Utah lawmakers ‘impressed’ by university budget cuts. Now, school leaders say they will do reviews more often.

Utah lawmakers have given their initial signoff on each public college and university’s proposal for cutting millions from their budgets under the state’s mandate — and leaders of those schools promised the cuts would only be the start for how they plan to scrutinize programs and spending.

Overall, across the eight institutions, the cuts slashed $60.5 million — discontinuing 271 degrees and certificates, and eliminating 412 positions.

Several legislators said they were “impressed” by the plans, and applauded school presidents for following their direction under a pair of bills passed during the most recent legislative session this spring.

Sen. Chris Wilson, R-Logan, said it was “the right direction that we need to go for higher ed.” Sen. John Johnson, R-North Ogden, called it “an outstanding job.”

“This was a big lift for all the institutions,” added Rep. Jon Hawkins, R-Pleasant Grove. The restructuring for schools to cut “inefficient” programs, he said, will “better prepare our people for the job market.”

The Higher Education Appropriations Subcommittee voted 13-1 to approve the plans; one Democrat voted against. The plans will go to the Legislature’s main executive budget group for a final vote — with a hearing expected for next month.

Under the base budget bill this year, lawmakers slashed 10% based on the tax dollars the Legislature appropriates to each school to spend on public instruction. The University of Utah had the biggest cut at $19.6 million. Snow College had the smallest figure at $1.7 million.

Schools were told they could cut from any part of their budget, but were specifically asked to look at ways to reduce “administrative bloat.” They were also told to analyze data and cut academic programs that have low enrollment, few graduates or lead to lower paying jobs.

Each institution could then earn its share of the money back under provisions in HB265, if they showed how the funds will be reinvested in degrees that lead to high-wage jobs the state needs.

On Tuesday, after just five months to come up with their plans, the presidents of the schools presented their proposals — which have all received preliminary approval from the overarching Utah Board of Higher Education — and their hopes for “strategic reinvestment.”

The point, lawmakers said, was for all eight schools to be more accountable when spending state funding and student tuition dollars, as well as to shift to be more relevant for the future.

An overview of the plans

The University of Utah is cutting 81 academic programs that it says have just one or two students each enrolled; it also is merging several departments.

Southern Utah University is eliminating 24 academic programs, largely in the liberal arts — including art history, French and philosophy.

Many faculty across the state had feared metrics used to make cuts would disproportionately affect the humanities and social sciences — and that has happened at every school where those programs have been the most affected.

But SUU President Mindy Benson stressed: “This was not just going to the arts.” She said she looked first at the her office for cuts, slashing 1.5 positions there.

At Salt Lake Community College, faculty looked through the course catalog to see what classes had remained on the books but had not been offered in a long time. President Greg Peterson said they found one that had not been taught since 2002. Trimming those doesn’t necessarily add up to big savings, but it was healthy to do, he added.

Similarly, Utah Valley University cut a business program that was meant to train administrative assistants with typing skills — which “really should have been eliminated decades ago,” said Jim Mortensen, UVU’s vice president of finance.

Some institutions said they mainly cut already vacant positions or came up with money through voluntary retirements. Overall, while more than 400 positions were cut, 362 jobs were added. Faculty and staff were repositioned or encouraged to reapply, presidents noted, though they acknowledged the pain of losing employees.

Many of the institutions noted that they are planning to reinvest in academic advising to help support students and get them to graduation. Utah State University said it wants to put its money back into “jobs and technologies of the future.”

“I do see wisdom in the legislative approach where we’re reinvesting,” said interim President Al Smith.

USU’s plan was approved by lawmakers Tuesday, with the caveat that it will be reviewed and agreed on by the next president of the institution, when that person is appointed.

University of Utah President Taylor Randall, who was traveling and addressed lawmakers remotely, talked about how the school will shift spending to bolster engineering, artificial intelligence and nursing to be “very, very much workforce-aligned.”

Every school leader said going through the process was helpful, and all now plan to annually review their spending and programs — without the Legislature’s push. One school said it will no longer fill all open positions automatically, and will instead review if a job is needed first.

Most said they want to be able to pivot more quickly to the needs of the workforce and what students want. “This is not a one-time exercise,” said Snow College President Stacee McIff. “We are committed to continuous improvement.”

Pushback on the purpose of education

Most of the lawmakers at Tuesday’s presentations signaled their support for the plans.

Sen. Ann Millner, R-Ogden, who cosponsored the legislation on the higher education budget cuts, said it’s in “the best interests of our students, graduates and the state of Utah.”

When Millner first proposed the bill, she said the goal was simply to slash funding for schools. But Millner said the state wanted to give schools a change to shift and restructure to meet demands.

Not all legislators were enthusiastic. Sen. Kathleen Riebe, D-Cottonwood Heights, voted against the proposals.

Riebe said she has heard from faculty who have lost their positions or programs and felt the cuts were arbitrary. “I think it’s odd you say it’s working,” she said.

Riebe, who works in education, also questioned why there was so much reinvestment by universities and colleges in business and science, and not in teaching — even though 23 of the state’s 29 counties have schools as their No. 1 employer.

The senator was a vocal opponent of the measures during the legislative session, saying she was worried about the effect to the liberal arts. That concern played out, she said, as she anticipated.

She was joined in that defense by Sen. Karen Kwan, D-Salt Lake City, who voted for the plans — but spoke out against college being defined only as a means to create a workforce.

Kwan said students should have an opportunity to study the arts, and said she hopes those degrees are not eliminated at every college in the state.

In response, UVU President Astrid Tuminez surprised lawmakers with an impassioned defense of the humanities.

The purpose of higher education, Tuminez argued, is “to make us more human.” And that comes from learning how to read and communicate, skills often picked up in the liberal arts classroom.

As part of this cutting and reallocating process, she added, UVU decided to reinvest in the general education classes that all students are required to take. Those classes, she said, expose students to literature and philosophy and deep thinking — which make them better citizens and more well-rounded people.

“They’re better engineers. They’re better scientists,” she said. “They’re better mothers. They’re better fathers.”

She said the state needs to balance its desire for a strong workforce “with how to create a society that is decent.”

Tuminez noted that she majored in Russian literature when she was in school, and now she is president of a university. “Nobody would say, ‘That’s a good major’ or ‘You can get a job with that.’” But she did, she said, and wouldn’t change it.

After Tuminez spoke, everyone in the meeting room Tuesday fell silent for a moment. Kwan responded: “I’m going to let President Tuminez’s mic drop stand.”