Financial stability plan announcement

SUNY Potsdam President Dr. Suzanne Smith

September 19, 2023

Good morning and thank you for coming.

As most of you know, I’m Suzanne Smith, and I am proud to serve as SUNY Potsdam’s 18th
president. Six months in, my admiraEon for this campus and community has only grown. My
decision to join this college grew out of the deep and immediate connecEon my husband, BreK,
and I felt when we visited Potsdam, and that bond has only grown stronger since we joined the
Potsdam family. My love for the college and the region has only deepened, and I’m privileged
to work alongside such extraordinary faculty, staff, and administrators, and to serve such
amazing students.

Since its establishment in 1816, SUNY Potsdam has proudly stood as one of the naEon’s
pioneering insEtuEons. In 1948 we took another historic step, becoming the founding,
cornerstone member of the newly developed public system known as SUNY. We are known as
the naEon’s birthplace of public music educaEon, thanks to The Crane School of Music. And as
one of St. Lawrence County's principal employers, our impact isn't limited to educaEon. We
inject an esEmated $350 million annually into the regional economy.

Thousands of Potsdam alumni across the country in a wide variety of disciplines are leaving
their mark in our world, and are making this insEtuEon proud. We have at least four alumni
currently working for NASA, and our graduates have collecEvely been nominated for 35
Grammy Awards—that we know about! Our alumni are award-winning educators. They are
CEOs in fields from music business to hospitality to cybersecurity. They lead non-profits,
pracEce medicine and write bestselling novels. And that’s just the Ep of the iceberg. I could
spend hours telling you about the amazing things our alumni are doing, as well as the
accomplishments of our incredible faculty and staff.
Our alumni’s diverse talents and unparalleled achievements testify to the quality and richness
of the SUNY Potsdam experience. Through their stories and journeys, we see the legacy of our
institution brought to life. When I participated in Reunion this summer, one sentiment was
echoed time and time again: SUNY Potsdam is a special place.

It is a place where creativity flourishes and inclusivity isn’t just a buzzword – it’s woven into our
very fabric. A place with long standing traditions, and that establishes new ones every year. A
campus that is not frozen in time. A college that respects and honors our history, but is
unwavering in its commitment to ensuring future generations of Potsdam students enjoy the
same growth and fulfillment.

I chose to be a part of this legacy to help nurture SUNY Potsdam’s traditions, champion its
values, and propel it to new heights, ensuring that our beacon of excellence never dims. As we
face difficult decisions, know that my commitment remains unwavering.
While our institution’s history of excellence runs deep, the national landscape of higher
education has changed, and we have felt that shift. Since 2010, our enrollment has declined
43%, but our workforce has diminished far less.

Indeed, many private institutions around New York have faced similar declines, and,
regrettably, some have even closed their doors. The aspirations of our students, the degrees
they want to hold and the careers they wish to pursue, have evolved. Now, we must realign our
academic programs with these changing student and market needs.

This brings us to our present circumstance. SUNY Potsdam is grappling with a structural,
recurring deficit of $9 million annually. Last year we brought in $38 million total revenue,
against $47 million dollars in expenses. What that means is that to balance our annual budget,
we need to find a way to spend $9 million dollars less each year. Once monthly salaries are
paid, Potsdam is already in debt, with nothing left to fund other day-to-day operations. This is
clearly not sustainable, and we have failed to address the problem in any substantial way for far
too long.
Yes, I recognize that state support has not kept pace with our needs. Yes, I understand that
we're facing increased costs in the coming years. We must confront this stark reality: there will
be no bailouts. This challenge is ours, and ours alone, to solve. Today, we stand at a crossroads.
Without immediate acEon, the future of this insEtuEon that we all know and love is uncertain.
These are difficult words to say, and hard ones to hear, I know. But there is a way forward.

