The Columbia campus of University of Missouri will has announced its plans to cover a $17 million gap in its budget. The institution will be making up for it through its medical school and campus operations.
Last week, the University of Missouri released the figures outlining how unrestricted reserve funds could make up for lost state revenue. It was withheld last January by Gov. Eric Greitens.
At a faculty meeting, interim Chancellor Hank Foley announced a formula under which each unit on campus will be taxed based on its ability to carry additional financial burdens, St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported. The School of Medicine and campus operations are known to be the two biggest contributors, providing $3.1 million and $1.65 million, respectively.
Foley noted that the plan will only address the gap in the budget year which ends in Jun. 30. The gap for the next fiscal year is expected to increase to as high as $50 million. The institution will cover the shortfall by cuts and continuing to draw down reserves.
The Resource Allocation Model Committee and the Capital Financing Advisory Committee has been created to address the ongoing financial issues. Each committee is comprised of four faculty members, two staff employees, three students and three leaders who were nominated from campus.
According to the Columbia Daily Tribune, the Resource Allocation Model Committee will be led by Vice Chancellor for Finance Rhonda Gibler and Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and Provost Garnett Stokes. For the Capital Financing Advisory, Gibler, Stokes and Vice Chancellor for Operations Gary Ward will act as ex-officio members.
Campus spokesman Christian Basi said that the committees will look at the campus as a whole and find ways to cut expenses in future years. They will also look at whether it would be feasible to have their budgeting model structured.
Decisions about the cuts will need to be made soon. This is because there are only a few months left before the new fiscal year begins.
