On Feb. 6, 1961, the Board of Trustees of Michigan State University declared that MSU was "in a state of financial crisis". The development and implementation of long-range planning at Michigan State since the crisis is discussed. (MLW)

Examples are given of how United States universities are being affected by and coping with the declining revenues accompanying the current recession. The role of business officers in providing the facts, information, and guidance needed by an administration making retrenchment decisions is discussed. (DB)

Ethical issues raised by administrative decisions are examined in three specific situations faced by colleges: enrolling students with lower standardized test scores to raise income; shifting of endowment funds from uses specified by donors to other uses; and downsizing that may compromise the institution. (MSE)

A university strategic planning approach that allocates resources simultaneously from the top down (administratively) and from the bottom up (based on expressed needs of the schools, colleges, and support units), making adjustments late in the process, is described. (MSE)

Discusses how colleges and universities with excess facilities should "rightsize" their campuses by divesting unneeded buildings and property. Such institutions should develop a comprehensive master plan, which includes a strategic plan, academic plan, space needs plan, facilities master plan, and financial plan. (MDM)

Five strategies for realistic deficit management in the college or university during fiscal stress are examined: (1) comprehensive strategic and operational budget planning; (2) examination of tenure-stream faculty positions; (3) program review and evaluation; (4) self-supporting auxiliary and service units; and (5) increased flexibility in use of…

During a period of retrenchment, colleges and universities are increasingly developing employee assistance programs (EAPs) to help personnel cope with personal and work-related problems. Successful EAPs have top management commitment, have written policies and procedure, focus on employee performance, provide professional assistance, involve the…

The Peabody Institute of Baltimore (Maryland), the Johns Hopkins University's music school, addressed its financial problems by converting four campus buildings into an inn used to house Elderhostel participants. Annual program revenues cover all costs and yield a financial reserve for the school. (MSE)

At the 1994 annual meeting of the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO), presentations and discussions indicated that college business officers are responding to their institutions' financial difficulties with innovative ways to reorganize, save money, and generate revenue. (Author/MSE)

A survey of 300 college and university business officers investigated the extent of the institutions' financial difficulties. Results reveal administrators' perceptions of the reasons for and solutions to financial problems, factors in institutional stability or strength, plans to maintain or strengthen the institution's financial condition,…

The fifteenth annual national Comparative Financial Statistics study shows that almost half the two-year colleges in the United States experienced funding cuts in fiscal 1992. In response, institutions tightened purse strings and instituted hiring freezes and reductions in staff through attrition, fee increases, and travel, staff, and program…

College and university administrators can apply lessons learned from corporate management to expected financial pressures of the 1990s. Problems requiring strong leadership include unclear expectations of staff; weak measurement systems; accelerating change; and the strangling effects of excessive administrative processes. (DB)

Most colleges and universities need to reduce expenditures and downsize. Such a project is difficult and emotionally charged. Many immediate remedies can ba applied to reduce and better control expenditures, but a more thorough analysis of the institution's organizational structure, operating procedures, automated systems, strategic planning, and…

An organizational development and quality enhancement effort at the University of Cincinnati (Ohio) incorporating characteristics of several popular quality management systems has produced unanticipated benefits in the administrative services and information technologies division: downsizing was less drastic than anticipated; innovative financing…

When college budget problems lead to difficult decisions, the inherent differences between the business and academic areas may become exaggerated. Business affairs administrators are wise to make the effort to establish and maintain good communication with faculty. The rewards are trust and more effective administration. (MSE)