By Najib Aminy

Billionaire Warren Buffet called Wall Street’s market turmoil an economic Pearl Harbor. With twenty percent of New York State’s budget cemented on the rollercoaster ups and downs of Wall Street, Dan Melucci, Stony Brook University Associate Vice President for Strategy and Analysis, has called the SUNY budget cuts “lunacy.”

Due to the Wall Street economic disaster, New York Governor David Paterson has called upon statewide agency cuts to remedy the projected loss of revenue. In early April, SUNY was cut a total of $50 million, or roughly 3%. Taking its share, Stony Brook was to cut $7.4 million from its operating budget of the fiscal 2008-2009 year. Following the April decision, a second round of cuts will be underway, of which SUNY will suffer a total of $96.3 million. At that point, SUNY would have a net cut of 146.3 million. Stony Brook University, along with the other sixty-three SUNY institutions, are still waiting for their share in the $96.3 cut. Melucci predicts that Stony Brook may be looking at a budget cut in the ballpark of $9.5 million.

About a week ago, Carl McCall, Chair of the finance and administration committee of SUNY trustees, said that SUNY will absorb anywhere from $20 to $50 million of the $96.3 million cut leaving the rest to be dispersed among campuses. However, Melucci said that he believes SUNY will take a $20 million cut leaving $70-plus million to be distributed among the campuses. 

Now with both the national and global economy taking a turn for the worst, Governor Paterson has called for the NYS legislature to convene after the upcoming elections on November 18 to discuss the financial crisis looming over the NYS’ budget and economy. It is highly anticipated that this special meeting will result in further cuts. According to Melucci, the Governor is faced with a $1.2 billion shortfall in revenue. In order to assess this financial dilemma, the Governor is looking to propose another state-agency cut to the tune of $2 billion.

In this proposed $2 billion cut, SUNY anticipates a third round of cuts as well as a possible tuition hike. Stony Brook has had only one tuition hike in the past thirteen years, which was five years ago. The latest tuition hike spiked to 28%, a number that may seem alarming to current Stony Brook students. A 28% increase of today’s tuition would result in an in-state student paying $5,568 from the original $4,350, and $13,580 from the original $10,610 for out of state.

A proposed alternative to a dramatic hike in tuition, supported by Melucci and Stony Brook distinguished Sociology professor Norman Goodman, is a rationalized tuition that increases steadily and allows students to predict how much they would have to pay for their education. Goodman, also the Vice President Secretary of the SUNY-wide Faculty Senate, is a supporter of free tuition, but deems it as “politically infeasible.” According to the 45-year Stony Brook Sociology professor, “the most intelligent and politically wise thing to do is raise tuition to a reasonable level and tie that to a commitment to a rational policy in the future.”

It seems that the question regarding the tuition hike is no longer “if” but rather “when?” “It would be crazy if it doesn’t happen,” said Goodman. Melucci, who would also be surprised if a tuition hike did not occur, is worried about students who rely on the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP). This program funds up to $5,000 for students who are the most financially needy. Melucci is worried that an unreasonable tuition hike may force students to chip in the amount of tuition not covered by TAP.

In terms of total cuts, SUNY projects to subtract a total of $210 million by the end of the year, according to SUNY spokesperson David Henehan. Under this projection, SUNY is looking to receive a $64 million cut in the November emergency meeting. According to Henehan, SUNY is looking into long-term solutions to the chronic problem of under-funding. Solutions mentioned by Henehan include the proposition of a rational tuition plan and the revision of personnel classification allowing SUNY to hire with flexibility. This would permit SUNY to lease or sell property to generate revenue, and allow SUNY to relieve its regulatory restrictions, such as pre-audit approval of contracts.

