BOWLING GREEN, Ky. (AP) — Western Kentucky University President Gary Ransdell says the school will have to cut staff unless state officials approve a 5 percent increase in tuition.
The Daily News (bit.ly/ZS6cbP) reports Ransdell made the comments during a speech Thursday at the Bowling Green campus that was broadcast to other regional campuses in Glasgow, Owensboro and Elizabethtown.
"There's going to be a battle (with the state) for the 5 percent," he said. "If we only get approval for a 4 percent tuition increase, we are cutting budgets and people will lose their jobs."
He said WKU is growing quickly, and state revenues are not keeping up.
Ransdell said he can't think of a department or service that the university can do without and doesn't like the prospect of recommending layoffs and furloughs.
"If there is a better option, I would like to know what it is," he said after the meeting. "We are going to tread water and pay fixed costs."
Eastern Kentucky University announced this week that regents approved a plan to reduce staff through layoffs, voluntary buyouts and early retirements in an effort to reallocate $23 million. EKU officials said that school has seen a 15.2 percent decline in state support over the last five years.
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Information from: Daily News, http://www.bgdailynews.com
