To: CWU Stakeholders: students, faculty, staff, alumni, parents, and the Ellensburg community
From: United Faculty of Central (
http://www.ufcentral.org
)
We have all seen the news – the state budget is in a deep hole, and massive cuts are likely. Like every state funded operation, CWU is being asked to prepare for potential cuts, even though the Legislature can act to strengthen higher education. However, what this letter addresses is the way CWU will deal, internally, with possible cuts.
“Central Washington University's mission is to prepare students for responsible citizenship, responsible stewardship of the earth, and enlightened and productive lives†(http://www.cwu.edu/~pres/mission.html). In short, the university exists to educate our students – primarily the daughters and sons of the State of Washington. To do this, three things are required: students, faculty, and enough of an administration to make sure the paperwork flows. Generally speaking, the students are CWU’s source of funds; the faculty and the administration are the costs.
Unfortunately, for the past 10 years or so, CWU has focused more on increasing enrollment numbers and growing its administration rather than funding the direct education of students. This has manifested itself in several ways:
Clearly, funding CWU in general is not the only problem – it is the internal distribution of funds. As these numbers show, the administration’s priority has not been the direct education of students, but the creation and funding of administrative positions. Currently, academic programs are undergoing review to improve efficiency; however, departments have been asked to develop plans to cut faculty, programs, and student research, all of which will decrease the quality of student education and graduation rates. CWU should be planning to protect academics, not cut it.
Remember, our students are the future of Washington State: skimp on the quality of their classroom experiences, and the entire State will pay the price for years.
Thus, we are asking all CWU stakeholders to take a few minutes to help address this problem. Email or call your legislators and CWU’s new president. If you are a student, also ask your parents to do the same. Please ask these decision makers to (1) support higher education in general and (2) make teaching and learning the spending priorities at CWU. A few minutes of your time could help improve the education of students at CWU.
Your legislative contacts can be found at
http://apps.leg.wa.gov/districtfinder/statewide.aspx; CWU’s president may be contacted at
http://www.cwu.edu/president/. Also, see
UFC's "what to do' letter.