Currently advocating for additional flexibility and a tuition plan, Henehan said about SUNY, “[it] provides tremendous benefits to New York in the form of an educated citizenry, economic development, cultural enrichment and social mobility and therefore merits investment by the state.” New York State Assemblyman Michael J. Fitzpatrick (R) of Smithtown stressed the severity of the current economic crisis. “The dust has yet to settle,” Fitzpatrick said, “[this is] the end of a consumption culture and living beyond our means.” When discussing the SUNY cuts, Fitzpatrick said that higher education was of top priority, but sees the “state has been spending beyond its means for so long.” As a result, cuts across the board are going to be seen, including SUNY.

The Bundy Aid, untouched by any of the cuts, aids independent and privatized universities in New York and financially supports 105 private institutions. When asked, Fitzpatrick said that the mere pointing of fingers and questioning why one group receives more than another is expected, also stating that “private institutions are equally important as state.” Yet, Fitzpatrick mentioned numerous times, “a crisis is a terrible thing to waste.” Fitzpatrick believes that such a crisis can result in legitimate oversight and reduce unnecessary expenditure and create a successful economy in the long-term picture.

In terms of investing in higher education, the majority of State Assemblyman and Senators interviewed relayed the message that, due to troubling times, SUNY, along with all other State Agencies, are to feel some pain. State Assemblyman John McEneny (D) of Albany said that neither SUNY nor any other agency is “a sacred cow” that can be protected from cuts. When it comes to tuition, “judgment comes in a vacuum,” meaning that it would be hard to vote against a tuition hike if, alongside the bill, there is a proposition ensuring heat to a New York town over the winter, as McEneny put it.

One of the few State politicians that was clear in voicing his opposition against a proposed hike in tuition was Assemblyman Steve Englebright (D) of Port Jefferson Station. A former Stony Brook graduate himself, Assemblyman Englebright emphasized the importance of public higher education, saying “state universities should be given preferred status with cuts in other agencies.” Referring to the domino effect, Englebright explained that investing into public higher education would create a long-lasting stability and build up the economy. “[Protecting SUNY] would pull us out of the recession and give confidence back to Wall Street.” With a strong belief in preserving both TAP and the SUNY tuition, Englebright sees higher education as a platform worthy of investment and amidst these cuts sees a so-called “millionaire’s tax” as a probable solution.

Marissa Shorenstein, spokeswoman of Governor Paterson’s office, said that Governor Paterson is not looking to raise taxes, but rather to cut spending and invest wisely. Shorenstein mentioned that the November meeting was called on such a date not because of the elections but because, “it was simply the first date that made sense given all of the recent holidays, etc.” Shorenstein added, “while the Governor’s commitment to higher education remains strong, difficult choices will need to be made across state spending to protect the state’s fiscal integrity, and every area of state spending will need to find ways to operate more efficiently.”

As a result of the latest cuts, Stony Brook has recently enacted a hiring freeze. “We had to do something to slow down expenditures and to get people’s attention that this is a serious issue. It makes no sense to be hiring new people now,” said Melucci. He added, “we don’t believe the failure of the state should be put on the back of the students in large dollar amounts. I am really worried about the health, financial health of this institution.” Further cuts could result in significant and highly visible changes for both Stony Brook and SUNY students alike. According to Goodman, the number of classes would dwindle due to a decreased number in professional staff. This would mean larger class sizes, which would result in a longer time to graduate and further raise student expenses.

“When Wall Street catches a cold, the NYS budget gets pneumonia,” said Assemblyman Englebright. As a result, SUNY and its students end up being affected. An increased tuition hike can remedy only so much. With potentially more cuts on the way, it leaves administrators like Melucci crunching the remaining numbers, hoping for the best. “We run some numbers that scare the hell out of us very honestly,” said Melucci, “the numbers are so scary that they are absurd.”

By Najib Aminy

"Oh no you didn't Gov Patterson."

In her final convocation as President, Shirley Strum Kenny addressed a packed audience of Stony Brook faculty and students alike, highlighting moments of her fourteen-year term. Emphasizing the importance of Stony Brook University to New York State, President Kenny dedicated a significant amount of her speech lamenting the budget cuts threatening both Stony Brook and the SUNY budget.

