Dal pledges to maintain scholarships, boost student services
2009-10 budget document aims to deal with "uncertainty" in economy
(0)Dalhousie University will not reduce the number of scholarships it offers because of the global economic downturn, according to the university's new budget plan for the 2009-2010 academic year.
Alan Shaver, academic vice-president and chair of the budget advisory committee, presented the document during a university senate meeting Monday night. He said the university will continue to invest in student assistance.
"We're committed to maintaining the value of our scholarships for our students and also the numbers available for allocation to our students," he said.
The document outlines an overall budget increase of $22.5 million, but also calls for $3.7 million in cuts to operating costs. $21 million of the budget plan is assigned to student assistance programs, including scholarships.
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Dahousie's total budget expenditure for the past four years. (Credit: Shannon Fay)
"Revenue is increasing, but we're increasing expenditures a little bit more so that we can do a reallocation," Shaver said in an interview afterward.
"We're trying to make sure that we understand these problems, so that if and when they arise we can do something about it."
The news comes as most Canadian universities adjust to severe economic challenges. Wilfred Laurier University in Waterloo, Ont., announced last week it would cut its operating budget by $31 million over the next three years.
The report also suggests increasing enrolment in order to create added revenue. Shaver said periods of recession historically prompt more people to pursue further education.
"Traditionally, enrolment's gone up. We're hoping that enrolment goes up as people feel school is a good thing to do because you get more of a chance to compete," he said.
"We're also concerned about how students can afford to go to university. That's partly why we made sure our scholarship and student support aren't going to be undermined by the economic situation."
Matthew Golding, vice-president of finance and operations for the Dalhousie Student Union, said he supports the direction of the budget plan.
"I'm glad that they don't plan to take money away from students. It's obviously very important, especially with students who need assistance," he said. "In a perfect world you wouldn't need to make cuts, but this isn't a perfect world."
Student services also safe from cuts
While Shaver said it's too early to predict the full impact of the economic downturn, the university can adjust its spending toward more suitable areas. The plan recommends spending $7.7 million on strategic initiatives, such as campus renewal, enhanced research and human resources. Such projects create jobs and build infrastructure that better position the university to endure the economic challenges.
Although Dalhousie faces cuts to its operating budget, Shaver said student services would not be adversely affected.
"That would be an area that we're actually trying to invest in," he said. "If we're investing in an area, why would we cut it?"
The budget plan also depends on $17.4 million of funding from the Nova Scotia government under the province's Memorandum of Understanding with the universities.
"It would mean a significant change in our plans. We would have to reevaluate this model. We would have less money to spend and so we'd have to tailor our budget to match the reduced amount. And so would every university in the province."
Shaver said some of the savings would be realized as many older professors reach retirement. Since Dalhousie has the best professor-to-student ratio in Canada, he said the university would be able to maintain a high level of instruction without replacing them all. But he said the committee hasn't decided where the rest of the savings will come from.
"In August... it was a very straightforward budget year on the surface," he said. "But obviously there's an enormous amount of uncertainty. We have at this time a lot of uncertainty within the university and a lot of uncertainty outside the university."
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