Former President Bush visits campus

At left, George H.W. Bush, 41st president of the United States, talks with Ohio State alumnus Max M. Fisher. Bush spoke before about 2,000 members of the Fisher College community in Mershon Auditorium during a visit to campus on Oct. 29, when he delivered the Fisher Council on Global Trade and Technology lecture. He recounted his years in office and provided an overview of international trade. The council was announced in 1998 in honor of Fisher, and is designed to provide Fisher College students with experiences in global trade and technology, position the college as a center for international finance and management, and provide lectures, seminars and research presentations by world-class experts.

Preserving academic core drives budget decisions in light of state cut

Planning for FY 2003 also is under way

By Emily Caldwell, onCAMPUS staff

Ohio State is maintaining its commitment to advancing academic priorities even as the University responds to the state's 6 percent cut to higher education funding for Fiscal Year 2002.

The University's Board of Trustees on Nov. 2 approved reallocation of one-time funds totaling $19.4 million on the Columbus campus, reflecting the loss of the state share of instruction on the main campus alone. The board also authorized additional line-item cuts -- to a range of items that include programs rewarding external research funding success and increased student retention rates, and state support for medical education, for example -- to meet the $28.2 million reduction in current-year funding for all of Ohio State's campuses.

"This initial budget adjustment to respond to the state's revenue shortfall, combined with the plans we are putting in place for the next several years to redirect internal resources so we can offer more competitive faculty and staff compensation, represent a substantial challenge for the University," said Executive Vice President and Provost Edward J. Ray. "But we know we can and must do this. Ohio State has already made significant reallocations to support our academic priorities from a resource base that is significantly below that of competing institutions in other states. As difficult as it will be, it is necessary if the University and the state of Ohio are going to compete successfully in the years ahead.

"Continuing to move forward even in a time of financial stress is critical to our success in meeting our land-grant responsibility of helping to secure a better future for the people of Ohio."

In Columbus, administrators are achieving the financial recovery by tapping the University's Rainy Day fund for $5 million, redirecting $6 million from central budgets, and identifying the remaining $8.4 million by asking support units to cut 2 percent from their General Funds budgets and the University's 18 colleges to reduce their General Funds budgets by 1.25 percent. Support units include the offices of the President, Academic Affairs, Business and Finance, Development, Research, Legal Affairs, Student Affairs, University Relations, Health Sciences Administration and Agricultural Administration.

The University's four regional campuses and the Agricultural Technical Institute/Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center in Wooster will contribute a combined $3.9 million, and all other line item-funded units will be reduced by a total of $4.9 million.

Senior Vice President for Business and Finance William J. Shkurti told trustees that under the reallocation, student financial aid distributions will be protected. He also noted that the University is using one-time funds, or cash, to correct the immediate budget problem.

"The redirected funds we've identified are one-time funds only and will get us through this year. We know we will have to identify additional continuing funds for next year, and we will do so through the plans that we have called for from colleges and support units. But we believe that, given the problem we face, this is the least destructive approach to take to meet the budget demands for Fiscal Year 2002 for the University. Permanent reductions will need to be addressed as part of Fiscal Year 2003 budget planning," Shkurti said. "And this plan addresses only the current reductions announced by Gov. Taft. If additional reductions in state support are implemented, additional corrective action will be necessary."

The $28 million cut, arriving in the middle of the fiscal year, is equal to the payroll and benefits costs of between 500 and 600 full-time positions across all Ohio State campuses on an annualized basis, Shkurti said. Those overseeing budget adjustments that result in a reduction in personnel are being encouraged to achieve those reductions through voluntary separations or by leaving vacant positions unfilled.

Even as the University is forced to reduce its budget mid-year, Ohio State officials note that three specific priorities from the University's Academic Plan have been identified to move forward -- largely because funding resources are available for them. They are a series of enhancements to undergraduate programs through use of tuition funds this academic year that exceeded the historic 6 percent cap; a major biomedical research initiative, drawing in part upon Tobacco Settlement funds; and creation of an Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity in the Americas, using funds earmarked last year. In addition, the administration has pledged that enhanced compensation for faculty and staff remains a No. 1 funding priority for the next several years.

Trustees will be asked to adjust FY 2002 resources and expenditures to reflect specific changes at the board's December meeting, when the first-quarter budget report is completed.

Compensation initiative

In the meantime, Ohio State officials are preparing the University community for next year's budget cycle, for which an estimated $36 million, at minimum, must be identified in the Columbus campus budget to provide competitive merit-based compensation increases and preserve the rest of the academic core.

Ray and Shkurti have been consulting with deans, vice presidents and University Senate leaders about how to achieve budget balance in that climate. Preliminary estimates of needed revenues include up to $22 million for faculty and staff salary increases, targeted as a major component of maintaining Ohio State's momentum toward greater academic excellence; $15 million for other commitments to essential items, such as student financial aid, health benefits and energy costs; and $19 million to cover the expected 6 percent rescission of funding of the state share of instruction next fiscal year.