Stony Brook has already sustained a $7.4 million loss as part of the $50 million cut from the SUNY budget and is anticipating another $5.5 million cut. Kenny said the problem that Stony Brook and other SUNY and CUNY Universities face is not a “temporary discomfort,” but a need to state the importance of such institutions. “They are not mere social gestures; they are not safety nets; they are economic and social bedrock. They are our hope for the future, our guarantee against losing our primacy as a State,” said the 73-year-old Texas native.

Kenny went over the progression and evolution of Stony Brook University to emphasize the importance of why funding is so important. Citing an economic study on the Long Island economy, Kenny called Stony Brook University the economic engine of Long Island.  With $1.8 billion invested into the budget, Stony Brook is responsible for a return of $4.7 billion in the economic activity of Long Island. “And besides that, we are educating the next generation of scientists and business leaders,” added Kenny.

In terms of academia, Kenny boasted statistics of an increasing freshman class alongside a positive correlation of increased SAT scores. Along side the growing freshman class, Stony Brook’s number of applicants has doubled since Kenny’s inception as President in 1994; jumping up 103%, making Stony Brook the SUNY school with the highest number of applicants. “Only 37 four-year institutions in the country had more applications than Stony Brook; we had more applications than Stanford, Harvard, or Yale among others,” said Kenny.

Everyone was all smiles at the after-party

The most important event, as Kenny described in her fourteen years, was Stony Brook’s admittance to the Association of American Universities in 2001, a prestigious organization formed in 1900 to “declare the equality of top American universities with those in Europe and to work together to ensure high quality in U.S. graduate degrees,” according to its mission statement. Stony Brook joins the likes of Harvard, Princeton, MIT in addition to the only one other SUNY school, the University of Buffalo. “For 44 years our aspiration had been election to this association of the the top research universities, public and private, in North America.” Since its inception alongside Texas A&M in 2001, no other university has been admitted.

In touching upon the many University projects she had worked on, such as the remodeling of the Javits Lecture Hall, the deconstruction of the Bridge to Nowhere, the renovation of the Academic Mall, and the building up of a Division-I athletic program, President Kenny mentioned how student tuition at Stony Brook has increased only once in the past thirteen years, the last of which was in 2003. Throughout that time, the undergraduate student population increased 40% from 17,200 to 24,000. With the increase of students came the increase of faculty and staff which rose 24% in the same period, ultimately from 11,200 to 13,900 paid professionals. “Clearly we need funding appropriate to our research mission—more money per student, not less,” said Kenny.

With the strong possibility of a net $13 million cut in the Stony Brook budget, changes will inevitably occur to make up for the loss of money. Tuition is speculated to increase sharply after the November election. In talks of the cuts, Kenny said, “if our present dire situation is a temporary—one year—problem, we can handle it, though unquestionably with discomfort, by redirecting some of our funding intended for equipment services.” However, if the budget dilemma prolongs into the coming years, “we have a very different situation,” said Kenny. Believing in keeping tuition as low as possible for students, Kenny is, as she said, “angry when students end up getting large tuition increases when the State decreases support for the university.” What stifles Kenny more is the fact that students could wind up paying an increased tuition for the same, if not reduced services that is currently provided, due to the budget cuts.

In closing her final State of the University address, President Kenny said the educational institutions of America, especially in New York, are facing troubling challenges and added that financial support of public higher education must be stressed to every local politician. “What we do here is vitally important. Those we teach here are the nation’s hope for tomorrow. The research we do is key to health and prosperity in the future. But we must have the funding necessary to achieve our mission,” said Kenny closing off her speech to a thunderous applause and standing ovation.

By Najib Aminy

Not many students know about the Undergraduate Student Government at Stony Brook. In fact, last year’s election polled a total of 1,059 students for the two presidential candidates, which Jeffery Akita won by 113 votes. A thousand students may seem like a lot, but it is small compared to a total of 15,523 undergraduate students, according to the 2007 Stony Brook Office of Admissions Enrollment Guide. Mathematically, nearly seven percent of all undergraduate students voted last April for their USG president and respective senators.

