Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, College of (CASNR)
Date of this Version
July 2003
Abstract
It is our pleasure to provide the Tenth Annual Report for the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources (CASNR). We believe in the importance of reflecting on the accomplishments of our faculty, staff and students. The annual report offers the opportunity to review the year, and serves as an archive of accomplishments for our College. This report covers the period August 1, 2002 to July 31, 2003.
This was a year of significant challenge and change for the State, the University, the Institute and the College. The State suffered through a significant budget shortfall and through four rounds of budget reductions, the state appropriated funds for the Institute were reduced 11.70% ($6,794,943). The College was reduced $255,512. This reduction, while significant, was much less than the College’s proportionate share of the IANR reduction. Undergraduate education was a priority at the University and Institute level and this was apparent in the program reductions. Vertical reductions were made, rather than ‘across the board’. University-wide programs were eliminated and tenured faculty were terminated. The South Central Research and Extension Center was closed; the IANR International Programs Office was closed; the Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratories at Scottsbluff and North Platte were closed; the Nebraska Forest Service was reduced in size; Museum Studies was terminated; the Division of Continuing Studies was dissolved and support to Education Centers reduced; and the veterinary student contract with Kansas State University was terminated. These are only a few examples of the impact of the budget reductions. Each of these had a human impact on the respective faculty and staff which affected careers and families. While the College did not have to terminate a program, faculty or staff, the loss of university and IANR colleagues and programs was felt by all. This was also the year that the faculty participated in an unprecedented survey on their confidence in the Chancellor’s leadership. This was a year unlike no other in the history of the institution.
In a year when simple survival would be deemed a success by most, this College flourished. The students excelled and the faculty enthusiasm for the academic mission thrived. The significant accomplishments of this year assume almost unimaginable stature when they are set in the context of the budgetary and campus environment.