Posts Tagged ‘trustees’

Budget cuts a “good faith effort”

Friday, April 17th, 2009

At its April meeting this week, the Board of Trustees is considering the administration’s 8.3% budget reduction proposal, a plan that falls just short of the 10% figure established as a goal earlier this year. College President Jonathan Palmer said he is confident that the proposal as it stands constitutes a “good faith effort” on behalf of the students and faculty without drastically affecting day-to-day interactions or academic offerings.

There is a possibility that the Trustees will ask the administration to come up with a budget that involves deeper cuts, said College Business Manager Karen Dearborn Grimmer. She said they “could very well say, this is great, this will meet the need for now, or they could say it’s not enough.”

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Vocal position suspension sparks student backlash

Wednesday, March 11th, 2009

Following an announcement that the position of vocal instructor will be suspended next year, students have led a campus-wide media blitz, as the continuity of the choral program appears to be in jeopardy. College President Jonathan Palmer announced the suspension of the music faculty position, along with other posts to be left vacant, last Thursday in an email to the Principia community.

Following Palmer’s announcement, students organized a “Save the Choir” campaign including fliers, Facebook groups, and a petition that has gathered more than 300 signatures from students and an additional 50 from faculty, staff, and alumni.

Several members of the Creative Arts and Communication Unit have reacted to the news with surprise and frustration, saying the administration failed to seek their input before finalizing the decision.

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Faculty Positions To Remain Empty

Friday, February 20th, 2009

College president Dr. Jonathan Palmer, along with other upper level Principia administrators, decided last week to defer several new faculty hires for one year. This decision, made public on Tuesday, February 10, was prompted by the unforeseen need to cut an additional $400,000 from Principia’s budget for the next fiscal year.

Palmer gave this explanation of the events leading up to the decision. In September of 2008, Principia’s plan for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2009, included growing the budget by $1.1 million. As the economy faltered, however, it became clear that this plan was no longer feasible. Currently, Principia’s upper level administrators are looking to decrease the institution’s budget by 8.1% for next year in order to draw no more than 7% from the endowment.

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Letter to the Editors

Friday, January 23rd, 2009

College President Jonathan Palmer and the Board of Trustees decided that the future of Principia lies in the semester system. I think, to put it lightly, the student body disagrees. In fact, as a student, I believe I am not alone when I say that I am upset at the way this decision was presented to us in the end. I may be making this issue bigger than it is, but it appeared that Dr. Palmer buried this extremely important news in a multi-subject email. This announcement deserved at least its own email. I personally would have preferred him to tell us to our faces. If the rationale for this move was actually “a compelling combination of administrative, scheduling, athletic, and academic improvements,” I think a meeting would have been a facile motion for the President.

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