Carole Anderson, vice provost for academic administration, is examining options for reallocation consideration of centrally funded initiatives, which will be assessed to assure they are properly sized and appropriately focused. Glen Hoffsis, dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine, is doing the same kind of exploration of support unit activities. Non-General Fund areas, such as Athletics and Transportation and Parking, which raise their own revenues as self-supporting units, are likely to be asked to contribute funding to the University as well.

"The most significant challenge we will face is to stop doing some things so that we can improve our performance in the most critical areas despite diminished resources," Ray said.

Additionally, all college deans and vice presidents must submit to the provost by Jan. 30, 2002, a plan for what they will do to meet the goals of the University's Academic Plan, which is the driving force behind Ohio State's continued effort to become one of the world's truly great universities and the focus of all funding priorities. The plans will be expected to outline what the college or unit will do to support the goals of the Academic Plan over the next three years -- including providing competitive salaries appropriate to those units -- as well as details about the resources to be used to achieve the unit goals and the implications of plan recommendations on faculty and staff in the unit as well as all Ohio State students.

"The plans must be developed in an open and consultative fashion," Ray said.

Lee Walker, the University's budget director, and Alayne Parson, senior vice provost, will work with colleges and support units to help them manage the transition to a new budgeting structure, under which the colleges and support units will be expected to develop opportunities to increase revenues and reduce costs.

Market, personnel issues

As President Brit Kirwan said in the State of the University address on Oct. 11, the strategy will be based on seven principles:

• The Academic Plan must be the driving force behind everything Ohio State does.

• Individual compensation should be based on merit and must reward excellence.

• Compensation markets are differential; therefore, compensation targets must vary among colleges and units.

• Responsibility for generating resources will be shared.

• Priority will be given to compensating existing faculty and staff over the hiring of highly compensated new faculty.

• Efforts must be coordinated with the broader goals of the Academic Plan and the budget restructuring initiative.

• The University must maintain flexibility to deal with the volatile financial environment while giving highest priority to academic excellence.

Larry Lewellen, associate vice president for human resources, is leading a plan to develop a uniform set of principles to evaluate the relationship of compensation in each unit to appropriate market benchmarks. The Office of Human Resources has provided colleges and support units with comparative salary data from Ohio State's institutional benchmark group -- nine public aspirational peer universities similar to OSU in mission and configuration -- and will provide benchmark data more appropriate at the college and departmental level by the end of autumn quarter.

Ray noted that though competitive markets are important benchmarks for gauging overall compensation levels for University units, excellence and performance must drive salary levels for individuals.

In setting compensation goals, Ray and Kirwan have indicated Ohio State should fall at the midpoint of compensation levels among benchmark peers after providing raises above the benchmark average for each of the next several years. Despite Ohio State's decline in compensation levels relative to Big Ten and benchmark institutions over the past several years, its salaries remain above the compensation rates of other public universities in Ohio.

Ray noted that recommendations resulting from the Universitywide examination undoubtedly will call for units to stop doing certain activities and for Ohio State to function with fewer faculty and staff overall.

"Units are also discouraged from achieving savings by simply passing on costs to other parts of the University," he added. "Fundamentally, whatever we do must be done in a way that protects and enhances academic excellence in our programs and ensures that our students continue to receive a quality education."

Learning legacies

By Jo McCulty George Kalbouss leads a class discussion.

Course explores immigration experience in America

George Kalbouss' immigration story starts in Eastern Europe. His Russian mother immigrated to the United States by way of Siberia, China and France, and his Ukrainian father came to America by way of Bulgaria. His parents met in New York, and raised and educated their son in Manhattan.

Eventually, George Kalbouss' life would lead him to Columbus, where he now teaches Ohio State students to trace their own histories.

For four years, Kalbouss has taught Slavic Studies 367: The East European Experience in America. Although taught in the Slavic Languages and Literatures Department, the course explores the immigration experiences of Americans from all ethnic backgrounds. Each student researches and shares with classmates the heritage of his or her own family.

"They all tell their stories to each other," Kalbouss said. "It's 10 times more interesting than fiction."

Kalbouss retired last spring after 28 years of teaching Slavic literature, but returned to campus this fall because he loves teaching this course. He refers with almost paternal pride to his students as "the kids," and said he can't wait each quarter to dig into the papers they turn in.

"It's a very emotional course. Kids have discovered all sorts of things they didn't know about their parents and grandparents," Kalbouss said. "I say,'This isn't going to be a course you take, this is a course where you leave something.'"

Students write three papers -- one about their own history, one about one of their heritage groups, and a third, in which they interview someone, usually from their family.

