University of Wyoming trustee meetings this week have many on campus awaiting a mixture of bad news and clarity. While a plan for a $10 million budget reduction for fiscal year 2018 was released in November, the details have been murky. To meet the proposed cuts, close to 50 layoffs are on the table, according to UW spokesperson Chad Baldwin.
A report prepared for this week’s meetings has brought more budget cut details to the surface. It shows The Outreach School and Athletics department will see the largest percentage of funding cuts, but no program is left untouched.
Staff Senate Vice President Rachel Stevens said they are starting to get specific information about where cuts would come and if personnel would be affected. But she said, “probably the biggest area for anxiety and where these layoffs are coming as a surprise is in the academic units.”
This report does not offer specific numbers for eliminations in academic departments, like it does in other divisions. Stevens said throughout this process, “units like Administration and IT were giving much more specific information about where those cuts would come and whether they would be personnel or other expenses.”
Departments have till May 15 to hand out pink slips. And the trustees will officially sign off on the 2018 fiscal year budget at their meeting in June.
