Indiana State University trustees OK 'financial stability' budget for '16-17

The $175.8 million budget represents a 2.7 percent increase over the last fiscal year; the change is primarily from projected enrollment and fee increases.

“It’s a conservative budget but it provides financial stability for the university,” said Diann McKee, ISU senior vice president for finance and administration. ISU remains “optimistic about the sustained upward trend in our enrollment and overall financial condition.” 

The 2016-17 budget includes an anticipated 2 percent increase for salary adjustments, plus amounts set aside for faculty and staff target salary programs. Criteria for any adjustments will be determined once enrollment numbers are known for fall semester and an overall budget assessment has occurred. The budget also reflects a 2 percent increase in student wages and a 2 percent increase in university scholarships.

The state operating appropriation decreased by $264,829 from 2015-16. Overall, student tuition represents 53.1 percent of ISU’s total general fund budget, compared with 37.5 percent from state appropriations.

The university expects to spend less on fringe benefits. As of July 1, 100 percent of retiree health premiums will be funded through the Voluntary Employees Benefit Association (VEBA) Trust, established in 1998 to set aside reserves to offset the liability for post-employment benefits (retiree health and life insurance).

According to McKee, “the activation of the VEBA Trust to pay 100 percent of the university share of eligible retiree health and life insurance premiums is expected to save the university, across all budgets, approximately $4 million annually. This has been phased in over a 2 1/2-year period, so this is a partial savings for 2016-17, as some of this amount has been built into prior year budgets.”

Trustees also took action related to student housing.  

As part of the continued effort to upgrade student housing, trustees authorized McKee to secure financing of $20.1 million for Cromwell Residence Hall, which is phase three of the Sycamore Towers complex renovation project. 

Bond proceeds are not to exceed $16.1 million, with the remainder to be paid by residence hall reserve funds. Renovations will begin this summer with occupancy expected in August 2017.

The first renovation phase of the Sycamore Towers complex, which dates back to the 1960s, was Mills Hall, which reopened in 2015. Second-phase Blumberg Hall is nearing completion and will welcome students in this fall.

Trustees authorized the final phase of Sycamore Towers renovations - Rhoads Hall - with construction planned to start in May 2017 for occupancy in fall 2018.

The Sycamore Towers complex of four residence halls is between Fourth and Fifth streets and Chestnut and Cherry streets.

In other matters, trustees approved a policy prohibiting hostile or intimidating workplace behavior. It provides the option for employees to use existing grievance procedures if subjected to hostile or intimidating workplace behavior by colleagues or supervisors. “The policy does not replace normal workplace management policies, but provides an additional mechanism for review and resolution,” it states.

“It’s a way for the university to state that we expect an ongoing atmosphere of professionalism, integrity, decency and fairness among all employees of the university,” said Provost Michael Licari in an interview after the meeting. “It’s a way to publicly state that commitment.”

Chris MacDonald, faculty senate chairwoman, agreed. “It’s a way to create a more welcoming environment for all members of the campus community.” 

Hostile or intimidating behavior can include abusive expression, unwarranted physical contact, conspicuous exclusion, sabotage of another person’s work or abuse of authority.

In a related matter, trustees also approved a policy change related to faculty discipline and dismissal. “Right now, there is not much in between kind of a  finger-wagging, low-level admonishment and dismissal,” Licari said. “What this policy does is allows for some progressive dismissal — something along the continuum between a  letter of admonishment  and the other side — formal dismissal proceedings.”

It allows for a more commensurate response, given the level of the offense, Licari said. No single event prompted the change, he added.

If discipline does not involve reduction in rank or dismissal, the final decision rests with the provost, with appeal to the president, Licari said. If it involves reduction in rank or dismissal, the decision is made by the board of trustees.

The faculty senate has agreed to the changes, MacDonald said.

Trustees also approved a student grievance policy that allows students to submit a grievance “when the student has been improperly, unfairly, or arbitrarily subjected to action or inaction by an employee that adversely affects the student in a personal or academic capacity.”

The policy doesn’t apply to grade appeals, allegations of discrimination, grievances involving other students and other matters which already have processes in place.

An interim student grievance policy was set to expire this month, MacDonald said. Trustees on Friday passed a permanent, university-wide policy, with procedures for investigation and resolution to be developed.

According to Licari, “This ensures all students are treated the same regardless of what major they are in. So all students have the same access to the same grievance policy.” Before, there was a different procedure in each college.