The full budget plan calls for a reduction of 189 employees, slightly more than the 178 proposed last month. The workforce reduction will save the university more than $13.9 million, according to the plan.
Trustees will be voting on the budget later this morning during an 8:30 a.m. public meeting. They are currently meeting in executive session.
If approved, the budget plan will add around $6 million to reserve funds, $1 million more than the school’s initial goal.
INITIAL REPORT
Wright State University leaders are set to vote this morning on some $30 million in budget cuts, slashing funding from more than 20 university department in an effort to stem a budget crisis caused by years of overspending.
“I think we’re on the right track but I acknowledge how difficult this is for the community,” said Doug Fecher, vice chairman of WSU’s board.
RELATED: WSU faculty call budget proposal disgraceful, absurd
The budget cuts aren’t the only agenda item. Also before the board is a request by the Ohio Inspector General’s office as part of an immigration investigation that has dogged the university for more than two years.
The OIG is seeking to have the university waive attorney-client privelege so that it can gain access to material WSU provided to the Ohio Attorney General’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation and the U.S. Attorney’s office as part of the immigration probe.
“I think this is just a step in the process. I don’t think it signals any change,” Fecher said. “I think the investigation is in a very early stage and they’re still gathering information.”
RELATED: WSU hits low point with announcement of layoffs
Deep cuts
The budget cuts the board will vote on include no significant changes from what was proposed last month, according to Fecher. A letter signed by 254 faculty members protesting the cuts was delivered to faculty members just days before the vote. The letter calls the cuts “disgraceful” because of their emphasis on academic rather than athletic programs.
The school is expected to lay off around 71 employees while eliminating 107 vacant positions. Laid off employees will be notified beginning next week, officials have said.
RELATED: Suspended WSU employees tied to IT contra
The layoffs will include around 24 classified staff members, 43 unclassified staff members and four faculty members. Another 14 currently filled full-time positions could have their hours reduced and the proposal does not include any salary increases for 2018.
The school is expected eliminate Russian, Japanese and Italian language courses along with the men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams.
‘Doing the right thing’
The federal investigation into potential misuse of a federal H-1B work visa program first came to light in 2015. The investigation led to the suspension of four administrators, including two who remain on paid leave.
This newspaper revealed that Wright State sponsored 19 foreign workers who came to the U.S. to work at an area information technology staffing company that paid the workers less than what local graduates typically make for similar IT work. Immigration experts say it’s possible the arrangement violated immigration laws designed to prevent staffing agencies from trafficking in cheap labor from overseas.
The inspector general’s office would not comment on any investigation at Wright State.
“It’s a policy of the office not to discuss whether or not an investigation is being engaged in or provide updates or statuses of investigations,” said Joshua Beasley, investigative attorney with the inspector general’s office.
The OIG, which has not previously been connected to the probe, has a broad mandate under state law. It has authority to investigate not only potential violations of law, but also actions by state or public university employees that are “not in accordance with … such standards of proper governmental conduct as are commonly accepted in the community and thereby subverts, or tends to subvert, the process of government.”
In April, Fecher said WSU trustees asked the university’s attorney to refer to the state any information related to the investigation out of “an abundance of caution.” The OIG’s request is likely the response to those referrals, he said.
“For any organization, there’s uncertainties,” Fecher said. “I think the outcome of this investigation is an uncertainty we’re worried about. But, I think what the board is most worried about is doing the right thing.”
ONLINE: Q&A with our reporters
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