Western Washington University’s annual presidential address Thursday took a somber tone, with President Sabah Randhawa emphasizing the dire nature of the university’s financial position and layoffs likely to come.
In his speech to faculty and staff on Sept. 19, Randhawa said his goal this year is to put Western back on “more stable, long-term financial footing.” His address was punctuated by a group of 40-50 students protesting for Palestine walking out halfway through.
The university is expecting recurring revenues to fall $20.5 million below recurring expenditures this year and is asking the Legislature next year for $21.4 million to increase per-student funding.
Randhawa said the university’s financial challenges are due to low enrollment from the COVID-19 pandemic, and a structural deficit that began even before the pandemic due to “insufficient state funding.”
“The bottom line is that the university’s current scope of operations is not sustainable,” he said.
Part of the strategy this upcoming year will include “a reduction in positions”: So far, the university has laid off two people in University Relations and Marketing when the unit was eliminated and consolidated into other units. Director of Communications Jonathan Higgins said there are no layoff numbers to share now but “as internal conversations and strategic assessments are completed, we should have more this October and into the fall.”
Randhawa said the university will evaluate all administrative divisions, “minimizing redundancies, reducing overhead, and streamlining across divisions and units.”
While layoffs are inevitable, Randhawa said the university continues to focus on eliminating and consolidating vacant positions whenever possible.
The university will also look at reducing non-personnel costs, as well as evaluating the academic programs the university offers: Randhawa said the Provost will lead a process to “minimize parallel structures, referring to degree concentration and program pathways, typically accompanied with low enrollment courses in academic colleges and departments.”
In October 2023, Randhawa also mentioned Western’s budgetary and enrollment challenges: Enrollment was short of pre-pandemic numbers and retention was still a major issue — although this year, Randhawa said first-year enrollment is “strong” and retention has likely improved. The university implemented a 3% cut to its base operating budget in the 2023-24 school year.
Western currently has the lowest per-student funding of all public four-year institutions in the state: Data from Fiscal Year 2023 show Western’s was $8,949, while Central’s was $9,847, according to a Board of Trustees presentation.
Western is asking for $898 more per student per year — about $10.72 million a year for the next two years. However, the state is having its own budgetary challenges, with state revenues likely falling nearly $500 million short of projections.
Randhawa also acknowledged the “difficult and complex” previous academic year regarding the Palestine encampment and related protests.
He said the university “navigated these challenging times in a way that ensured the safety of our community while also upholding freedom of speech.”
This year, Randhawa said the university will continue to refrain from taking positions on political or social issues that do not “play a central role in our core operations or education mission.” He said the university would continue working with the WWU Divest Apartheid coalition on their agreement and announced a series of panel discussions in October on “key political and societal issues.”
Members of the newly formed Students for Justice in Palestine WWU chapter gathered outside the Performing Arts Center Concert Hall after the speech, chanting “Sabah, Sabah, you can’t hide, we charge you with genocide” as attendees left the event.
Student protester Mosley Jackson Lerner said Randhawa’s speech showed that it’s not a priority for the university to address its “complacency in Gaza.” Since reaching an agreement with the university in May, students are turning their focus toward disclosure and divestment this year: They want the university to fully disclose all of its endowment investments in companies connected to Israel.
“Essentially, they have not met any of our demands,” Lerner said. “They’re trying to bury our voices in bureaucracy.”
Student protester Beth Girma said she felt Randhawa mentioning the WWU Divest Apartheid coalition wasn’t done in “good faith” as the university has not yet committed to full disclosure.
“We know full disclosure and full divestment is possible,” Girma said.
A previous version of this story incorrectly stated that Sabah Randhawa exited the Performing Arts Center out the side door. The story was updated to reflect the changed at 4:50 p.m. on Sept. 19, 2024. Cascadia Daily News regrets the error.
Charlotte Alden is CDN’s general assignment/enterprise reporter; reach her at charlottealden@cascadiadaily.com; 360-922-3090 ext. 123.
