Leatherneck Nation

*&^%^$# State of Illinois.

Chicago State University trustees have declared a financial emergency that could make it easier to lay off employees.

According to the Chicago Tribune, trustees have declared a type of emergency that in the academic world means the school faces an imminent threat to its survival that could require measures such as cutting faculty jobs.

The board also created a committee to decide on actions that could include lay offs and pay cuts.

Chicago State officials say the school will run out of money in March.

wow......

Would be nice if we had a financial breakdown of the state schools and could see how we all sit. From the sounds of it WIU is better off than some, but they need to keep ahead of this even if it means making very tough choices. Do not wait for the golden goose to show up with an extra few million. We need to get within our limits and find new methods of income.

I don't really have actual numbers for a financial breakdown of where everyone is at, but from what I'm hearing locally and from others elsewhere around the state, here are my "rankings" of the order in which schools are "in jeopardy":
1. Chicago State
2. Northeastern
3. Governors State
4. Eastern
5. Western
6. Southern and Northern
7. Illinois State
.
.
.
2948. University of Illinois

We're not in a great position, but other "dominoes" would fall before we would.

My sources said that SIU and NIU were closer to the abyss than WIU! Since 2008 WIU has been working to change with the climate. Maybe it has not changed as much as some would like, but there has been more movement to respond and reorganize than at a number of other Illinois institutions! jc

Neckfansince71 wrote:My sources said that SIU and NIU were closer to the abyss than WIU! Since 2008 WIU has been working to change with the climate. Maybe it has not changed as much as some would like, but there has been more movement to respond and reorganize than at a number of other Illinois institutions! jc

Your info is likely more accurate than mine. People seem to lump Eastern and Western together when they're talking about downstate schools that are in trouble, but I know that Western is better off than Eastern right now. I rarely hear much about Southern and Northern though, so I assumed that they weren't quite as bad off as we were, but I don't really know that for sure. I know that SIUE is holding fairly steady or growing slightly in terms of enrollment, but SIUC and NIU are dropping (not quite as badly as Eastern, but still trending downwards).

In a Feb 3 "Western Courier" article, it was mentioned that the university is facing a 25 percent decrease in student enrollment since 2006.

http://westerncourier.com/34445/news/bi ... esses-sga/

That is a sizeable decrease in enrollment over the last 10 years.

wiu712 wrote:In a Feb 3 "Western Courier" article, it was mentioned that the university is facing a 25 percent decrease in student enrollment since 2006.

http://westerncourier.com/34445/news/bi ... esses-sga/

That is a sizeable decrease in enrollment over the last 10 years.

During that 10 year period, what has been the faculty staffing levels? We might have more programs now than we did back then so I guess it could actually be higher now. Hard to fathom. Times are difficult everywhere even when on the surface, things look rosey. I just read that they are having to make substantial cuts to the bus service I took every day into DC because gas prices have fallen so low that the 2.5% tax rate is no longer cutting the mustard.

sealhall74 wrote:

wiu712 wrote:In a Feb 3 "Western Courier" article, it was mentioned that the university is facing a 25 percent decrease in student enrollment since 2006.

During that 10 year period, what has been the faculty staffing levels?

Faculty numbers down only 1/2 that due to retirements, and yet UPI still doesn't get it.