To recap, last year’s USG presidential election came in with the resignation of an overly ambitious Executive Vice President, the de-funding of NYPIRG, and the possible impeachment of Jeffery Akita from his post as Vice President of Clubs and Organizations. Agreeing to talk to The Press, Akita was open in discussing his goals as USG President and responded to the critical views against him stemming from last year’s election.

Though Akita was not impeached, previous USG Senators sought to indict Akita for his failure to get in touch with clubs and execute his job properly. Akita responded saying that the prosecuting Senator’s “stance was that I wasn’t visible, which was not true. Most of their accounts that they tried to hold against me were not true, they said I was corrupt, which they found I wasn’t, I had no relationship with money. They told me I didn’t meet with various organizations and clubs. I did, and different people testified. The whole thing last semester has passed, but the whole goal was to prevent me from being in this position [as USG President] and, as you see, I am in this position today.”

However, prior to the elections, Akita did resign from his Vice President position to preserve his run for presidency. Had he been impeached, Akita would have been prohibited from running for USG president under the current USG constitution. Regardless, Akita has high expectations and goals for the upcoming year and wishes to strengthen the relationship between the executive council, the senate and the judiciary. “If there is turmoil within the council, it affects the delivery and the amount of feedback we get from students and as far as how we can do things and how we should address things,” said Akita. Outside of the halls of USG, Akita said he is looking forward to “ensuring that academics are always provided, [that] there is a healthy lifestyle on campus, the safety of students is always recognized, and to ensure that student life is actually going on as expected and that more students are getting involved and staying on the weekends,” said Akita.

Despite having articles brought up against him claiming that he was not present, one of Akita’s big plans is to become a visible president. Akita assured that he is willing to help out students as much as he can. “I am a student but I understand that I am here to serve the students, so if I am not available, then how am I serving the students?”

With Akita at the reigns of the USG, he is to face, like the rest of SUNY, a possible 10% budget cut. Though a 3% cut was announced earlier in the year, the talks of an additional 7% cut have led to speculation as to how this may affect Stony Brook students. “I want all students to know that the budget cuts are not directly affecting the student activity fee, but it will affect the things it goes towards. For instance, the prices of certain things are going to up and [the number of] personnel will be going down,” said Akita. Examples given where shift in office hours of personnel due to the freeze and possible reduction of the budget. Alongside USG, Akita is working on holding a rally during the last week of October to protest the budget cuts. In conjunction with SUNY Old Westbury and Farmingdale, USG intends on setting up petitions to let Albany know that SUNY students cannot live through a 10% cut. “Look out for the protests. It is going to be big. We are going to need everybody’s support if we really want to send a message about these cuts,” said Akita. Regarding the current club budget, a potential cut would not interfere with the money allocated by the USG for 2008-2009 USG fiscal year rather it would hinder the formation of new clubs due to the reduction of funding.

With a constricting budget, the future for clubs such as the Social Justice Alliance and more notably NYPIRG seem grim. Both the budgets of the SJA and NYPIRG were rescinded and currently have no 2008-2009 budget. NYPIRG was not given a budget due to insufficient attribution of its 2007-2008 funds, according to the USG. In response to their de-funding, Akita said he believes in his treasurer and urges whoever was denied to still apply before the upcoming deadline on September 26. “Last year was last year. It is a new year, you don’t know what is coming. You may get your money, you may not get your money. Anything that happens there is going to be a reason behind it, it is not bias or anything.” Regarding NYPIRG, Akita says he has thought about allotting money for NYPIRG. In essence, the USG would freeze money, in which NYPIRG would allocate for in efforts of documenting where NYPIRG’s funds would be going.

