“I know this continues to be a very challenging time. There is no softening the impact of these decisions. The excellence of any university rests on the quality and well-being of its people, and everything that can be done to protect our team is being done.” — President Samuel L. Stanley Jr., M.D.
There are many difficult budget and employment decisions that are impacting the campus community. Below are the steps the university is taking to address the current financial situation:
In addition to the above cost-reduction measures, MSU is using some of it's operating reserves to fill remaining budget holes. Reserves are intended to be leveraged in extraordinary but this is not an unlimited source.
In late September 2020, state appropriations were finalized that will keep higher education at the same level of state funding as the previous fiscal year. In December 2020, Congress passed and the president signed another COVID-19 relief package, with nearly $23 billion earmarked for higher education. Details on how much specific universities and colleges will receive have not been provided.
Another factor directly impacting MSU's financial position is enrollment. Compared to the 2019-2020 academic year, MSU saw a decline in its total enrollment for the fall semester — 49,695 students enrolled, which is down by 866 students from this time last year. First-year student enrollment stands at 8,228, down 335 students from last year. Unfortunately — despite significant effort by many — this decline in enrollment has had an impact on MSU’s budget, attributing to a $54 million decline compared to last year’s revenue. The current tuition revenue reflects both a decline in total enrollment and an adverse change in student composition, specifically fewer international and out-of-state students. It also is essential to note, a smaller class will have at least a four-year impact on our budget as that class moves through each year toward graduation.