Over the past several months, The President’s Council, in partnership with experts at SUNY, have
developed a roadmap to guide this campus onto a path of financial stability. It requires difficult
choices, but I firmly believe that it will enable SUNY Potsdam to lean into our strengths and secure
our future. We have limited the negaEve impacts on students wherever possible, because
Potsdam’s students are why we are here. Maintaining exisEng enrollment and aKracEng new
students is central to our long-term success.

As a first step, we need to reimagine our campus as serving a steady enrollment of 2,500
students, with hopes of growing to 3,000 or more one day, reflecting the reality of the higher
education marketplace—instead of building a budget around unrealistic expectations of
returning to historic highs. This is our reality, and there's a successful, prosperous future that can
grow from that reality. This means reallocating our faculty to where students are, and right-
sizing our programs and departments to better match the current student and workforce needs.

Over the past decade, SUNY Potsdam has taken steps to reduce costs, but we still haven’t closed
the gap. During this time, operational budgets were pared down to their bare minimum, and
staffing cuts have been made solely through attrition, with disproportionate impacts to different
areas of campus. This plan takes a whole college approach.

An essenEal element of our strategy involves recalibraEng our academic offerings, including
reviewing 14 programs currently being recommended for disconEnuaEon over the course of the
next few years, in addiEon to the 4 that were disconEnued earlier this summer. I want to stress
that this plan is evolving. While there is sEll some room for conversaEon and exploraEon, at this
Eme the programs being recommended for disconEnuaEon based on enrollment declines are
listed here.
This will lead to a notable reducEon in faculty roles in these areas. In addiEon, in order to ensure
the conEnued viability of our other programs, faculty posiEons in other areas will be reduced as
we adjust our workforce to serve our exisEng enrollment.

Nothing about this is easy, because all of our faculty and staff are valued. It’s important to
understand that a reducEon or eliminaEon of a content area does not reflect poorly on that
program’s quality, or its dedicated instructors. We are making difficult but necessary decisions
for our campus as a whole, based on hard facts, given our limited resources.

As you may remember, I followed a tradiEonal path to the presidency, meaning I worked first as
a faculty member, then moved up the administraEve structure on the academic side. Before
coming here, I have worked at insEtuEons facing challenges similar to those we are currently
addressing and have navigated them successfully. I share this to emphasize that I understand the
impact of modernizing our academic offerings and faculty reducEons on a campus. This is not a
decision made lightly, but it is a decision that must be made if SUNY Potsdam is to survive into
the next century and to thrive – as I know we can.

I want to make three points about these programs and this decision.

One: every student in these programs will have the opEon of compleEng their degrees here with
the SUNY Potsdam name across them. I make that promise today.

Two: We will work to ensure that a proper and appropriate teach-out plan is implemented. To do
this, I will need your help and guidance.

And lastly: It’s also important to note that just because a program is being disconEnued, does not
necessarily mean all posiEons in that area will be cut. Most importantly, we remain commiKed
to our General EducaEon curriculum.

Even though some of these changes may not be completely unexpected, I know they may sEll
come as a shock. I want to reiterate that this is not a reflecEon of the value or quality of these
programs. We have simply have more programs than are supported by enrollment revenue. There
was no “good” choice available—just choices supported by the reality of our students’ aspiraEons
and areas of focus.

Every facet of the campus will be impacted. Our plan will also be evaluaEng the eliminaEon of
some clerical posiEons as we transiEon to a model across Academic Affairs and other divisions
that aligns work needs and capacity. This transiEon will enable us to streamline our workforce
while providing the levels of service students deserve and expect.

While projecEng precise reducEons is impossible due to uncertainEes like reErements and
aKriEon, I promise we will follow the contract, and civil service rules where applicable, and will
assist and support people throughout that process as best we can.

To help us with personnel reducEons, the FoundaEon has graciously alloKed funds for a voluntary
separaEon program to be implemented as a part of our plan. ReErements and aKriEon will
significantly impact the number of reducEons that take place, so this program will be key to our
success. Details about this incenEve, as well as the process to apply, will be released today, and
we are grateful for their support and their faith in our future.