With the absence of NYPIRG and the upcoming November presidential elections, the USG has taken up the task to coordinate voter registration with NYPIRG’s assistance. “We’ve taken that role, but in the last senate meeting a member of NYPIRG expressed that they are still going to continue with their involvement in voter registration. They are still playing their part and are encouraging other people,” said Akita. The USG, under Sophomore Representative Kadeem Hylton, have started mobilizing people in promoting the efforts for students to register and vote. Through contacting various clubs and organizations as well as Residence Hall Association, Akita says that everyone is “coming together to work as one team to register as many people to vote.” Akita also said that Hylton is organizing a “Rock to Vote” movement, an event that educates students on the importance and essentials of voting.

Regarding Stony Brook’s own vacancy, Akita holds a chair in the Presidential Search Committee. With Shirley Strum Kenny’s lame-duck status, Akita is looking for a president “who is going to be there for the students, going to advocate for the students, provide for the students, and love to be the president of Stony Brook University. “In efforts of truly representing students, Akita plans on taking advantage of the USG Rep. center and intends on using polls and feedback from campus media organizations in what he calls “a unified effort.”

In closing, Akita made an emphasis on availability and shed light on the fact that USG is not a negative, but a rather positive institution on campus.  He said, “I am going to treat this as a business and a relationship. What has to be done must be done, what can be done should be done, that’s how this government is going to be run. And together with the students, my representatives, senators, and the judiciary, we are going to work together to make that happen. What happened last year are lessons for the future. Today is here, and we are going to focus on today move forward.”

By Jake Conarck

Well Sir, there’s nothing on Earth like a bonafide, electrified, six-car monorail.  That is ,unless it costs $5 million just to study the feasibility of building one here at Stony Brook.

Buried in the budget passed weeks ago by the New York state legislature was nearly $150 million earmarked for various construction projects at Stony Brook known as strategic initiatives.  These included $45 million to build or acquire a law school, $40.8 million for a computer science building, $12.3 million for upgrades to the football stadium and arena, and many other allocations.

The most interesting strategic initiative, however, is $5 million for a monorail feasibility study.  Normally, new construction projects and upgrades are submitted to the legislature for consideration by the president of each university.  However, many of the strategic initiatives were allocated at the behest of State Senator Kenneth LaValle, chairman of the higher education committee. [Most notably the monorail feasibility study.]

According to Janice Rohlf, assistant vice president of governmental relation,s LaValle initiated the study in order to cut down on traffic on campus and use the monorail as a prototype for a possible solution to Long Island’s notorious traffic woes.  “We had been talking with the Senator about this for about 6 months now so it wasn’t a surprise to us,” said Rohlf. 

What was surprising to many, however, was the amount of money allocated for the study in a time of steep budget cuts.  “It’s more than the average study might be,” said Dan Melucci, associate vice president for strategy, planning, and analysis, referring to the $5 million allocated for the study. Melucci added that the entirety of the $5 million might not be spent.  “We’ll know more when we float some feelers out there,” he said.

The monorail feasibility study is odd not only because belts are being tightened elsewhere in the university, but because a lot of money is being spent on upgrading the bus service to alleviate traffic problems on campus.   While an exact figure would not be disclosed, James O’Connor, director of parking and transportation services, estimated that the university is spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on upgrading the bus fleet.

“We’ve been very ambitious and successful in replacing our bus fleet to become more reliable to meet the needs of the students and to have them not impact the environment as much as previous models,” said O’Connor.

By James Laudano

The State Legislature in Albany recently passed budget the 2008-09 Education and the SUNY system took a bit of an economic hit. While the SUNY schools may have suffered a cut, the student bodies of said schools received financial help from the state. However, with the economic problems now plaguing the country, the budget could have been worse.

Student tuition has been frozen under the new budget, sparing students the risk of one of the potential hikes in the cost of higher education.

In addition, the financial aid system, TAP, has been restored after fears of a complete cutting of the system. While this is a welcome fact, many feel that the TAP system still needs an update, since many students’ incomes have the potential to change in the middle of the semester, and TAP doesn’t have any provisions for such a case.

