It seems hard to believe that Becky and Steve Hulbert came to south central Louisiana and, more specifically, to Nicholls State University ten years ago this summer. We specifically recall the occasion because of the unique welcome Mother Nature had waiting for us; the university was preparing to close in response to the arrival of Tropical Storm Bill. I guess we should have taken that event as an omen of what was to come, at least weather wise!

Ten years later, together as members of this university family, we have faced five or more named storms, a few of which resulted in extensive interference in the life of the university. Additionally, we have faced the man made impacts of the oil spill and the cumulative financial disruption of the past six years.

However, barring these unforeseen events, the past ten years have also been a time of extraordinary growth and maturity for Nicholls State University and the Nicholls family. Together we have seen strong academic programs mature significantly, the university successfully transition to selective admissions, partnerships developed with the technical-community college sector, and major improvements undertaken and accomplished throughout campus services and facilities.

All of this has been accomplished through the collaboration of this university’s strong, competent, dedicated, and hard working faculty and staff. And, in achieving these accomplishments, we have been greatly supported by the University’s many alumni and friends from the broader community.

With all of that said, the last six years have been a time of significant turmoil and transition. Budget cuts by a government that has provided little leadership to education have left all education sectors vulnerable to the impact of the accumulated damage done. That we have persevered and even at times flourished is due simply to the hard work of faculty and staff and the support of our alumni and friends.

All of the above leads to what many of you have known was coming. And that is my decision to retire from the presidency of Nicholls, effective August 1, 2013. The timing of that transition will permit the Board of Supervisors of the University of Louisiana System to conduct a search for my successor. It will also permit me and my senior administrative colleagues to represent the university throughout the 2013 General Legislative Session and to prepare the university’s resulting 2013-14 Operating Budget.

Please know that I have been honored to serve in the Nicholls presidency. My commitment to Nicholls remains absolute now and in the future. While I will not participate in any way in the search process to select my successor, I will offer my total support for a smooth transition of leadership that is in the best interest of the university and the students it serves. And Becky and I will always value the friendships, love, and support that the Nicholls family gave us during our stay with and among the wonderful people of South Louisiana.

RE: Spending Freeze

At the beginning of the fiscal year I sent out an email describing the 2012-2013 budget situation and the effects that reduced state support was going to have on the university. In that email, one of the initiatives that I described was reduced operating budget allocations for all but mandated and absolutely critical travel, supplies, equipment and other operating expenditures. While expenditures have been monitored and all departments have done a tremendous job of curtailing expenditures during the year, some important spending has still been allowed as long as it was within budget. However, as we attempt to prepare for the uncertainty of the upcoming fiscal year, which begins July 1, 2013, we find ourselves at a point where a full or even a more intense spending freeze must be implemented.

Since almost all of our self-generated revenue for this year has been received, as expenditures increase, the amount of Academic Enhancement Funds (or reserve funds as some call it) needed to balance the budget also increases. In order to retain as high an Academic Enhancement Funds balance as possible for next fiscal year when those dollars will be needed the most, the current fund balance available must be preserved. Therefore, effective with this notification, all non-essential or non-emergency purchases for the remainder of the fiscal year are subject to a spending freeze. Only requests for essential type expenditures or emergency purchases should be submitted. All requests for non-essential or non-emergency purchases should not be sent forward as they will not be approved. This includes P-Card purchases.

This spending freeze shall be spread across the Operating budget and all Auxiliaries, including Athletics. The freeze to Auxiliaries is to allow its unallocated fund balance to increase as much as possible in the event these funds are needed to fill in any shortfalls that might occur in the future. The spending freeze does not apply to grants or restricted accounts.

All funds will be subject to the annual university spending deadline that will be announced soon by the Purchasing Department.

Happy New Year and welcome back to campus! I hope you had a wonderful and relaxing holiday break and have returned rejuvenated and ready to welcome the thousands of students that will arrive on campus for the first day of classes, Wednesday, January 23.

