Planning and Budget discusses action plans, budget status

Members of the planning and budget committee discussed the prioritized list of action plans for 2008-09 during the Thursday, April 17, meeting. Provost James Mackin said the list will be forwarded to the vice presidents who will prioritize the action plans based on input from departments, colleges and the Planning and Budget Committee. Mackin said the amount available to fund action plans hasn't been determined.

Also during the meeting, Barb Stiner, budget office director, presented the spring budget status report. The report, a snapshot of BU's financial picture on Feb. 16, shows actual expenses expected to come in at 96 percent of the budgeted amount, with 4 percent to carry forward for 2008-09. Stiner said tuition revenue decreased by 1.2 percent because the number of FTEs (full-time equivalents) was 93 FTEs below the goal of 8,576. Consequently, technology and academic enhancement fees, both based on FTEs, also fell, she said.

In other matters:

• The committee approved changing the use of McCormick 1106 from a faculty office to an administrative office for the secondary education department's secretary.
• Reviewed a report that showed second-year persistence rates are relatively constant regardless of the number of large sections in which a student is enrolled.