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Task force plans for future

Amanda Seitz, Campus Editor

For those who think the troubling economic times have reached an end … think again.

Miami University has developed a new task force, charged by President David Hodge, to help the school adapt to strains presented now and in the future by the financial meltdown.

The task force is co-chaired by Steve Wyatt, chair of finance and Chris Makaroff, chair of chemistry and biochemistry. Fourteen other faculty and staff members as well as one student make up the task force, along with Hodge.

Hodge said he began to think of the idea for a new committee over the winter break.

"I was wrestling with how do we move forward and not just be in this reactive state," Hodge said.

Chris Makaroff, co-chair of the strategic priorities task force, said the group will come together to look at Miami's future.

"It is a very critical time at Miami, and in higher education right now," Makaroff said. "We need to make sure we get it right so Miami can move forward and be better in the future."

According to Hodge, higher education is drastically changing around the country that makes this new task force even more vital to university success. "The number of kids graduating from high school is starting to go down, in Ohio it's going down, in the Midwest it's going down," Hodge said. "As a result you have more competition for a smaller pool."

That is not the only adaptation Miami will need to make in the coming years, Hodge said.

"Then you've got technology, how is technology going to change what we do?" Hodge said.

With all of the adjustments that Miami may need to make in coming years, Hodge said it is important for his task force to look at big picture issues.

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"That was one of the qualities I looked for," Hodge said.

According to Hodge, one of the focuses of the task group will be to assemble a financial model for the university.

"One of the very specific things that I've asked is a financial model that is a credible and robust and balances the budget over five years," Hodge said. "That baseline budget is absolutely something that we need to have."

Makaroff said among other financial issues, the budget for the state of Ohio has proved to be a problematic source of funding for the university.

"It's more of the uncertainty in the state budget, last year the state budgeted its balance with stimulus money," Makaroff said. "We don't want to be in a position where all of the sudden the state cuts our budget and we're left to respond."

Taking financial woes such as the state budget into consideration, Hodge said he would like to see the task force's financial model go into effect for the 2011-12 year and for the group to meet an approximate deadline of Oct. 15.

"There is a sense of urgency that we need to have," Hodge said.

David Creamer, vice president of finance and business services, said the committee would not exclusively focus on budget cuts.

"We're really looking at ways to operate more efficiently," Creamer said. "As we look longer term, a lot of the conversation will be, ‘are there alternatives to generate revenue?' The majority of the focus will be how we can improve revenue growth."

Makaroff said one of the ways the committee will examine alternative ideas to improve the university's budget will be by example from other universities.

"The University of California system has just recently gone through this process," Makaroff said. "We're sort of anxious to look and see the sorts of things they've done."

According to Makaroff, the committee hopes to be open with the rest of the university about meetings and updates.

"We will try to keep everyone as informed as possible, communication is going to be critical," Makaroff said. "We're going to try to make everything transparent."

Much of the student body, faculty and staff will be absent while the committee works on steering the university in a new direction over the summer.

"The university is going to set up a Web site," Makaroff said. "We're going to work through the summer (and) we're going to post progress and updates through the summer so everyone can stay informed on what we're doing."

Makaroff said the committee might hold forums for the university to participate.

"We'll come up with a game plan as to how we'll approach our job," Makaroff said. "I would envision there would be some large or small group forums where one or all of the committee members would meet with different constituent groups."

One of the ways the group will reach the student population is by installing a student representative to the committee. "We're hoping it's going to be a back-and-forth dialogue," Makaroff said. "Students have never been shy from sharing their opinions, everything we do is for the students, we want to make sure we get it right."

Jonathan McNabb, student body president, will serve on the committee until student body elections are over.

"Whoever the new student body president is, I'll work with that person to transition them into the position when my term ends," McNabb said.

McNabb said the student body should care deeply about the committee's future plans and suggestions for the university.

"It goes down to the value of the Miami degree," McNabb said. "Our degree is only as good as the incoming freshmen class, or degree is a reflection of them and the university as well."


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