UF OKs $47-mil in cuts, laments 'brain drain'

UF trustees this morning approved president Bernie Machen's plan for $47-million in cuts, including program eliminations and the elimination of 430 staff and faculty positions, 290 of them already vacant.

Trustees did restore a couple of faculty spots in the liberal arts college, said spokesman Steve Orlando. But they expressed great concern about a "brain drain" of top faculty and staff -- a valid concern considering UNC administrators recently said publicly that now is the best time to poach from top Florida institutions like UF.

Already UF is losing its main IT guy, Mark Hoyt, to NC State, Orlando said. And the law school is losing at least one faculty member. FSU has seen similar losses, and administrators fear the exodus will only continue as the budgets grow leaner.

Comments

Not to worry UF, the greater the "brain drain" the more slots available for Legislators and Former Legislators who "almost" have their Ph.D.s!!!!!

Remember in November!!!!

Here's an idea, legislators! Instead of lamenting these budget cuts, QUIT CUTTING TAXES! Do you think we don't know who's responsible for the rapid erosion of Florida's quality of life? ITS YOU. Pandering to your special interest big business handlers and trying to buy votes. You are turning our state into a ghetto.

So what is wrong about losing a few left wing college professors? Since Florida has some good conservative legislators who are willing to serve the students of Florida, good ridance.

1:08 I think it's because so many of our kids have already had the "how to be a blind conservative wingnut" education from Jeb's K12 private schools.

12:39 - you're so pathetic and sad if you think quality of life is given to the people by high taxes and government - go out and pursue you're own happiness and stop stealing from my wallet

The hypocrisy of the Board of Trustees to lament the potential paoching of UF faculty while they are simultaneously approving a budget plan that will lay off close to a dozen high caliber faculty, who have excellent academic and teaching records and in no way deserve to lose their jobs is almost unbearable. Can the BOT really not see that by laying off junior tenure track faculty they are insuring not only that anyone approached by another university will be only to happy to leave UF, but also that many junior faculty who now fear for the security of their own positions will start to actively go on the job market obviating the need for anyone to even have to try to poach. In addition, once UF does start hiring again, the planned layoffs will insure that anyone with another offer, even from a lesser school will go there rather than take the risk of a tenure track job at UF. This decision will haunt the university for decades. The administration and the BOT seem unaware of the long-term consequences of the short-term decision to layoff excellent junior faculty.

Dear 1:34 p.m.,

I am a taxpayer. I am a parent. I want quality public schools and quality Florida universities for my children. I am willing to pay for them, and I am going to campaign against those legislators from either party who refuse to make a top quality product available in these two areas. If that makes you nervous, it should. When the depth of the cuts to education are understood by the parents of the state, there will be political hell to pay.

Their Medical School will lose some top professors when UCF opens its Medical School near the new Nemours Hospital and Burnham Lab.

[terminator]

pooh pooh poor Gators.

Don't see fatcat Machen offering to take a pay cut to his $600K compensation package.

Don't see any of the other fatcats on the Gainesvill campus taking paycuts (bigwig UF administrators, athletic department officials and head coaches of major sports.

When we see that happening we'll actually believe you've got budget problems.

Now quit your bellyaching you slimy reptiles and start swallowing what the legislature dishes out!

2:05 - it doesn't make me nervous, it makes me laugh at your economic ignorance - everything had to get cut - when revenue is 10% of the previous year's state budget then everything has to get cut - if you don't know that then it doesn't matter how much money is pumped into education because they didn't teach you correctly

3:12

when revenue is down 10% of the previous year's budget, everything must get cut.

However, when the reserves you've taxed citizens for surpass that 10%, cutting is not the only option.

Hummmm, if everything had to be "cut" 10% why was there $110 million for an airport for St. Joe Paper Company AND $12 million for a road for St. Joe Paper Company AND $410 million to build a stadium for a professional sports team????

I guess that 10% cut was just for EDUCATION, CHILD ABUSE INVESTIGATORS, FOSTER CARE WOKERS, NURSING HOME INSPECTORS and SERVICES FOR SEVERELY MENTALLY AND PHYSICALLY HANDICAPPED PEOPLE!

I most certainly understand.

REMEMBER IN NOVEMBER!!!!!

Private Prisons - Florida's #1 Growth Industry!!!!

Gosh guys, it doesn't take a college degree to be a prison guard, oops, I mean a "correctional officer."

Why do we need universities anyway - there aren't any jobs for them anyway!!!

I think I'll REMEMBER IN NOVEMBER and vote accordingly!

Interesting how they can come up with the money for some liberal arts professors yet no word whatsoever about anything conservative. I am sick of the taxpayer supported liberal bias in our schools and universities.

10:51 - then graduate from college, earn a Ph.D. and get a job with a university! OR we can continue re-electing Republicans who will continue to gut every level of education from K to University.

After all, why do we need college graduates, the #1 growth industry in Florida is Private Prisons and what they want to hire are "correctional officers" - college graduates need not apply. So what if we lack teachers, nurses, physical therapists, doctors, engineers - Florida doesn't have jobs for them and Wal-Mart doesn't need them either!

Besides which, an informed electorate is just a bother to those who are more interested in "sound bites" than sound policy!

[David]

My alma mater lies again about the pain it must suffer. Take a closer look at the budget cuts at the law school for example. Four positions were cut - three faculty and one administrative (interesting ratio). Now the dean says they must cut admissions and raise tuitions. Why - all the positions were vacant, therefore no classrooms or classes were affected. Some day the legislature is going to hold the dean of the 46th ranked law school accountable for blaming it for Florida's oldest law school problems. It now ranks behind FSU in the bar exam results and Alabama and Georgia in national rankings.