A declining trend in state appropriations has left Ball State officials tasked with replacing lost revenue, and in the past that's come in the form of steady tuition increases.
Randy Howard, vice president of Business Affairs, said the university isn't necessarily spending more, like some people might think. It's just accommodating for the loss and trying to do more with less.
The process is different when it takes place as part of a budget-setting process rather than in the middle of a budget cycle. Every year, the university sets a budget, and every two years it sets a new tuition structure.
"It's never easy to absorb a reduction in state appropriations," Howard said.
Sometimes people aren't considering all the variables, he said.
"The real issue is, we largely have two sources of revenue — tuition and state appropriation — at least for the majority of our students," Howard said. "State appropriations, whether you want to do it per student or just in total, over that same period, has decreased significantly."
It's actually doubled in the past 10 years, according to state documents.
"We sure wish the state had been able to give us a little bit more, not just in this current biennium, but over the past five our 10 years, so the trends would look a lot different," Howard said.
He'll meet with other vice presidents, the provost and various deans to analyze priorities and see where operating budgets might be trimmed.
"Those are all ordinary conversations that happen not only in the context of setting the budget, but I guess as part of my routine job," Howard said.
The university's expenses have grown by 3.6 percent each year, and inflation has grown by about 3.7 percent. But Howard described Ball State as a "price taker," meaning it covers the rising costs in things like utilities, healthcare and minimum wage.
"So even if we didn't start any new initiatives, and all we did was keep pace with inflation — we didn't pay anything extra and we just had to pay rising costs — our expenses would have to grow," Howard said.
He used an analogy to explain the challenge of balancing the university's earnings.
"It's like you work at two jobs, and you make $5 at each job," Howard said. "If you lose money from one and you don't increase from the other, you've offset your purchasing power."
It's a tough time for people everywhere, he said.
"But the good news is there's signs the economy is improving and unemployment's improving," he said. "So hopefully we've seen a corner turned on that."
Even with a tight budget, protecting the students is always a priority.
"Really it's our job, it's every institution's job, to control expenses to the best of their ability, without sacrificing the educational quality," he said.
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