October 27, 2008

From: President Kathleen Waldron

To: Baruch College Community

Re: Budget Update for Baruch College

I recently attended a lunch at the Economic Club of NYC with the Federal Reserve Chairman, Ben S. Bernanke, and more than 1,000 financial executives. While the news coming from our economic sector reflects the current volatility of financial markets around the world, I was heartened to hear the latest thinking from industry experts.

I want to share with you what we’re hearing from the City University of New York Central Administration and the State as well as what we’re doing at Baruch College.

CUNY continues to monitor the still-unfolding budget picture at the state level. Governor Paterson has asked for a special session of the legislature on November 18, when we expect him to call for additional budget cuts for the current fiscal year. At this stage, we are not sure if those cuts will affect CUNY as there already were significant cuts to CUNY’s senior colleges in August of this year. Then, on December 16, we expect the Governor to submit his executive budget for 2009-2010. We will monitor what happens on both these dates.

Fortunately, we know how to control expenses without doing too much harm to Baruch College and our core academic mission. We are not going to give up the improvements and progress we’ve made over the last ten years. We have put in place a hiring slowdown for non-faculty positions and reductions in non-personnel operating costs (OTPS). This is essential to achieve the required budget reductions of $4 million that were assessed to Baruch in August. However, the College will continue to hire faculty and is currently undertaking six searches.

Ten percent of Baruch’s operating funds come from The Baruch College Fund. Our alumni have been loyal and generous over the last several years, and I expect that to continue. Recently at an event, I had two alumni give us contribution checks because, as they put it, “You need it now.” The Baruch endowment is overseen by professional managers who know how to mitigate risk. While we expect less investment revenue in 2009, the endowment core is continuously monitored and protected as much as possible.

As part of our Campus Master Plan, we are expecting to start renovation work on the Field Building at 17 Lex. in summer 2009. We have $40 million set aside for Phase 1 of the project that we expect to take for four to five years to complete. We need to keep this front and center with our City Council as well as State politicians—especially if the financial crisis drags on for longer than expected. The good news is that a construction project of this size will generate jobs in several industries and may be viewed positively in an economic downturn.

Our key priorities in navigating this fiscal situation are maintaining our academic excellence and protecting our services to students. We will do this with the participation of the entire Baruch College community—including our alumni and friends of the College. This past weekend, more than 200 alumni came together for the 2008 Baruch Reunion to network, share stories with old friends and make new ones. To a person, they were very interested to hear how we’re weathering this fiscal crisis.

Like you, I am personally concerned about these challenging times. I look forward to keeping you updated and hearing from you, too. I will be attending various meetings over the next several weeks to answer questions and provide updates. Thank you for your support and good work. I’m proud of all that Baruch does and look forward to the upcoming year.