Dear Editor-

I think I speak for all of us here at WKU when I say, “Budget cuts suck!” President Ransdell’s budget reduction plan contains several practical money saving ideas we should have applied all along, some unfortunate but expected cuts, as well as a few surprises. Few here at Western will go unaffected by them.

President Ransdell deserves credit for tackling such a daunting task. I know I’m glad it wasn’t my job to come up with almost 6 million dollars at the last minute before the end of the fiscal year. But while I recognize the necessity of these cuts and appreciate Ransdell’s efforts, I find it difficult not to be a little skeptical, if not outright angry, about certain aspects of the new plan. Yeah, we all got our gripes. Here’s mine.

Part-time faculty lost their only benefit last week. Formerly, part-timers were allowed to take one class (3 hrs) per semester without paying tuition. Effective this summer, the tuition waiver is eliminated. While I’m certain many will come up with the $666 to take one class every semester, many others, including myself, must simply cease taking classes altogether. Will this plan actually generate that much revenue for the university?

Dependants of full-time faculty will continue to receive a 50% tuition discount for up to 6 hours per semester. I don’t support the elimination of this discount, but it is extremely frustrating to find people who aren’t even employed by Western receiving more benefits that people who actually work here.

Barry Kaufkins

Part-time instructor and soon-to-be former student

Bowling Green (hometown)

(270) 618-5859 (home phone)