Sonoma State officials outline recovery plan amid massive budget deficit and cuts
After a $23.9 million budget deficit led Sonoma State University to implement campuswide cuts, university officials on Tuesday laid out their recovery plan.
The 9-page document, titled "A Bridge to the Future," noted that Sonoma State has lost 38% of student enrollment since 2015, which has led to a "significant loss" of revenue.
The document presents six goals with the following metrics:
- Increase overall enrollment by 20% within 5-7 years
- Launch a minimum of 4, high-demand academic programs within 3 years.
- Grow campus participation by 20%
- Implement a career/internship pathway program for 30 majors
- Create "a true 'college town' experience" through local partnerships
- Reduce 20% of costs in the Division of Administration and Finance within 5 years
"We estimate that the expenditure cost of the above steps to build Sonoma State's Bridge tot he Future will be about $10 million, some of which can be one-time funding," the document reads.
The document also states the university's investment decisions will "keep (students) in the North Bay to reduce the region's 'brain drain' and create a 'brain gain.'"
CBS News Bay Area requested an interview with the university regarding its new direction. In response, a university spokesperson sent a link to the "Bridge to the Future" document.
Earlier this year, the university announced $24 million in budget cuts, which included layoffs, department closures, and the termination of its entire sports program.
Students and faculty responded to the news with legal action, protests and rallies, including an appearance by Memphis Grizzlies star Jaylen Wells on campus after the NBA All-Star Weekend.
Save Seawolves Athletics, a group of current and former Sonoma State student-athletes and coaches, responded to the university's future plans by releasing a statement, titled "A Bridge to Nowhere."
"'Bridge to the Future' is not a strategy for survival. It is a strategy for replacement - one that discards real students, staff, and academic communities today for hypothetical gains that may never materialize," the group stated.
Zya, a Sonoma State University psychology major who is about to graduate, said the university's financial upheaval significantly impacted her student experience.
"Not exactly wasted, but it could've been spent probably at a school that values me as a student a little bit more," she said on Tuesday. "As a student, it's like how am I supposed to value my education when the people above me telling me to already don't?"
Izzy, a Sonoma State University student majoring in Liberal Studies, isn't quite sure what her educational future will be.
"As of what I know, my major's still intact. I heard that my major's going to be merged, so I don't totally know what that looks like. A lot of my teachers have been laid off and it's really heartbreaking to see. Just cause these teachers have poured so much into my major and program," Izzy said. "At the beginning of the semester, I was feeling so deflated and so saturated with sadness with all the uncertainty. Even though there's so much uncertainty, there's still community here. And there's still community that exists and persists."