Last semester we once again demonstrated what a resilient, self-reliant and generous campus community we are. Faced with declining enrollment, our academic affairs team rose to the challenge by launching several new enrollment opportunities – Nicholls Online, a maritime management degree concentration and a masters of science degree in nursing.

Due to a variety of funding solutions and a successful collaboration between the facilities and institutional advancement folks, we were able to move forward with critical campus improvement projects despite a decrease in state support. The Rec Center opened its doors; Calecas Hall was refurbished; and the Soccer Complex and Guidry Stadium projects were completed.

I continue to be so very proud and humbled by the generosity of our faculty and staff. You shared your time, money and talent with such worthy causes – Nicholls CAN! Project distributed more than 12,500 items to area food banks; and the “Nicholls, We Care” United Way campaign raised money that will help surely thousands of residents in our region.

This semester promises to be equally as busy and eventful, and I know for sure that we will continue to move forward as a result of our talented team of professionals. Spring 2013 will bring with it new academic opportunities as we continue to meet the evolving needs of our students and facility upgrades as we break ground on the Chef John Folse Culinary Institute and begin renovation of the Mary M. Danos Theater.

New initiatives that started as innovative ideas just months ago will begin to take a foothold this spring, and we will see growth and progress as a result. Do you have ideas on how we can grow and evolve to help move our campus forward to meet the needs of our students? If so, I encourage you to share them with your supervisor or with me at my monthly Bend the President’s Ear gatherings. It’s true; we are a campus of People Creating Possibilities. Get involved, take a leadership role and help move Nicholls forward. Together we can!

Best wishes to all for a successful and fulfilling semester.

On Monday, January 21, Nicholls State University will be closed in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.  As each of us enjoys that day away from the routine of campus life, I encourage all members of the Nicholls family to reflect on the life, work, times, and legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr.

Born in 1929, the son of a Baptist minister, as a young man he embraced learning, culminating with an earned doctorate.  Reverend King organized the African American Civil Rights movement and, in doing so, provided extraordinary leadership to seek change through non-violent civil disobedience.

With Reverend King’s assassination on April 4, 1968, his leadership and the lessons he taught us through his good works became part of American history.  However, it is incumbent upon each of us to remember those lessons and to carry his work forward. That responsibility rests on us, not simply on the occasion of Reverend King’s official day of remembrance, but at all times throughout the year.

“The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. Intelligence plus character – that is the goal of true education.” – Martin Luther King, Jr.

FR: Stephen T. Hulbert, President

Yesterday, as my senior administrative colleagues and I greeted members of the university community attending the Holiday Gumbo luncheon, a number of individuals asked whether we had heard about any mid-year budget cut. At the time, our answer was “thankfully no!” Sadly, less than twenty-four hours later, the picture has changed.

This morning, we were greeted with newspaper and television coverage speaking of a shortfall and anticipated cuts. While we finally learned of our share of the twenty-two million dollar reduction to higher education just before noon, the state administration had already notified the media with the specifics. As such, while we had barely learned of the $455,349 cut figure, the local media already had that information and was asking for specifics regarding the impact campus-wide.

While we haven’t been given specific instruction from the state as to just how soon we have to turn in data regarding the implications of this latest budget reduction, obviously, it will be in the very near future. Because we have had a mid-year budget cut almost every year over the last six years, we anticipated such an occurrence. That being said, we will work to develop various scenarios for the next fiscal year.

Last year, despite these difficult economic times, Nicholls faculty and staff generously contributed over $7,000 to United Way. Because of that support, Nicholls continues to be recognized as a United Way Pacesetter Institution—a designation that demonstrates once again how essential the Nicholls community is to the vitality of this area.

This year’s Nicholls United Way campaign will run through December, at which time we hope to meet our goal of $10,000. Every dollar collected not only represents a direct investment in the people of this area but is also the most effective way of supporting a network of services that no one organization could provide alone. I would ask each of us to consider supporting United Way of South Louisiana. The easiest way to give is through the convenience of payroll deduction. Just a few dollars a paycheck can make all the difference.

