SR 24-04 - Resolution in Opposition to Instructional Cuts

WHEREAS faculty share in our university’s mission to graduate students who possess the breadth and depth necessary to appreciate and interpret the natural, social, and aesthetic worlds, and to address the complex issues facing society-an endeavor hindered by instructional cuts that reduce the variety and diversity of courses offered; and  

WHEREAS shared governance allows the academic community to work together to find the best answers to issues facing the University, and   

WHEREAS faculty representation on a University body is necessary for faculty shared governance and is not necessarily the same as deliberative faculty consultation, and   

WHEREAS shared governance assigns primary responsibility to the faculty for the educational functions of the institution, and  

WHEREAS for five years academic departments across the university have sustained increasingly drastic cuts to their instructional budgets, and are now being asked to cut anywhere between 15%-22% of their course offerings; and  

WHEREAS these cuts force academic departments to offer drastically reduced course offerings that may fail to meet student requirements for progress towards graduation; and  

WHEREAS these cuts are also insufficient to maintain current faculty entitlements for Non-Tenure-Track and Tenure Track faculty; and  

WHEREAS these cuts affect the most vulnerable among us, primarily our students and long-term Non-Tenure-Track Faculty who have dedicated their careers to positively impact student success and foster an inclusive environment; and 

WHEREAS CSUCI administrators have acknowledged that student retention is a major contributing factor to the university’s decreasing enrollment pattern but have nevertheless called for the cancellation of courses that do not meet increased enrollment and student-faculty-ratio (SFR) targets, despite the university’s prior success with and continued marketing of small-class sizes as a retention and recruitment strategy; and 

WHEREAS President Yao has repeatedly stated that CSUCI will not have a Sonoma State situation, yet academic departments are being given insufficient instructional budgets to maintain minimum courses schedules, which inhibits progress towards degree completion, and  

WHEREAS the CSUCI administration has dedicated significant resources to rebranding and consulting firms and other efforts toward improving the university, but comparatively little energies or financial resources have been directed toward community and statewide outreach efforts to increase student enrollments; and  

WHEREAS the President stated that a primary aim of the 2025-2026 budget is to “stabilize enrollment” yet cutting classes and stripping academic department budgets discourages students from enrolling, impedes their ability to graduate in a timely manner, and forces many to transfer to other universities; and 

WHEREAS the string of course cuts in the last five years have proven to hurt, rather than help, CSUCI’s efforts towards enrollment and retention; and  

WHEREAS the President is concerned with the student-to-employee ratio when considering the total number of stateside employees (i.e., faculty, staff, and administrators) serving our student body, the most severe cuts are directed at instructional budgets, Non-Tenure-Track Faculty, and staff, leaving the university’s top-heavy administration comparatively untouched; and  

WHEREAS the budget process remains woefully opaque and opportunities for creative solutions through the shared governance process were not provided; and  

WHEREAS to be effective partners in our collective efforts to address our budget crisis we need more information, not less  

BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED that Provost Lavariega Monforti and President Yao, in good faith, participate in shared governance and provide a transparent budget; and 

BE IT THEREFORE FURTHER RESOLVED that to ensure student success and timely degree completion, no further cuts be made to the instructional budget without first providing budget transparency and secondly, without reviewing what items from the general operating budget should be subject to revision; and 

BE IT THEREFORE FURTHER RESOLVED that in Fall 2025, Deans and Department Chairs receive timely and complete budget information prior to the submission deadline for the Spring 2026 schedule. 

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED: That this resolution be distributed to the CSUCI President Richard Yao and Provost Jessica Lavariega Monforti.