula recommendation of $113M and agreed with the Governor's reduction in federal stimulus funds of $117M as well as the 3.4% reduction in other line items due to the lower revenue estimates.
“While I am sorry to hear that they did not restore funding for our Nursing building construction, at least they did not strip away design money which had already been allocated,” said Sethna.
The recommendations will next be voted on by the full House before it moves to the Senate for action. The Committee will continue to work with the University System of Georgia, as they in turn work with the Governor's Office, OPB, and the Senate.
“I hope that both legislators and the general public get a better understanding of the value of higher education to the state,” said Vice President for Academic Affairs, Dr. Sandra Stone.
“Beyond the individual benefits of post-secondary education to the individual students, educational achievement is a public good.”
Last month, the Georgia legislature informed the University System of Georgia to take a $300 million cut. Of that $300 million, UWG’s share was $8.1 million.
With only a 48-hour window to establish and propose a budget cut plan, Sethna outlined a budget cut plan. This plan, included among other cuts, an elimination of about 40 full-time faculty positions, 40 part-time faculty positions, close to 60 staff positions, approximately 170 student/graduate assistant positions and about four university police positions.
“Investment in education at all levels is fundamental to a better quality of life for all Georgians and should not be sacrificed, even in challenging economic environments,” said Stone.
Faced with possible drastic budget cuts, students from across Georgia colleges and universities came together to stand up and fight for their education.
After a culmination of events, including smaller-scale rallies, phone-a-thons, and countless letter-writing campaigns to Georgia legislators, Georgia college students came together for the main-event: a protest at the Georgia Capitol, which began in Hurt Park in downtown Atlanta.
Even though it appears that the fight against drastic budget cuts may be over, the extent of those budget cuts still remains to be seen.
According to Sethna, before work of preparing the budget can begin, we will have to wait for the session to end, the Governor to sign the budget, and the Board of Regents to allocate money to UWG.
“It’s not over 'til it's over. My thanks to all students who made legitimate use of our political process and our participative democracy to let them know their views!”
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