Budget cuts mean enrollment caps for CSU

Under the 2003-2004 budget, the CSU system is expected to take an additional $15 million in cuts for a grand total of $345.2 million or approximately 13 percent of its $2.6 billion budget.

According to a CSU press release, the cuts mean that the CSU must limit enrollment growth to 4.3 percent instead of the 7 percent that had been anticipated for 2003-2004.

Chico State was prepared for the possible enrollment cap and managed its fall numbers, leaving the university a bit of leeway for the spring.

“For spring, we will initially be open for new applications,” said Vice Provost for Enrollment Bob Hannigan. “But whether we’re going to be able to admit many new students is going to be a final call that we’ll make after we get a week or two closer to fall. There’ll be a few campuses that do not even plan to open [admissions] for spring.”

Such campuses that didn’t plan ahead are going to be out of luck. Clara Potes-Fellow, a spokesperson for the CSU, said “they are not going to receive any additional funding if they are over-enrolled.”

Potes-Fellow thinks the severity of the budget cuts the CSU is facing will have a long-lasting impact on the system.