May 8, 2025 Minutes
Minutes
UNIVERSITY BUDGET ADVISORY COMMITTEE
May 8th, 2025
MEMBERS PRESENT:
Karen Moranski - Provost, Vice President of Academic Affairs; Chair
M. Monir Ahmed - CFO, Vice President of Administration and Finance; Vice-Chair
Troi Carleton - Dean, School of Social Sciences
Emily Acosta Lewis - Chair of the Faculty, Communications Department
Tim Wandling - CFA Representative; English Department
Lauren Morimoto - APARC Representative, Kinesiology Department
Laura Lupei - Associate Vice President for University Budget and Resource Planning
John Lynch - Staff Representative, Center for Teaching and Educ Technology
Jonathon Duran Del Villar - Vice President of Finance, Associated Students
Vanessa Sanchez - President, Associated Students
Ed Mills - Ex-officio, Vice President of Strategic Enrollment Management
Mike Ogg - Ex-officio, AVP for Academic Resources
STAFF PRESENT:
Hayley Avery - Budget Manager, Administration and Finance
GUESTS PRESENT:
Emily Cutrer - Interim President, Sonoma State University
Anna Reynolds-Smith - Assistant Vice President for Admin and Financial Planning & Business Ops
Ian Hannah - Assistant Vice President for Advancement Operations
MEMBERS ABSENT:
Suzanne Rivoire Vice-Chair of the Faculty, Computer Science Department
AGENDA
- Call to Order and Welcome
- Approval of the Minutes: February 20th, 2025
- 2025-2026 Budget Planning Update
- UBAC Call for Proposals Recommendation
- 2024-2025 Accomplishments
- Announcements for the Good of the Order
- Call to Order and Welcome
- Approval of the Minutes: February 20th, 2025
Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs, Karen Moranski, welcomed the committee and began the meeting at 9:01 a.m.
Moranski introduced the agenda and asked if there were any additions. Hearing none, Moranski requested a motion to approve the minutes of the December meeting. The minutes were approved unanimously.
- 2025-2026 Budget Planning Update
Laura Lupei provided an update on the 2025–2026 budget planning process. She noted that the Governor’s May Revision is expected soon, with the final state budget approval scheduled for June and the Chancellor’s Office releasing the final budget memo in July.
The committee then reviewed the projected campus deficit for 2025–2026. The updated projection shows a total base deficit of $22.1M, an increase from the 2024–2025 baseline deficit of $7.4M. Several major factors contribute to this figure, including the prior year base deficit ($7.4), the campus’s share of the systemwide $375M state budget reduction ($6.05M), an estimated decrease in tuition revenue ($4.07M), and a 3% enrollment reallocation ($2.4M). Other adjustments include a small positive revenue offset from stateside summer net revenue ($500K) and minor changes to cost allocation revenue (–$489K) and other campus revenues (+$40K). In addition, there are $2.3M in cost increases, including unfunded compensation increases ($1.52M) and expense adjustments ($750K).
To address the deficit, the campus identified a series of base reduction strategies totaling $22.0M, nearly covering the shortfall. These include reducing instructional costs ($8.0M), discontinuation of NCAA athletics ($3.7M), managing vacant positions ($3.6M), reorganization and MPP non-retentions ($3.2M), and a reduction in university-wide budget lines ($1.7M). Additional measures include reallocating and reinvesting IRA ($1.38M), operating expense reductions ($285K), shifting CAPS funding to the fee fund ($100K), and integrating GMC with OLLI ($50K). After applying these strategies, the net remaining deficit is reduced to $141K, which the President and Cabinet will need to resolve.
Next steps include finalizing the base reduction strategies for 2025–2026 and incorporating updated information from the state budget, CSU enrollment reallocations, and other funding impacts as they become available.
- UBAC Call for Proposals Recommendation
At the request of Interim President Emily Cutrer, the University Budget Advisory Committee (UBAC) issued a Call for Proposals to the campus community to gather ideas regarding the potential addition or reinstatement of departments or programs, contingent on the availability of new, on-going, funding through the state legislative process or other sources. A total of 47 proposals were received from faculty, staff, students, and administrators. Over a two-month period, the committee met regularly to review, evaluate, and rank the submissions using a shared rubric and rating scale. After extensive deliberation, UBAC recommended 22 proposals for the President’s review, grouped into two categories: Immediate Funding Need and Future Funding Need. The committee emphasized that its highest-priority recommendation is the reassignment of tenure-track faculty, in order to preserve existing tenure-track positions.
Proposals identified as Immediate Funding Need include: Funding reassignment requests for tenured/tenure-track faculty (priority), Spanish Language “Community to Classroom to Career,” reinstatement of the Department of Geology, a new B.S. in Health Sciences, Data Science major and minor, Human Rights Studies minor, Critical Literacies and English Education minor, Women’s and Gender Studies reinvestment, SB108-funded Biology and Kinesiology positions, Biomedical Engineering minor, B.A. in Health Professional Studies, Health, Culture, and Social Justice minor, Seawolves F1rst! (Jump Start Program), and expansion of high school dual enrollment.
Proposals identified as Future Funding Need include: a new B.A. in Business Marketing, embedded tutoring and faculty collaboration initiatives, Admitted Students Weekend Service, building high school pathways in healthcare and education, the MESA Undergraduate Research Program, a visible centralized HSI/MESA space, a Center for Just Food Systems, and a B.A. in AI, Humanity, and Business.
The committee also acknowledged a minority report submitted by some members, who expressed concern that the evaluation rubric did not adequately capture criteria such as contributions to campus life, facility use, and student experience. They specifically highlighted the importance of Athletics, Theater Arts and Dance, and Art History, citing their strong alignment with Sonoma State’s mission, their role in diversity and inclusion, and the significant campus facilities already dedicated to these programs. These members recommended reconsidering these programs to preserve campus culture, equity, and student engagement.
UBAC expressed its gratitude to the campus community for the breadth and creativity of submissions, emphasizing that the strong response reflects a shared commitment to Sonoma State’s growth, student success, and long-term sustainability.
- 2024-2025 Accomplishments
The committee noted that it will prepare a year-end report to the President summarizing UBAC’s accomplishments for 2024–2025. This report will highlight key activities including the Fall Budget Forum, Spring Budget Forum, 2025–2026 Budget Planning, the Campus Partner Review, and the UBAC Call for Proposals Working Group.
- Announcements for the Good of the Order
Moranski thanked the outgoing members for their participation and congratulated the students on the committee on their upcoming graduation.
Moranski adjourned the meeting at 10:26 a.m.
Minutes prepared by Hayley Avery.