The overall SUNY budgets took a 3% cut. In the case of Stony Brook, this has immediate and very visible effects since the school has been going back and forth with its graduate TA’s over salaries, and there have been whispers of certain departments suffering cuts in faculty and courses. Additionally, Stony Brook’s plans to build a new recreation center, a very costly endeavor (18,000,000 dollars for the coming year’s phase of development), has many holding their breaths. Overall, students and faculty alike are waiting to see where they will feel the cuts.

By Andrew Fraley and Najib Aminy

Provost Eric Kaler laid to rest rumors that 388 classes in the Arts and Science program were being dropped, and that numerous adjuncts were being replaced by graduate teaching assistants.

The SUNY budget was passed a week ago, and despite a 2.9% budget cut for all schools in the SUNY system, Provost Kaler said he was pleased with the decisions made in Albany, as he had previously informed the Deans of Stony Brook to expect a 4 to 5% decrease in the budget. “A week or ten days ago it was a very dynamic situation in Albany, it was unclear what the magnitude of the cut would be. When the idea came about that it would be a five percent cut, I told all of the Deans to be prepared for that magnitude of a cut,” said the Provost. In response, there were actions taken by Dean of the Arts and Sciences James Staros, to whom Kaler granted permission to freeze a total of 388 classes while they considered the budget situation.

“We delayed the activation of these classes to assess and make sure we had all the necessary funding,” said Dean Staros. In addition, he explained that in a normal year classes would be activated weeks in advance of registration. However, this was not the case this year, due to the uncertainty of the budget.

Dean Staros commended the many people who spent their weekends ensuring that classes were reactivated. “There were a lot of Stony Brook faculty and workers working over the weekend making sure that the students had the classes and what they needed.” Provost Kaler agreed, saying the department chairs responded in a very positive way. “They found additional resources, moved some obligations around, I also generated some additional resources.” The Provost went on to say that all of the classes that were deactivated for a few days were quickly reactivated. “We reactivated over half of them on Friday and almost all of them were reactivated by Monday morning when registration opened,” said Kaler.

There are a total of 11 classes that remain deactivated. Dean Staros explained that this was a result of procedure, explaining how some classes do not fill up as expected, may not have professors to teach them or may not generate student interest. It turns out that, despite a 2.9% decrease in its operations budget, Stony Brook received the largest capital funds of any of the SUNY schools. Of Stony Brook’s predominance, Kaler said, “I think it represents the fact that the programs here are excellent and the state sees the worth of investing and building in it, and it also represents our political support.”

According to Kaler, Stony Brook’s budget is comprised of several aspects: tuition, state aid, student fees, indirect costs from research activities and a variety of different income from continuing education courses along with summer and winter sessions. In addition, the Stony Brook University Hospital has access to all the fees and funds for patients. “The university budget is a complex entity,” said Provost Kaler.

Responding to the rumors concerning adjuncts being replaced by graduate teaching assistants, Provost Kaler claimed he had no knowledge of it happening. “That is actually the first I heard of that, so I don’t know if that’s true. Those decisions are made at the departmental levels.” Dean Staros confirmed Kaler’s beliefs. “Each department decides proposal use of regular faculty and advanced TAs who can teach certain classes.”

The Provost also spoke about the controversy regarding graduate student pay disparities. Incoming graduates receive a fellowship of $2,000, and current graduates feel cheated about it. Kaler said, “All the TAs will be paid $15,145 in all years. In addition to that, the entering first year students have a first year fellowship of $2,000. We’ve done that [new] fellowship to encourage those students to come to Stony Brook.” Many graduate students are protesting the fellowship. “Many students have other fellowships or access to other support during their time here, so there is a spectrum of support that graduate students receive already across the campus,” Provost Kaler continued. He explained that graduate students get paid differently in each department, and they receive money for whatever fellowships they have attained. A fellowship is a form of academic financial aid.

For students, the 2.9% percent budget deficit does not threaten a rise in tuition. This does mean that some of the resources offered may be scaled back, according to the Provost. Resources may be shifted, but the 2.9% loss must come from somewhere. The details of the new budget, however, have yet to be released.