"They learn little bits and pieces of American history they didn't know existed. Had they not asked, it would have been gone forever," he said. For example, one student learned that during World War II, his grandfather had taken care of German prisoners of war. The surprise element for the student was that the POWs were housed in Cleveland.

An important ingredient for the class is guest speakers. Speakers scheduled to talk to the class this quarter included August Pust, director of multicultural and international relations for Gov. Bob Taft; Kirsten Chapman, a columnist for the Columbus Dispatch; and Leonid Polonsky, associate concert master of the Columbus Symphony Orchestra.

Yelena Kalkina, information specialist for international studies at Ohio State, shared with the class on Oct. 11 her story as an immigrant from Kazakhstan. Kalkina first visited the United States as an athlete, competing as a fencer. She related the challenges she overcame to return to the United States to live, six years ago, and the process she has followed since then to earn her green card.

"It was hard, but definitely worth it. This country has a lot of opportunity," Kalkina told the class. "Now, probably in five years, I'll get my U.S. citizenship. You guys are so lucky. You don't know how lucky."

Getting students to learn what it means to be an American is one of his primary goals, Kalbouss said. "I want them to really know how unique they are as Americans, of what a unique heritage they have," he said.

When Kalbouss was 30 years old, he took a study tour to Russia. He thought perhaps he would feel a connection with the people he met, because of their shared background, and was disappointed when he failed to feel that bond.

A faculty member on the trip gave him an insight he's never forgotten. "He said to me,'The difference between you and these people is the fact that your ancestors left and they stayed.' And that's true for every American. In this culture, there is encouraged risk-taking. We make lots of mistakes, but we just dive in and do it. In other countries, it just stays the way it is. If you are born in Germany in the middle class, you'll stay in the middle class."

The recent attacks on America have made the class lessons all the more relevant. "The terrorists have no idea what this country is about. I think they thought we'd fold," he said. "There's this optimism that Americans have that I don't think others understand."

The Slavic Experience course is a General Education Curriculum writing class, and provides the 40 enrolled students with a diversity credit. It attracts students from a wide background of majors, not to mention ethnicities.

Kalbouss wishes he could have started teaching this class years ago, although he said it's easier to teach now than it would have been 20 or 30 years ago. "We used to study cultures through books, through the literature. But now, you can get on a plane and go to France, you can explore the Internet, you can do all this other stuff that didn't used to be an option," he said.

There is also a different sensibility now as to what constitutes history.

"It changed with the Vietnam Memorial. Before that, we'd commemorate history with a giant statue or an obelisk dedicated to an individual. The Vietnam Memorial was just names. Now, it's all our history -- not just of famous people. It is a different consciousness," he said.

With that new sense of history comes a better sense of what it means to be an immigrant, he said.

"There was a time when being an immigrant was something to be relatively ashamed of. People of my generation liked to show how much they were Americans -- how they shed the ways of the old country -- but now, we can celebrate our cultures," he said. "I think that is great."

Students take class trip to New York City

Each year, students in George Kalbouss' Slavic Immigration Experience Course take a weekend trip to New York City. They visit Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty, eat Coney dogs on the boardwalk of Brighton Beach, and join the thousands of tourists navigating the sites in downtown Manhattan.

This year, in many ways, was no different. "We decided not to bow down to terrorism, and made the field trip as planned," Kalbouss said.

He gave students the option not to go, and was proud when no one backed out. "The kids have got guts," he said.

The class filled a chartered bus early on Oct. 23, took a whirlwind tour, and returned late on Oct. 25.

First on the agenda was a visit to the site of the World Trade Center. They observed the make-shift memorials of flowers and photos for those lost on Sept. 11, and walked the five-block stretch paralleling the destruction.

"Our kids were pretty somber. We saw some tears. A lot of the them were angry," Kalbouss said. "It's something you just cannot believe. You see it on TV, but TV doesn't give you a true sense of what to expect."

Kalbouss, a native New Yorker, is a former employee of the Port of New York authority, and was present at the press conference when plans for the World Trade Center were announced in 1963. Being near the site, where it is still possible to smell the smoldering buildings, was rough. "There wasn't a single soul who wasn't overwhelmed by this," he said.

After the visit to the World Trade Center, Kalbouss led the students on a walking tour to Battery Park, where they could look at the Statue of Liberty. They were unable to visit Ellis Island because it was closed to visitors.

Coney Island and Brighton Beach were still on the agenda, and students visited Chinatown and Little Italy.

"They got a pretty good sense of the ethnicity of New York City," Kalbouss said.

Although the class couldn't visit all of the sites of significance to immigrants that are usually included on the tour, Kalbouss said the weekend offered other valuable lessons. "As far as the trip is concerned, this will always be the special trip, because of the World Trade Center," he said.