Town Hall Outlines UNO’s Approach to Budget Challenges

Nearly 300 attendees joined a town hall discussion virtually and in-person at the Thompson Alumni Center on Friday to learn more about how the University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO) is strategically approaching the budget challenges facing the institution and the entire University of Nebraska System.

UNO Chancellor Joanne Li, Ph.D., CFA was joined by Senior Vice Chancellor Phil He, Ph.D., and Vice Chancellor of Business and Finance Carol Kirchner, MBA, to provide an overview of the situation and to field questions from the audience.

While no specific budget reduction number has been assigned to UNO, the $58 million deficit faced by the entire NU System requires a prompt, yet strategic response to address short-term issues while also positioning the university for long-term success.

“The situation is urgent, and my hope is that we will hold ourselves accountable so we can quickly convert this challenge into a growth mindset,” Chancellor Li said. “I remain optimistic about our future because of the commitment of our community, including you, our university community, and our community at large, including the philanthropic community and our industry and employer partners. I am hopeful that history will be on our side, and I am grateful that I got to travel this journey with you because I know we will prevail.”

Chancellor Li presented an overarching timeline of NU President Ted Carter’s Five-Point Plan to address the System's deficit. Originally shared in June 2023, the plan details five areas to reinvent the university system: Reinvigorating student recruitment, raising the system’s academic profile and national presence, measuring the vitality of academic programs, transparent communication around budget and vision, and a focus on operational excellence and efficiency.

In response to this plan and the university’s budget challenges, the campus has developed a UNO Strategic Response Framework. The Framework brings together 23 tasks organized within two overarching themes: Academic Program Vitality Initiative led by Dr. He and Campus Budget, Revenue, and Financial Planning led by Vice Chancellor Kirchner. These initiatives are complemented by an overarching strategy of intentional, proactive, and transparent communication. The Framework is to provide both short-term tactics to manage the budget and long-term strategy to reimagine our academic programs.

Dr. He provided a brief overview of the Academic Program Vitality Initiative announced by Chancellor Li in her State of the University address in early October. The data-driven initiative will include broad-based representation and engagement of faculty, staff and administrators. While UNO’s specific share of the budget deficit is unknown, Vice Chancellor Kirchner followed to provide an overview of the current budget challenges, actions already taken, and how the zero-based budget review process will work. UNO has already experienced $15 million in reductions since 2017 including $2.7 million since Fall 2022.

At the direction of the University of Nebraska Office of the President, all non-academic programs at UNO, including 175 areas falling under 16 major units, are undergoing a modified zero-based budgeting process. All of these areas are required to complete Pathway 1, which asks units to explain base, current, and enhanced funding of the programs. All units with personnel classified in five specific areas are also completing Pathway 2, which seeks to understand the pros and cons of certain services being decentralized or distributed either at the systemwide or campuswide level. The areas under review in Pathway 2 include IT, Administrative/Business, Advising/Career/Student Services, Facilities, and PR/Communications. All reports will be reviewed by UNO Business and Finance and then Chancellor Li before they are shared with the Office of the President on Dec. 1.

Questions were submitted for the town hall in advance via email and during the event via Zoom or in-person. Chancellor Li, Dr. He, and Kirchner answered as many questions as possible as time allowed. Answers to some of the most frequently asked questions can be found on the Office of the Chancellor’s website. The FAQs page will continue to be updated as more information becomes available. Additional questions can be sent to budget-challenges@unomaha.edu.

Additional updates and the latest information will next be shared with campus at a Campus Strategic Forum to be held on Nov. 17 at 10 A.M. to Noon in the Thompson Alumni Center. Mark your calendar and keep an eye out for more information on this forum.