After dealing with mandatory furlough days and layoffs last semester, things are much calmer for ASU staff and faculty members, though there are still lingering effects, an ASU dean said Wednesday.

Dean Robert Mittelstaedt of the W. P. Carey School of Business, whose school had to lay off more than 50 people after budget cuts, said the impact in the classroom has not been significant because of the hard work of staff and faculty. However, that success is difficult to maintain long-term without raises and other benefits for ASU employees, he said.

“That gets harder going forward as you have a number of years without any raises and you have heavy workloads, so we might lose some faculty — if this continues — who might find it attractive to move somewhere else,” he said.

Mittelstaedt, whose college also absorbed the business programs at the West and Polytechnic campuses after the cuts, said his staff and faculty have dealt with reductions in discretionary expenditures, layoffs and restrictions on academic travels.

“It’s not a matter of faculty having to buy Crayolas for their kids to color with like you see in elementary schools, but they have had to reduce their travel,” he said. “Faculty not only enjoy, but it’s good for them, to go to academic conferences. That is part of their continued academic development.”

Temporary budget fixes can’t continue forever, Mittelsteadt said.

“At some point in time you have to try to resolve the University and the state’s financial problems so that you can have an environment that faculty are attracted to from elsewhere … and so we can retain the faculty that we have,” he said.

An employee at Hayden Library who did not want to be named out of fear of being fired for expressing her views said most ASU staff members were hit hard by budget cuts and continue to have concerns.

“The way I feel is, ‘Am I secure? Am I going to be laid off? Is it still ongoing or is it over?’” she said.

The situation has become more intense for her staff members because they handle not only their own responsibilities but now also work in other areas of Hayden Library, she said.

“We kind of multitask instead of just [specialize] in one area,” she said. “It didn’t used to be that way, but now, pretty much everybody here [has] been trained to understand other parts of the library for when they need the people.”

While mandatory furlough days hurt her finances, she said it was better than the alternative.

“You just accept the fact,” she said. “You look at the positive side of it — I still have my job — so I’m grateful.”

She also said it feels wonderful not having furloughs this academic year.

“You look at your paycheck and it’s back to where it was before — forget about an increase — but you’re happy that you have your money that you’re supposed to have,” she said.

However, having worked at ASU for 26 years as her only job, she said none of the effects of budget cuts have or will change her attitude toward the University.

“I will still devote my time, [I’m] dedicated to my job and give my service to the library and ASU as a whole,” she said. “I still hope for the best.”

Other staff members at ASU, though, said they haven’t really seen or felt the effects of budget cuts, like Leo Magpoc, a technical support analyst at the Tempe campus Computing Commons.

“From this recent budget thing I haven’t seen anyone that I know of that got laid off,” he said.

It’s easier to manage his workload this year without furlough days, but Magpoc said he didn’t mind having to miss workdays last semester.

“I could afford to take the 10 days off, and I kind of liked the time off,” he said. “Some people couldn’t afford the time off, so some people didn’t like it, but I didn’t mind it at all.”

Frederick Corey, dean of University College at the Downtown campus, said his college had to lay off staff, which has affected many employees who remain.

“[The staff members] have to pick up the extra work left by the vacancies created through the reduction in force,” he said.
Corey said three administrative positions were also eliminated.

“University College eliminated two associate dean positions; I now serve as both dean of University College and director of the School of Letters and Sciences and you see who answers my phone,” said Corey, who no longer has an assistant after reorganizations following budget cuts.

“I’d rather pick up my own phone than cut back on our English teachers.”
Corey said he tells his staff and faculty to not worry about the future of the University’s funding but to instead be alert.

“I don’t know that worry is going to solve any problems,” he said. “I think planning and being aware will help.”

Though Mittelstaedt said he thinks the state must figure out how to balance the budget, he also said he has been proud of his faculty and staff.

“The faculty kept doing what they did in the classroom and the staff kept doing what they did to help the students or the faculty,” he said. “It’s a great example of people that are truly committed to education.”

Reach the reporter at salvador.rodriguez@asu.edu.