September 22, 2022 Minutes

PRESIDENT'S BUDGET ADVISORY COMMITTEE

September 22, 2022

MEMBERS PRESENT:

STAFF PRESENT:

GUESTS PRESENT:

MEMBERS ABSENT:

AGENDA

1. Call to Order and Welcome

2. Approval of the Minutes: May 12^th, 2022

3. President’s Response and Charge

4. Multi-Year Enrollment and Budget Planning

5. Fall Budget Briefing

6. Announcements for the Good of the Order

1. Call to Order and Welcome
   Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs, Karen Moranski, welcomed the committee and began the meeting at 8:30 am.
    
2. Approval of the Minutes: May 12^th, 2022
   Moranski introduced the agenda and asked if there were any additions. Hearing none, Moranski requested a motion to approve the minutes of the May 12^th meeting. The minutes were approved unanimously.
    
3. President’s Response and Charge
   Interim President Mike Lee joined the committee to review the 2021-2022 annual report and charge the committee with the 2022-2023 goals. The President opened with welcoming words and a thankful tone showing appreciation for the committee’s work and reiterating the importance of the committee’s feedback to him. President Lee was looking forward to working closely with the committee this year to map a path forward for the University. The committee goals for the 2022-2023 year include focusing on the strategic budgeting framework, reviewing, understanding and submitting a written report on the multi-year budget and enrollment plans, and continuing the two campus budget forums.
    
4. Multi-Year Enrollment and Budget Planning
   President Lee and Provost Moranski presented on campus draft multi-year enrollment and multi-year budget planning. This multi-year planning is a result of a memorandum from the Chancellor’s Office (CO) to Sonoma State requesting multi-year enrollment and multi-year budget plans due to the steep decline in enrollment the University is experiencing, which is resulting in a large unresolved budget deficit. The President told the committee a letter like the one from the CO was expected given the extreme changes in enrollment over the past four years and the effects it has had on the budget. The multi-year enrollment plan that will be submitted to the CO will include a five-year strategic enrollment increase with detailed strategies, goals, and milestones. The multi-year budget plan will need to eliminate deficit spending by fiscal year 2024-2025 and include strategies to align campus revenues and expenditures. Both the enrollment and budget plans are to be submitted to the CO by November 14^th and provide the CO with updates and progress on the plans every six months after submission. The President and other cabinet members will be bringing the draft multi-year plans to various groups throughout the University and collecting feedback from campus stakeholders and the broader campus community. The President would like members of PBAC to share the plans and the memo from the CO with their constituents and encourage them to submit feedback.
   
   Moranski reviewed the details of the draft strategic enrollment plan with the committee. Sonoma State’s enrollment is projected to decline for the next two years and, in order to stabilize and grow, the University will need successive years of steadily increasing new student enrollment and that is the primary focus of the strategic enrollment plan. The two top priorities involve executing a marketing plan and increasing yield rates. As enrollment currently stands, the University is seeing increases in total deposits in Fall 2022 versus Fall 2021. The top two producing regions for applicants and admits are the San Francisco/South Bay region and Southern California and as the pandemic ends there will be a focus on increasing the yield rates in those regions. The multi-year strategic enrollment plan includes the following goals and strategies: deploying recruiting scholarships; diversifying SSU’s recruitment approach; employing digital marketing; college board acquisitions and social media; leveraging campus tours; improving the SSU website; developing a culture of cultivation; investing in new technologies; enhancing admissions results; deploying a guaranteed admissions program, and increasing yield rates.
   
   Another aspect of the multi-year enrollment plan is retention. Retaining current students as they move from year to year and semester to semester is a critical piece in improving enrollment. The following strategies will be deployed to help improve retention rates: re-engaging and re-enrolling underserved students; expanding credit opportunities with summer/intersession funds; ensuring equitable access to digital degree roadmaps; eliminating administrative barriers to graduation; and promoting equitable learning practices and reducing DFW rates. The committee wanted to know ways they or their colleagues could get involved in recruitment and the President and Provost both reiterated it is an all-hands-on-deck initiative and gave the contact for the Director of Outreach and Recruitment for ways to get involved.
   
   President Lee then discussed the details of the multi-year budget planning with the committee, which included revenue enhancement strategies and expense reduction strategies. The revenue enhancement strategies include: the strategic enrollment plan to increase headcount; moving summer session to stateside; increasing self-support programs revenue; ending impaction for high-demand programs; increasing the use of campus housing; partnering with local colleges to house students at SSU; increasing summer conferences; increase grant revenue; increase private support; gain CSU system support for essential infrastructure improvements. The expense reduction strategies include: the voluntary separation incentive program; administrative reorganization and shared services; reducing assigned time; prioritizing facilities and ground maintenance; relocating programs from modular and leased spaces; concentrating classroom spaces into fewer buildings; energy efficiency initiative; program evaluation; review low enrolled programs; department and school-based reorganizations; streamline instruction costs; reduce travel, supplies, and other operating expenses; review number of events and participation; reduce the use of cell phone reimbursements; reduce the total number of printers and copiers campus-wide.
   
   The committee had an in-depth discussion about the voluntary separation incentive program and the effects it could have on departments and staffing levels overall. The President responded that the University would have to be mindful in the rehiring of positions and if employees choose to take the program it would be an opportunity to look at reorganizations and shared services approaches. Provost Moranski added that if there are several faculty who take the program the University would need to be mindful of the curriculum and maintaining graduation rates in the approach to rehiring faculty.
    
5. Fall Budget Briefing
   The committee did not review the Fall Budget Briefing due to time.
    
6. Announcements for the Good of the Order
   None.

Moranski adjourned the meeting at 10:00 am. 

Minutes prepared by Hayley Avery.