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SOU’s Bailey stresses unity amid cost-cutting ideas By Kevin Opsahl Dec 05, 2022 12:15 AM A A Southern Oregon University President Rick Bailey speaks Friday during a town hall meeting in the Rogue River Room of the Stevenson Union. [Kevin Opsahl/Mail Tribune] With major offices of Southern Oregon University laying out the scope of operations — which could face steep cuts or outright elimination — SOU President Rick Bailey understands members of the campus community will get an “emotional reaction” to it all in the coming months. But he asked them Friday to think of what binds them together to help him make decisions. “I am expecting that when we meet again in January, the questions may become a lot more sharp — and that’s OK, too,” said Bailey, speaking in the second in a series of town hall meetings in the Stevenson Union’s Rogue River Room. “My only ask is that we keep thinking about the ... north star of why we are doing this, and that is to help protect future students here and to make sure this institution celebrates its 300th anniversary. Those are reasons worth fighting for.” The SOU president, who took office a year ago next month, painted a bleak picture Friday for the university if it does not enact his strategic realignment plan, part of which will involve cuts throughout the Ashland institution. The plan should be submitted to the Board of Trustees for approval by March. The savings must be realized by June 2024. “The board has given us a mandate that we need to achieve these savings,” Bailey said. “They base that on the proforma that, two and a half years from now, we have this $13 million deficit.” The strategic realignment plan, which Bailey announced at the start of the academic year, calls for teamwork in managing costs with steps that will reduce recurring, annual expenses, as well as programmatic realignments. That’s how five major university sectors, from academic affairs to athletics, provided detailed analysis of each of their programs on the president’s website Friday to get the ball rolling on a realignment proposal to the board. “This is unfortunate. I have to own it that a lot of this stuff went up this afternoon,” Bailey said. “If I ask for a show of hands as to how many people have read that, that’s incredible. I wonder what else you’re actually doing. It’s not reasonable to have conversations today about the specifics of what you’re going to find.” Bailey cautioned everyone in attendance that he, as president, will examine the proposed cuts before making a presentation to the board “Let me confess: Yes, that is the way this is going to work — that doesn’t mean there is not going to be input,” he said. “For everything that we stop doing as an institution, there will be people furious with me. That’s hard, but I think the alternatives are worse.” Helen Eckard, an administrative program assistant, expressed her concerns about programmatic cuts. “I feel like academic affairs is getting hit pretty hard,” she said. “I’m concerned. I don’t think we should throw the baby out with the bath water, per se. I feel like we’ve made cuts to the bone already.” Luana Stevens, office specialist for TRiO/Student Support Services, offered support to Bailey as he helps the board make difficult decisions. “I have to applaud you for taking the bull by the horns to help us realign what has been out of line,” Stevens said. “I don’t call you the hatchet man; I call you the savior man because you’re working to try to save the university for all the students, faculty and staff that are here now and all of those that are to come.” Bailey said student, faculty and staff feedback on the strategic realignment plan is “with it, so this is not a top-down thing.” Without the decisions made by a strategic realignment plan, Bailey added that thinking of the university’s future is “a pretty scary picture.” “I fear what would happen if we weren’t here and making the decisions we’re going to make,” Bailey said. SOU Student Senator Taham Khosroabadi, who asked Bailey how students could contribute to the strategic realignment plan, shared his thoughts on classes of SOU students that will come long after he graduates next year. “Overall, I’m hopeful,” Khosroabadi said. “Struggle is a part of life. It’s how we endure it, is something I learned in the military. Are we going to go through it in a negative mindset, or are we going to use this as an opportunity to grow together? I think President Bailey’s leadership pushes that.” More town halls are scheduled from 10 a.m. to noon, Thursday, Jan. 12, and 9-11 a.m. Thursday, Feb. 16. All meetings will take place in the Rogue River Room on campus and livestream at the link sou.edu/video . SOU campus community members wishing to give input on the strategic realignment plan can email [email protected]. Reach reporter Kevin Opsahl at 541-776-4476 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @KevJourno.