Spring Break
CSU admin sees hefty budget, salary increases
As Penley pads admin, tuition and fees spike, colleges see slow increase
Aaron Hedge and J. David McSwane
Issue date: 9/29/08 Section: News
"We've tried very hard to maintain competitive salaries. I think it's a legitimate concern to have," Frank said. "There's no doubt that VP's salaries have gone up at CSU."
The budget line for the president's office has more than tripled -- spiking about $1.7 million -- but the figure reflects a movement of the offices of Equal Opportunity and Diversity and Alumni Relations under the president, officials said, which accounts for about $1.3 million of Penley's roughly $2.6 million budget.
"There are a few things funded out of the president's office that aren't new to the university," Frank said.
And amid a bevy of firings, hirings and expensive buyouts of athletic coaches, funding for the struggling Athletics Department has more than doubled, up 135 percent -- from about $2.1 million to $4.8 million ---- since Penley's arrival.
Responding to the drastic increase in administrative budgets and athletics funding while tuition and fees skyrocket, CSU's chief spokesperson, Brad Bohlander, said:
"I think a realistic view of that is most of the money that goes to the VPs goes down to the students one way or another."
"In reality, everybody's budget has grown," he added. "Yes. We have invested more in athletics and administration -- two areas that have been under-funded for years, but it's not like we're going over to engineering and taking their money."
But funding for administration comes from the same pot that feeds the academic colleges -- commonly referred to as the "general fund," an aggregate account of primarily tuition and state dollars.
Since 2003, resident undergraduate tuition has risen 52 percent, and fees have climbed at 73 percent -- a trend that has drawn harsh criticism from student government, some faculty and state legislators.
Scott Moore, an associate political science professor who specializes in state and local governments, called the increased spending in administration while tuition and fees increase "a bit of a mystery."
The budget line for the president's office has more than tripled -- spiking about $1.7 million -- but the figure reflects a movement of the offices of Equal Opportunity and Diversity and Alumni Relations under the president, officials said, which accounts for about $1.3 million of Penley's roughly $2.6 million budget.
"There are a few things funded out of the president's office that aren't new to the university," Frank said.
And amid a bevy of firings, hirings and expensive buyouts of athletic coaches, funding for the struggling Athletics Department has more than doubled, up 135 percent -- from about $2.1 million to $4.8 million ---- since Penley's arrival.
Responding to the drastic increase in administrative budgets and athletics funding while tuition and fees skyrocket, CSU's chief spokesperson, Brad Bohlander, said:
"I think a realistic view of that is most of the money that goes to the VPs goes down to the students one way or another."
"In reality, everybody's budget has grown," he added. "Yes. We have invested more in athletics and administration -- two areas that have been under-funded for years, but it's not like we're going over to engineering and taking their money."
But funding for administration comes from the same pot that feeds the academic colleges -- commonly referred to as the "general fund," an aggregate account of primarily tuition and state dollars.
Since 2003, resident undergraduate tuition has risen 52 percent, and fees have climbed at 73 percent -- a trend that has drawn harsh criticism from student government, some faculty and state legislators.
Scott Moore, an associate political science professor who specializes in state and local governments, called the increased spending in administration while tuition and fees increase "a bit of a mystery."
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biff terkel
posted 9/29/08 @ 7:07 PM MST
a couple of observations: poudre school district, also top-heavy with administraton, eliminated several of those positions several yrs ago to put more emphasis on what was actually happening in the classroom; second, the university spokesman's defense of penley's actions is embarrassingly unconvincing; aren't we going through some national agonies over huge management salaries? as a taxpayer and citizen of ft collins for over thirty yrs, this looks really bad; schools should exist for students; i don't know if that's really happening at csu
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