Budget to grow by 7.4% in '08

May 7, 2007
Budget to grow by 7.4% in '08

by kim urquhart

At its April meeting, the Board of Trustees approved the University’s Unrestricted Operating Budget (UOB) that — when combined with other University resources and with Emory Healthcare’s budget — will total an estimated $2.8 billion in fiscal year 2008.

The UOB will grow 7.4 percent in FY08 to a total of more than $660 million, offering the University an opportunity to make increased investments in faculty retention and recruitment, staff incentives and student financial support.

“Through the deliberate alignment of UOB resources and the leveraging of strategic plan funds we have effectively begun implementation of the University’s strategic plan, which builds on the goals of the schools,” said Provost Earl Lewis, who chairs the Ways and Means Committee that develops the annual UOB.

For the first time in recent years, Emory has experienced growth in endowment payouts, resulting in an additional $3.6 million available to support the 2008 UOB. “We are now benefiting from the market’s upward trend,” said Mike Mandl, executive vice president for finance and administration.

The implementation of the University’s strategic plan draws from three sources: the UOB, the Strategic Plan Fund and capital investments. The comprehensive fundraising campaign, currently in the prelude phase with the public phase projected to launch this winter, is critical to the continuing success of many strategic initiatives. The Strategic Plan Fund, Lewis emphasized, is not an ongoing source of revenue but rather is designed to “provide seed funding to key initiatives in advance of other revenue streams.”

The FY08 budget year, which begins Sept. 1, will reflect continued, significant investments in people: To develop and sustain a faculty of excellence; to recruit the brightest and most committed students; and to retain and attract the best staff. The FY08 budget also provides funding to enhance the physical environment as Emory strengthens its on-campus living/learning communities.

The University is in the midst of a four-year plan to build its research infrastructure, with the goal of improving service, staffing and compliance. “Over the past decade Emory University has enjoyed tremendous growth in its research program, more than doubling sponsored research funding to $354 million, while recruiting new world-class faculty and adding outstanding new research space in math and science, biomedicine, cancer and vaccines,” said Michael M.E. Johns, executive vice president, health affairs and CEO, Woodruff Health Sciences Center.

“As we continue our momentum in becoming one of the nation’s leading research universities, we have taken several important steps aimed at building and improving our research infrastructure. These include naming a new vice president and associate vice president for research administration, David Wynes and Kerry Peluso, and a new executive director and associate executive director of our Clinical Trials Office, Robin Ginn and David McLean. As we continue to build our research programs, these exceptional new leaders will play critical roles in helping us pay vigilant attention to service, research compliance, ethics and the health and safety of investigators and study subjects, both animal and human,” Johns said.

Challenges facing the University in the coming year include higher than inflationary costs for providing the medical plan fringe benefit as well as those for library materials. In addition, utility costs for some commodities continue to escalate. For example, Emory will invest $2.6 million to support rising overall utility expense driven by rate increases in electricity, chilled water and the addition of new space. “As part of our broader commitment to sustainability, we are implementing a comprehensive energy-efficient plan to reduce consumption and to help us conserve resources that can be redirected to other initiatives,” said Mandl.

Through strategic alignment of the University’s resources, Lewis said that “Emory is well positioned to advance key initiatives that cultivate excellence in all aspects of our mission. We look forward to the public phase of the comprehensive campaign, which is critical to the continuing success of many of these initiatives.”

What the new fiscal year brings to the Emory community

FACULTY AND STAFF
• Addition of new faculty lines in Emory College, Oxford College and the schools of business, law, nursing and public health

• Allocating resources beyond the merit salary program to keep faculty salaries competitive in Emory College, Oxford College and the schools of law and business

• Investment in a series of work-life initiatives, including a dependent care program and a flexible work options program for staff

• Funding of a 3.75 percent merit pool as part of a rigorous pay-for-performance program

• Ongoing funding for Excellence Through Leadership program to strengthen management performance throughout the University and to create a pipeline for succession planning

• Groundbreaking for a new building to house Candler School of Theology and the Center for Ethics to unite research, teaching and community outreach programs under one roof

• Commitment to creating vibrant community at Emory strengthened with key hire of Ozzie Harris as first senior vice provost for community and diversity

• Groundbreaking of mixed-use development to bring retail, residential and service offerings to Clifton Road

STUDENTS
• Launching of new financial aid program, Emory Advantage, to help lower- and middle-income students and families reduce debt incurred during undergraduate years

• Fall 2007 opening of Turman Residence Hall marking first phase of new Freshman Village with a focus on community and sustainability

• Constructing new residence hall at Oxford College

• Groundbreaking of new facility for the main campus bookstore, career center and enhanced recruiting space for undergraduate admissions

• Enhancing investment in intercollegiate and intramural sports programs, and the Barkley Forum intercollegiate debate program

SCHOLARSHIP
• Investing in digital initiatives to establish Emory as a leader among top-tier digital libraries

• $700,000 in additional library resources to maintain collections in order to keep pace with inflation

• Meeting growing demand for international visitor services and related compliance through addition of staff positions and pairing the International Students and Scholars Program with the Office of International Affairs

RESEARCH
• Continuing four-year plan to build and improve research infrastructure

• Increasing investment in matching support for research grants

• Enhancing research administration through key leadership hires with goal of growing research base

• Expanding space for chemistry research through Atwood addition; creating academic and research space through construction of new psychology building

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