President Andrew K. Benton fielded questions about Pepperdine’s budget situation and its effects on the university at a series of town hall meetings Thursday Jan. 22.
At the first question-and-answer session which nearly filled Smothers Theater with faculty staff and other members of the Pepperdine community Benton began with a 20-minute overview of the financial problems facing the university and how he plans to respond. The remainder of the hour-long gathering was designed to be an open forum for faculty staff and other members of the Pepperdine community to ask questions or offer commentary according to Benton.
The meeting which lasted from 8:45 to 9:45 a.m. was open to students but not advertised to them because the issues are complex and their direct effect on students is minimal according to Benton.
The other town hall meeting took place from 1 to 2 p.m. at the West Los Angeles Graduate campus and followed the same format.
The majority of the questions focused on plans to reduce the amount Pepperdine spends on wages which account for 56 percent of the university’s total expenses but Mairie Mullens chair of the Humanities and Teacher Education Division turned attention more directly to students.
“We’re all here because of the students she said. What effect will students see?”The goal is to avoid disrupting students’ lives Benton answered.
“[They should know] that we’re serious about it we’re paying attention to it but at the end of the day I do not expect them to see much impact he said.
In the fall, Benton hosted a variety of focus groups with students to gather their input on the budget.
Specifically, he said he asked which services students use most often.
How late should the library be open? How late should the shuttle run?” he asked. Reducing waste and redundancy could go a long way toward lowering operating costs Benton said.
“[It is] not matter of just cutting but of reorganizing to be more efficient he said. I hope that we’ll find that we can do as well or better with less and different.”
He also advised everyone to give more thought to energy costs.
“One thing I do very often is turn out lights he said. I’m amazed at the financial contribution we make to [energy supplier] Southern California Edison.”Nonetheless he said some reduction in wages and salaries would likely be inevitable.
Wages have already been frozen at their present level which because of inflation amounts to a small decrease in real wages. Hiring is also severely limited although some positions will still be filled.Despite these measures some layoffs will likely be announced soon after March 1 when administrators said they will have enough information to make those decisions.
“We intend to do [layoffs] all at one time. I don’t want any more than necessary … to prolong a sense of unknowing Benton said. We’ll do very hard things in the best way we know how.”He read one letter which he received Jan. 12 in which the writer criticized the university for sending four holiday cards and hosting multiple holiday receptions.
“I speak only for myself Benton said. But we can cut them out.”
He also said he would not have held this year’s holiday reception except that everything had already been booked and he does not plan to have one next year.Benton who has volunteered for a 10 percent salary reduction said he was disappointed by several anonymous questions that he said contained false allegations such as concentrating firings at the lowest economic level.He asked the audience to remember why they came to Pepperdine.
“[You chose it because] it’s a good place populated by good people maybe even Christian people. Assume that we maintain that please he said.
Nearly 100 people watched the podcast of the budget meeting online, and several submitted questions via instant messenger, according to Chief of Staff Marnie Mitze.No other town hall meetings have been planned.