As we look ahead, we are evaluaEng every corner of our campus to determine how it can align
with our evolving operaEons and program offerings. That starts with me. I will not fill the roles
of Chief of Staff or Vice President of Enrollment in my office. I am asking my cabinet to do more
than any AdministraEon has ever had to do, with less. In addiEon, several areas are already
beginning to restructure or reorganize their operaEons in order to find efficiencies and respond
to the changing needs of campus.

With changes to our academic offerings, we will also need to adjust planning for facilities usage
going forward. This will include examining our campus footprint to see if we can identify ways to
better utilize our infrastructure, minimize costs and increase revenue by bringing in community
groups and other third-party events. Collaborations with our Space Committee, the SUNY
Construction Fund, and with YOU—our campus community—are crucial. For instance, Dunn
Hall is currently under consideration for closure. Those now in that space would be reassigned
to other- better- spaces. We’re also exploring eliminating Knowles South, East and West, but
investing in better utilization of the Knowles Conference Center and Knowles North.

I share this information with you because I strongly believe transparency is critical. But I must
also stress that at this point we are simply in the conversation and exploration stage related to
Potsdam’s physical footprint and will collectively, as a community, determine the most efficient
and effective path forward.

I ask you to remember that the overall purpose of this plan is to allow us to provide a sustainable
path for SUNY Potsdam to thrive for years to come. While we are in a moment of great challenge,
we are also in a moment of great opportunity. As we refocus our resources in some areas, we will
be invesEng in others. An important part of moving forward will be to determine our strengths
and growth potenEal - such as our graduate programs in educaEon and management that are
thriving - and invest resources in their conEnued success.

Thanks to the Governor, members of the State Legislature, and SUNY System, SUNY Potsdam
was given an infusion of $3.6 million of increased operating aid this year - $2.5 million of which
is ongoing. This 25% increase in direct state tax support is the largest single year increase in
state investment in many years, and a significant commitment to bolstering our vision forward.
These designated funds will allow us to expand in critical areas through SUNY-targeted
initiatives that will contribute greatly to student success on our campus.

With the support of the SUNY TransformaEon Grant, we will invest in the ACE IniEaEve which will
elevate support for disadvantaged, highly resilient undergraduates to achieve excellence in
personal, social and academic pursuits. With an iniEal cohort of 150 students planned for Fall
2024, this refocus on comprehensive support will increase graduaEon rates and decrease transfer
and dropout rates.

We also plan to increase our online offerings in areas focused on our strengths to increase
enrollment. We are exploring innovaEve academic programs in areas of proven experEse and
student demand and will invest in their development.
Micro credenEaling is another potenEal area of growth that has been yet unexplored. This is our
opportunity to be creaEve, work with colleagues from other disciplines, and develop
programming that is in high demand by today’s workforce. This is also an opportunity to explore
potenEal partnerships to benefit the community and our graduates alike, while raising revenue.

Increasing enrollment for our campus is the most accessible way to increase our revenue,
allowing us to beKer support and strengthen our exisEng programs. We have in the past been
overly opEmisEc about our enrollment growth potenEal, and are now more realisEc about our
goals. I am firm in the belief that if we lean into the areas where we are strongest, students will
conEnue to want to come here.

My future-focused vision for Potsdam is about invesEng and growing in the areas where we
know we excel. We launched our strategic planning process last month, and this process can
help us innovate, inspire, and have an impact on our students and in our region. This process is
paramount to our success moving forward and will allow us to recommit to a vision that
celebrates who we are and what we do at SUNY Potsdam, and to support each other along the
way.

The fact that SUNY Potsdam is a small, Eghtly knit campus community is one of its greatest
strengths. The sense of family we all cherish will make these changes hard, as each of us will be
personally impacted in some way. But that sense of family is also what will enable us to meet
our challenges and overcome them. We’ll go through this together, and I will be seeking your
collaboraEon and input. I believe this plan will put us on sound fiscal fooEng and on a path
toward a brighter academic and fiscal future.

Thank you.