As the Nicholls family has shown through Nicholls Can and our past support of the United Way of South Louisiana, we do have a very real and caring impact right at home.

Stephen T. Hulbert
President

FR: Stephen T. Hulbert, President

Over the past four years, as the state has dramatically reduced its support for public higher education, Nicholls State University has been forced to make one series of operating and budget changes after another.

The University could have chosen to “hunker down” and “ride out” this difficult period. Instead, the University has revisited its planning process and revised its statements of mission, vision and values. The resulting Strategic Plan 2011-2016 was approved by the Board of Supervisors for the University of Louisiana System in February 2012.

The publication that accompanies this correspondence has been produced to communicate the plan outside the University to our friends and constituents. Nicholls is also launching a new marketing campaign, “People Creating Possibilities” that is featured in this publication. Throughout the strategic planning process, and in developing the new marketing campaign, a common thread always appeared. Nicholls State’s great asset is its people. The faculty and staff make Nicholls a unique place with a supportive environment for student success.

I believe that the strategic plan publication highlights the uniqueness of Nicholls. Clearly, the University and its faculty, staff and students have been facing considerable hardship with little leadership or support evidenced from the state level. The plan also seeks to make it clear that together the Nicholls family of faculty, staff, students and friends alike is working to keep the University vital and growing in support of the region we serve.

I am pleased to share this strategic plan for your review. Thank you for all that you do to keep Nicholls strong during this challenging time.

http://issuu.com/nichollsstateuniversity/docs/strategic_plan?mode=window&backgroundColor=%23222222

FR: Stephen T. Hulbert, President

We, at Nicholls continue to make a difference in the lives of those around us,in the communities that we help to shape, and in the region that we serve. One important way that the Nicholls community has directly improved the quality of the lives of thousands of residents in our region has been through its continued support of the United Way of South Louisiana effort.

This year’s “Nicholls, We Care” campaign officially kicked off this week at the President’s Executive Council. Al Davis and Rob Bremer have agreed to serve as Campaign Co-Chairs and they along with United Way representatives will be scheduling a series of meetings in conjunction with departmental quarterly safety meetings or staff meetings for faculty and staff to learn more about United Way.

Our campaign will run through December, at which time we hope to meet our goal of $16,000. Every dollar collected not only represents a direct investment in the people of this area but is also the most effective way of supporting a network of services that no one organization could provide alone. Please consider supporting United Way of South Louisiana. The easiest way to give is through the convenience of payroll deduction. Just a few dollars a paycheck can make all the difference.

Over the years, faculty and staff, despite these difficult economic times, have generously contributed to United Way. Because of the history of this support, Nicholls continues to be recognized as a United Way Pacesetter Institution—a designation that demonstrates once again how essential the Nicholls community is to the vitality of this area.

Remember that when we work together through United Way of South Louisiana, we can have an impact right at home.

It is always risky to single out individuals for special recognition as someone is inevitably missed. So, avoiding that approach, there is one group, the staff of the facilities area, the grounds, custodial and maintenance trades personnel, that is deserving of particular recognition.

Before attending to their own homes, these staff members closed the campus in preparation for Isaac’s arrival. After the storm last Thursday, ten members of the grounds staff supported by colleagues from the maintenance and custodial areas began cleaning the campus. These individuals worked all afternoon often in heavy rain and then returned all day Friday and through noon on Saturday.

Together, they accomplished a major amount of clean-up work, damage assessment and even initial repairs. On behalf of the entire campus community, and the students in particular, I want to express my sincere appreciation for the selfless efforts of these staff colleagues.

As I express appreciation to the facilities personnel, I know that staff from maintenance trades, information technology, residence life, safety and other areas of the campus was hard at work assessing and repairing storm damage.

To everyone involved goes my appreciation for the hard work and commitment to Nicholls State University and the students we all serve. Thank you!

Simply stated, all of Louisiana’s 14 four-year universities and 22 two-year colleges have found reaching a balanced budget a solitary effort.  To date, we have only heard from LSU and the University of Southeastern Louisiana regarding the dollar and programmatic impact of the 2012-2013 appropriation from the State.

