Interim President Lou Hencken assessed Eastern’s budget situation as “OK, barely adequate, but OK” at the EIU Annuitant’s Association meeting Thursday.

Hencken said the state has slashed Eastern’s budget by more than $7 million in the last two years. Frequent visits to Springfield and a 9.5 percent tuition hike slowed the losses.

“I’ll tell you, it could have been worse,” Hencken said. “In the spring, it was like we would all get into the ‘President mobile’ and press a button and it would go to Springfield.”

Eastern received $47.61 million in state appropriation for Fiscal Year 2004, which was a $4.27 decrease from the $51.88 million allocated Fiscal Year 2003. The university also generates funds locally from tuition and fees.

State Sen. Dale Righter, R-Mattoon and Vice President for External Relations Jill Nilsen also spoke to the Annuitant’s Association.

Righter spoke of the state’s budget situation and how it was handled last year. Nilsen updated the university on a few of the campus’ projects.

The Annuitant’s Association is a group consisted primarily of former Eastern employees whose fundamental concern is in the state pension program, said Annuitant’s President Terry Wiedner. The group meets occasionally throughout the year.

Hencken: school year has started fantastically

Hencken said enrollment has increased by 359 students from last year.

He said “a few extra” faculty have been hired to accommodate the growth; nevertheless, Hencken had to pitch in and teach an Administrative Management class. It marks his first stint as a teacher.

“You figure after 38 years I would know something,” Hencken said of his professional experience, all at Eastern.

Blair Lord, vice president for academic affairs, announced the university will look to add “30 plus” tenure-track faculty, Hencken said.

Hencken began his speech with the “bad news” when he addressed Eastern’s budget situation. He said the number of administrators – the area Gov. Rod Blagojevich targeted for downsizing ahead of faculty – are down 23, from 71 to 48. That number may be deceiving, Hencken attests, because included in those numbers are painters, police officers and Building Service Workers.

“I consider administrators to be the president, vice presidents and deans,” Hencken said.

Hencken also updated the annuitants on a number of Eastern’s ongoing and finished capital projects:

Doudna Fine Arts Center

Hencken admitted the university thought the $400,000 in appropriated money had been cut from Doudna’s allocation, but he clarified the state only subtracted what Eastern previously spent.

More than $41 million still needs to be released by the state to Eastern, but a Blagojevich spokesperson told Hencken to expect it “sooner rather than later.”

The four new intramural fields south of Coaches’ Stadium

The Board of Trustees allocated more than $400,000 at an August special meeting. Hencken said the construction lagged because the university was not aware of a state law that requires new grounds to be searched for bones.

“We had to look to make sure the fields weren’t on top of a Native American burial ground,” he said.

Two of the four new fields, which will host soccer and football intramurals, will have lighting for night games.

Tarble Arts Center

Hencken said that although the target completion date is late spring of 2004, the university believes the ribbon cutting ceremony could be bumped up to early spring. Hencken said delays are usually had with the arrival of steel, which has already been received.

Jill Nilsen, vice president for external relations, said university donation was up $500,000 from last year. Comparatively, Nilsen said donations to higher education were down 7 percent from last year nationwide.

“We ate a lot of fried chicken dinners,” Nilsen said about the experience.

The budget could be worse this year

“It’s going to be a dangerous year for funding for everyone,” Righter said about the Fiscal Year 2003 budget, which the state predicted would be in a $3.5 billion deficit.

Righter said Eastern is an “easy sell” when funding requests for higher education arise at the Capital Building because of its university representation.

“We’re in a political culture where money doesn’t fall into your lap,” Righter said. “You have to go out and get it.

” … They didn’t spend their time whining,” Righter said of Eastern. “They dug their way out. I learned more about (the administrators at Eastern) in this last year than I ever have.”