cm-life.com | live coverage of cmu football tonight |football Four defensive backs have helped improve passing defense, 1B
Antiques| Treasure collectors trade in valuables at Roadshow, 8A
Wednesday, Nov. 11, 2009
Central Michigan Life
Mount Pleasant, Mich.
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Grades stay on Portal despite concerns By Griffin Fraley Staff Reporter
illustration by ross kittredge
Where is your tuition going?
A grades | 2A
michigan promise
Figuring out CMU’s operating budget is all about breaking it down By Amelia Eramya Staff Reporter
Editor’s note: This is the first story in a series looking at Central Michigan University’s budget.
C
MU’s operating budget may be complicated to comprehend. But it is all a matter of breaking it down. “How the funds get distributed is really pretty simple,” said Vice President of Finance and Administrative Services David Burdette. The budget is created in the fall semester and presented to the Board of Trustees the following July for approval. Enrollment, tuition and other revenue and expenditures are considered when creating the operating budget. Tuition, state appropriations and other revenue are put into a general fund, and money is distributed from there.
[inside] NEWS w Pizza King reopens after two-year hiatus, 3A w RPL course educating on wild hog hunting, 9A
sports w Men’s basketball without key players for Saturday, 5B
CM-LIFE.com w Check the Web site for a video from PONG 101.
weather w Sunny High 54/ Low 26
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Current budget There are two separate funds within the operating budget. There is the general fund, which is the annual budget that supports the academic departments and offices, and the auxiliary budget, which supports the residence halls, the CMU Bookstore and other such areas. The 2009-2010 operating budget is $397 million, said Barrie Wilkes, associate vice president of Financial Services and Reporting. The 2009-2010 general fund is $308 million. It was $292,117,380 in 2008-09, Wilkes said. “Of (the operating budget), $80 million, plus or minus, is state appropriations,” Burdette said. “Everything else is tuition or miscellaneous endowment.” CMU received $89.4 million in state appropriations in 2007-08, and $82.7 million in 2008-09. “We expect that our appropriation will be reduced next year from that 80 million,” Wilkes said. There was a $3 million remainder carried into this year’s budget. The general fund of the operating budget has two primary sources of revenues — state
Breaking down CMU’s money w Operating budget - $397 million w General fund - $308 million w State appropriations - $80 million w Alumni donations - $675,000 in 2008-09 appropriations and tuition, Burdette said. Tuition and room and board bring in about $259.4 million to the 2009-10 operating budget. Burdette said 30 years ago, state appropriations made up about 70 percent of the revenue but, because of budget cutbacks, tuition is now the primary source of revenue. Other revenue is placed into the general fund, which includes grants, interest income and miscellaneous income, including alumni donations if given to a specific area, Burdette said. From July 2007 through September 2008, there were 2,482 alumni donors giving a total of $404,000. In 2008-09, 2,730 alumni donated $675,000. “We are on pace with last year’s goal,” said Chris Austin, associate director of Alumni Relations.
ROTC observing Veterans Day with tailgate cookout By Connor Sheridan Staff Reporter
Football fans can expect a surprise from the skies tonight at Kelly/Shorts Stadium. In honoring Army veterans and celebrating future soldiers on Veterans Day, the Central Michigan University ROTC has coordinated skydivers to come in. The “Fastrax” Army skydiving team will descend into
the stadium with lit flares on their legs, leaving colorful, smoky trails. One parachuter will carry the game ball and deliver it to the officials upon touchdown. “I just hope they don’t get hung up on the uprights,” said Maj. Ryan Finley, a member of the “Chippewa Battalion’s” cadre, jokingly. A ROTC | 2A
Spring 2009 grade distribution reports are still online after several Central Michigan University department chairs voiced concern about their posting. A group of department chairs plan to meet Nov. 18 to discuss taking down the grade distribution information available on the Central Michigan University Portal. “I simply need to talk to other chairs about how they feel and how they think we can push forward our goals,” said Psychology Chairman Hajime Otani. “I’m not looking for a concrete outcome yet. I just want to feel the pulse of the other chairs and see how they feel.” Students can click “Academics” on
SVSU, MSU set to honor scholarship By Tony Wittkowski Staff Reporter
Distribution of funds On the expense side, there are four major categories — salaries, interest and financial aid, utilities and miscellaneous items, such as supplies, equipment and travel expenses, Burdette said. “Salaries is the single biggest component,” he said. “We’re a labor-intensive business, so we employ a lot of faculty and staff.” To estimate salaries, Finances and Administrative Services takes a snapshot of the current payroll to capture the informa-
The cancellation of the Michigan Promise scholarship has caused concern for students. But not for those at Saginaw Valley State University and Michigan State University. SVSU decided to pay for the fees that would have benefited the students via the scholarship. “With the timing of being halfway through the semester, we thought it would be most appropriate to pay for the students expenses,” said Donald Bachand, Academic Affairs vice president for SVSU. “We absorbed a significant cost, but it seemed like the right thing to do.” The Michigan Promise was not included in Michigan’s $44.5 billion state budget signed into law by Gov. Jennifer Granholm on Oct. 30 because of funding cuts. The Promise was a state-sponsored scholarship signed Dec. 21, 2006, replacing the Michigan Merit Award. It provided $4,000 to students attending at least a two-year institution.
A budget | 2A
A promise | 4A
The total donations made from alumni, corporations, foundations and non-CMU alumni totaled about $1.5 million in 2008-09, he said. “Hopefully, we will be getting a significant amount of gifts,” Wilkes said.
GAMEDAY Watch the Chippewas take on the Rockets When: 8 p.m. Where: Kelly/Shorts Stadium Opponent: Toledo Inside w Sports Editor Andrew Stover forecasts matchup, 3B
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