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Office of the President, UTA

 

 

February 4, 2021

Dear Colleagues,

The COVID-19 pandemic has been an unprecedented challenge to many of us, both personally and professionally, as well as to the institution. I am thankful for the dedication and resiliency UTA’s faculty and staff have shown despite those challenges. You have shown a steadfast commitment to our mission and adaptability in the face of immense uncertainty.

At the beginning of the pandemic, both the state and the University projected what the operational and fiscal impacts of the pandemic could be. In anticipation of unforeseen and unprecedented fiscal challenges, last spring I announced a cost containment plan that allowed us to maintain our focus on student success and access, while continuing our progress toward achieving Texas Tier One status. These efficiency measures also better prepared us to address state budget reductions for the 2020-2021 biennium that followed.

The aforementioned efficiencies, combined with the University’s financial reserves, central budgeting allocations, and federal stimulus funding, all allowed us to avoid the significant and disruptive budget reductions—including layoffs, furloughs, and reduced work hours—that many of our higher education peers had to implement last year. However, the direct impact of COVID-19 related losses and increased costs to the University has totaled nearly $40 million as of January 2021. 

Unfortunately, the impact of the pandemic is ongoing and expected to be widely felt for the foreseeable future. In preparation for continued reduced state and tuition revenues, as well as continued University costs associated with the pandemic, all UTA campus units, both academic and non-academic, last semester completed an exercise to prepare for up to a 5% budget reduction in fiscal year 2021-2022.

However, in anticipation of flat state appropriations and based on our best recent projections, the University will still need to reduce our budget by 1.5% to balance our FY21-22 budget. This is significantly less than the 5% originally estimated and is possible in part due to the earlier cost containment measures we all implemented at the start of the pandemic.

The UTA Budget Office will be providing the total targeted reductions to each unit in the coming weeks and will work with units to identify categories that will contribute to the reduction. While some vacant positions may be lost as part of these reductions, layoffs or furloughs are not anticipated.

Budget reductions are not easy, and no one looks forward to them. I appreciate they may make some of you anxious. That is understandable. However, I believe we are implementing these reductions from a position of strength. With these relatively modest reductions, we will be able to maintain our focus on student success and access and continue our progress toward achieving the goals in our Strategic Plan 2025.

UTA has every reason to remain on an upward trajectory and continue to be an attractive, competitive, and quality institution of higher education for current and prospective students; to conduct innovative and impactful research; to serve the needs of our community; to contribute to the workforce in Texas; and to remain a top tier employer in the state of Texas. And, I am confident that together we will see UTA emerge a stronger university.

Thank you for your continued commitment to our students and dedication to the future of the University! I hope that you and your families stay safe.

Sincerely,

Teik C. Lim, Ph.D.
Interim President

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Office of the President701 S. Nedderman Dr.  • Arlington, Texas 76019

president@uta.edu • 817-272-2101 (voice) • 817-272-5656 (fax)

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