With further university cuts looming and a shaky state budget, Ohio University's Budget Planning Council has doubled its number of meetings and added an additional student to get through its strict schedule for laying out next year's budget.
The council makes budget recommendations to President Roderick McDavis annually. Last year, the council had to wait until the governor proposed a budget toward the end of Winter Quarter, but can begin the bulk of its work sooner this year because the state's two-year budget is set.
In past years the 12-member council has included two students - the Student Senate and Graduate Student Senate presidents. President Roderick McDavis added a third this year, asking Senior Student Trustee Chauncey Jackson to serve on the council.
The president hoped to bring another voice to the table as well as help the Board of Trustees better understand the thought processes behind BPC recommendations, said Becky Watts, McDavis' chief of staff.
As a member of the Board of Trustees, Jackson will participate in the final decision-making process, in addition to contributing to the BPC recommendations to the president. But, as a student trustee, he does not get a vote when the trustees review McDavis' budget recommendation.
The president also added another graduate student to the General Fee Advisory Committee - a subcommittee - to bring the total to seven undergraduates and two graduate students.
This year, the Office of Finance and Administration has set detailed outlines for various phases of budget planning, Watts said.
The major areas of budget planning include supplemental fees, salary decisions and budget implementation. Under the new structure, the council is expected to speak with constituencies in Winter Quarter and to make final recommendations to the president.
There is so much detailed work that group needs to do this year in preparation for the second year of the biennium and the reductions in state funding that we'll see from there
so setting a real clear work schedule for that group keeps everyone on task Watts said, adding that creating a written agenda also allowed council members to make sure their questions would be addressed before they had to make recommendations.
The structured planning schedule completes two goals, said Student Senate President Robert Leary.
I think it's helpful in looking forward to the future and thinking about the long-term thinking he said. But I also think that it's helpful toward more transparency.
BPC faced criticism in previous years for its closed meetings and delay in posting minutes. Last year, conflicting accounts from council members led to confusion over whether graduate students would be exempt from a proposed fee; however, the meetings remain closed.
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Emily Grannis