As community members have seen, local media coverage of planned personnel layoffs and budget cuts have been quite limited in nature.  The reason for the delayed release of information from this administration is directly attributable to the timing of decisions at the State level to approve aspects of the university’s plan.

Monday afternoon of last week the Louisiana Civil Service Commission approved the university’s plan to lay off specific classified positions.  While some initial notice had been given to affected personnel, without the State’s formal approval we could not initiate the actual notification process and, in some cases, the bumping that would ensue based on employee seniority.  That notification process began last Tuesday morning and was completed by week’s end.

For obvious reasons, the university wanted to ensure that affected employees heard first from supervisors and Human Resources personnel before steps were taken to release information on areas of the university affected by the budget cuts to the broader public.

Below is the primary information being released to the press this afternoon.

The university’s total operating budget – $52 million – reflects a $5.3 million reduction in state funding and self-generated revenue since July 2011.

More than $4.6 million of the cut has resulted from a decrease in state funding combined with an increase in state-mandated expenses, including retirement costs and insurance premiums. The remaining $737,000 decrease is attributed to a loss in tuition and other self-generated revenue due to an anticipated decline in enrollment – a direct result of higher tuition rates and increased admission standards.

It is difficult to overstate the seriousness of these cuts, specifically the cumulative effect of 10 reductions over the past four years.  The decimation of higher education in this state is unlike anything I have seen in my 40-plus years of professional experience.

The university’s budget reduction plan includes the layoff of 28 employees (two faculty and 26 staff).  Also included is the elimination of 65 currently vacant positions (20 faculty and 45 staff), many of which were only recently vacated, bringing the total faculty and staff reductions to 122 (33 faculty and 89 staff) since 2008-09.  In all, this totals a 16 percent reduction in employees (12 percent for faculty and 18 percent for staff) while enrollment has only decreased 5 percent since the move to selective admissions.

I deeply regret being forced to lay off valuable employees who provide needed services for our students.  There are no easy answers. Nicholls has not published the effect of the budget cuts until now because we needed to go through the appropriate process of notifying those being laid off.  This was an agonizing process, leaving good people jobless and introducing increased burdens to those left behind – the people who haven’t received a pay raise, unless they were promoted, since 2007.

Additional cuts were made in the following areas: operating and professional services, travel, supplies and library reference materials.

It is important to note that our students, as well as all students in the state, are now paying more and getting less because of the series of state budget cuts and the 10 percent per-year tuition increases.

The ratio of state support to tuition/fees has gone from 61 to 39 percent to the other way around, 40 to 60 percent.  State funding has shrunk from almost $36 million in 2008-09 to less than $19 million – a decrease of more than $17 million, or 48 percent.

Make no mistake, we’re talking about the future of higher education in the Bayou Region.  It is important to remember that around 60 percent of our incoming freshmen are still first-generation college students, many of whom have Nicholls as their only choice for a four-year degree because they are unable to travel two to three hours to a regional university and are unable to afford the cost of room and board on another campus.  Put simply, the lack of state support for higher education in Louisiana is a tragedy – and an incredible mistake by Louisiana state government.

Despite budget challenges, we remain committed to protecting, as much as possible, the academic core of the university and fulfilling our mission to provide higher education opportunities to the people of our service region.

Even with our budget greatly reduced, we must be very cautious in our expenditures because the budget is on a very thin line.  I am asking that departments, both academic and support, only purchase what is absolutely necessary to meet our mission.  As vacancies occur, we will need to evaluate the necessity of filling them prior to the next fiscal year.

I truly appreciate all everyone has done to meet the needs of our students and this region.  I know it is getting more and more difficult, but I ask each of you to pull together to continue to make this a great university.  I am proud to be a part of what we have put together – even in these most trying of times.

We must remain the people we are as we relate to our students, our region, and each other.

President’s Message Attachment 2 (docx)

President’s Message Attachment 1 (docx)